Fantasy Travel Tomsk Womble Talks Chekhov’s Gun

Today’s episode of the XaW Files: Fantasy Travel by Google Maps Across Eurasia uncannily and uncaninely features the Wombles of Wimbledon just after the Wimbledon tennis tournament took place.

The Wombles are set to return, like Monty Python and Dangermouse, in a revival of good 1970s British culture.

English: Preparing the lawn in Court #1. RATC Wimbledon, London, UK (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By the way, there’s so much sport been going on lately that William Wolfsworth called himself a sport correspondent yesterday. He does like a game of football, but I think that was an own goal.

Hi, it’s G.G. Howling, fantasy travel correspondent at the greenYgrey inspired by J.K. Rowling in the human world. Here’s episode 12:

Chapter 1 Episode 12: Tomsk Times Two

Chekhov’s statue returned to its plinth position and stood still and silent as if nothing had ever happened.

I was wondering what to do with Sibiryakov’s body when a Womble I remembered as Tomsk wandered along and cleared the body up.

Underground, overground, wombling free (219/365) (Photo credit: Mags_cat)

I thanked Tomsk, and said I’d been a fan of his when the Wombles were at their peak, although Orinoco was my favourite. I asked him where Orinoco is now. Tomsk replied that he’d returned to his river in South America.

Tomsk Talks Chekhov

Tomsk asked if I knew Sibiryakov, as he brushed his body up into his bag.

I said I had met him on the road to Irkutsk, and he’d seemed a very interesting travel companion.

Tomsk said it was a shame, but Chekhov’s gun kept on being used, and many fictional characters had been killed by it over the years.

Chekhov Helps Tomsk

Wimbledon Common autumn mist (Photo credit: wimbledonian)

‘Still, I suppose it keeps me in stories, and gives my work a deeper meaning,’ added Tomsk.

I replied that it did seem to have matured a lot since its time on Wimbledon Common.

Tomsk sighed, ‘Ah, they were carefree days I look back on with fondness. I was young then, and living far away from home. Returning to my Russian city made me seek a bigger mission in life. I had collected so many pieces of paper and sweet wrappers I was ready for a new challenge. When I saw the bodies piled up around the Chekhov statue it rekindled my enthusiasm for public health and sanitation. Chekhov’s statue is alright most of the time, it’s just when it hears philosophical and literary talk that it wakes up and uses its gun.’

‘Well, I’d better be off,’ said Tomsk, ‘it was nice talking to you. I’ve been expecting you for some time; since I told Sibiryakov about you in Tobolsk.’

Anatoly Chekhov – Teenage Soviet sniper at Stalingrad! (Photo credit: Za Rodinu)

Sibiryakov Tomsk Link Remembered

I remembered then that Sibiryakov had indeed told me that Tomsk had told him about me. I asked Tomsk if there was some meaning to the connection between the three of us.

‘It is the self-fulfilling philosophy of Chekhov’s Gun,’ replied Tomsk, before he shuffled away along the Tom River banks looking not unlike he had on Wimbledon Common.

Anton Chekhov, Russian writer, (1860-1904).

Link for Amazon book and kindle.

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Mirror Poem Reflection 20 from Poetry Book

Reflections of the I (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The fmpoetry.wordpress.com website has just updated the poetry reflections from Marc Latham’s 242 Mirror Poems and Reflections book with reflections 11-15, so we’d better keep a step or five ahead, and post reflection 20.

Mirror Poem Reflections

Hi, it’s William Wolfsworth, satirical comedy poetry correspondent at the greenYgrey inspired by legendary Romantic poet William Wordsworth.

Reflection 20 mirrored Summer’s Sunset Soliloquy, which mixed balancing mental health and sunbathing in the top half of the poem; with balancing positive and negative attitudes and behaviour towards people in the bottom half.

Here’s Reflection 20 of 121 in 242 Mirror Poems and Reflections:

Strength and Death

In youth I felt strong enough to die.
In middle-age I feel my strength dying.
In old age I expect to feel death strengthen.

Double Dutch Greenygrey Goalies Save Falklands

Julio Cesar held on to the World Cup 2014 golden greenYgrey Number 1 goalie jersey for three weeks, as the Tour de France leader wears a yellow jersey, but his reign at the top was ended in spectacular fashion last night; like a special Stella Lagerwolf-Bruno outfit after a night on the tiles; as a great Germany team put seven goals past a depleted Brazil side without star player Neymar and best defender Silva.

