AirLand Battle

The US Army's basic fighting doctrine is called AirLand Battle. It reflects time proven fundamentals, the structure of modem warfare, and the experience of combat. AirLand Battle doctrine provides a specific mission for infantry forces. To remember these, just think of a football game and they will quickly come to mind.

The tenets of AirLand Battle doctrine are:

Initiative
Depth
Agility
Synchronization.

Initiative. This is the ability to set or change the terms of battle through action. It requires commanders to maintain an offensive spirit. It means that, when an opportunity presents itself, the commanders may depart from planned actions to hasten mission accomplishment. To do this without jeopardizing the higher plan requires that the commander understand and work within the intent of the commander two levels up. This implies a degree of independence and risk. Commanders translate their initiative into action by issuing mission-type orders. These orders in turn give subordinate commanders the flexibility, within the scope of their commander's intent, to improvise and act aggressively to accomplish assigned missions and defeat the enemy. In addition to understanding the scope of their commander's intent, each leader must understand his unit's part in the commander's concept (as the main or a supporting effort), so that he may confidently and boldly exploit success.

Depth. This is measured in time, distance, and resources. At battalion level, depth is achieved by positioning forces to deny the enemy the ability to maintain mass, momentum, and mutual support. The battlefield is no longer a one-dimensional or two-dimensional entity. The commander must understand how he and the enemy fit into the higher commander's deep, close, and rear battles. When possible, reserves are employed. This gives depth to the battalion and provides the commander with a form to counterattack and completely destroy the enemy.

Agility. This is the ability to think and act faster than the enemy. It involves mental, command and control, and organizational abilities to adjust rapidly and to use the situation, terrain, and weather to defeat the enemy. The plan must be simple, yet flexible enough that the commander can react when an opportunity presents itself.

(1) Mobility, flexibility of task organization, timely intelligence, and rapid decision-making enable the commander to cause the enemy to react, which sets the terms of the battle. At the battalion level, these terms are often simplified by positioning the command group well forward so they can see the battlefield, recognize opportunities, and rapidly seize the initiative. The commander and his subordinates rely on IPB, a sound R& S plan, and accurate reports to quickly understand enemy intentions.
(2) Reaction time is reduced by rehearsing SOPs and drills, by choosing sound initial positions for dismounted units that simplify their ability to maneuver. Assets from CS and CSS are positioned to sustain the main effort and to provide flexibility to the plan. Complexity reduces agility.

Synchronization. This is the arrangement of battlefield activities in time, space, and purpose to produce the greatest possible relative combat power at the decisive point. Synchronization is both a process and a result.

(1) Synchronization extends from planning the maneuver to integrating CS and CSS assets to ensure mission accomplishment.
(2) Leaders at all levels must understand friendly and enemy capabilities. They must know how to relate these capabilities to time and space to produce synchronized plans that satisfy the commander's intent.
(3) Synchronization begins in the mind of the commander with his concept of operations. The concept must clearly focus the main effort at a decisive point and must clearly designate the effects (tasks and purposes) of the subordinates. Understanding and using a common doctrine and military language enhances synchronization.
(4) The commander creates synchronization by developing, issuing, and rehearsing clear, succinct orders supplemented by well-established SOPs. Using SOPs enables the commander to rapidly employ assets and to seize tactical opportunities without lengthy explanations and orders.

Ogilby's Britannia - 1675

Rhapsodie Espagnole

Orwell - A Nice Cup of Tea

If you look up ‘tea’ in the first cookery book that comes to hand you will probably find that it is unmentioned; or at most you will find a few lines of sketchy instructions which give no ruling on several of the most important points.

This is curious, not only because tea is one of the main stays of civilization in this country, as well as in Eire, Australia and New Zealand, but because the best manner of making it is the subject of violent disputes.

When I look through my own recipe for the perfect cup of tea, I find no fewer than eleven outstanding points. On perhaps two of them there would be pretty general agreement, but at least four others are acutely controversial. Here are my own eleven rules, every one of which I regard as golden:

First of all, one should use Indian or Ceylonese tea. China tea has virtues which are not to be despised nowadays — it is economical, and one can drink it without milk — but there is not much stimulation in it. One does not feel wiser, braver or more optimistic after drinking it. Anyone who has used that comforting phrase ‘a nice cup of tea’ invariably means Indian tea.

Secondly, tea should be made in small quantities — that is, in a teapot. Tea out of an urn is always tasteless, while army tea, made in a cauldron, tastes of grease and whitewash. The teapot should be made of china or earthenware. Silver or Britannia-ware teapots produce inferior tea and enamel pots are worse; though curiously enough a pewter teapot (a rarity nowadays) is not so bad. 

