Ice Blink by C James

[C James]

Ice Blink by C James

Five hundred years before Columbus, Europeans discovered the New World. Their nearby colony thrived for hundreds of years, only to mysteriously vanish. What happened?

 

 

:nuke: :nuke: Spoilers Below!!! :nuke: :nuke:

[Graeme]

C James has given us a short history lesson with a dash of humour. And, of course, I noticed that he had to include a character with the name of Erik (the Norse spelling of Eric). I'm beginning to think he's got a fixation with that name.

 

The fictional speculation at the end was poignant, but very Norse in nature. He wasn't going to let himself die quietly in the lodge -- he was going to go out showing his defiance at the world that had changed on them, condemning them to death.

 

There are a lot of mysteries in history, but I always find them fascinating when someone points them out to me. Thanks, CJ!

[Phantom]

C James has given us a short history lesson with a dash of humour. And, of course, I noticed that he had to include a character with the name of Erik (the Norse spelling of Eric). I'm beginning to think he's got a fixation with that name.

 

Nothing wrong with the name Eric... or having a fixation with it... its an awsome name

 

but i do wanna take a read of this

 

----

Ok just finished reading it... and it's a good idea on the history of what happened and one of the greatest mysteries (besides the one of your facination with the name eric if i read the forums right ). I remember talking about this in my history class and it intrested me. Cjames.... you continue to inspire me with your broad ideas and literature... thanks so much for everything you write! it's always a pleasure to read it!

[wildone]

CJ,

 

I must applaud you .

 

When I heard you were going to tackle something non fictional, I was unsure what you would deliver.

 

Learning about the Norse is something that is taught in school here, but I do not believe I pulled out a tenth of what I did with this story. History has never been one of my favourite subjects, so much I would say that it is boring. Fortunately, you gave me a history lesson that was interesting. I believe that the way you gave the information in a compact, fact based, and linear way was what grabbed my interest.

 

Finishing off the story with what you believe may have occurred actually makes me want to look into it more. Knowing the amount of research that you put into your stories, I'm sure I will not find anything extra, and probably nothing written in a way that I would be kept interested. So who knows?

 

I'm sure somewhere in the future I'll be in a discussion about something relatively close to this topic, and now I'll have this to be able to refer back to.

 

Thanks for sharing one of your interests with us.

 

Steve

[MikeL]

CJ, congratulations on a compelling and very different story. A period such as that of Norse exploration and settlement, for which there is little written history, is certainly intriguing. This story is quite a departure from your other work and I appreciate your skills and the effort you put into your stories all the more.

 

No reader could help but notice a parallel in this story to a widely discussed topic of today - climate change. Global cooling can be as frightening as global warming. Humanity - except for a few stranded in inhospitable places - has always survived both.

 

I also noted a small reference to yourself personally - and perhaps a plea to your most avid fans. The Greenland Norse did not die out until they had eaten the last of their goats.

 

Thanks for the good read.

[Benji]

A well written piece of historical fact mixed in with a 'probable ending. I noted the climate change with interest, a fact that greenland used to be green but is now ice, until the climate swings again. It is ironic that the goats were consumed before the end came. BTW, was this a cliffhanger or what!!!!

[old bob]

Trying to bring a non fictional story in the Summer Anthology was really a challenge. Only a top author like CJ could be so foolhardy to try and success .

His duty is now to go on with this new kind of stories .

When a story about the 10 lost tribes of Israel ?

A rumour exists that they came to America. Why not ?

And now, with the climate changes and the warming of Greenland, what will happen with the Inuits ?

Yet another story ?

Old bob

[Tiger]

That was a great history lesson, CJ. I have always had a particular fascination with Vikings. As far as I can tell, the information regarding their colonies is accurate. I must also applaud the ending. One could not expect the story to have a happy ending, because, in such circumstances, there would not ever be a happy ending. I really liked the insight into the character as he watched the destruction of his family and people before meeting his own doom.

[AFriendlyFace]

And, of course, I noticed that he had to include a character with the name of Erik (the Norse spelling of Eric). I'm beginning to think he's got a fixation with that name.

I noticed that too!

 

I also noted a small reference to yourself personally - and perhaps a plea to your most avid fans. The Greenland Norse did not die out until they had eaten the last of their goats.

And that, lol

 

 

Very informative, CJ! Much of that was new or forgotten information for me, so I'm pleased to broaden my knowledge!

 

 

Good Job

 

Kevin

[C James]

C James has given us a short history lesson with a dash of humour. And, of course, I noticed that he had to include a character with the name of Erik (the Norse spelling of Eric). I'm beginning to think he's got a fixation with that name.

