Tartanink's Thinks

I've Moved Blogs

2009-04-03T20:51:00.003+01:00

To those of you who don't know from Twitter, I've moved blogs and am now at http://tartanink.wordpress.com It's allowed me to put samples of my writing on there, so all good. Hope to see you there.

Synopsis - The Book

2009-03-29T12:20:00.005+01:00

Oh yes, here is yet another synopsis for one of my 'yet to be published' books! This was actually the very first one I wrote. Drat! I forgot to see where I got the pic again.

The Book is an ancient 7th century illuminated manuscript scribed, not in the Latin, but in an old form of Gaelic. Hidden through time, and withstanding dissolution, clan warfare and greed, it survives today in a small Northwest Highland village, where only one person knows of its whereabouts; Cara McInnis, a young mother of two small children. But the struggle to keep its secret becomes much harder once people start arriving in the village asking questions.
Jake Sutherland is a handsome American working in London as chief researcher with B.R.I.N.T (British Royal Institute for National Treasures). A workaholic, he is determined to climb the ladder with the discovery of the book. But an unscrupulous colleague, Marshall Samuelson is also chasing it for another reason - money. A tall, intimidating figure with shark cold eyes, he is set to go against the ethics of his job in order to secure its place in a secret collection.
With a bad marriage behind her, Cara has embarked on another relationship, but for all the wrong reasons. Discouraged by her sister, Morag, she now has to be honest about how she feels and be strong enough to do the right thing.
Then Jake arrives, coming both into the village and her life. Soon she realises what true attraction feels like. But a heroic act by him sees Cara make a decision she may soon regret; especially as Marshall Samuelson is hot on his heels.
With emotions already running high, the untimely and unwelcome return to the village of Cara’s deserted and drunken husband, Deke Lindsey, complicates matters further. And like others, his motivation is money. To get what he wants he is willing to use the children as leverage, issuing threats and abuse at Cara. When she refuses both money and access, he sees another way by enlisting the help of outsiders.
Within the confines of this small village those involved in the quest for the book, whether to find it or protect it must deal with change and compromise. The book may prove to be worth more than just its incalculable wealth as the nation’s heritage. It may be the catalyst in generating life-changing decisions. But these can only be made when the truth is faced. And the book alone is not enough for that.
Told in the present day, it is interspersed with the back story of the seventh century origin of the book, and the fight to preserve it during various points in history.
The book shows a wide sweep of determination in the people who were willing to risk everything in an effort to protect their heritage. Now, can Cara keep up the tradition?

A few chapters can be seen at: http://Writing.Com/authors/tartanink

Tick Tock Tick Tock Tick

2009-03-28T23:34:00.003Z

So we have an extra hour of daylight, if not sunlight. Ever wondered why we change them and who suggested it? Well read on ...

We've been changing our clocks forwards and backwards in the UK since 1916. It's all to do with saving the hours of daylight, and was started by a man called William Willett, a London builder, who lived in Petts Wood in Kent.
William Willett first proposed the idea of British Summer Time in 1907 in a pamphlet entitled 'The Waste of Daylight'. Willett had noticed that the summer mornings light was wasted while people slept, and that the time would be better utilised in the afternoon by putting the clocks forward. After campaigning for years the British Government finally adopted the system a year after Willett's death.

2009-03-28T13:50:00.004Z

The Revolutionary Drink
The coffee houses that sprung up in France, England, and eventually the Americas proved to aid the spread of new and sometimes radical political opinions. In 1675 Charles II issued a "Proclamation for the Suppression of Coffee Houses" in an attempt to quell the liberal ideas being discussed by the patrons. All parties rebelled, and eleven days later the coffee houses reopened. The Parisian coffee houses are credited as a testing ground for the ideology that led to the French Revolution.

Across the ocean in Boston, the Boston Tea Party was planned in the now famous Green Dragon coffee house in 1773. And, in New York the Merchants coffee house was site of the Government headquarters in the days following the outbreak of the American Revolution. Later, as American soldiers forged into battle in the Mexican War and the Civil War, they protected their coffee beans as their most precious rations.
courtacy of: http://www.gourmetcoffeeclub.com/cof_facts.htm)

So, as the economy takes an even bigger downturn, and we get increasingly fed up with how things are, watch out for Government men in overcoats speaking into their cuffs outside Costa, Starbucks et al.