Thirdly, the pot should be warmed beforehand. This is better done by placing it on the hob than by the usual method of swilling it outwith hot water. 

Fourthly, the tea should be strong. For a pot holding a quart, if you are going to fill it nearly to the brim, six heaped teaspoons would be about right. In a time of rationing, this is not an idea that can be realized on every day of the week, but I maintain that one strong cup of tea is better than twenty weak ones. All true tea lovers not only like their tea strong, but like it a little stronger with each year that passes — a fact which is recognized in the extra ration issued to old-age pensioners. 

Fifthly, the tea should be put straight into the pot. No strainers, muslin bags or other devices to imprison the tea. In some countries teapots are fitted with little dangling baskets under the spout to catch the stray leaves, which are supposed to be harmful. Actually one can swallow tea-leaves in considerable quantities without ill effect, and if the tea is not loose in the pot it never infuses properly. 

Sixthly, one should take the teapot to the kettle and not the other way about. The water should be actually boiling at the moment of impact, which means that one should keep it on the flame while one pours. Some people add that one should only use water that has been freshly brought to the boil, but I have never noticed that it makes any difference. 

Seventhly, after making the tea, one should stir it, or better, give the pot a good shake, afterwards allowing the leaves to settle. 

Eighthly, one should drink out of a good breakfast cup — that is,the cylindrical type of cup, not the flat, shallow type. The breakfast cup holds more, and with the other kind one’s tea is always half cold before one has well started on it. 

Ninthly, one should pour the cream off the milk before using it for tea. Milk that is too creamy always gives tea a sickly taste. 

Tenthly, one should pour tea into the cup first. This is one of the most controversial points of all; indeed in every family in Britain there are probably two schools of thought on the subject. The milk-first school can bring forward some fairly strong arguments, but I maintain that my own argument is unanswerable. This is that, by putting the tea in first and stirring as one pours, one can exactly regulate the amount of milk whereas one is liable to put in too much milk if one does it the other way round. 

Lastly, tea — unless one is drinking it in the Russian style — should be drunk without sugar. I know very well that I am in a minority here. But still, how can you call yourself a true tea-lover if you destroy the flavour of your tea by putting sugar in it? It would be equally reasonable to put in pepper or salt. Tea is meant to be bitter, just as beer is meant to be bitter. If you sweeten it, you are no longer tasting the tea, you are merely tasting the sugar; you could make a very similar drink by dissolving sugar in plain hot water.

Some people would answer that they don’t like tea in itself, that they only drink it in order to be warmed and stimulated, and they need sugar to take the taste away. To those misguided people I would say: Try drinking tea without sugar for, say, a fortnight and it is very unlikely that you will ever want to ruin your tea by sweetening it again.

These are not the only controversial points to arise in connexion with tea drinking, but they are sufficient to show how subtilized the whole business has become. There is also the mysterious social etiquette surrounding the teapot (why is it considered vulgar to drink out of your saucer, for instance?) and much might be written about the subsidiary uses of tealeaves, such as telling fortunes, predicting the arrival of visitors, feeding rabbits, healing burns and sweeping thecarpet. It is worth paying attention to such details as warming the pot and using water that is really boiling, so as to make quite sureof wringing out of one’s ration the twenty good, strong cups of thattwo ounces, properly handled, ought to represent.

Broodthaers' Tomb

The Amazing World of Planets

Guidelines for meteorite nomenclature

3.1 Geographic features. A new meteorite shall be named after a nearby geographical locality. Every effort should be made to avoid unnecessary duplication or ambiguity, and to select a permanent feature which appears on widely used maps and is sufficiently close to the recovery site to convey meaningful locality information. Acceptable names include physiographic features such as rivers, mountains, lakes, bays, capes, and islands, political features such as towns, counties, states, and provinces, and sites of human activity such as parks, mines, historical sites^†, and railroad stations. Other sites mainly associated with recent human activity, such as buildings, commercial localities, schools, bridges, roads, and golf courses are not generally acceptable names for meteorites. In sparsely populated areas with few place names, less permanent features such as ranches or stations or, in extreme cases, local unofficial names of distinctive quality may be used, provided the latitude and longitude of the recovery site are well determined. The names of large geographic features such as continents, countries, provinces, states, and large counties should be avoided if names that are more specific are available, except as specified in §3.3 and §3.4. In general, the selected feature should be the closest such feature to the site of the recovery. If, for example, the name of the nearest town is already used, the meteorite should not be named for the next nearest town. In such a case, a different geographic feature (e.g., a stream) should be selected, if available (if not, §3.3applies)."

