17/12/2009 by admin.

A first edition of Lewis Carroll’s classic book “Through the Looking-Glass, and What Alice Found There”,  dedicated to the real life Alice who inspired the story has sold at a U.S. auction for $115,000.

Southern California-based Profiles in History said the book, the sequel to “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland“, was the highlight of its children’s literature sale. “Through the Looking Glass“, published in 1871, includes the nonsense poem “Jabberwocky.” Both works were inspired by 10 year-old Alice Liddell, the daughter of an academic friend of Carroll’s. The edition is inscribed in ink “Alice Pleasance Liddell”, and was described as having been presented to her by Carroll.

Okay - we need to offer another explanation on how this links to our novel. Our very own Eath Detective - Sarah Whittenbury - examines a magic circle drawn in the soil before the ’Web of Life’ through her looking glass (pages 162 - 164).  She discovers a frozen tear! Is this a reminder to humanity - a message to let us know what’s really going on. That a state of emergency is being declared for the web of life is in peril!  

Posted in Q58 Do things happen for a reason?, Q79 Have you ever looked into the shadows?, Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q57 Have you ever spied on anyone?, Q54 Do you enjoy a bit of a mystery?, Q12 Is our Earth enchanted?, Q22 Do you love our Earth?, Q.3 Do you have a good imagination? | No Comments »

16/09/2009 by admin.

A former employee of ASDA supermarket in Preston has been caught on camera doing some instore raw ‘chicken licking’ amongst other things.  There was also an appearance on the X-Factor by the Lickin’ Chicken, including a search for keys!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnK3QiIw4n4

We have our own take on these incidents! Number 26 in Caleb’s footnotes at the rear of our novel explains the fable of Chicken Licken and the phrase ‘The sky is falling in’.  He reminded us that the phrase is commonly used to indicate a hysterical or mistaken believe that disaster is imminent. The footnote refers to mention in Charles Lamb’s journal (page 296) extract:

…Lucy stopped in her tracks and cried, “The sky is falling in. The Sky is falling in!”  “The rush to tell the king,” I (Charles) said in jest.  An acorn had fallen from a nearby oak and hit her on top of her head. “Oh woe is me,” she mumbled, feinging serious injury - duping me into her arms. “Lucy Ebbs what ails thee?” The acorn was beneath her feet. She picked it up. “We fear the curse of the dark Satanic Mills’ she said.

Later when the Blakesware Set have come together (page 338) the Duke of Wellington comments on the pessimism, “Next you’ll be telling me the sky is falling in.”  The Duke was playing the role of Devil’s Advocate and was later persuaded by the  members’ arguments and need for action.

We see this tension taking place worldwide - with people on the one hand campaigning for change and tacking action with others dismissing the arguments and many more caught up in the middle - either disinterested, unengaged or unclear on what it all really means.  Those who deny the threat often recite the fable…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1T2Yrt2gU7A&feature=related

We happen to think the Chicken Lickin incidents are timely given news from some of the world’s leading geologists gathering today for in London a conference warning of potential catastrophic consequences of rapid climate change, including Tsunami’s, avalanches and volcanic eruptions.  Its significant as many people will simply dismiss the warnings as empty threats. We say the coincidence of the Chicken Licken’ episodes are just another example that we ignore the risks at our peril. As we ask early on in our novel ‘Do we have the X-Factor?’ - See our opening extract.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/video/Climate-Change-Geologists-Warn-Of-Natural-Catastrophes-Including-Tsunamis-Avalanches-And-Volcanic-Eruptions/Video/200909315381672

Posted in Q57 Have you ever spied on anyone?, Q58 Do things happen for a reason?, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q35 Do you trust your instincts?, Q15 Do you sometimes fear the worst?, Q.8 Do you crave a better life? | No Comments »

27/07/2009 by admin.

A ewe nicknamed Aretha - after the singer Aretha Franklin - has been entertaining people by taking up a lonesome residence on a cliff’s edge near Whitby in North Yorkshire - an area made famous in Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstien’. 

