Astronexus Astrofly Electric Astrolabe and the tail of the six legged unicorn

 In 2010 long ago long ago  when I was a Adult  Education Teacher( just in living memory)   following  on  after the success  of  my earlier  numeracy sessions on   escape from death star  maths  and what do I weigh on other planets worksheets

I   planned to  deliver a  session on  internet astronomy search for SETI and exoplanets.

For this I  prepared  resources and work sheet to   introduce community learners  to  my favourite websites such as  Solstation,  Astronexus   and star gen    showing how  exoplanet data that could be used in spreadsheets  and  basic  calculation of viewpoints using a expanding   balloon   as scale.

Useful if  mainly  clicking  mouse   session made people aware of distances even if before   the only planets they  had heard of were Earth  and Mars

 I had fun anyway with the group   using  the  star flight  navigator simulator Astrofly  program   a sort of an electric astrolabe   which  like  Astronexus offers  full star  catalogue   but  can only focus on a  low focus  fly to the alien star   centred on where the sun is in that alien  sky  where as  Astronexus  provides   focus  on sun   plus north  and south   hemispheres alien  constellation views.

some  basic  screen  prints .making  night sky views   that  resemble dreaming under the wild  moons of Blue Antara  or "Tau cygni 5  as  your Earthlings call it"

Astronexus  is in its  hemispheres   based   on Earth tilt  perceptions  and the simple mathematics of two points in space and distance    for example  an  typical  nearby exo  planet has higher  axial  tilt at 27 ^o   and with two suns    a less  visible night sky

both astronexus and astrofly are old  points  of viewing  3D sphere  programs

 As far back as 1973  in his cosmic connection book  Carl Sagan used  Cornel university   main frames to create  early views of sun in centauri    and sun  from tau ceti  new constellation where  the sun appeared  at  the  arcturus plumed tail  top of a six legged Unicorn   horn Regulus to   Rasalas

so  playing with  astronexus and astrofly you cannot help starting to make  constellations patterns ie  "archer, harper,  dragon slayer, bird catcher,  clothes maker" from the slightly off centre    alien skies

Looking back over my  2005 -2012    back of  flyer notes  that I had  kept in an old envelope   struck by the fact that when employed  full time  I tended to fantasise  a lot   at  end of working days devoting myself    to  flights  of  imagination and  lesson planning  in equal measure .

This fantasying or "creativity"  was    mainly at the end of the day   pausing to  speculate  on at  least   150   alien    planetary  life forms  who could be watching Earth  at that moment  as I  closed up.

 At home on sunday afternoons   forgetting about  the   teaching professionalism   and writing   the  outlines of at least  30 fantasy and sci fi  novels avoiding the Galactic  "Pow"  Dreadnought   and  Empire  cliché   which however did not survive until  first teaching session Monday morning.

As part of the  audience or even deliverer  of  presentations  I remained   dedicated note taker  despite the bored temptation   to   chronicle   five different  Future Earth   millennium  histories during the key note speakers  address on stakeholder policy

Now  with all this redundant time  and endless  empty  days  lacking in day dreams  and something to be distracted from!

I   found post redundancy   I  do not write   the fourth novel in a fantasy trilogy ,  I do not speculate  on Plastiform  Sentient   life forms   62 light years  away,  or    explore the  best  possible   landing ground for an Alien Expedition to Earth  in the   Cretaceous period  as I used to  do.   All the  fun went out of my life when  I lost my job.

Sometimes feel  like Yoda on Dagobath 

King George Not in this Republic

All this  Royal baby  stuff makes  me  think of  a  strange Alternative Reality   where Johnny Vegas  is  President of the British Isles  and Nick  Clegg  the  bumbling  Vice President.

God save Prince George our King

 As usual  the respectful journalists look ahead   to our king  George   a polite line of  long lived monarchs  following after each other  each a  Centenarian  " The Queen is good for another decade  Charles  III will reign  for a good thirty years   William  V will see in the  2080s   and George VII  will  carry on the  royal tradition in the 22nd  century" 

In the past months the   Netherlands  has a new  king Willam Alexander   and Belgium  has King Philippe  sworn in with  minimum fuss

Yet for the future   England  still plays  the  medieval   kingdom  stuck as we are in a  groundhog day   1897  with the old Queen  God bless  her.

The Queen  well  it used to be treason to  even  conjure up a  date  for  end  of the monarchs  reign  but 2018  is a good Coronation year   for  George VII   (Charles  III is so  Stuart )   and after a decade  William  V     Prince George  marries  and divorces Queen Estelle  of Sweden   but   never succeeds as  World opinion deserts  the idea of  nostalgic European monarchies    Nation states   and United Nations    before  the 2040s

I  should really be more  happy  in my poetry  and get away from the     Ghost stories  Greek and  Celtic myth   that  stall my inspiration an imagination  that  was once so fluid when  it was  simply something  to   day dream  away at work. even if  like Elen of the Hosts   poem  it has a lot of  readers  and good reviews

"You certainly have a unique signatory-style of writing...almost mouth music. The first stanza was delightful....loved every syllable of it"

" I too liked the intro to this a lot...I could not help in the reading wonder, if this was built on some kind of folk lore or myth"

Having spent  two  weeks  on  my latest  two  80 liners   the  ironic  greek myths as usual    "Argo  Ariadne  Medea" and    "Venus  ridiculed at the court of  Amor" 

 Typical of my style everything  starts epic and is  undercut  in fact  everything is undercut in the same  ironic  way so decided  to chuck the lot.

