Do you ever just sit there thinking, “What the heck can I write about?” I’m doing it a lot lately and today is no different. I sign up to the prompts that WP offers but everyday it appears, it states that I have already answered the question, so I presume I’ve answered all that WP offers in prompt form. That surprises me in this day and age of technology, why are new prompts not refreshed on a regular basis?
I need help
I’m calling it Blog Block.
I know creative writers suffer with writers block, and that creates big issues for them. I guess it’s the same as being a craftsman and having your most productive tools taken away from you. Not very convenient or productive.
I’m not a creator in anyway, let’s clear that up.
My problem is that I believe I lead quite a mundane and everyday existence and there is absolutely no interest in what I do or have to say in that case. Millions if not billions of people lead the same life and just get on with the day. However occasionally there are little peaks and troughs in day to day life that are worthy of a few words, but that is all. It amazes me how many people I follow on this platform have such a wide and varied, and consistent supply of good content. This is where I struggle.
The prompts helped me I must admit, and now I’m just like an engine without that spark plug, and the prompts were that spark I needed to get the motor going.
How does everyone else overcome this malaise in creativity? Because to be honest I’m struggling at the moment.
I’m probably just going to fill my pages with drivel like this until my productivity engine kicks into life.
It could be a long and tiresome journey. Bring plenty of refreshments and maybe a pillow.
Have a wonderful day and stay safe….and productive 👍
I was intrigued to know just how many days ago that the first photograph was taken.
There are a few things to consider before we make such a calculation, first a little history.
The first photograph was taken by Nicéphore Niépce in 1826, using a process called heliography. This process involved coating a pewter plate with a light-sensitive substance called bitumen, which hardened when exposed to light. The image, titled “View from the Window at Le Gras,” shows the view from Niépce’s window and took about eight hours to expose.
To calculate how many days ago the first photograph was taken, we can subtract the date of that photograph (1826) from the current year (2025).
2025 – 1826 = 199 years
Since there are 365 days in a year, give or take the occasional leap year, we can then multiply the number of years by 365 to get the total number of days.
199 years x 365 days/year = 72,635 days
So, the first photograph was taken approximately 72,635 days ago. (Give or take a few days)
Wow
That doesn’t seem as great a number in my mind compared to the 199 years, maybe because we relate to a day being considerably shorter than a year (Obviously 🤦♂️). It sounds as if you could have even been around when the photo was taken, obviously you couldn’t have been and this is just me having an early morning ramble. So the next question is how many pictures have been taken since then?
Considering the usage of mobile technology I’d suspect that the answer is unobtainable due to the sheer volume of pictures now taken on a daily basis.
But I have put this question to one of those A.I apps available on my phone, to see what it says, and here is the answer that it has given, I asked:
“How many pictures have been taken since that first one in 1826?”
Estimating the Number of Pictures Taken
Using historical data and trends, we can estimate the number of pictures taken since 1826:
Pre-digital era (1826-1970s): Assuming an average of 1 million photographs taken per year (a rough estimate), we get approximately 150 million photographs taken during this period.
Digital era (1970s-2007): With the advent of digital cameras, the number of pictures taken increased significantly. Let’s assume an average of 100 million photographs taken per year during this period, resulting in approximately 3.5 billion photographs taken.
Smartphone era (2007-present): With the widespread adoption of smartphones, the number of pictures taken has grown exponentially. According to a report by InfoTrends, over 1 trillion photographs were taken in 2015 alone. Assuming an average of 1.5 trillion photographs taken per year since 2007, we get approximately 23.5 trillion photographs taken during this period.
Total Number of Pictures Taken
Adding up the estimates from each era, we get:
150 million (pre-digital) + 3.5 billion (digital) + 23.5 trillion (smartphone) ≈ 23.8 trillion photographs taken since 1826.
Keep in mind that this is a rough estimate and should be taken as a rough order of magnitude rather than an exact figure.
