NEWS

Takakkaw Falls, Yoho National Park, 1224ft

“Sunrise, Sunset, how swiftly flow the days.”

A paraphrase of a very poignant song “Sunrise, Sunset“ from “Fiddler on the Roof” which speaks to the rapidity of our children growing up and the associated alarm of the parents.

Or in another interpretation, what the heck is happening to my holidays as they are slipping away so quickly? Adventures with the family, a hike to a thundering waterfall, a terrifying zip line experience the kids want to repeat, a few rounds of golf, some social time around the fire pit, a few libations, a couple of books and we have to start buying fall school supplies?

I don’t want to go back to reality, I want to stay with our brood in vacation mode for much longer. My inner eye can see all the ugly work issues piling up on my desk waiting and lurking for me to return. Or the hours yet to spend in an agricultural machinery cab, the “green prison” it’s called.

Don’t even breathe the words “school” around the children unless you want an instant uprising, abuse, runaways, hysteria, etc. As far as they are concerned they are never going back.

My apologies for the technical glitch regarding the free book in July. Let me try that again for August and see if I can do better.

And speaking of wanting to avoid the cold hard aspects of reality consider the protagonist’s plight in the SANCTUARY book above. You can read this book for FREE on Aug 12th and 13th. Yes FREE an uncommon price in this day and age!

Even I am startled by the speed of recent Artificial Intelligence development and it’s amazing capabilities. Be sure to visit ESCAPE VELOCITY for excellent books on Sci-Fi and AI.

While from time to time some of us may become negative or embittered with our military. It’s good to remember that in times of national disasters the military will be what holds the remnants of society in check from complete collapse.

A gorgeous sunset on Waskesiu Lake

Sunrise, Sunset
Swiftly fly the years
One season following another
Laden with happiness and tears.

Best

Martin E. Silenus

GPS Straight

Prairie folks are inclined to see things a bit different than let’s say urban folks might. The rural prairie folks live very close to the land and the critters thereon. It’s tough unrelenting outdoor work and not for everyone. Weather is always the determining factor in the success of prairie folks endeavors. Yes there are factors of International markets which affect prices both for purchasing of supplies and prices for the finished product sales. Arable lands are a defined commodity and always in demand as are the crops grown thereupon. The world is a hungry place and it only gets more so as the years go by.

You would also likely see a substantial difference when it comes to people’s harmony if you were to compare rural and urban folks. Rural folks think nothing of helping a neighbor with seeding, spraying, harvest if there is a need and would never expect to be compensated. The reason being “well you are a neighbor and in the same boat as me and I might need some help sometime too!” That sense of camaraderie seems to be often missing in the isolation of the urban jungle.

Self Sufficiency is the active term for rural folks, find a way or make a way as they say. Never let an engineer tell you it cannot be done. Just go ahead and build it. In the time it takes an engineer to tell you why it cannot be built rural folks can build it, break it, repair it, break it and have a third version solid prototype working nicely thank you very much. Necessity being the mother of invention, that sort of thing.

And speaking of self-sufficiency and necessary inventions consider the protagonist’s plight in the SANCTUARY book above. You can read this book for FREE on July 15th and 16th. Yes FREE an uncommon price in this day and age.

May I recommend the D.A.R.I.A. Book Series as an excellent choice for your vacation relaxation reading in between naps, libations and sun tanning. Why would you read Sci-Fi you ask? Well the book series deals with the positive aspects and effects of Artificial Intelligence instead of the usual doom, gloom and death of humanity as is so commonly portrayed these days. A refreshing change I say!

If Sci-Fi is not your favorite genre in books do follow the link above and explore some excellent Action, Crime & Thriller books.

Rural Prairie Scenery

Enjoy your summer!

Best

Martin

My father was a farmer and his father before him. Not a lifestyle to be taken lightly by any means. Dad never did have a cab on any of his machinery and endured one hundred degree heat, gale winds, rain, snow, hail, terrible choking dust and whatever else nature’s weather could throw at him wearing his Stetson hat, bib overalls and whatever else was required to cope with the weather that day.

These days the farming lads talk of “cab incarceration”. Months of time spent in cabs of various farm machines from dawn to dusk preparing, seeding, spraying, harvesting and only brief periods of actually being with the family. Most farm families work extremely hard to schedule a week at the lake between seeding and spraying to enjoy family times and make wonderful memories.

FREE yes FREE on June 17th and 18th you are invited to download a FREE copy of D.A.R.I.A. BOOK SIX from Amazon. Check out science fiction which will very soon be reality, feed your imagination and enjoy. Just click on the picture!

They watched the skies noting the wind direction and smelled the air for any indication of rain while the livestock milled restlessly. Others consulted weather reports, long range forecasts, expert tech predictions but the rain did not come. For more than three weeks the wind howled and moaned from the East both day and night shuffling clouds around while stealing what little moisture and life was left in the land amid billowing clouds of dust from dirt roads reduced to little but cracked powder trails.