César Rodriguez, cantautor. (Photo credit: Tonymadrid Photography)

Hi, it’s Martin ‘Werewolfie’ Adams, with yet another satirical comedy sports report from the Brazil 2014 World Cup. I am still inspired by darts legend Martin ‘Wolfie’ Adams.

Brazil = 1 Germany = 7

Poor Cesar didn’t stand a chance last night, as his defence crumbled under an efficient and skilful German team.

None of the goals were really the fault of Julio Cesar, although he might have been disappointed to let Schurrle’s second and Germany’s seventh in at his near post; although by that time it was of little consequence, and the Brazilian team was thoroughly dejected… and rejected by even most of their own fans.

Julio César (Photo credit: mmarftrejo)

It was a sad end to the World Cup for Brazilian fans that had lived in hope rather than belief, with their current side a pale shadow of previous great teams, which peaked with Pele in the Mexico 1970 World Cup.

Manuel Neuer took over the golden greenYgrey jersey from Cesar after the game. Neuer did not have much to do during the game, although he did make a great double save at the start of the second half, but has been consistently great during the tournament.

Neuer combines great reflexes with a confident aura in the penalty box, and even plays like an extra outfield player by sweeping up long balls behind his defence. He therefore seems like the complete keeper, and a worthy winner of the golden greenYgrey jersey.

Argentina v Netherlands

The Netherlands qualified for tonight’s other semi-final with Argentina after substituting one greenYgrey goalie for another before a penalty shoot-out with Costa Rica.

Jasper Cillesson made way for Tim Krul, who has of course has been the golden greenYgrey goalie in the English Premier League for the last couple of seasons, as featured on this blog.

Krul saved two Costa Rican penalties to send the Dutch through to a semi-final against Argentina that evokes memories of the 1978 World Cup final in Argentina, which the Argentinians won 3-1 after extra time.

The World Cup had been a magical ticker-tapes success, but Argentina unfortunately spoiled it four years later when they invaded the Falklands Islands, which were uninhabited before Britain claimed them.

If the Dutch win tonight, a final against Germany will mirror the 1974 final forty years ago this year, although Germany were still West Germany then. West Germany beat the Netherlands 2-1 in that final.

FIFA World Cup 1974 in Germany :*Graphics by Poell :*Ausgabepreis: 30 Pfennig :*First Day of Issue / Erstausgabetag: 15. Mai 1974 :*Michel-Katalog-Nr: 811 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Argentina played West Germany in two World Cup finals running in 1986 and 1990, with the South Americans winning 3-2 in ’86 (after Maradona cheated in the quarter-final v England) and WG winning 1-0 in the second (after luckily beating England on penalties in the semi-final).

No European side has ever won the World Cup in the Americas.

It seems likely that this will be the first time, although Lionel Messi and La Albiceleste will be hoping to wrestle the World Cup trophy currently held by Spain back to the mixed-up land of Gauchos, Guevara and Galtieri… which is politically and sportingly dominated by the descendants of European colonists.

Tour de France Le Grand Depart Coincidence

Last week we reported the Tour de France Le Grand Depart Le Grand Coincidence, with Yorkshire also using a yellow Y like the greenYgrey, and focusing on yellowing the greenYgrey Yorkshire countryside in celebration of the world’s longest cycling race starting in the English county of Wensleydale cheese and many a golden summer ale.

Princess Kate Clothes 

Bianca Rinaldi (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Hi, it’s Paco Wolfsang, satirical comedy fashionista apprentica with another sweetly soporific sorty into the world of greenYgrey fashion, packed with high season hues guaranteed to put a smile on your slacks.

The coincidences kept coming on the day of the race too you know, and one was of particular interest to the fashion department in the greenYgrey.

That was Princess Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, starting the official race at Harewood House with princes William and Harry in the greenygrey outfit made famous on this year’s Oz tour, where she visited many places made famous by Grey on its epic virtual ramble across all parts of Australia in Werewolf of Oz: Fantasy Travel by Google Maps.

Umbrellas and Sunglasses

After a wet Friday afternoon and Saturday morning the thick clouds cleared by the time Le Grand Depart sent the 198 cyclists off on their epic Tour.