People are mystified as to how the independent sheep managed to find her way 220ft down the cliff face and she seems in no hurry to leave.  The sheep was first spotted by pleasure boat captain, Bryan Clarkson, who has been keeping watch on her ever since.  She’s been dubbed Aretha - as she sung the soul hit, ‘Rescue Me’.

So we have another odd antic involving a sheep - Mr Lamb would be most amused given his witty sense of humour.  Our interpretation is clear - has our wanton use of energy consuming machines without thought of the environmental consequences brought humanity to the edge?

Posted in Q58 Do things happen for a reason?, Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q57 Have you ever spied on anyone?, Q54 Do you enjoy a bit of a mystery?, Q29 Could you live without machines?, Q20 Have your eyes ever deceived you? | No Comments »

20/03/2009 by admin.

As seemingly anticipated within Charles Lamb’s journal, we have yet another example of an albino appearance in Mother Nature.  On this occasion a little pink African elephant has been caught on camera in Botswana. He was spotted by a cameraman amongst a herd of about 80 elephants. Its an extremely rare phenomenon in African elephants.  Albino elephants are not usually white but instead have a pinkish hue. 

A member of the film crew said , “This was a really exciting moment for everyone in the camp. We knew it was a rare sighting - no one could believe their eyes.”

Is this another message to warn us of the need to preserve the diversity of life on planet Earth? Wht not see for yourself? Use the search box in the left hand column to see just how many albino examples we’ve witnessed.

Time to celebrate.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nwNPaYoTY8

Posted in Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q57 Have you ever spied on anyone?, Q35 Do you trust your instincts?, Q20 Have your eyes ever deceived you?, Q12 Is our Earth enchanted? | No Comments »

19/01/2009 by admin.

The number of foggy, misty and hazy days is diminishing across Europe, say scientists.   Since the 1970s, European temeperatures have risen by 0.5 degree Celsius per decade.  As the mists fade, they point to legislation that has helped clear up the continent’s air as a possile cause.  Fewer fogs, mists and haze mean more of the Sun’s energy has been reaching the surface, contriuting to a rise in temperatures.

Its an interesting perspective given the mysterious experiences in ’The Day of the Long Lingering Fog’ recording in our tale and in Charles Lamb’s journal.  It was a day in which Julia inadvertently found herself back in the 1800s witnessing for herself the arrival of Yggdrasil, The Tree of Life, under the watchful eye of Mother Nature.

Posted in Q68 Does the Earth have a spirit?, Q57 Have you ever spied on anyone?, Q49 Do you ever think about the old days?, Q46 Do you value a good education?, Q35 Do you trust your instincts? | No Comments »

03/07/2008 by admin.

Columbia pictures has announced plans to direct a new film about the great detective, Sherlock Holmes.  In a comic remake, the film will star Will Ferrell and Sacha Baron Cohen.  Sarah will be pleased as she’s a fan of both actors - pity none will be Earth Detectives though…

New research suggests that the risk of extinction for many species has been seriously underestimated - by up to a hundred times greater in some cases.  Key factors have simply been ignored, including the ratio of the number of males to females.  Professor Alan Hastings from the University of California, Davis, said, ”There may be many species - and some will not be the large, charismatic ones, but things like insects and other smaller ones that are still very important - where we may be underestimating the risk by quite a bit.”The International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has identified more than 16,000 species threatened with extinction. One in three amphibians, one in four mammals, one in eight birds and 70% of plants so far assessed for its Red Lists of Threatened Species are believed to be at risk.

Posted in Q54 Do you enjoy a bit of a mystery?, Q57 Have you ever spied on anyone?, Q48 Have you ever played solitaire?, Q36 Should a good life cost the Earth?, Q11 Do you believe in justice?, Q20 Have your eyes ever deceived you?, Q.1 Does your life have a purpose? | No Comments »

29/05/2008 by admin.

