The industry petered out at the beginning of the twentieth century when many perfectly fine millstones were simply abandoned. It was no longer cost-effective to hand carve them. They could be created with machinery instead and besides the millstone grit of Stanage Edge had been overtaken by the finer grained French "chert" which did not leave tiny grains of silica in the now fashionable pure white flour.
Yorkshire Pudding
"O God, I could be bounded in a nut shell and count myself a king of infinite space, were it not that I have bad dreams." - Hamlet Act II scene ii
20 January 2026
Solidity
19 January 2026
Alvin(II)
He was bulkier than I had imagined and even from behind I could see how swollen his ankles were. Beyond the restroom door muffled disco music seeped inside from the golden ballroom.
"Beautiful!" he exclaimed to his own reflection as he preened what remained of his weird hair. It seemed amazing that I was effectively alone in that rest room with the bloated forty seventh president of The United States of America who clearly imagined that he was King of the World and perfectly safe in his Florida palace . However, like millions of other earthlings, I thought of him as a narcissistic fraud, a dangerous fake president whose rampant authoritarianism needed to be stopped in its tracks. He had already caused too much hurt, too much chaos.
Somebody had to do it and I felt that the invisible finger of destiny had pointed my way. I owed it to the world and there was no turning back now.
I continued for weeks as "Good 'Ol Alvin". Other members of the maintenance team sometimes called me Chipmunk for some strange reason but I just kept on smiling inanely and humming those country and western tunes as I had done at The Palm Beach Country Club. I even got to see Dan Gilbert again and thanked him profusely for his "kind reference". What a dolt!
It was a question of biding my time and seizing the moment when it arrived. I had to be prepared. Almost twelve months passed by with me polishing mirrors and taps, mopping floors, replacing toilet rolls and undertaking minor plumbing repairs. "Patience", I told myself.
I had heard that He was back at Mar-a-Lago for another long golfing weekend and perhaps I would be lucky after several previous opportunities had had to be aborted - mostly because of other gentlemen using the bathroom facility.
However, on this occasion he was alone. As on the first weekend I saw him, he entered the first cubicle to defecate. He vocalised as he strained and angrily muttered unintelligible expletives before emerging.
He stood at the sinks washing his little hands and preening his mane, grinning at himself and saying "Beautiful!" three or four times.
I waited until he was at the noisy electric hand dryer before swiftly grabbing my pre-prepared bucket of extra soapy water from the "Out of Order" cubicle. Silently, I flooded the marble tiled floor just behind him and as planned, the magic happened in the very second that he turned round.
His feet went from under him - as though on black ice - and as he fell onto his back his skull thudded sickeningly against the unforgiving sink in which he had just washed his hands. Then his head hit the hard floor with a heavy scrunch.
Almost immediately, there was blood.
I had to act quickly before somebody else came in. Most of the slippery water was mopped up in an instant and I put out the two yellow "Wet Floor" warning cones that I had also stored in the "Out of Order" cubicle.
If he wasn't dead, he was at least out cold. The pool of blood was growing. It all appeared exactly as I had envisioned. A belligerent, entitled old man had entered the restroom, ignored the warning cones and slipped on the floor, fatally fracturing his skull. It had all the characteristics of a "terrible accident". Nothing sinister or suspicious.
I could not resist booting his fat bulk twice. "That's for Renee Good!" I hissed. And in my head I said, "That's for the deaths you caused by defunding USAID!"
With no time for anything else, I got back in the "Out of Order" cubicle with my bucket and mop, locked the door and stood in silence on the toilet bowl so that nobody would see my feet. I could hear the sound of my own heartbeat as I waited there like a bird of prey on my porcelain perch.
And then the voices came. First an aide yelling, "Help!". Then two or three security guards arguing about what should happen. One said, "I think he's alive! Shut up guys! Call 911!" Others came and a woman - possibly Karoline Leavitt - screamed. Then ambulance personnel arrived with "Make space! Let us through!" There were flashes of photography.
Then after an hour or so, all went silent. I got down from my perch and slipped out through the cubicle door. The bleeding hulk of the odorous tyrant had gone - presumably to Sollis Health Emergency Center at Palm Beach - or maybe, if my luck was in, to a morgue.
Like other staff members, I was questioned briefly by FBI men in dark suits who took down my name and address but when my work shift was over I headed back as normal to my shabby rented room in Roosevelt Estates.
Switching on my secondhand laptop, I checked out the live TV news. A grim-faced Fox News reporter with coiffured platinum blonde hair was in the middle of an announcement: "...passed away ten minutes ago... following a fall in his Mar-a-Lago residence...I repeat..."
Naturally, I punched the air. "Yes!"