 

The fictional speculation at the end was poignant, but very Norse in nature. He wasn't going to let himself die quietly in the lodge -- he was going to go out showing his defiance at the world that had changed on them, condemning them to death.

 

There are a lot of mysteries in history, but I always find them fascinating when someone points them out to me. Thanks, CJ!

 

Lol! I had little choice but to include Erik the Red; he did discover and settle Greenland, after all.

Thanks Graeme! There are so many unknowns about the Greenland Norse... Such as why, when surrounded by fjords teeming with fish, didn't they fish? They did hunt seals, but so far, the evidence is pretty conclusive; they never touched fish.

 

Nothing wrong with the name Eric... or having a fixation with it... its an awsome name

 

but i do wanna take a read of this

 

----

Ok just finished reading it... and it's a good idea on the history of what happened and one of the greatest mysteries (besides the one of your facination with the name eric if i read the forums right ). I remember talking about this in my history class and it intrested me. Cjames.... you continue to inspire me with your broad ideas and literature... thanks so much for everything you write! it's always a pleasure to read it!

 

Thanks!!!

I've been fascinated by the "Viking Connection" for a very long time. I originally envisioned this as a fictional story set in Greenland, but that would not have covered the scope of time needed, I also wanted it to be non-fiction.

 

CJ,

 

I must applaud you .

 

When I heard you were going to tackle something non fictional, I was unsure what you would deliver.

 

Learning about the Norse is something that is taught in school here, but I do not believe I pulled out a tenth of what I did with this story. History has never been one of my favourite subjects, so much I would say that it is boring. Fortunately, you gave me a history lesson that was interesting. I believe that the way you gave the information in a compact, fact based, and linear way was what grabbed my interest.

 

Finishing off the story with what you believe may have occurred actually makes me want to look into it more. Knowing the amount of research that you put into your stories, I'm sure I will not find anything extra, and probably nothing written in a way that I would be kept interested. So who knows?

 

I'm sure somewhere in the future I'll be in a discussion about something relatively close to this topic, and now I'll have this to be able to refer back to.

 

Thanks for sharing one of your interests with us.

 

Steve

 

Thanks Steve!

Please don't assume that everything to know abotu the Greenland Norse is in my entry; it isn't. There are several books that are at least in part about this. One I most highly reccomend is Jarred Diamond's "Collapse", about failed societies. His segment on the GReenland Norse is the best analysis I've seen of their decline, though he too finds their final ending mysterious.

 

There is so much that I only touched on; the Greenlander's expiditions to the North and West; they definitly created Cairns on Baffin island's far north, and possibly some on Hudson bay.

 

Reading the Sagas themselves is interesting... It amazes me that they were dismissed as fiction for so long. The fact I find the most laughable is abotu the grape vines; time and again the historians dismissed Newcoundland, New Brunswick, and MAine as cantidates for "Vinland" because no vines grow there. Yet, they knew the climate was warmer than now when "Vinland" was discovered, and apparently it never occurred to them that plants change ranges as the weather patterns alter.

 

CJ, congratulations on a compelling and very different story. A period such as that of Norse exploration and settlement, for which there is little written history, is certainly intriguing. This story is quite a departure from your other work and I appreciate your skills and the effort you put into your stories all the more.

 

No reader could help but notice a parallel in this story to a widely discussed topic of today - climate change. Global cooling can be as frightening as global warming. Humanity - except for a few stranded in inhospitable places - has always survived both.

 

I also noted a small reference to yourself personally - and perhaps a plea to your most avid fans. The Greenland Norse did not die out until they had eaten the last of their goats.

 

Thanks for the good read.

 

Climate Change is indeed an interest of mine. I often marvel at the fact that so many people assume that, before the industrial age, the earth's climate was stable. Nothing could be further from the truth. Also, cooling is, in so many ways, a more dire outcome than warming. During a cold period, food production is impacted dramatically. Amongst other things, the cold diminishes rainfall; there's less evaporation in colder weather, so less rain will fall on average.

 

I also am fascinated by how many people take man-made global warming as a fact; it's far from it. Indeed, the evidence largely indicates that the warming which was seen, and has since ended, is at least primarily caused by cyclical changes in the sun. The most interesting fact, to me, is that C02 levels in the atmosphere do not track climate (there's a coralation, but about an 800 year lag!) BUT, solar cycles and solar flux definitely do match observed climate changes.

 

I feel that this is of more than passing interest; Right now, politicians are proposing phenomenally expensive (with our money, of course) measure to reduce something that in all probability does not exist. However, there is an even greater cause for concern; look up the current state of the sun. Solar Cycle 24 is late in starting; VERY late, by over three years. (solar cycles average 11 years). Earth's temperature has dropped precariously in the last 18 months; enough to wipe out all the increases seen since 1930!