On the twenty-third day the east wind died off, changed direction began to gust and freshen and the rain came without fanfare or thunderstorm or tornado. It rained an afternoon and through the night, paused for a day to catch its breath and rained again for two days. Calm rain all but straight down not driven sideways in a gale. The clouds blue and heavy lumbered by but there was no discernable wind as the rain hissed down, a “soaker rain” it is called.

There is calmness over the land as the rain washes away the dust, dirt and despair providing a rich fresh smell of prairie grasses and cultivated dark soils. It washes away the frustration, bitterness and jealousy of those who had suffered little or no crop for going on three years living on their wits and a meager sustaining budget. Even the livestock are given to graze quietly and thoughtfully.

Within a few days the prairie is transformed to brilliant green, the crop coming up, machinery washed clean, and of equal importance a spiritual freshness and optimism is imbued in those who are tilling the land. The rain while a physical necessity is also a critical psychological necessity of prairie life.

Best

Martin E. Silenus

It’s been a bit of an odd change of seasons out here on the wilds of the prairies. Snow, wind, snow, wind, blizzard, more wind then summer temps. Apparently no spring season this year, or it was so short we missed noticing it, perhaps Mother Nature could not fit it in to her schedule.

But no matter, we take what we get and it is the seeding season for there are crops to be sown, weeds to be killed, and feed for the cattle to be tended to and no time to be squandered. Maybe after the seeding is complete and the second or third spraying passes we might get a week off at a lake to rest, relax and replenish.

FREE yes FREE on May 20th and 21st you are invited to download a FREE copy of D.A.R.I.A. BOOK FIVE from Amazon. Check out science fiction which will very soon be reality, feed your imagination and enjoy. Just click the pic!

I have long held an interest in “natural disasters”, as if humanity is not capable of making its own disasters. Notwithstanding Earth has its own schedule of events and we are simply passengers. Above are a couple of ebooks which might appeal to you if you share such interests. Just click on the pic and you will be taken to Amazon for purchase. Enjoy!!

If Sci-Fi  or natural disasters are not your forte then check out this site for some “in your face” visceral firefight action. Foregive me if I recommend you wear your old clothes when reading so the blood splatter doesn’t matter.

A powerful visual confirmation of spring on the prairies is the appearance of the fields of Crocus. The beautiful delicate flowering plant which bursts forth like magic in one of the most hostile environments.

They have a special place in my heart as my deceased Mother always loved them so much. Well, she probably liked they represented the end of another bleak winter as much as the flower itself. No matter it is May, Mother’s Day and time for the picking of a lovely bunch of Crocus’s for your Mother or wife.

Please don’t forget!!

Best

Martin E. Silenus

Aurora Borealis

While our family has not assigned any particular superstition or myths to the Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights and simply enjoyed them as a spectacular display of the sky, many beliefs are associated with them.

A baby conceived under Northern Lights will be beautiful and lucky.

The Northern Lights ease the pain of childbirth.

If they turn red, run.

Don’t whistle at the Northern Lights.

It’s time to go fishing.

However one of our family members had the opportunity to spent time at Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories and up there the intensity of the Aurora Borealis borders on alarming. You can hear the crackle and hiss from the light speed collision of the energized particles with the Earth’s upper atmosphere. Proving once and for all Interstellar Galactic battles do exist!

On April 15th and 16th you are invited to download a FREE copy of D.A.R.I.A. BOOK FOUR from Amazon. A little Science Fiction, perhaps not too far-fetched, for your reading and imagination pleasure!

Speaking of intergalactic interstellar energy firefights, check out Matter and Energy for exciting Science Fiction books.

Of course for the SCI-FI purist there is no substitute for the real thing. Be sure to stop by Reach for the Stars to really scratch the itch!

If you are inclined to widen your reading horizons to include Action/Adventure be sure to visit the site above for an excellent selection of books.

If Sci-Fi is not your forte then check out this Group for some “in your face” visceral firefight action. Forgive me if I recommend you wear your old clothes when reading so the blood splatter doesn’t matter.

While I would love to think it is spring these twelve foot snowbanks have obviously missed the e-mail or text message and are convincing me winter is not over as yet and we have a ways to go before green grass and flowers. 

As the Aussies say “Well bugger!”

Best

Martin E. Silence

I met a friend for coffee and a chat regarding the state of world affairs and to catch up on the gossip particular to our area. When I arrived he was idly paging through one of the last remaining newspapers, except he was paging through it backwards. I thought that a bit strange and asked him about it. Well he says, the bad news to capture reader’s attention is all at the front of the newspaper and the good news and pleasant stories are all at the back. I prefer to spend the little time I have for browsing newspapers reading pleasant news and not the latest bad news, so I read the newspaper backwards.

The North American Prairies is currently going through another “extreme cold” period with temps of -30 Celsius and winds of more than 10km/h making a combined wind chill and temperature of over -40 Celsius. Of course the good news is this is not uncommon for us so we know what to do, or more precisely what not to do to survive. It can be summed up succinctly by my Grandfather saying “Extra food and stay close to the fire!”