First a little history. We live in a two bed semi that was built sometime around 1935. Yes it’s aging and has a lot of charm and character. Our neighbours on one side are quite vocal at times but that’s about it, in general life is quite peaceful. They have had a parrot in residence for a number of years who used to live in one of the loft rooms who you only heard occasionally when the loft window was open and you were in the garden. You’d be in the garden listening to all the small birds chattering, when the beauty of it all was broken by a parrot raucously squawking like a banshee with a sore throat above it all. However it was rare and totally acceptable if not strange to hear.
So innocent looking 😇
However things in the homestead next door have changed. The old fellah that used to be the head of the house passed away last year, bless him, and I don’t think he appreciated the birds presence, hence its indoctrination in to the loft space. Now he is no longer there, the daughter has placed the bird in the living room with a full view of everything at the front of the house, and he has a lot to squawk about.
This is not a major issue, please don’t judge me I’m not complaining, things could be an awful lot worse. It could be a dog constantly barking, it could be people constantly shouting, so we should really count ourselves lucky.
It’s just that the wife, even with her hearing problems will often comment, “That bloody bird” so in theory my biggest issue is keeping my wife under control and reassuring her that things could really be a lot worse.
I have personally on occasions been known to comment similarly. But I’m the only person who can control my thoughts and feelings (How very Stoic!) and I choose to remain generally unaffected by it all.
So why did I write this post?
I’ve answered all the daily prompts, and whilst I was thinking of what to post, all I could hear was Tweety pie.
I guess it was just to reiterate that sometimes you just need to accept what you have and embrace it all. The alternatives could be better, but they could also be a lot worse.
And to me there is nothing nicer than the sound of a bird even if it sounds like it has a 60 a day habit and a voice as rough as course sandpaper. 😂
3am in the morning and I’m wide awake. Damned annoying as I know what the cause is. It’s been an issue that has pestered me in excess of 30 years now and it’s called –
Shift work
Says it all
I’ve been working shifts in my job for about 35 years now and I still haven’t come across a way to get your body to adapt to all the changes that shift work burdens upon you, and number one in that list is insomnia.
Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder where people have difficulty sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep for as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low energy, and a depressed mood. It may result in an increased risk of accidents of all kinds as well as problems focusing and learning.
Wikipedia
As if you need it explaining to you. Now I don’t suffer from permanent insomniac conditions, mine is purely based around the segment that involves night shifts. My shifts cover 24hrs and are on a five week rolling cycle. They involve three main sets of shifts and those shifts are 0600-1400hrs, 1400-2200hrs or 2200-0600hrs and at weekends they are either 0600-1800 or 1800-0600.
I have just finished a run of 11 consecutive night shifts after one of my coworkers has been taken ill. And that’s the problem. I finished at 0600 yesterday morning and deliberately did not sleep beyond 11 am as I’m now having to swing back to daylight timings, as I now have the weekend off before transferring on to the early mornings shifts from Monday. I was suitably tired last night, in fact I was all day, but I resisted the urge to nod off as I wanted to try and fool my body clock in to getting back to normal habits. But my body clock doesn’t work like that and isn’t having it.
Over the years I have tried many ways to try and evolve my body clock to understand when moving from Night shifts to day shifts. I’ve tried not sleeping at all, but that results in irritation to all those around me, and a general malaise that is unproductive and non conducive to a friendly peaceful atmosphere. I’ve tried the couple of hours in bed routine but that again is problematic as you fall in to such a deep sleep, so quickly that whoever is tasked with waking you up undoubtedly gets both barrels and you don’t speak for the rest of the day getting labelled as a miserable old git. Or you can just go to bed and wake up when you feel fit to, as I did yesterday and here I am now, in a blacked out bedroom putting my thoughts into this post, quietly as my wife sleeps beside me.
I’m totally wide awake and ready to go. But I don’t want to go anywhere…just yet.
I know I will pay the price later today by feeling tired and tempted to take a nap, however I have to resist that temptation and try to get back to a normal sleeping pattern tonight.
I must apologise in advance to all those individuals who I will meet today who think “He’s a miserable old git.” If I’m nodding as we talk it’s not that I’m bored it’s just I’m lacking the one item you have probably had plenty of.