Scan Technology

2009-03-26T21:29:00.004Z

Isn't it great to be able to 'see' a baby before it's born nowadays. They never had that when I had my children. You did get a scan done of course, but it took a degree in scan technology to understand what you were looking at.
Now, they can even tell with a lot of precision what sex it is and give a fairly accurate date. In this instance, it was definitely needed as my daughter didn't know she was pregnant until what turned out to be, 18weeks! Some private clinics also seem to be doing 3D & moving 4D images (for a price of course). But for the time being, I'm happy enough with the image I've got.
So, here he is, my Grandson at 22weeks - due date 19th June 2009.

Synopsis - Jackson Jack Sets Sail ...

2009-03-26T19:04:00.003Z

Here's also the synopsis for the first of the children's books I'm doing (apologies for the pic - can't remember where it came from!)

SYNOPSIS:
Being part of a magic-come-acrobatic act and entertaining crowds at the harbour of a tall ships race with his rather scatty parents, isn’t exactly what twelve year old Jackson Jack wants to do. He’s looking for adventure, and being able do what ‘normal’ boys do. But, as he looks at the old ships he is unaware that his life is about to change forever.
Meeting Oliver, a boy of his own age, he is persuaded to board a strange old ship called the, Pax Vobiscum, with tales of how he has an important mission to complete. He is told an improbable tale, of how Peace is stored aboard the ship and only by completing a series of tasks will Jackson be able to take it back into his world. But it has to be him – no one else will do. In order to do this, he must sail with them - along with a strange assortment of crew members - through a Portal to the ‘other side.’
Now starts a journey of adventure way beyond what he could ever have ever imagined in his wildest dreams. On board the ship he meets a sorcerer called, the Mystic, who tells him that his first journey is into the Interportal Passage to seek the Quest Map before any tasks can be undertaken. Here he encounters savage Guardians who have taken over the running of the Interportal Passage from the Lord who they keep captive in the Castle. But this is where the Map is located.
Sailing along side them is a girls’ ship, the Lacy Anne, Captained by the feisty, Brogan Summer and her assortment of crew, including a girl related to mermaids. But another ship of young boys, the Verboten, is not good news. It is captained by the cruel and sullen, Ruken Lock who at sixteen, think he can overrule the others. At every opportunity he attempts to thwart them in an effort to both impress his hero, the War Lord, Aresmar, and win his favour.
An assortment of strange creatures, Seers, Gypsies and a battle between two knights are all overseen by the ethereal presence called, the Messengers. They are out to stop Jackson at the bidding of Aresmar.
His ship, the Avatar with its scarlet sails, flanked by his warships the Defiant and Asphodel are never far from the Pax Vobiscum’s sight. But soon a simple mistake will see the boys face an enquiry; something that could put, not only their first journey towards the east in jeopardy, but the whole quest.

The first three chapters of it can be seen at http://Writer.Com/authors/tartanink

Synopsis - In Paradisum

2009-03-26T13:56:00.004Z

Despite the first two chapters being on http://Writing.Com/authors/tartanink and not here, I just thought I'd add the synopsis, for any who care to read roughly what it's about. (image is 'Desemparats' 1903 by Pablo Picasso and is in the Museo Picasso, Barcelona)