^†A historical site is defined as a locality that is well-known for its historical significance, and for which the dominant modern function is the depiction of this history

3.2 Duplicate place names. Duplication of a place name previously used for a meteorite from another country, state or province should be avoided. If it cannot be avoided, both names may be amplified as in Edmonton (Kentucky) and Edmonton (Canada).

3.3 Sparse place names. The following rules apply to cases involving insufficient numbers of unique place-names:

(a) Coincidental falls. In the event that a meteorite falls near the same locality as an existing named meteorite, the new fall should not be assigned a letter designation as in§3.3b, or a numeric designation as in §3.3c. If an appropriate, unique name cannot be found for the new fall, then it should receive the suffix (year), as was done forWethersfield (1982) and Monahans (1998). If there is only one pre-existing meteorite from this location, then the older one should also be given a (year) suffix, e.g., Wethersfield (1971) and Monahans (1938). This is one of the rare situations wherein an existing meteorite fall or an important find may be renamed. If there are multiple existing meteorites with the same name followed by numeric or lettered suffixes, then the fall should still get the year suffix, but the older meteorites do not need to be renamed. 

(b) Coincidental finds. Where several meteorites are found near the same locality and alternative place names are not available, each separate meteorite shall bear the name of the locality followed by a parenthesized lower-case letter, e.g. Kress (a) and Kress (b). Letters shall be assigned alphabetically in order of recognition. If an earlier meteorite from the same locality already exists, e.g. Kress, its name does not need to be changed to Kress (a) (although this can be designated as a synonym). In this case, the first new name should be Kress (b).

(c) Dense collection areas. If particularly numerous recoveries are made in one region, as for instance in Antarctica and the Sahara, a generic prefix (conveying geographic information) and a suitable series of numeric suffixes should be applied. New meteorites found within the designated region will be named by combining the prefix with the next available suffix. Proposals to create new nomenclatural regions must be accompanied by maps, aerial photographs, satellite imagery and/or written descriptions that explain the geographic extent of the region. Once approved, the committee may later vote to change the boundaries of the region. 

3.4 Meteorites of unknown or poorly known provenance.

(a) Withheld information. Where the source of a new meteorite cannot be determined due to the withholding of geographic information by a collector or other party, the name should be chosen to reflect the smallest geographic feature identifying the collection location with certainty. If the location information is too vague, or is uncertain or disputed, the name Nova followed by the next available three-digit number should be adopted as the permanent name. 

(b) Transported meteorites. When the provenance of a new meteorite cannot be determined due to a lack of sufficient historical information, it should be named after the locality where it was first recognized. For meteorites found in institutions such as universities and museums, the name may be either that of the institution, the collection, or the city in which the institution is located. In accordance with §3.6, the names of people, even if part of the official name of the collection, should be avoided. 

(c) Meteorites found in large numbers. In cases where many meteorites are found and distributed or sold without careful documentation of provenance, a numbered sequence of generic names should be used as in §3.3c, wherein the prefix reflects the geographic area in which the meteorites were most likely recovered (e.g., Northwest Africa, for meteorites coming from marketplaces in Morocco). 

3.5 Meteorites from Morocco and surrounding areas. All meteorites found, reported to be found, or purchased in Morocco and adjacent parts of the surrounding countries shall be named according to the following special rules:

(a) Falls. Observed falls will be named the same way as they are in other areas (§3.1-3.3).

(b) Finds and purchased meteorites. These meteorites will all be numbered in a "Northwest Africa" (NWA) series unless they are accompanied by documentation including the date of find, name and address of finder, and reasonable proof of the find location (e.g., a single photograph showing the meteorite in situ, a length-scale, and an active GPS unit displaying the geographic coordinates). If so documented, the meteorites may be given locality-specific names as in §3.1-3.3. If a meteorite bearing a provisional NWA number is later given a formal locality-specific name, the NWA number will become a synonym for the new name.

3.6 Prohibited terms. Neither a person's name, the classification, nor an unofficial directional term (for example North Haig) should be used in a meteorite name. However, the Committee may rule that such practices are permissible in exceptional situations. Names given under this section should not be changed retroactively, even given the eventual resolution of the true provenance.

Red Son

Marco Polo Project - Chinese essays translated into English

http://marcopoloproject.org/online/

I used to have an English teacher who was also a head teacher of our junior high school. At that time, he was really young. He wore a grey Mao suit and carried a green army shoulder bag. Every day, he would walk with a sober, even pace into the classroom. His image has stayed with me for many years and, whenever I think of him, I think of his little green bag.