This matches the solar flux... IF the solar theory is right, we'll see incontrovertible evidence within 18 months, and it will be pronounced global cooling. There have been two types of silar minima observed in recorded hsitory; the Dalton minimum, which would cause a cold spell of around forty years, and the Maunder, which was the most likely cause of the "Little Ice Age" that doomed the Vikings on Greenland (and caused the decline of Europe in that era). In all liklyhood, solar minimums come in many different sizes and extreems; but it looks to me like we're in for at least another Dalton.

 

There is also a third, though far less likly risk; interglacial periods tend to run about 10-20 k years, and glacial periods about 100k.

Looked at on a chart, you see a fairly regular pattern. Most of earth's history for the past few million years has been glacial eras. Could we be entering a new phase change? It is, at least, possible, and that wirries me; a new glacial era would be far worse than "manmade global warming" even if it was real.

 

And yes, the Greenlanders ate of a lot of goats! Shameful, just... shameful.

 

A well written piece of historical fact mixed in with a 'probable ending. I noted the climate change with interest, a fact that greenland used to be green but is now ice, until the climate swings again. It is ironic that the goats were consumed before the end came. BTW, was this a cliffhanger or what!!!!

 

Greenland is now, as it was then, mostly ice, but with alpine conditions in the fjords on the southwest coast. It was warmer then than now, though not by a great deal. It was, however, enough. It still amazes me that they did so much, crossing the north Atlantic regularly in open boats.

 

Trying to bring a non fictional story in the Summer Anthology was really a challenge. Only a top author like CJ could be so foolhardy to try and success .

His duty is now to go on with this new kind of stories .

When a story about the 10 lost tribes of Israel ?

A rumour exists that they came to America. Why not ?

And now, with the climate changes and the warming of Greenland, what will happen with the Inuits ?

Yet another story ?

Old bob

 

Thanks Bob!!

 

I had fun with this... And bingo, foolhardy indeed; Putting a non-fictional story with no gay content at all into an anthology in a gay board was probably not my brightest move, LoL. However, it's something I've wanted to write for a long time.

 

The Lost Tribes are definitely an interesting mystery... As too is the whereabouts or fate of the Ark of the Covenant.

 

I noticed that too!

 

 

And that, lol

 

 

Very informative, CJ! Much of that was new or forgotten information for me, so I'm pleased to broaden my knowledge!

 

 

Good Job

 

Kevin

 

Thanks KEvin! I had fun writing about an interest in this way, it was.. different. I've always loved history.

[MikeL]

I also am fascinated by how many people take man-made global warming as a fact; it's far from it. Indeed, the evidence largely indicates that the warming which was seen, and has since ended, is at least primarily caused by cyclical changes in the sun. The most interesting fact, to me, is that C02 levels in the atmosphere do not track climate (there's a coralation, but about an 800 year lag!) BUT, solar cycles and solar flux definitely do match observed climate changes.

 

IF the solar theory is right, we'll see incontrovertible evidence within 18 months, and it will be pronounced global cooling. There have been two types of solar minima observed in recorded history; the Dalton minimum, which would cause a cold spell of around forty years, and the Maunder, which was the most likely cause of the "Little Ice Age" that doomed the Vikings on Greenland (and caused the decline of Europe in that era). In all likelihood, solar minimums come in many different sizes and extreems; but it looks to me like we're in for at least another Dalton.

 

I had fun with this... And bingo, foolhardy indeed; Putting a non-fictional story with no gay content at all into an anthology in a gay board was probably not my brightest move, LoL. However, it's something I've wanted to write for a long time.

I have read that many scientists believe we have already entered a period of global cooling. The glacial pace at which our elected representatives pass legislation may yet work to our advantage. While global cooling can be worse than global warming, as Ice Blink illustrates, it may be obvious that it has arrived before Congress moves to spend their our trillions.

 

Foolhardy? Not at all! Brilliant is more like it. It certainly fits the anthology theme although escape eludes the hero. Bravo!

[C James]

I have read that many scientists believe we have already entered a period of global cooling. The glacial pace at which our elected representatives pass legislation may yet work to our advantage. While global cooling can be worse than global warming, as Ice Blink illustrates, it may be obvious that it has arrived before Congress moves to spend their our trillions.

 

Foolhardy? Not at all! Brilliant is more like it. It certainly fits the anthology theme although escape eludes the hero. Bravo!

 

Thanks Mike!!