SYNOPSIS
After her father died, Jye Baxter thought her days of dealing with the underworld were past. But when Jim Booth, one of his childhood friends now a Professor of Anthropology at Edinburgh University, paints Jye’s hands in henna and is then killed, it quickly takes her back to a world she thought she had left behind.
She is abducted and taken to Victor Grace, a wealthy suave and handsome high class independent agent, currently contracted to an extremist Middle Eastern group. They want the secret on her hands; a five hundred year old Spanish painting. And with a worth more than simply money, its authenticity could ignite war between East and West.
Jye decides to hire ‘Bang’ O’Neill to help. An ex-army explosives expert turned private investigator. But his ineptitude and drive for easy cash soon sees his head turned. The temptation of big money from the Middle East is too great to refuse, and once offered he readily accepts. Unfortunately for Jye, his misinformation sets off a chain of catastrophic events.
With Victor and Jye’s true feelings for each other now revealed, things begin to spiral out of control. Jye feels the conflict in dealing with the way she feels for Victor, along with doing the right thing to protect the painting, but he has much more at stake, and now it is time to reveal it to Jye.
When Victor fails to deliver, the Middle East intervenes. Bombing the Spanish Government is a precursor to their next action; Edinburgh Castle during the summer Tattoo, with thousands of people attending. And with Jye kidnapped they intend taking her with them. A culmination of forces may prevail but retaliation is close. And once this happens, Jye finds her life changing yet again.

The Children's Book

2009-03-26T12:07:00.006Z

It's the usual link to the writing samples. http://Writing.Com/authors/tartanink
If you have a look here you'll find the first three chapters of a children's fantasy adventure. There are intended to be five in this series, although lately I feel I've got enough to maybe do more. They're based around the Cardinal Points of the compass. The first one is Jackson Jack Sets Sail: The Interportal Passage (the writing thing wouldn't let me put the whole title up) Then the second begins with the journey; first to the east, then south, west and north. But I'm wondering whether to split the compass points up further? Still thinking on that one.
The basic synopsis of the story (which you might already have come across before this) is that an ancient ancester found the essence of peace when his ship slipped through a portal in the ocean, but it was fought for and claimed by a warlord. Jackson, as a descendant, is the only one who can recover peace and bring it back. Naturally, this isn't going to be easy, therefore requires a number of books to get him to the end ... will he or won't he? Well, someone'll need to be interested enough to take it on and get it published first!

The Next Chapter

2009-03-25T21:02:00.002Z

You can now have a look - if you want to - I'm not pushing - at Chapter Two of my novel, In Paradisum. It's up at: http://Writing.Com/authors/tartanink
love

Developing the Blogging Bug

2009-03-24T16:26:00.003Z

With thanks to one certain follower - there's not many, so you know who you are, who recommended I try another site to put my writing on. What a right old faff that was. However, it's on now at: http://Writing.Com/authors/tartanink
At the moment I've only got the first chapter there, which started life as a prologue. Then I changed my mind as it wasn't really a prologue, more of an intro chapter. God, it's a bit worrying to think I've got my work out somewhere that people can actually read it and go ... well, I don't really want to think how they'll go. Up until now, it's only been people I've known who's read it.
So, you never know, if there's any interest in it I might even put up the next chapter. I might even put on the start of the children's book too if I get that proficient. Hopefully, next time it won't take so long with all its stupid codes 'n' stuff. Talk about basis computing!!

More wishful thinking as I join yet another listing

2009-03-23T16:24:00.002Z

Just added myself to the http://wefollow.com site under the headings of #writer #author #scottish. Funnily, when I tried to look, it said the section didn't exist. Oh no - failed again!

Nothing looks how I want it to

2009-03-23T13:57:00.002Z

I was going to post the first chapter of one of the books to get it out there for criticism - constructive hopefully and comments! But, I realise that it's going to have to be as an actual post, like this. The problem with that is, the formatting doesn't want to do what I want it to. The indents don't work for either new paragraphs or for speech, and I can't get anything to centre. I might just do it anyway, but then, this explanation would be below it and kind of defeats the purpose of trying to say - hey, I know about indents 'n' stuff - it's this bloomin' blog to blame.

The wind here today could blow the hair out your head! But at least the sun's shining :-)

My Mum News

2009-03-22T19:47:00.002Z

With ref to the anaemia post. Picked my mum up from hospital around 2.30pm and all seems to have gone okay. She has a letter for her doctor, which we opened, or rather I did. There was something about a hiatus hernia and a polyp, which they have taken a sample of and I think she has a follow up in 4 weeks time, but otherwise, fine. Don't think I fancy the colonoscopy much. She hadn't been so worried about that one, but said it was really painful. Think it had something to do with the air they inflate you with. That sounds funnier than I bet it felt. However, fingers still crossed, but it seems the results are fine. Maybe just iron pills after all, but we'll wait and see. Phew.

