Second time lucky

Okay so I'd prepared a long and detailed series of posts, then the computer died so I'm livid and am now to go rather briefer hopefully will still raise discussion.

First, saw on Sky yesterday that scientists have finally noticed that when an older and calm dog suddenly bites a small child it's actually the childs fault. No shit Sherlock! Turns out that the dog doesn't like having a toddler grabbing it, diving on top of it, pulling on it's fur as it falls over and then to make it worse, children are unable to understand growls and bared teeth, they mistake them for purs and smiles. So they keep going until darling great grandson/daughter gets bit. Dog loses life everyone feels sorry for kiddo. Here's an idea. Keep an eye on your damn kids so YOU can notice this stuff yourself. If you can't keep an eye on your kids don't moan when they do something they shouldn't.


Second on sports, it seems that Delhi may be struggling to make next weekends deadline over the Commonwealth games. As with the above, no shit Sherlock. I understand that in sports you try to spread the major sporting events round but you need to look at the nationwide infrastructure to begin with. In 2003 London managed to foul up the World Athletics Championships and a year later Athens barely scraped it for the olympics. So who really thought that in a borderline third world nation, in a volatile diplomatic situation would pull it off easily? They've had 9 years to get things reasonable yet a week before the off they've barely built any accomodation (shocking, given 150,000 people at best don't have access to basic sanitation in Delhi), the road to the main stadium isn't built (oh look it's collapsed as well now) and parts of various other venues are unstable WITHOUT any one in them. What's that? The rivers just broke it's banks flooding the city? So much for terror threats, they'll implode without Osamas boys going round!


Thirdly onto manners and intimidation, something for more ranty perhaps. Why the blue Hell is a library such a horrible atmosphere here? Traditionally youths hang around on street corners, with cheap cider and look a bit menacing. In Lankyvilles Zimbabwean community they use the library. Yup, of all the places to feel uncomfortable I can't believe it's the library. For some reason, and Sigmar, Odin, Jehova, Apollo or Zeus knows why but young Zimbabwean lads choose the library to be the hunting ground. They stare at you as you walk in to try and intimidate you, when you sit next to one of them they're constantly watching your computer screen and staring at you, they talk loudly to themselves often with Ricky Gervais fake laughs, they mumble insults to you, they elbow you and are just deliberately anti-social. I wonder if library in Ndebele means something completely different to over here...


Finally I want to read into something more positive for the day. Recently I finished Empire of Silver by Conn Iggulden and came across a character from history unfairly forgotten. Sorghaghtani Beki (from now on Sorgie) was wife of Gengis Khans' son Tolui. After her husband sacrificed himself in a shamanist ritual to save his brother and supreme khan Ogedeis' life on campaign she inherited his lands and rules as sole queen (khatun) but also perhaps out of his guilt became a key advisor to Ogedei. After Ogedei died in 1241 his wife Torogene became regent for five years. It would appear according to many references in the official Mongol records Sorgie was really in charge and kept the regency safe through diplomatic and more nefarious means. During the five year regency she was probably the most powerful and influential person on the planet (aside from her 20 years as sole ruler of Iran, Mongolia and north China after her husbands death) and perhaps even makes her the most powerful woman in the history of the world. Sadly the Mongol Empire is no more which means to most of the world she is but a footnote in the lines of history. More respect for Sorgie please Amerupean historians.

What if?

This was actually a topic came up with weeks ago but while locked in my eternal pit of damnation it got put on the back burner. A while back during the traditional 3AM neither of us can sleep conversations me and wench started discussing various What If? scenarios. Of course some of them are over in two seconds (i.e. What if Hitler didn't invade Russia - WW2 over by the end of '41) but sometimes you can go on and look over matters with a bit more depth.


One that often comes up is "What if Henry VIII hadn't divorced Kat?" I always find it quite interesting, as a starting point would England have split from the catholic church? I think ultimately, we wouldn't have done. The only reason we ultimately split from them was that Annie B was a bit of hooker and Henry had become obsessed with having a son which given Kats' breeding always made me laugh. A lot of other countries that left the Papal faith behind had a trigger, I don't know if the English would've had this afterwards. Potentially with the civil war but I think it would've happened catholic/protestant this is assuming after Mary lines remain unbroken of course.


As for Mary. The woman has been demonised almost since the day she was born, ultimately for being the wrong gender. Thing which gets me is had her mother remained queen and Henry not started persecuting Papists she probably wouldn't have earned the moniker "Bloody Mary" as the bitterness would not have been bred into her. Accordingly of course with the strong breeding in her she may have had a much better reign and that may instead be referred to as Englands "golden age" as opposed to that of her half-sister, given that her death seems to have been linked with the stresses she imposed on herself to stop Dizzy Liz from taking charge.


Around these great historical turning points, and I've kept it brief before going on too much of a lecture (any comments to discuss anything in further of course), we moved onto the "insignificant" turning points, or rather our own lives. The conversation inevitably turned into "what if we'd not got together?" and ultimately I honestly couldn't really give a plausible scenario. Wench seemed to watch it better than I could (I got scarce further than less headaches) and saw ultimately in her mind that I would've been managing at the company I was working at when we first got together. Had I not been coming through yet another bout of depression I would've focussed on that and overcoming the demons in that way, instead I'd opted to drop the work stress and took the time to recover by spending more time in Poxford.


Relationship wize she went bolder still and predicted that I'd have got into a relationship with one of three girls she's seen me with using the assumption that I'd have still been involved in the same groups which I guess is pretty solid. I refute all three of these as I was always an expert in getting to the "you're a great friend but..." scenario and put a lot of the relationship with wench down to putting her off a relationship for so long to avoid my depression and as a result mood swings harming her had we got closer it'd inevitably have gone wrong well before it finally happened. Incidentally I'd have got a lot less stress from her so with a higher paying job and a partner who according to her I'd "make the perfect couple with" something tells me this what if went the wrong way! :P


In the end we just had a nice conversation spending time together and looking at those little things that make up our lives and how in little changes the way our directions and history is built up. Of course, nothing can change now but sitting there and taking alternative looks at certain events no matter how small or minor can be a great way to pass the time. Now to start checking the library for some "alternate history" novels to along side the Cornwell and Iggulden.