Dean Hamilton

a man with a mustache is wearing a cowboy hat and looking at something in the dark . ALT: a man with a mustache is wearing a cowboy hat and looking at something in the dark .

Unfortunately the sixth book in the series has never been published in an English translation, which is ...frustrating.

Clearly I must learn Spanish.

You can also enjoy the movie - starring Viggo Mortensen, who brings a characteristic flair to the moody swordsman.

One of my favorite book series is Arturo Pérez-Reverte brilliant, under-rated Captain Alatriste series.

A surprisingly poetic, thoughtful set of adventurous historical fiction books set in the Golden Age of Spain. The series follows a quixotic former soldier turned sword-for-hire.

Well, Trump's "Canada is the 51st state" bullshit did a great job bringing the Liberals back from a 25% support dive and helped shitcan Poilievre and the Conservatives up here.

Won't be surprised to see it happen again.

a man with red hair and a beard is standing in the woods ALT: a man with red hair and a beard is standing in the woods

Reading the brilliant book 'Inventing the Renaissance' by @adapalmer.bsky.social, and I think she coined a phrase for the ages:

"History, unlike fiction, doesn't have to be plausible."

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Damn, that sounds fun. To be honest, I spend more time poking about all the historical sites in games like Assassin's Creed, then I do trying to play the game.

If only the various guards would stop trying to kill me everytime I wander into a place...

a comic book cover for radioactive man shows a glowing skeleton ALT: a comic book cover for radioactive man shows a glowing skeleton

Had a radiation cardiac stress test.

It's official.

The Doge's Palace in Venice has a very impressive Armory.

I now have sword envy...

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Did you ever finish writing a book and then sort of put it in the drawer because the apathy of agents to all your queries is just so soul-deadening and crushing that you’d rather write another book then deal with selling this one?

Yeah, it’s that sort of day.

Horses did neigh, and dying men did groan,
And ghosts did shriek and squeal about the streets.

This is just to say...

Ozymandis, King of Kings, has eaten

the plums

that were in

the icebox

Look upon their pits, Ye Mighty,

and despair - no breakfast for you!

Some pics from my wandering Piazza San Marco, early morning - damp, rainy and mostly empty but...atmospheric!

The UAE needs to be held to account for their funding and support of RSF. With the current US administration, that won't happen, but the rest of the world needs to step forward and put the pressure on. This conflict isn't as visible as Gaza or Ukraine, but it is exacting a horrific cost.

a man with a mustache looks at another man ALT: a man with a mustache looks at another man

Well, you've always been a bit of a mystery wrapped in an enigma, shrouded in darkness and uncertainty, a worn cardboard box sealed with packing tape, waiting on a long-lost UPS truck, parked in an an abandoned lot, tucked away on a lost continent of kaiju, so to speak...

Kil Kat.

a woman is wearing a tiara and saying of course i do i 'm a princess and this is my tiara ALT: a woman is wearing a tiara and saying of course i do i 'm a princess and this is my tiara

Just saying....

For a deep-dive read into this fabulous bit of cartographic lore, check out Here Begins the Dark Sea by Meredith Francesca Small.

It's just excellent!

Another highlight of my Venetian visit was the chance to see the Mappa Mundi -a 15thc map by Venetian monk Fra Mauro- at the Correr Museum. You can get a close-up look at this phenomenally detailed, 2-m square map, as well as an interactive screen version.

Visited the Piraeus Lion when I was in Venice. Sculpted in 360 BC, it was looted from Athens by the Venetians in 1687 & now sits outside the gates of the Venetian Arsenal.
If you look closely (B&W, it shows the details better), you can see the carved runes left by Vikings in the service of Byzantium

It was extraordinary.

Some more....

The interior of the Basilica di San Marco in Venice is mind-blowing. The detail of the Byzantine frescos and mosaics is other-worldly and extraordinary.

Last place in Italy we stopped at was the fabled La Serenissima - Venice.

Damn.

Whew.

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I’m thinking the neighborhood Halloween decorations are getting a little out of hand….

YES! I did not know what it was called but sunny days make me sneeze.

#Caturday
The head of an ancient Egyptian alabaster cat-shaped cosmetic vessel with eyes made of rock crystal. 12th Dynasty, Middle Kingdom, 1990–1900 BCE.

More: thetravelbible.com/top-ancient-...

Hit the Uffizi gallery in the afternoon, but exhaustion took its toll and I failed to get through a big chunk of the museum.

What I did see...wow.

Went on a Fiat tour of the hills overlooking Florence.

Visited Abbazia di San Miniato al Monte, an 11th c church and abbey on the hill, getting a spectacular view of the Duomo and the cityscape.

Have to say, Italy and Tuscany lives up to its reputation.

Carney: But this decades-long process of an ever-closer economic relationship with the United States is now over. And as a consequence, many of our former strengths as a country—more particularly, our economic strengths based on close ties to America—have now become our vulnerabilities…

Ran across the Largo di Torre Argentina site in Rome, while wandering over to Campo de' Fiori. This where Julius Caesar met his stabby fate at the hands of the Senate. It's now a designated cat sanctuary (there's one kitty visible in the lower left corner of the picture). www.gattidiroma.net/web/en/