Each failed job interview  after  years  of being occupied   studying and  then teaching since the mid   1980s  causes me self doubt   that effects  my creativity  and wonder if I should ever bother to continue.

The Rag letters storylines

I am putting the  final touches  writing the second edition of my  second e book the Rag letters  available  on amazon world wide

 

 dropped some of the    modern scientific  theories,  environmentalist  declaiming    and   world  gone bad odes  in favour  of  more legend retelling  and  storyline poems

 

The Ragletter  storylines  are

 

An Egyptian mummy comes  to  life and causes  havoc in Jack the Ripper era London

 

A tyrant king  changed by Merlin's magic into the wife of his greatest enemy

 

The solution to a  medieval murder  revealed by a psychic dream

 

 A grim  18th  century tale about a  scientist  who creates  an automaton  based on his dead  child  then uses the automaton to commit suicide with

 

A beautiful woman  turns into a  gargoyle  in  her lovers embrace

 

A Seal  changeling  woman is caught  by hunters  and recognises her brother  among them

 

I talk to  the prettiest  girl on the beach  and learn she drowned  there  one hundred years ago today

 

Orpheus scared to death by his daughter  of Eurydice

 

The  true reason why we are all afraid of insects

 

An Christian bishop  weeps in old age pining  for his   pre conversion  ecstatic pagan youth

 

Robin Hood   romances about his life as an outlaw  while  slaughtering anyone  who crosses  his path

 

 

The Confession of the  North Berwick witches

 

Helen wears no costume  but finds  that she cannot flirt with  dead Greek  heroes 

 

 

 

Alternative kingdoms and Alternative colleges

 

 

 

re alternative history   i remember in 2005  when  one wet Sunday  afternoon  I created a  whole  six  hundred year history 1200 -1800   on one side of  A4 of  a  alternative European kingdom   in the area of     Carolingian Burgundy  Lotharingia    a  neglected area   that  had the makings of  a nation state

 

The   new Lotharingia was here   called "Pria" stretching  from the North sea  to the Mediterranean   a Cathar  religion  state rising to dominance  after  70 % of  Europe's population  die  in the Black death  and    powered by steam     in this single A4 world there would be no Bourbons, no Hapsburgs   and few kings and fewer bishops 

 A post  papal  Rome was  a Republic   along   classical lines

England  eventually unites with Scotland to  stop the  Welsh overrunning and claiming    the whole island.

see white  on red saltaire of Pria  and the  united kingdom  white dragon  

 

 

 

 

 

 

I had interview for examinations   officer   at my old  school and I mean my old school   Sir John  Deanes Grammar School  Northwich   of 30 years ago  doubt it appears on US google    search

 

 

for years  a  proud  top ten   Ofsted sixth form college  it has lost none of its  grammar schoolish elite attitudes   and  self  belief in  its own    academic importance  in a way still  very much  justified.

 

 

 Grammar   school old boys  the only one i  went to school of   among all the future  prime ministers   never realised,, Oscar destined actors  still resting,  scientists more in theory  with   Glaxo  than Einstein  was    a  boy  in my  maths set   who became  a restaurateur  and   often  served President Jimmy Carter

  funny the future prime ministers  never  came to much -  luckily  I  never   mentioned my  great  novel   I was working  on at the time.

 

strange  for an old boy  of a  grammar school to see the hall turned into a cafeteria and the surrounding classrooms  like some tuck shop  fantasy  run as   concessions for Starbucks and cafe Verde

 less students  in a larger  college  and more management

noted  that despite  impressive   music  dance  media studies  drama and art departments   (that  follow  current  UK trends in university entry )

 that there is no religious education  taught at A level   (my old top  subject)   and little evidence of the  once pure  mathematics and physics    student  supremacy of  the 1980s  

no Greek and Latin on syllabus    and for a college that was once strong on   modern languages   in a modern world  teaching the usual  Ger  Fr Sp  but not Bahasa  as you find in other  colleges  of  that  standing

I scored highly in the assessments  one being ICT  but  could not show how  I could  do the  job  on supporting letter of application

 It was nice to see the old SJD again   must think of a  new nickname for it  as "Saint Stinks"   is so1980s

Elen of The Hosts

 

 

 

My poem Elen  of the Hosts

  based   on the Welsh   Mabinogion myth   The Dream of Maxen  Wledig  about a Roman emperor who dreams of  his future wife  sitting   in a castle of  a land  unknown to him   this is a retelling

 

 

Maximus Max   Magnanimous  Gloriosus

 Absolute Legendary Epic Emperor Stupendous

would like to meet  a Queen-Countess-Duchess-Empress  with similar interests

 

larger  and more beautiful

thinner and more  dutiful

 

 

 

He dreamt  of her

A  cheeser  

ate  honey with her head and hands 

dogs walked backwards

fish flying south

fish flying pigs

 

The  running, lost and falling

tunnels  opening onto doors

opening onto tunnels

opening onto doors

 

doomy on   deja  temple mounts

castle  gloom   beside   grief  waters 

in valley of   miserable  dolorous

 

across a  boat forsaken   

mountain storms the crest

 a blue so blue   that blue becomes yellow

 

 

dark fears  dark mares

dream psychs

bride in witching

figure held  in witching

himself

 

feet  first on threshold

cold out the  light

take up your  bonny  bridegroom

I have no more to do but die

 

meeting in state

living in state

a love worth living

 

He sang her  in Golden chair

just his arms

sang, sleep,chair

 

"Elen  of the Hosts"   Mark Littler  2013