Aeon

http://www.aeonmagazine.com/

Though he never actually crossed it, the Greek mathematician Pythagoras is sometimes credited with having first conceived of the Equator, calculating its location on the Earth’s sphere more than four centuries before the birth of Christ. Aristotle, who never stepped over it either and knew nothing about the landscape surrounding it, pictured the equatorial region as a land so hot that no one could survive there: the ‘Torrid Zone’. For the Greeks, the inhabited world to the north — what they called the oikumene — existed opposite an uncharted region called the antipodes. The two areas were cut off from one another by the Equator, an imaginary line often depicted as a ring of fire populated by mythical creatures.

Krugman Gizoogled

http://www.gizoogle.net/


Orwell, China, n' Me

I saw dat some commentas was puzzled by mah throwaway reference, up in tha context of tha Chinese Ponzi wall-hittin bicycle, ta tha fascist octopus rappin its swan song. But dat came, of course, from George Orwell’s Politics n' tha Gangsta Language, which mah playas whoz ass cares at all bout either ballistics or freestylin should know by ass.

And it occurs ta me dat tha essay be also relevant ta a cold-ass lil complaint I’ve been gettin from all dem people, ta tha effect dat I’m bein too snide bout tha Chinese regime. Now first of all, I’m snide bout fuckin shitloadz of posses, straight-up much includin mah own — n' wit reason; no muthafucka has tha right ta be exempt from deserved ridicule.

But also, folks, while tha current leadaz of China may not be wack pimps — I straight-up have no clue — tha fact remains dat we’re rappin' on some gangbangin' finger-lickin' dictatorship, n' one dat by all accounts enablez epic corruption like a muthafucka. Yo ass may say dat fo'sho yo, but peep tha economic achievements; but Orwell gots there first:

Consider fo' instizzle some laid back Gangsta pimp representin' Russian totalitarianizzle yo. Dude cannot say outright, “I believe up in cappin' off yo' opponents when you can git phat thangs up in dis biatch by bustin so.” Probably, therefore, da thug will say suttin' like this:

“While freely concedin dat tha Soviet regime exhibits certain features which tha humanitarian may be inclined ta deplore, we must, I think, smoke dat a cold-ass lil certain curtailment of tha right ta ballistical opposizzle be a unavoidable concomitant of transitionizzle periods, n' dat tha rigors which tha Russian playas done been called upon ta undergo done been amply justified up in tha sphere of concrete achievement.”

Happily, tha current Chinese posse isn’t dat bad; but “not as wack as Stalin” is not, exactly, a inspirin slogan.

Jian Bing - Beijing Pancake

Ingredients

• 3 tbs millet flour
• 2 tbs bean flour
• 1 tbs all purpose flour
• 6 tbs soy milk
• 1.5 tsp vegetable oil
• 3 eggs
• Dried chili flakes to taste or 3 tbs chili sauce
• 3 tbs soybean paste
• Handful of freshly chopped scallions (green part)
• Handful of freshly chopped cilantro
• Three flat and crispy youtiao (adjust each piece to the size of your 'crêpe')

Method

1. Whisk together the millet, bean and all purpose flours, soy milk and vegetable oil until well combined (should be the consistency of whipping cream, add a splash of water if not thin enough).
2. Spray a non-stick skillet with cooking spray and set over medium low heat.
3. Pour 1/3 of the crêpe batter onto the skillet, and swirl until the entire skillet is evenly coated with a thin layer of the batter.
4. Cook for two minutes, until set.
5. Crack an egg over the crêpe, and gently break up the yolk, spreading the egg over the entire crêpe.
6. Cook for two minutes, until set.
7. Sprinkle the egg with chopped scallions and cilantro to taste.
8. Let cook for an additional minute (until the white and yolk is set).
9. Carefully, fold the 'crêpe' in half.
10. Schmear 1 tbs of soybean paste and chili -- or chili sauce -- to preference onto the folded jianbing.
11. Place a piece of youtiao into the center of the folded jianbing, fold the two sides of the jianbing inwards, then fold the jianbing in half again (fold it like you would a burrito).
12. Slice in half and serve immediately.

Delicious

Sell Out

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/shouts/2013/01/sell-out-part-one.html

Liebestraum no. 3

Balloon

Zorn @ 60

Shifting Sands: John Zorn Filmworks XIII: Invitation to a Suicide

Just Finished Reading... Axel's Castle

Wilson, E. Axel's Castle a Study in the Imaginative Literature of 1870-1930 by majopareja

What if Keith Richards was a 19th century Russian general?

Say what?

Ashes to Ashes

"When Ivo goes back with the urn, the urn;

Studds, Steel, Read and Tylecote return, return;

The welkin will ring loud,

The great crowd will feel proud, Seeing Barlow and Bates with the urn, the urn;

And the rest coming home with the urn."