 

If the current changes in the sun do not reverse fast, there will be ample proof of global cooling (and, by extension, that the sun, and not human activity, was responsible for the preponderance of warming observed in the latter half of the 20th century) within 18 months.

 

I made a few posts in the soapbox about this. One is here and gets into the details of solar dynamics and the methods by which the sun affects the climate (it's not just heat and light). Another is here and gets into detail (including charts and records) regarding the sun's effect on climate. It includes a bit about the "little Ice Age" in the story and it's likely cause; the Maunder Minimum.

 

In my opinion, the next year to 18 months will be a critical test of the different climate theories. I also hope that solar cycle 24 gets underway soon, otherwise we're in for some decidedly chilly decades ahead.

 

Thorvald did escape, in a way. He could linger and die of starvation alone, or he could end it quickly. He chose the latter, escaping a slow death. It's not a happy ending for a story, granted, but it was the best guess I could come up with for the Greenlander's final days. My guess is this occurred around 1450.

 

One of the things that inspired Thorvald's story is a fragmentary report, from around 1500, of a corpse being found on a beach in the area, clutching a knife, frozen to death. Could he have been the last of the Greenlanders? Or an Eskimo? The report hints he was in western garb, but does not say clearly. We'll probably never know.

[Procyon]

This was very interesting and very original, having such a long non-fictional background that ends in a short fictional story. You've obviously read up on this very thoroughly; one can tell that it's an interest (it almost seems like a passion!) rather than a more short-term effort to find out facts.

 

We did this at school, of course, but I still didn't know how Greenland got its name (hilarious! Both the fact that Erik the Red wanted it to sound better than it was, and the fact that his epithet was 'the Red' while he used the colour green for the name of the place). I also found the fact that they didn't eat fish strange and fascinating (another thing they failed to tell us at school). One little detail: Erik the Red's son was called Leif, not Lief. A typo I suppose.

 

Your concluding story was plausible and interesting, and very sad. Btw, as it began I thought, Ah, here comes the gay part -- but it didn't. And that was probably a good thing, because even though it would most likely still have been plausible, the story was rich enough -- and heavy enough -- without it.

 

P.S. I think you'd enjoy the novel The Long Ships by Frans G. Bengtsson. It's about Vikings, and he managed to make it very saga-ish in some respects.

[C James]

This was very interesting and very original, having such a long non-fictional background that ends in a short fictional story. You've obviously read up on this very thoroughly; one can tell that it's an interest (it almost seems like a passion!) rather than a more short-term effort to find out facts.

 

We did this at school, of course, but I still didn't know how Greenland got its name (hilarious! Both the fact that Erik the Red wanted it to sound better than it was, and the fact that his epithet was 'the Red' while he used the colour green for the name of the place). I also found the fact that they didn't eat fish strange and fascinating (another thing they failed to tell us at school). One little detail: Erik the Red's son was called Leif, not Lief. A typo I suppose.

 

Your concluding story was plausible and interesting, and very sad. Btw, as it began I thought, Ah, here comes the gay part -- but it didn't. And that was probably a good thing, because even though it would most likely still have been plausible, the story was rich enough -- and heavy enough -- without it.

 

P.S. I think you'd enjoy the novel The Long Ships by Frans G. Bengtsson. It's about Vikings, and he managed to make it very saga-ish in some respects.

 

 

Thank you! And thanks VERY much on the spelling of Leif! O0ps!!

 

This is indeed a long-term interest of mine. I've read numerous books and archaeological reports on it. One of the biggest mysteries is that unlike in the northern area called Western Settlement, the top layers of the southern part of Eastern Settlement (where the last survivors are) have never been archaeologically researched. Thus, we don't know for sure if the final end of the last colonists was starvation, or something else. I hope that one day there is an excavation done.

 

I don't always write stories with gay content... One of my prior anthology stories, "The Muse" has no gay content whatsoever. Much like this, I just felt the story didn't need it, and it would have detracted.

 

Thanks!!!

CJ

[rbenn5]

Very nice story. bravo

[S.L. Lewis]

This is a story about my favorite pieces of history. What did happen to the vikings that came here before the so called first settlers? It's such an interesting piece of history and this story was just as interesting. I bow at your feet, dear one, and applaud you for another wonderous story.

[C James]

Very nice story. bravo

 

Thanks!!!

 

This is a story about my favorite pieces of history. What did happen to the vikings that came here before the so called first settlers? It's such an interesting piece of history and this story was just as interesting. I bow at your feet, dear one, and applaud you for another wonderous story.

 

Thanks!!

The Viking colony in Newfoundland is very interesting IMHO... The survived for ten years, but Greenland, though doing well, was too small to support a major colonization effort. The colony lasted for ten years, but they packed up and returned to Greenland due to constant fighting with the Indians.