This made it a sunshine after the rain day in line with the Berri dance anthem adopted by the greenYgrey in May this year.

Weekend of Sport Satirical Comedy Highlights

There was a great weekend of sport in Britain, as the Tour de France riders departed on their long journey from Yorkshire to Paris via the south of France; the British Formula One Grand Prix roared around Silverstone, and the Wimbledon tennis finals took place. There was some great sporting action, and a lot of the highlights were in glorious greenYgrey.

Tour de France in Yorkshire

Hi, it’s Martin ‘Werewolfie’ Adams, satirical comedy sports correspondent at the greenYgrey inspired by darts legend Martin ‘Wolfie’ Adams.

The crowds and weather surpassed even the brightest hopes in Yorkshire, as two and a half million people are thought to have cheered the Tour de France from its Grand Depart in Leeds to Harrogate, and York to Sheffield, on the first two stages of its long journey to Paris.

There were mostly blue skies through throughout the weekend in Yorkshire, but the BBC does lead with this old-fashioned greenygrey photo on its website. Perhaps it is fitting, as the tour travelled through Bronte country around the village of Haworth.

Today the Tour travels from Cambridge to London on the third and final stage in England, before continuing in France.

Team GB‘s defending champion and Team Sky rider Chris Froome is currently in fifth place, after Vincenzo Nibali won Stage Two utilising all the greenYgreying skills vital for  cycling in Yorkshire.

Lewis Hamilton Wins British Grand Prix for Team GG

Lewis Hamilton gave Britain a home victory as he won the British Grand Prix at Silverstone for Team GG/Mercedes.

Mercedes/Team GG teammate Nico Rosberg was disappointed that his race was ended by car trouble, but it had nothing to do with its greenygrey colour design.

Rosberg showed he didn’t blame the greenygrey when he appeared with it afterwards.

Wimbledon Men’s Tennis Final

Wimbledon provided wall-to-wall greenYgrey for a fortnight, but fizzled out at the end for greenYgrey interest.

Old Team GG stalwart and King of Clay Rafa Nadal struggled on grass again, while Team GB’s Andy Murray lost to new Team GG player GriGor Dimitrov.

So it was left to sometimes Team GG player Novak Djokovic to defeat the old vampire nemesis Roger Federer on a spectacularly greenYgrey centre court. Old legend Federer had done well to reach the Wimbledon final after a couple of years absence from a Grand Slam final.

Wimbledon Women’s Tennis Final

While it didn’t look like there was much to choose between Petra Kvitova and Eugenie Bouchard in the women’s singles final, the greenYgrey was 75% supporting Bouchard, but Kvitova won 75% of the play!

We were hoping to see Bouchard boo(merang) hard, but it wasn’t to be this time! Congratulations to Kvitova for winning her second Wimbledon title, and here’s Bouchard in a previous trophy-winning boomerang.

Tour de France’s greenYgrey Welcome to Leeds Yorkshire

Leeds, Yorkshire‘s Le Grand Depart Le Grand Coincidence got grander last night, as I watched the welcoming and opening ceremony at the impressively greenYgrey Leeds First Direct Arena. Some of the attendees were wearing a yellow Y, which is totally the same as the greenYgrey‘s promotion of the Y to symbolise yellow!

Leeds Tour de France Le Grand Depart

Hi, it’s Martin ‘Werewolfie’ Adams, satirical comedy sports correspondent at the greenYgrey inspired by darts legend Martin ‘Wolfie’ Adams.

Yes, there was a great greenYgrey Leeds Yorkshire welcome for the 198 Tour de France riders at the 13,500 capacity First Direct Arena, which only opened just over a year ago.

Tour de France Yorkshire Merchandise

Some of the people interviewed, such as singer Alistair Griffin (who sings the official Tour de France Le Grand Depart song, The Road, with the lovely Kimberly Walsh of Girls Aloud fame; the song’s video on YouTube is posted below) and politician Nick Clegg, were wearing a yellow Y, probably to symbolise Yorkshire, but also reminding us of greenYgrey. Such symbolic merchandise is available on the Welcome to Yorkshire website.

As well as greenYgrey, the yellow Y can also represent the iconic yellow jersey of the Tour de France coming to Yorkshire. Yellow and blue are also important symbolic colours in Leeds and Yorkshire.