A general update

2009-03-22T19:04:00.003Z

I just want to say a big thank you to those who are following - are you mad? I just wish I could do the things I want to on here, although maybe I can and I just don't know how to. I'd really like to have some sort of separate link to bits of writing, so that I could impose it on a world larger than the few people who have read my 'stuff' already locally. I presume I'll be limited to actually blogging it here, which is a bit of a pain as even the first chapter of each one is going to take up a bit of space. Any suggestions will be welcomed - and I don't have my own website to link it from.
This is definitely a time of discovery. First Twitter and now a blog - who'd have thought it! Certainly not my husband. I think he has a bit of a problem with just how long I spend in front of this screen. Like a threat ... like a lover I suppose. Yikes. Again, who'd have thought it? Shame it's only a screen. No, I didn't really say that. Did I?
For those who have already committed themselves - please stay with me, I will try to get more adventurous - I am trying believe me, it's just not that easy to find out how - trial and error I suppose. And it's not an age thing! ... No, no, I refuse to believe that.

Love, followers

Anaemia - Please give this a read - sorry it's as long

2009-03-22T09:54:00.002Z

I don't really intend this blog to be deep and meaningful, but the one thing I really want to talk about is the risk of undiagnosed anaemia, especially in women over 70. So, this is aimed at all those who have mothers or grandmothers of that age, but does not mean it does not apply equally to men or others of any age. That wasn't being 'politically correct' it was just fact!
The reason behind this is my mum. It all started a year past in August, so around 2007. She hadn't been feeling too good and suddenly developed a cough that was persistent. She went to the doctor, only to be told she had high blood pressure and was put immediately on tablets. At this point I want to point out that, before she retired, my mum worked in a health and wholefoods shop, so knew a bit about supplements, minerals and the effects of medicine on the system. She really wasn't keen on taking the tablets, but did.
After a couple more check ups she was then told her cholesterol was high and they would put her on tablets for this. She took the tablets but decided to try and control it more by her diet as she was concerned of the effects 'statins' have on the body (I'm not, for medical reasons, advocating doing this, it's just what she decided). Again, no medical evidence here either, but she had noticed that people who were on long term high blood pressure tablets, seemed to then go on to develop diabetes. But I must point out - this was only her concern. Anyway, another check a few weeks down the line and her cholesterol reading seemed a bit better - but she still had the cough, which was now also a wheeze. She was becoming more and more breathless as time went on.
The next diagnosis they made was, asthma. She was taken off the high blood pressure and cholesterol tablets and sent to the hospital for an ECG and a chest x-ray, neither of which showed anything. She was still given inhalers, including one containing a steroid and told to see the nurses at the asthma clinic at the local doctors' practice. After a visit or two, she was as good as dismissed with a repeat prescription for inhalers.
Still the wheezing persisted. Her life was becoming marred dramatically by this. She could no longer go to the town, which is about a mile away; something that up to this point had never been a problem to her. Now even going on the bus was becoming a problem, as she found it just too tiring to walk around. Then the local supermarket was next on the list to become out of bounds. It's about half a mile from her, but just too far.
By Christmas time 2008 there was a marked difference in her. She took a bad cold and the breathlessness was much worse. The little shop a couple of hundred yards down the road was now a big effort. Everything was marked by what she could do. I took her to town in the car one day and even walking at a slower pace she was struggling. Going into Boots, she said to go up to the back of the shop as the stairs weren't so steep, but even then we had to stop - it was like a mountain to her.
Her life was closing in on her as invites out for coffee just couldn't be taken up. It was all far to big an effort and using energy she just didn't have. My daughter lives in Bath, while we are up in Scotland, and just before all this started we had gone down to visit. Now that would be totally out of the question. So life was becoming insular; almost confined to the house.
Eventually, she was persuaded to go back to the doctor again and be stronger in getting something done about it. By this time she had tried all sorts of holistic things, but nothing was helping. Even the inhalers didn't help - they were no good at all.