I continued working at Mar-a-Lago for the next month, during the period of national mourning demanded by President Vance in association with Tesla and the McDonalds Corporation - until accidentally on purpose I knocked over a priceless Chinese vase outside the therapy facility. It shattered into a thousand pieces and I was promptly frogmarched into General Manager Andrew Kiser's office where, to my inner delight, I was fired on the spot.
"I haven't got a choice Alvin!" he said.
Days later, jetting back across the Atlantic, I sat in business class sipping cold champagne while smiling the peculiar smile of a cold-hearted assassin. Nobody else in the world knew what I had done and I determined never to tell anyone. For that, my friend. is the only way to keep such a deadly secret.
18 January 2026
Alvin(I)
Sometimes you need to play the long game then when you later achieve the desired result it's all the sweeter.
I started the planning many months before. One of my first moves was to perfect my Floridian accent which I managed with online support through a trusted contact in Lloyd which is a village up near Tallahassee. She coached me well.
It was easy to acquire a US passport through Greenland-based fraudsters. $10,000 seemed like a good deal. My goal was fixed clearly in my mind but I didn't wish to die. Disguising my identity was vital.
Soon after arriving in Miami on a flight from London Heathrow I secured a menial janitorial job at Palm Beach Country Club. It included basic onsite accommodation. There I had little to do with the golf. I was mostly concerned with restroom cleaning and maintenance. It was a temporary appointment. The usual guy was in hospital following a serious car accident.
As planned, I quickly gained a reputation for friendliness and willingness. Even the most important, wealthiest club members began to address me by my adopted first name - Alvin which means "noble friend"...
"How's it going Alvin?"
"Fine Mr Schwarzman," I would smile, looking up from my mopping or mirror polishing. "How's your good lady sir?"
I had learnt to put on a mask of benevolent humility - never initiating conversation. Sometimes I would hum country and western tunes as I worked and the wealthy members seemed to like that. Thomas Frist Jr and Dan Gilbert - owner of The Cleveland Cavaliers became particularly chummy. However, I never dropped my guard because these rich blokes were merely pawns in my game.
I knew that both of those men were also frequent visitors to the Mar-a-Lago Club and once, as they were washing their hands, I overheard them chatting about the long term owner of that infamous venue.
"The guy's a douchebag."
"You ask me dude. He got owls in the loft!"
They laughed as I grinned malevolently.
After several months at Palm Beach Country Club with my temporary contract coming to an end, I noticed that there was a permanent "career opportunity" on the Mar-a-Lago website. They were advertising for a "reliable restroom attendant". The job required "flexible working", "discretion" and character references from two Mar-a-Lago members.
Thomas and Dan were happy to help.
"Sure thing Alvin. I'll talk to them on Friday. I gotta brunch over there with Marco," beamed Dan Gilbert, squeezing my shoulder before drying his hands. "We were at school together".
Anyway, essentially that's how I managed to pierce the Mar-a-Lago security net and a month later I was working there. I had a smart attendant's uniform in deep blue with a gold-coloured name badge.
Quietly, I got on with my job. Still smiling at restroom visitors, I kept humming those infernal country and western tunes.
One day, J.D.Vance said, "Thanks man!" when I picked up his vial of "Maybelline - Master Ink" eyeliner. He had dropped it near the electric hand drier. However, it must have been a full six weeks later that I first clapped eyes on the famous owner of Mar-a-Lago. Apparently, he was back there on yet another extended golfing weekend.
to be continued...
17 January 2026
Messages
16 January 2026
Richard
15 January 2026
Edgeways
Though our recent snows had almost all gone, it was bitingly cold when I set out across the rising moorland. Any puddles were iced over and soft ground had been hardened by frost. I was wearing my fingerless gloves which are useful for photography but I was wishing I had brought the lovely lined leather gloves that our Ian kindly gave me a few years back. For the first mile, I kept my hands in my pockets just for the extra warmth.
At first, the day was grey and still. Not the best day for photography but at least there was no rain or snow in the local forecast. Besides, not long after arriving at the rock buttress known as Crow Chin, the sky lightened and weak sunshine began to illuminate my surroundings quite nicely for an hour or so.
Thought I had not encountered anybody else, I could see the white triangulation pillar just up ahead. It was at this moment that a mountain biker rode past me with a pleasant, "Hello!".
I asked the young man if he would like me to take his photograph and then I could e-mail it to him. When he clambered down we shook hands. He told me his name was Lincoln - a very unusual forename in this country. He also said that he rides to High Neb every week of the year and always climbs up on the pillar but this was the first time he had ever had his picture taken there.
14 January 2026
Quiztime
Quiztime can be any time and today's the day for all you quizzers out there. Can you recall last year? It was widely known as 2025 and it's the theme for this episode's ten questions. Answers will be provided in the comments section but no peeping and please, no use of smartphones either! Good luck!
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