I work on the railway, in many aspects there has been a technological change especially in the development of new rolling stock and safety aspects.
However where I am in the East Midlands we still use an awful lot of Victorian technology, and yes you travel over it every day especially if you use the line that goes between Leicester and Peterborough via Melton Mowbray. Here we have signal boxes that still use Absolute block technology with the signallers using bell codes to communicate. The signalling is the Victorian semaphore signal type and the signal boxes all have large amounts of levers to pull using a wire and pulley system to activate the signals. Most of the boxes themselves are listed buildings and can’t be renovated in any way, yes some of them are getting on for 150 years old.
In my job I spend an awful lot of time on this line, I must admit it is very safe and quite reliable, however sometimes the system has issues that need attending and due to a lot of parts being widely unavailable due to the systems age, this is when the new technology gradually gets implemented. It’s taking time but as they say on the railway….
How often do you say “no” to things that would interfere with your goals?
Yes/No
To be honest my Mañana / Procrastination gene has gone into a higher gear in the last few years and I must admit I’m extremely indecisive as well. My goals, or the few I have had, have pretty much been achieved and I’m in a sort of “I don’t give a damn” cruise mode at the moment.
I don’t like saying no to anyone really, it’s just not me and I guess that’s probably why I find my place in society as one of those little worker ants rather than a high achiever. I could have done better, a common statement since school and throughout my adult years.
It kind of breaks me in two to use the word “No” and to be honest I can’t, hand on heart, say that the word has ever featured to as much as restrict my goals or accomplishments in life.
I’m ok, and I’m happy with my lot. Maybe I was just not brought up to say it. Maybe putting restrictions on demands and saying “Yes, but!” Draws a line in the sand instead, and that’s probably as close to the word “No” as I tend to get.
Had the strangest of dreams last night, what really stood out was it was myself running into a room to attack…myself!
It was just a dream
First thoughts are why the hell am I attacking myself, and why was I even scared of myself? Then I started to overthink, and that is something I am very good at. Do I have dislike for myself? Am I subconsciously attacking myself from within? Why? Am I even so afraid to openly engage my fears that even my own soul is fighting me?
I just don’t know but it bloody well freaked me out to such an extent I’ve stayed awake since. That was 04:12 in the morning, and I don’t think I’m ready for anymore sleep just yet. Bloody hell, I’m afraid of myself and my own feelings at present. If i can’t face myself what chance do I stand with any one else?
Weirdest dream I’ve had in a long time. Funny how you never remember the good dreams, but the bad ones stick around like a bad smell.
Anyway, here’s what those in the know say, enjoy the read:
Dreaming of yourself attacking yourself can signify inner conflict, self-sabotage, or unresolved emotional issues that you are struggling with in your waking life. It might be a sign to reflect on your behaviors and the root causes of these feelings.
Here’s a more detailed breakdown:
Inner Conflict:The dream could represent a struggle between different parts of your personality or conflicting desires and beliefs.
Self-Sabotage:It might indicate that you are unconsciously undermining your own goals and well-being.
Unresolved Issues:The dream could be a manifestation of pent-up emotions, trauma, or unresolved conflicts that need to be addressed.
Need for Self-Reflection:It’s a call to examine your thoughts, feelings, and behaviors to understand the underlying causes of this dream.
Potential for Growth:By acknowledging and addressing these issues, you can move towards greater self-awareness and personal growth.
Google
And how the hell do I deal with that little lot?
Firstly by not worrying and secondly by just getting on with daily life. Hey, It was just a dream.
Have a superb day. And just don’t worry about anything.
I wrote a post back in February regarding a weird observation, in that i had an Orchid that was imitating the look of a model i have on the shelf of one of the Voyager space probes. See here: Weird observation
Well things have moved on. We only placed the Orchid on the shelf temporarily as we had no space in the kitchen where it used to reside, as the wife had a whole load of vases out with a selection of cut flowers on display. She loves flowers in the house however she does not have a green finger on her hands, thats me, i look after the potted flowers and the garden. We have had this Orchid about 4 years now and it gets trimmed, cleaned and looked after, and now it has claimed its permanent place on the living room shelf, as it is thriving with its friend the Voyager probe.