As a flash of inspiration, she wondered if she could be anaemic. At first I didn't give it much of a thought as so much had been discussed; even as far as thinking it was emphysema. She was almost resigned to the fact that she'd have to live with this exhaustion and breathlessness for the rest of her life.
Another visit to the doctor. He listened to her chest and said he couldn't find anything. She mentioned anaemia and he told her to make another appointment with a nurse to have blood taken and also to have the asthma checked.
The next week, on the Thursday at 2.30pm, one nurse did both. On walking in she said she thought my mum looked very pale and then listened as she related how bad she had been lately. With blood taken she was told to phone for the results on the Tuesday afternoon. We left. Before 5pm that same night my mum gave me a call. A doctor had just phoned her from the practice to say that her blood count was very low and she had to go to hospital. She was a bit taken off guard and asked, when? He said, right away ... first thing in the morning, but if she felt unwell or had palpitations she had to go immediately as she desperately needed a transfusion.
By 8.45am next day, the doctor called her, having contacted the hospital and made arrangements for her to be admitted. By that night she was in a ward and receiving the first of four bags of blood. But why was this not even thought about as a cause earlier and tested? All it would have taken was a little extra blood. And looking back she had all, of what are, classic symptoms. She was tired (she told them at the hospital, she wakes up tired), she was pale and her skin was cold. She had no energy; simple tasks took two and three times as long. It was only last week she told me she had to stop three times while hoovering the living room - and it's only a small area. And most of all, she was breathless.
Reading a bit about it - as you do, once you know, it seems to be very common in older people - usually women over 60yrs, but more so over 70. My mum is now 71. One site (sorry, can't remember which now) said this condition, going undiagnosed, could account for a 200% increase in older people being admitted into care-homes in later life. This is due to quality of life being impaired or lost due to an inability to carry out those things which had been 'normal' for so long.
Simply put, old age is not a relevant excuse, it could be something else, and that something might just be anaemia.
A friend's mum has also been having similar symptoms and nothing has been found - she'd been in hospital for tests on her lungs, but they found nothing. She is still tired, and is now being treated for an infection. It may just be that, but I do urge you to keep this in mind should you know of anyone in a similar position to my mum.
Today she is, at this very moment, having an endoscopy and a colonoscopy done at the hospital day clinic to help check out any possible causes of such blood loss. In undiagnosed cases, this condition will just continue to get worse and can lead to heart failure. In very extreme cases it can require a bone marrow transplant.
I will post the results, once we know them. Hopefully it will just be a case of iron tablets, but who knows. The one thing I can say is this. Since the transfusion, she feels so much better. She has gone, with a little trepidation, to the supermarket again, and managed without a problem. The biggest problem seems to be getting used to the fact that she has her life back again, and seems to be waiting for it to be taken away from her again. After a year and a half, I think she more than deserves to have it back.

A bit more about me

2009-03-21T18:39:00.000Z

I love to write and am trying hard to get an agent and then hopefully published. My husband says I'm obsessed with writing; he's not far wrong. The first thing I completed was a romantic thriller set in the North West Highlands, and since then I've finished another two in the same genre. The last ones are intended as the start of a series incorporating the same characters. I'll probably get round to putting some on, so they can be read (and probably commented on).

Then, in an effort to widen the chances of success, I began a series of children's books for the 8-12 year age range. These are fantasy, action adventures and the story will continue from one book to the other. I might also put a sample of this on too.

I have another couple that I've started, but they're on the back burner and come out at times when I'm frustrated with the others. Maybe ...

I suppose, like a book, this is the hardest part. The rest should hopefully be easy going once things are set up.

Actually, although I said it was a bit more about me, it seems to all be about the writing. C'est la vie.

You've probably come to this via Twitter, but if you haven't you can find me there as @tartanink. Come and join the Twits if you're not there already. It'll suck you in and take over your life.

Off we go

2009-03-21T18:35:00.001Z

This is a first for me, and I'm not sure how it's going to go. It might not be very intersting for a while - if indeed it ever is! You might have to put up with me doing a bit of experimenting until I know what's what, so stay with it, hopefully it will improve.