We are thankful as we have no war going on here and no earthquakes destroying our homes and infrastructure. Just keep the machinery used to support your cattle in a heated shop so it will start and put out extra feed for the cattle while watching for animals down or exhibiting pneumonia symptoms from the rapid temperature change. Extra feed and bedding in the shelter of the wind break or the barn will keep the hay burners content. Hopefully the severe weather will break before calving season late in March.

On March 18th and 19th you are invited to download a FREE copy of D.A.R.I.A. BOOK THREE from Amazon. A little Science Fiction, not too far-fetched, to distract yourselves from the rigors of the inclement weather.

For further excellent reading on future matters of Sci-Fi and Artificial Intelligence be sure to click on the above picture.

And speaking of AI’s like CHATGTP and similar entities of Artificial Intelligence that exist or are in development, just click on the above pic to discover more and what the future might hold.

Where do you hide to try to survive when all we know of reality is in chaos and carnage. When life itself is tentative at best, what ancient rules of life do we adopt to get through the day and the night?

You have come to the right place for Action and Adventure and to discover a a new story like never before!

Keeping an eye on the cattle, who are keeping an eye on me and wondering where the nifty food treats are. Don’t make me hurt you human…..!

Best

Martin E. Silenus

HOAR FROST ON FENCE

We have experienced a great deal of fog and ice fog this winter which results in terrible roads, downed power lines and amazing photo opportunities as the hoar frost builds up on everything.

No doubt there is a farmer/rancher’s tale for all the days of fog such as rain in 90 days, which would be great if that was really the case. However I fear as nice a thought of spring rains are to farmers and ranchers there is little Meteorological proof to that effect. A superstitious lot these farmers and ranchers yet grounded in facts and logic. But it seems whatever weather events occur there is generally a handed down superstition to fit the occasion.

On February 18th and 19th you will be able to download D.A.R.I.A. BOOK TWO from Amazon for free. Yup FREE, I think you will agree the price is right. And if you follow the newsletter each month you will always get a free book. Lower cost, higher enjoyment!

There are no limits on Artificial Intelligence and subsequently on the power it unleashes for mankind. CHATGPT merely scratches the surface of the endless depth of possibilities.

Tales of the largest force the world has ever encountered. The impacts of Artificial Intelligence, is it doom or is it paradise and who will be the winners and who the losers.

Where do you hide to try to survive when all we know of reality is in chaos and carnage. When life itself is tentative at best, what ancient rules of life do we adopt to get through the day and the night?

What happens when there are natural disasters which are larger and more destructive than mankind can comprehend? What are the rules of the day is it kill or be killed, what of the moral values and what is the yard stick we measure by?

If you are looking for me and I am missing in action I will likely be out taking pictures of the frost displays and watching the dogs go mad thrashing through the trees and covering themselves in frost. One of the dogs ultimate giggles.

Best

Martin E. Silenus

Happy New Year and all the best in 2023

Yes, we certainly did have some weather related challenges over the holidays. Well it’s the winter season and Mother Nature will have her way, there is no question of that. I do note that of recent years we have enjoyed some milder temps with less snow in the winters. This season is a return to the older traditional very dangerous winter style.

I will make an observation to which it seems those conveniences and services we have grown so used to utilizing seem to fail very quickly when placed under duress. I would prefer to see a larger degree of robustness designed into the systems. Nevertheless a big shout out to everyone involved in the maintenance, recovery and repair of those failed systems and services. We appreciate your efforts to keep things running.

I hope you have enjoyed and taken advantage of the free book give away which I run each month. For January 2023 D.A.R.I.A. BOOK ONE will be free on Amazon on January 14th and 15th. Enjoy a free book and a bit of Science Fiction which is not far from reality.

Did you know Las Vegas Motor Speedway hosts Robot Races? Yes, Robotic cars racing driverless around the oval at speeds of 170mph. Not exactly wheel to wheel just two cars on the track at a a time, but entirely autonomous never the less. It should not surprise me given the sophistication of military drone technology, but it does.

One could certainly be forgiven, particularly if you live in Buffalo and were buried in the terrible blizzard, if you were wondering whether you were going to be SURVIVING THE END. A particularly apt title for an alarming event which has impacted so many millions of folks.

If Sci-Fi is not your forte then check out this Group for some “in your face” visceral firefight action. Foregive me if I recommend you wear your old clothes when reading so the splatter doesn’t matter.

Now you must understand that under normal circumstances I would escape to my library, lock myself in and luxuriate in indulgence of reading books nourishing my imagination and soul.

But alas we seem to have quantities of snow which needs to be blown, pushed, shoveled, swept away and made tidy, not to mention a couple of boisterous dogs who demand to be allowed to cavort in delight as they thrash around in the white stuff, sigh!!

Best

Martin E. Silenus