Mancunian

Thank you for your interest and for reading The Major's story, I'm happy that you enjoyed it and hope that you enjoy the other stories in The Boot World. Thank you for your comments too, I have enjoyed reading them and hope you will continue to comment.

Research appears to show that one shameful thing the UK and the USA have in common is a lack of support for its veterans. Fortunately, some charities take up the slack but even that is wrong in so many ways as it should be our governments leading the way in giving the support that our vets deserve.

It is almost impossible for us to avoid some kind of tragedy in our lives, how we deal with it differs from one person to the next and the effects of tragedy are different too.

The Major was, and still is, a man of depth and many talents. His men were his family and he loved them unconditionally.

I'm happy you enjoyed the story and thank you for commenting. Luckily there are people like John, Jeff, etc. As you rightly point out, there are not enough people like them, we need more.

Kieth's ex could be the culprit, at least he's a suspect, or is it another red herring thrown into the pot by our esteemed author? 🤔

Hopefully, when the bridge is rebuilt it will be the safer route for you, that would be better for you and the horses. 🤞

The safer route may not be the shortest but it is always the best.

Hi there B, how are things down under today?

I just heard about that on the news over here. They said that the ship was experiencing power outages before it left port and experienced one immediately before striking the bridge. I would say that the ship was not fit to leave the port, someone is likely going to be in a lot of very serious trouble for what has happened.

Without knowing it Kieth Kane could be the lead that Ken needs, maybe it is some kind of retribution for the slight that Kieth suffered, but then it could be that someone is using that as a cover to frame Kieth. The field of suspects is still too wide to be making guesses, but the info that Kieth has given could help reveal a clue or two later in the investigation. Let's hope Ken stays sharp.

The BBC news showed a clip of the bridge collapsing, it appeared to go down like it was made of matchsticks. 😢

have they managed to rescue anyone?

That's fantastic news, good luck for when you start the new job.

I hope they have not been given my address. 🥺

I am currently in the UK watching the morning news on TV. I am in shock and dismay after hearing the news about the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore Maryland collapsing after being hit by a cargo ship. It is truly upsetting to watch the news footage of the bridge collapsing. I cannot imagine the pain and suffering of those directly affected by this disaster. Reports have indicated that there were people on the bridge at the time, and rescuers are searching for them. I wish the rescuers good luck in finding as many survivors as possible. My heart goes out to all those affected by these tragic events. There have been announcements that an investigation will be carried out to determine what happened, which is appropriate. However, I believe that an investigation should also be conducted to determine why the bridge collapsed so easily. Watching the news footage, it appears as if the bridge collapsed as if it was made from matchsticks. Surely it should not have collapsed so quickly and easily. I am deeply saddened by this news and send my sympathies to anyone affected by this tragedy.

Hi B things are good thanks. I'm trying to decide which thread of The Boot World to follow for a new story, trouble is there are so many possibilities it's hard to decide. How are things with you?

What are you turning it into? 52?

A great interview with a great author, and Libby Drew's story Running Far Afield is a story which when read is never forgotten. Knowing that it is based on real events gives it more meaning. Thank you @Cia and @Libby Drew for the interview.

Happy Birthday @spike382 now get out there and enjoy some partying.

Okay, so that lead was a red herring, but let's not discount it completely. It's still possible that Michael was being used by someone, or someone has a similar motive, if so it's probably the latter. I'm hoping for clues with more substance, so I'll have to keep an open mind.

This a great discussion point on when to, and when not to, add violence to a story and what level of violence should be used. Maybe sometimes the question is this;- is it a story that is about violence, or is it a story that just happens to include violence? On the few occasions that I've included violence in a story, it is a minor part of the story and there has been a justifiable reason for it, i.e. in self-defence and in one story it was used to show the consequences of excessive violence during a criminal act and an integral part of the story. Although it has been described in detail it has usually been kept to a minimum and shows the consequences for it. In my opinion, unless a story is about, or centred around, war or similar situations violence should be used sparingly in most stories, with an appropriate description of it that fits the story. I think that it should be remembered though that violence is not appropriate in every story.

Young, amateur and very local, hmmm, could be someone who is being set up the same as he tried to set up young Tom. It could also just be a coincidence, something isn't adding up...yet.

This could be worth looking into in some detail.

That's f*****g huge!