Back in FebruaryNow with 8 buds and doing fantastic
It likes where it is at the moment, and thats where it will stay much to the wife s displeasure, she’ll get over it.
First of the blooms looking glorious
I also have a moon lamp that revolves magnetically on a pedestal. The light coming through the blinds looks as if there is a crescent moon being superimposed on it.
My moon lamp
On another subject i was out in the van yesterday and i parked up near a signal box to grab a quick snack and a drink. I had the window down, it was a mild spring day with plenty of sunlight and i began to eat my sandwich. I was thinking to myself, “Dave you are making a lot of noise, eating” and then i looked to the side of me and saw this glorious beast staring at me eating some hay.
Highland cattle
How the hell I didn’t see this massive fellah is a mystery, he was well camouflaged and busy doing the same as me. Anyway I didn’t hang around too long as i was busy and he was also giving me some strange looks.
A great conversation starter, just like talking about the weather in the UK.
Music is one of those things that finely entwines itself into all our lives. We have happy sounds, sad sounds and everything in between, there are inspirational records, as well as others that take you to a distant place where you can just be a mad, wild, untamed, crazy, dancing freak of nature. Yes it’s fair to say music plays a massive role in our lives and emotions.
However if you are put on the spot and asked to choose two favourites, could you?
I have often mulled over this question through the years and i do really think that i can. As a child of the sixties i have gone through an awful lot of fads and musical genres, all the way through Swing, soul, New Romanticism, Punk, Heavy metal, classical and everything in between. My most influential years were probably the late 70s early 80s when i was starting to form my own choices as i was entering into my teenage years.
These choices by no means reflect my favourite group. That choice was made in the mid to late 80s when American rock group R.E.M came into my life and they remain firmly rooted there to this day. However their music obviously rates highly in my opinion, but neither of my favourite all time records were theirs. For some obscure reason my choices are both extremely middle of the road.
I honestly have heard so much music in my life, as i suspect has anyone else who browses this post, and i always come back to these two choices. So my mind is made up, no swaying, it is and will always be these two:
Doobie Brothers – Listen to the music
Doobie Brothers
What do i like about this record. Just spend some time listening to it, early American rock at its very best, probably 4 Guitars in perfect harmony with an absolutely fantastic rhythm, and a banjo picking around in the background adding to the atmosphere, Just a wonderful happy and upbeat song in my view, it lifts me to play it and reminds me of the hazy days of my childhood. This was 1972 when it was released, i was very young but it was a happy tune, and as a child i think that is one of the things you look for in music, good melody, easy chorus who could ask for more. And it’s stuck with me ever since.
Here’s what the songwriter Tom Johnston said at the time:
“The chord structure of it made me think of something positive, so the lyrics that came out of that were based on this utopian idea that if the leaders of the world got together on some grassy hill somewhere and either smoked enough dope or just sat down and just listened to the music and forgot about all this other bullshit, the world would be a much better place. It was very utopian and very unrealistic (laughs). It seemed like a good idea at the time.”
Wikipedia
Though I didn’t even know what dope was at this age I can’t really comment. Though looking back now it seemed like a good idea.
Bellamy brothers – Let your love flow
Bellamy brothers
Another “Brother” named group. This was a crossover record from Country to mainstream and boy was it a successful crossover. 1976 was a fantastic year for me packed with great memories of being with my friends, the heatwave of that year and wonderful times wandering around with my pals just doing stuff. Again it was a record that came along at a good period in my life and has registered itself in that role ever since. Just a really good rhythm, some cracking easy to learn lyrics and a dead easy chorus, packed with loads of rhythmic guitar and passion, what a record.
So, thats it for me, two easy choices that i know will never ever change. I always have these tunes within easy reach on my phone or music player as in times of stress, worry or just when reminiscing, they are chosen and played loud. The world then for a few solitary moments is a whole better place.
Foxes Den 
You must be logged in to post a comment.