 

There is archaeological evidence that some Viking expeditions reached much further, such as norse artifacts amongst Indian archaeological sites throughout the Northeast of North America. This isn't definitive; the goods could have been acquired in trade and taken via Indian trade routes throughout the area, but there is little evidence of trade between the Norse colonies and the Indians, so my guess would be that these artifacts were traded or taken during exploration expeditions.

CJ

[Procyon]

Thank you! And thanks VERY much on the spelling of Leif! O0ps!!

 

This is indeed a long-term interest of mine. I've read numerous books and archaeological reports on it. One of the biggest mysteries is that unlike in the northern area called Western Settlement, the top layers of the southern part of Eastern Settlement (where the last survivors are) have never been archaeologically researched. Thus, we don't know for sure if the final end of the last colonists was starvation, or something else. I hope that one day there is an excavation done.

 

I guess archaeologists prefer digging in warm places like Greece and Egypt. Actually though, it's probably even harder to get funding for digging in Greenland than in, say, Europe or Africa, and -- is the ice in the way? It might cause difficulties for people who want to see what's underneath.

 

It's a pity though, it'd be so cool to find out what really happened.

 

Funny, btw, Leif is a Finnish name originally, and thus not related to Norse names at all. I wonder what made Erik the Red give his son a Finnish name? Maybe it was more common back then than I thought, but I've always been wondering about it.

[C James]

I guess archaeologists prefer digging in warm places like Greece and Egypt. Actually though, it's probably even harder to get funding for digging in Greenland than in, say, Europe or Africa, and -- is the ice in the way? It might cause difficulties for people who want to see what's underneath.

 

It's a pity though, it'd be so cool to find out what really happened.

 

Funny, btw, Leif is a Finnish name originally, and thus not related to Norse names at all. I wonder what made Erik the Red give his son a Finnish name? Maybe it was more common back then than I thought, but I've always been wondering about it.

 

The area of the Eastern Settlements is ice-free in summer (a little brash ice in the fjords) but the weather, now as then, is tempremental. A big part of the problem is cost; its one of the most isolated places on earth. However, I hope to see it done one day.

 

That's interesting about Lief! (For those who are unaware, the "Vikings" were from Sweden, Norway, and Denmark, and the Finns of that Era were a separate people... Sweden did not annex Finland untill about two centuries after Eric the Red's time)

 

I must admit that my knowledge of Finland is sketchy; most of it stems from my interest in the Winter War against the Soviets. I've only been there once, and I wasn't there for long.

 

Hrmmm, I wonder... Eric the Red had to leave Iceland becuase of being convicted of murders. His parents had moved to Iceland due to having committed murders in Norway. (hmmm, interesting family trait, that). Perhaps the family history goes back further, and there is a Finnish connection?

[MikeL]

The July 2008 issue of Smithsonian magazine has an interesting article about the Vikings and a reproduction Viking ship. The ship has sailed in the North Sea and around the British Isles. You can read the article at "Raiders or Traders".

[FrenchCanadian]

I certainly like that story, it comes from CJ, one of my favorite writers, what could I expect more,,, CJ, you've got a really great talent,,, doing some real hard work in researching all the info and it just makes your story more believable,,,

 

As for this story by itself,, I guess there's not much to add other than just,,, REAL good job..

[C James]

The July 2008 issue of Smithsonian magazine has an interesting article about the Vikings and a reproduction Viking ship. The ship has sailed in the North Sea and around the British Isles. You can read the article at "Raiders or Traders".

 

Mike, that was one great article!! Thank you!!

 

There were indeed varius types of viking ships, and the ones used in Greenland were more like the warship briefly mentioned,not the coastal raider. The key ability of the coastal raiders was their shallow draft; they could navigate in a couple of feet of water, and beach easily. Their lack of a keel was another key aspect. The warships were more stoutly buillt and wider, and also had removable (often carried stowed) roofing, used as protection from arrows and other small projectiles.

 

Even so, saling back then was risky. For example, of the 20 or so ships taking part in the initial colonization of Greenland, 13 survived the journey from iceland. .

 

I certainly like that story, it comes from CJ, one of my favorite writers, what could I expect more,,, CJ, you've got a really great talent,,, doing some real hard work in researching all the info and it just makes your story more believable,,,

 

As for this story by itself,, I guess there's not much to add other than just,,, REAL good job..

 

Thanks Sacha!!

 

I love doing the research for stories, but in this case it was easy; I've long had an interest in the lost Viking colony. So, the entire non-fiction part was easy to write.