Geron Kees

Hi again! I'm glad you liked the story. I grew up in a house with a rather large family library, which all of us kids were encouraged to use. I gobbled up adventures of all kinds, and mysteries, and science fiction and fantasy. Today I have my own library, and I am never too old to go 'back into the stacks' so to speak, and re-read some of the things I read long ago. Re-reading a Hardy Boys adventure is obviously what inspired this tale. It was much more simply written than I remembered from when I was boy, but the ability of those syndicate writers to tell a good, exciting yarn was still obvious. I could still imagine it all, just as I did forty years or more ago. Telling a good tale is a uniquely human talent, and not shared at our level (as far as we know) by other creatures on our world. If aliens ever find the Earth, and are at a loss to figure out which is the dominant race, all they need do is look for the best storytellers around, and they will certainly find us, either telling tales, or listening to them, both of which requires imagination.

Hmm. Is this what is meant by using one's talents to make a living? This sounds exactly like the kind of thing that a couple of young guys might try! It was an adventure, but I am glad the guys see that there is no future in it. I liked the tale, but my advice for young people out there is, don't try this at home! Thanks for another fine tale, Ivor!

Ah. I am imaginative enough to wonder where the story is going. So you are now honor-bound to take us there!

You're so cute when you blush!

We all cheat with our imaginations. Creating a story scenario is like being a chef. Well, a good chef. One who can look at a tried and true recipe and think, "Well, that's all very good that way, but I wonder what would happen if I left out this ingredient, and added this one, instead...". So you're a good chef. Makes for good eating on this end, I must say!

Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to conceive... ... an entire story world!

Loved this one! Fascinating fantasy-adventure-drama, with a walk-about through the realms of a slightly different existence, all of which leads to the possibility of romance - and love. If you've ever felt that there is a special someone meant just for you, and that there are forces at work to bring the two of you together...here you go!

Sensitive, well-told drama on the meanings of life and love, and the sharing of those things with another. And, a story about strength, and the continuance of life in the face of sadness. Read this one twice, and then share it with someone you like - or, even better, someone you love.

I enjoyed this story, and I didn't. I enjoyed the loving relationship that Eli and David shared, but perhaps not the too realistic way it ended. That's a story that touches deeply, and really is not one anyone would like to endure. But it was lovingly and sensitively told, and while the comments from others that know you much better than I clearly disprove it as a realistic remembrance, it certainly felt like one, and in that respect was a little shattering. In all, the parts I liked far outweighed the feelings I felt over what I didn't, and so this definitely ranks a fine story and worth more than one read. I guess I can say that the general advice from others to have a tissue or two handy should be passed on. Thanks for sharing.

Thanks for the nice comments. As I am sure you already know from your own writing, sharing a story is what makes writing them fun.

I also was a little sad to kill off the zombie. He was a guy having a bad day (or year), and not exactly a demon or spawn of evil. The zombie movies and TV shows derive their horror element from the "they used to be people, but now they're undead things" kind of thinking. I tended to view my zombie as a man enduring a shattering change to his world, and attempting to deal with it as well as his altered understanding of it allowed. Killing him off was required, as changing him was not in the cards. But I didn't really enjoy it at all.

I want to visit that other universe that you live in, okay?

Great tale, but incomplete, definitely! A sequel is in order, please!

Thank you. I smiled when you said you 'binge read' the rest of the story, as that was kind of how I wrote it. It was originally to be a short story, and kind of ran away with itself. I decided about halfway through to cut it up into chapters. Probably a good thing, huh?

Oh, I don't bite. I have been known to scratch a little, but only if asked very nicely.

Hey, if you throw in a nucleonic dog groomer, I'll bite!

Too much Nifty will spoil your dinner!

New York's Clean Energy Standard requires that the contribution to in-state electricity generation from renewable resources rise to 50% by 2030, and, in 2017, 28% of New York's in-state generation came from renewable sources. New York generates about one-third of its electricity from nuclear power plants, and the state includes nuclear power as a zero emissions resource that counts toward New York's 2030 emissions reduction goals. In 2017, New York produced more hydroelectric power than any other state east of the Rocky Mountains and was the fourth-largest producer of hydroelectricity among all 50 states. New York State was the fifth-largest natural gas consumer for electric power generation among the states in 2017, and more than one-third of New York's electricity-generating capacity is in units that can burn either natural gas or fuel oil, switching between fuels when needed. New York State is the fifth-largest consumer of petroleum among the states, but has the lowest petroleum consumption per capita in the nation. - from New York State Profile and Energy Estimates Currently, while I can support clean energy sources, I can not guarantee where my energy comes from. I do support green energy. I just do not expect that what gets to my house was generated at Niagara, and not in some nuclear plant or from facilities burning natural gas or oil.

My heart says to return the box to the ground, for Amos and the ages. My practical side says to seek out a few good dealers and get a value, and consider the guy's future educations. Hard call. But my feeling is that Amos would be pleased to help others, and that a reasonable course of action would be to use the gift he left behind.

Thank you for your comments. I don't think young people necessarily understand war, or the reasons for war; but they can and do understand the need to act on the smaller issues of life, such as loyalty to friends, and out of respect for ideas. Even the smallest contributions can have large results. Wars are won by a concert of such individual contributions. Consider it like your philharmonic, all working together to provide a victory in musical experience.

Nah. I'm sure you know what I mean. We live in a world where old traditions are suddenly politically incorrect sometimes, even when modern people do not view them as such. It's a sign of the times. I don't know where my power actually comes from. The way the power grid is set up, you can be using power generated a long way off, and you will never know it. Signing one of these papers these fly-by-night power companies springing up everywhere offer, saying that you only want your power to come from renewable sources, simply is a gesture. Sure, a windmill or a solar farm somewhere might be generating power you are billed for, but once that juice gets into the grid, there are no house numbers on it anywhere. So never think for a moment that you know where your electricity comes from. You don't.

Tsk, tsk, tsk. I suspect you will have coal in your klompen this year!

You leave our Zwarte Piets out of this! Besides, zwarte is out of fashion these days - politically incorrect. The Piets I saw last year were mostly green! Lord, what will they think of NEXT!?

You just did!

You have about five weeks or so to wait. You can do it!