Tour de France Teams

As I watched the Tour de France teams being introduced last night I realised Team GG (gYg) has a player in the great game.

Yes, I’m proud to announce that Team Europcar is flying the greenYgrey colours.

Tour de France in Leeds

Although I read Marc Latham’s detailed Tour de France Le Grand Depart Leeds history and sights articles on TravelThruHistory and Go Nomad I didn’t know the exact Leeds start and route until this morning.

Then I looked on the Leeds.gov.uk website and saw it starts outside the Leeds art gallery on the Headrow, and then heads east down Eastgate to Regent Street, before heading north towards Harewood House via the Sheepscar Interchange.

Here’s a greenYgrey map showing the direction of the race, and fastest walking routes between the Headrow and Regent Street:

Here’s the official song The Road video, which features some great greenYgrey Yorkshire scenery:

Enjoy the race, and good luck to all the riders, and especially the virtually Team GG and sometimes Team GB ones.

New Janis Joplin Mirror Poem

Cycling the Tour de France must be a great way to travel, but hard work. Travelling independently for a long time is the same, but different, in a greenYgrey kind of way. Both can be inspiring, and inspire a feeling of freedom. It can seem an illusion afterwards, but was real at the time. All feelings are transitory illusions between birth and death; probably never based on the whole truth, or actual reality of a situation; not that there is an actual reality, as every event has many angles; to be observed from the inside or outside, left or right, up or down.

Old Mirror Poem Reference

Reflection, Imitation, Experience (Photo credit: Rickydavid)

Hi, it’s William Wolfsworth, satirical comedy poetry correspondent at the greenYgrey inspired by legendary Romantic poet William Wordsworth.

Reflection 19 of Marc Latham’s 242 Mirror Poems and Reflections was Travelling with Janis Joplin. Janis left an unhappy youth in Texas and found fame in the California music scene, but never really found happiness, becoming disillusioned with hippy hypocrisy before dying of a drugs overdose in 1970.

Travelling with Janis Joplin reflected the Folding Mirror poem Art of Humanity, which was posted on fmpoetry.wordpress.com in July, 2011; yes, nearly four years ago. The reflection was:

Existential travel
searching for confirmation
only freedom to lose.

New Folding Mirror Poem

Oiseaux de Franz Marc (Photo credit: dalbera)

It’s only a small reflection, so I thought I’d ask Marc to create something new for all you poetry and philosophy lovers, as you may have been waiting eagerly for new material since my last thrilling appearance on this here lil blog.

Marc duly obliged, writing a poem entirely about Janis Joplin, in a biopic kind of way. It provides some factual information about Janis told through an imaginary meeting.

Janis grew up in Port Arthur, Texas and had a younger sister who attended her wake in San Francisco. Janis started her California career singing in the band Big Brother and the Holding Company.  Somewhere Near Salinas is part of the Me and Bobby McGee song made famous by Janis. Here’s the poem:

Happiness over Horizon, Jiving with Janis

on a memorable day of bopping
round clocking with Janis Joplin
at some Hollywood palace
of debateable excellence
I asked her if she treasures
memories from Port Arthur Texas

why did I ask, you really wanna know

forgetting love Somewhere Near Salinas
I remembered my past without fuss
boredom creates blues
feeling nothing to lose
replied singer in Big Brother
but I cherish Laura little sister

Mirror Poem about Janis Joplin

Marc Latham’s latest Folding Mirror poem is a fantasy conversation with Janis Joplin, who tragically died of an overdose at aged 27 in 1970.

Mirror Poem Explanation

There is no anniversary relevance for a poem about Janis Joplin in the wider world, but she was the subject of Reflection 19 in Marc Latham’s 242 Mirror Poems and Reflections, and it is that reflection’s turn to be serialised on Marc’s greenYgrey website.

So, in a first from that book, here’s a new Folding Mirror poem inspired by a reflection. It tells a story of an imaginary meeting with Janis in a biopic kind of way, based on real aspects in her life.

Janis grew up in Port Arthur, Texas and had a younger sister who attended her wake in San Francisco. Janis started her California career singing in the band Big Brother and the Holding Company.  Somewhere Near Salinas is part of the Me and Bobby McGee song made famous by Janis.