The world’s rarest rhinoceros has been captured on film in the jungles of Java, Indonesia.  There are only 60-70 of the animals left in the wild. Curiously, the female rhino charged the camera, sending it flying. The footage provides a unique glimpse of the animal in its natural habitat.  Stephen Hogg, from WWF, who designed the hidden camera was baffled by the rhino’s attack, as they use infrared lights as illumination so as not to scare the animals away when the camera operates.  Perhaps the animal is rying to tell us something?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/7424918.stm

Posted in Q76 Are you going to take action now to save our world?, Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q57 Have you ever spied on anyone?, Q56 Do you believe rules are there to be broken?, Q51 Have you ever taken part in a protest?, Q54 Do you enjoy a bit of a mystery?, Q17 Can you speak another language? | No Comments »

21/04/2008 by admin.

A Yorkshire Terrier has been sent a polling card in his name to vote in the forthcoming local elections.  The card reads ‘Bobby Huckvale’ and advises the three-year old dog where to go to cast his vote on 1 May.  Swindon Council say the dog was sent the card because his details were on the electoral register.  Although knowingly providing false information on an electoral registration form is a criminal offence, we were struck that this particular dog had, in effect, been given the chance to ‘have his say’.  Assuming the 3Bs in BOBBY resemble hearts when turned sideways then an anagram of BOBBY HUCKVALE reads C UK HAY LOVE

Further East, and we find the secretive street artist Banksy’s been up to his tricks again, performing perhaps his most audacious stunt yet. In the heart of London’s  West End an image entitled ‘One Nation Under CCTV’ has appeared in the wall of a Post Office just yards from a CCTV camera.

A child in a red jacket is painting the writing on the wall whilst being filmed by a police officer accompanied by a barking dog.

Posted in Q58 Do things happen for a reason?, Q74 Do you like puzzles?, Haymakers: Watch Wonders, Q57 Have you ever spied on anyone?, Q56 Do you believe rules are there to be broken?, Q11 Do you believe in justice?, Q41 Do you like surprises?, Q.2 Are you an art lover? | No Comments »

18/04/2008 by admin.

An interactive video art Cyclorama installation on London’s Southbank is capturing panoramic images every 5 seconds for 3 days.  Eleven cameras take digital photos throughout the day. The Memory Project allows a person to reveal historical images on a scream; effectively letting people move to and fro in time within a sealed chamber!  Take a look…

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7355753.stm

Posted in Q78 Do you want to be part of the picture?, Q57 Have you ever spied on anyone?, Q37 Do you know how to have fun?, Q23 Do you believe all the laws of physics?, Q.2 Are you an art lover? | No Comments »

20/02/2008 by admin.

A meteor zipped across the U.S. Pacific Northwest sky early Tuesday morning before exploding, possibly littering eastern Oregon with marble- to basketball-size space rocks.  The meteor was caught on a surveillence camera in North-Western America. This is the dramatic footage…

http://news.bbc.co.uk/player/nol/newsid_7250000/newsid_7255600/7255695.stm?bw=bb&mp=wm&asb=1&news=1&bbcws=1 

Eyewitnesses describe the light as really bright - something unreal. An airline pilot has reported seeing the meteor hit the ground in a rural area outside of Seattle at about 6:45 on 19 February. A search has commenced for any fragments, focusing on an area around the ‘Blue Mountains’ or outside the town of Pendletown, Oregon.

People all over the world have different beliefs about meteors and meteorites. One thing they have in common though is a belief that meteors are extraordinary.  In the Philippines, for example, one must tie a knot in a handkerchief before the light is extinguished.  In Chile, one must pick up a stone when sees a meteor.

We’ve also discovered really amazing footage of a meteor that crashed to Earth in the USA in March 2007 - 3 months into our watch. Here:

http://tsr117.hi5.com/friend/video/3484654–12239959–Desert%2BMeteor%2BCaught%2Bon%2BFilm–view-html

A search to try to establish the credibility of the March 07 footage led us to discover that 1 day into the Whittenbury Watch a mysterious space object crashed into a house in New Jersey USA.  It was described as resembling a shiny lump of  ‘fools gold’. Take a look at the article here…

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/01/070105-space-rock.html

Posted in Q70 Do you like to look at the stars?, Q57 Have you ever spied on anyone?, Q.5 Do you believe in fate? | No Comments »