This quote comes from Rear-Admiral Thomas Pasley, a straight-talking Scotsman who was regarded as ‘old school’ in the Royal Navy. It’s taken from his personal diary onboard the 74-gun Vengeance and is mentioned in my current read.
‘A very dull stupid Cruize this, not one Yankie on the Seas I believe – already out 17 Days and have not seen one – hard, very hard….’
‘At half past 4 our Stupid Rascal of a Pilot run the Ship’s stern upon the Crow Rock… The Shock was so great that it broke several Bottles in one of my Cases of Rum… I hope we shall be able without further disaster to bundle the Old Bitch into one King’s Port or other.’
08-Jan-05 at 12:05 pm | Permalink
Just been surfing the web on stu’s a bit because my computer’s playing up again. So here i am living a day in the Stu, i come on to the taking fire page where i read what all members feel they should share with others. Nothing too riveting or mind-boggling but all make an effort of witticism in order to keep up standards. Then i go onto the myspace page and see pictures of all these people from all around the world who have found a way in the internet – at last they can show their face to anyone who cares to see it, flaunt the opinions and the secrets they probably don’t in front of real live people.
And after those two pages i feel the need to write down my thoughts on anything – the closest thing at hand is – yes the computer – usually thoughts like these go in my travel book but hey i’m huddled in my blanket and don’t want to get up. So anyway I am pretty much gobsmacked at this apparent need everyone seems to have to come out of their anonymousness and to broadcast their thoughts of the day to anyone and everyone. Not that I’m not guilty of the same thing – after all what i am doing right now?
Isn’t it weird though? Since when was it not enough to be known by simply the people who were geographically near you? What is it that makes us think one second that we as an individual have anything to say of interest? Or that our face has something more, something deeper that shows somehow on a 2x3cm picture?
Anyway that was my intellectual masturbation for the day, and since i am as vain as anyone else i thought i’d write this down on a keyboard to be broadcoast for anyone who cares to read it on the time and space void that is the internet.
11-Jan-05 at 7:59 pm | Permalink
I actually find “round robin” Christmas letters far more intrusive. If you don’t happen to view their websites they’ll get you by mail anyway
17-Dec-05 at 5:41 pm | Permalink
“Since when was it not enough to be known by simply the people who were geographically near you?”
When the people geographically near to you are assholes?
TF and all the (many) other sites I frequent kept me sane while trapped in a horrid little flat in a little town where I couldn’t find a single other person I wanted to spend any length of time with.
So big thanks to Air and all my other geographically dispersed friends.
Vive le blog.
Happy X-mas everyone
xxxxxxxxx
17-Dec-05 at 7:37 pm | Permalink
oops that was a bit much. Can you delete that please. thank you.
19-Dec-05 at 7:03 pm | Permalink
I thought it was quite poignant.