New Mirror Poem

Here’s the poem:

Happiness over Horizon, Jiving with Janis

on a memorable day of bopping
round clocking with Janis Joplin
at some Hollywood palace
of debateable excellence
I asked her if she treasures
memories from Port Arthur Texas

why did I ask, you really wanna know

forgetting love Somewhere Near Salinas
I remembered my past without fuss
boredom creates blues
feeling nothing to lose
replied singer in Big Brother
but I cherish Laura little sister

Leeds and Yorkshire Tour de France Photos

Leeds and Yorkshire is going gargantuan  greenYgrey this week. It is not in celebration of this website unfortunately, but is for a great reason. Yes, the Tour de France start (Le Grand Depart) is in Leeds on Saturday morning, and after the first day finishes in Harrogate, the second day will see the 198 cyclists whizz south through emerald summer dales from York to Sheffield. The third and final day in Britain will travel from Cambridge to London.

Tour de France Le Grand Depart

Hi, it’s Martin ‘Werewolfie’ Adams, satirical comedy sports reporter inspired by darts legend Martin ‘Wolfie’ Adams.

The greenYgrey’s promotion of yellow rebranding has of course been developing for several years – before the Le Grand Depart was awarded to Leeds; but the Tour de France has of course been awarding the iconic yellow jersey to the race leader for much longer.

So, although the greenYgrey and Tour de France have no direct links or influence on each other, they are meeting this weekend in Leeds and Yorkshire in a time-travel cultural-connection Le Grand Coincidence.

Our ol’ pal Marc Latham of course wrote two articles about the Tour de France and Leeds for Go Nomad and TravelThruHistory.

Leeds and Yorkshire Tour de France Images

There have been some great greenYgrey images this week, as Leeds and Yorkshire prepares for the Tour de France, and here’s a few:

  

Rolf Harris Another Example of Power-Crazed Alpha-Males

Rolf Harris was depicted as the devil of the kangaroo community in Werewolf of Oz: Fantasy Travel by Google Maps. Yesterday he was convicted of crimes against children. Harris’s depiction in Werewolf of Oz was not a prophecy, or even an educated guess, it was just because one of his most famous songs was Tie Me Kangaroo Down, and the fact that he was the most goody two-shoes Australian known in Britain.

Growing Up In 1970s Britain

Growing up in 1970s Britain you used to hear that child homes were ‘bad places’, but there was nothing about celebrities, so it has been a surprise and disappointment to see ‘nice’ people like Jimmy Savile, Stuart Hall and Rolf Harris convicted of child crimes, although it is good that they have.

Moreover, when the abuse in child homes was finally being exposed there were child-grooming gangs waiting outside, with men preying on the children by pretending to give them the love they’d lacked during their neglected childhood.

Living in ‘Multicultural’ Britain

Those gangs took advantage of New Labour’s ‘multicultural’ mantra that meant social alienation for those who dared to criticise the negative aspects of these new and rising cultures in British society.

Acting as New Labour’s biggest supporter in this was the BBC and liberal media. The same media outlets that had been covering up or neglecting to challenge their ‘celebrities’.

The Nigerian girls kidnapping showed the ‘norms’ of some of those cultures.

Studying in the ICS

I wanted to research and write about what was going on in Britain at that time.

I was stopped by the ICS’s man at the BBC, who was having a relationship with his student/secretary at the time. They had been to a conference together in Hawaii, and later married.

I was just finishing my thesis, and afterwards complained to the university about bullying and grooming in the ICS.

They said I was too late to complain about that, as there was a time limit, which was six months I think. They didn’t ask anything more about it.

I guess they wanted to protect their ‘stars’.

Celebrities Not a Surprise

So the behaviour of the exposed celebrities doesn’t seem such a surprise. A norm in academia and the workplace, and it seems in the media, is for those with power to expect some perks from their position.

For some of the powerful, this usually means grooming lower staff members, while persecuting any rivals or those who don’t adhere to their advances.

Britain has been cleaning its act up over the last decade. I hope it continues, and that future generations don’t relapse into a culture or cultures of cruelty, denial and self-induced ignorance.

Although it makes Britain look bad now, hopefully it’ll make it look better in the future. Most cultures and societies in the world are still years behind in such matters.