Beijing State of Mind

The Three Penny Opera

"Brecht was interested in English writers and Chinese philosophers. He read Swift, Butler and Wells, and also Kipling. He dressed like nobody else in the circle, and looked like some kind of engineer or car mechanic, always wearing a thin leather tie - without oil stains, of course. Instead of the usual sort of waistcoat, he wore one with long sleeves; the cut of all his suits were baggy and somewhat American, with padded shoulders and wedge-shaped trousers. Without his monkish face and the hair combed down on his forehead he might have been mistaken for a cross between a German chauffeur and a Russian commissar."

Gwendolin

Hi, my name’s Gwendolin, and I’m an alcoholic.

I had my first drink when I was 14. It was a big fancy dinner and ball that my father held to celebrate his victory over some other king somewhere. I don’t really remember the details. But I was allowed to sit up on the big table and was served wine along with everyone else. I think I threw up in the moat afterwards.

But this was back before the interregnum so it was galas and balls like there was no tomorrow. Since I was ‘of age’ it was expected that I would attend and I did. It was fun you know, fitting out new dresses, dancing with hot young guys. And there was alcohol. Always alcohol, as much as you wanted. I learnt to take it easy after the first disaster, but by the time I was 16 I guess I was drinking heavily 4 or 5 nights a week. Then it went from drinking at parties to drinking by myself. It was always easy to get a page to run down to the kitchens and bring up a bottle of wine or even some spirits that I could drink in my chambers. It wasn’t long before I was drinking everyday.

I guess I was what you would call a ‘functional alcoholic’. I didn’t really have much to do around the castle except wait to be married off one day to a prince from a neighbouring kingdom. The only time I was in public was at whatever ball was being held, and let me tell you, once you’ve danced the foxtrot with the Ambassador of Whereverthefuckistan while talking about the weather for the thousandth time, it takes very little effort to present a calm and demure front to the world, even if you’re completely blitzed inside. Which I generally was every time.

Of course the time came when I was introduced to my husband to be, Jojo. He was nice enough, but we only met once before we got married. And of course, we had a big fairytale wedding. I was drawn up to the cathedral in a white carriage drawn by a dozen white horses. My dress cost a sizeable portion of the royal treasury and had a train thirty foot long. After saying our vows, a hundred white doves were released from a window. It was, reportedly, the most beautiful and elaborate wedding ever held in the capital.

I don’t remember a single second of it. I had a flagon of vodka snuck into the carriage and I necked most of it while we were waiting to get the horses all hitched up. But, by all accounts I was a resplendent bride so, there’s that I guess.

Then the fights started. It caught me off guard to find out that Jojo actually cared about me. He would beg me to stop drinking. I mean, my parents never took an interest in what I did, and all of my ‘friends’ either didn’t know, or were too scared to say anything about it. But Jojo was someone on my own level who wanted to help me. So of course I rejected his help. I had been living my own life this way on my own terms and I had become so dependent on drinking that I hated being told my life was a mistake. I was a goddamn fucking Princess, alright? The daughter of the fucking King! Living in a fucking CASTLE on top of a fucking MAGIC MOUNTAIN. And you, you jumped up son of sheepherder king who was the self declared lord of three-fifths of fuck all are going to tell ME what to do? I don’t think so, sonny.

So we would fight on and on and on. But on the outside we were the ‘perfect couple’, always happy, always content. I think what helped a lot in those early years were my pregnancies. I cut back when I was pregnant, which led to Jojo being happier with me and I wasn’t as angry with Jojo. For a few years there, we did have a fairly normal life. But after Gertruda, our third child, I had become pregnant with our fourth. I guess something went wrong and I had a miscarriage and was told I would not be able to have any more children.

Well, that tipped something off. I got in a carriage and went to our country estate without telling anyone and proceeded to write myself off for the next two weeks. When they finally dragged me back to the castle, Jojo and I had one hell of a fight. He blamed me for the miscarriage, I blamed him for it. It was bad. We eventually settled down into a cold war. He gave up on me, stopped trying to fight my drinking. And I kept drinking. And drinking.

Most alcoholics have a moment of clarity when they realise they have to stop. Mine was a little more vivid than most. You all know about the Night of the Red Knives and the coup. Well, what you don’t know is that after they had cut off the king’s head, they came for his family. I had been drinking of course. I was so dead drunk that I had passed out in the privy, covered in my own shit and they never found me. It was only the next morning when I woke up, oblivious to what had happened and saw the bodies laid out in the courtyard...

So here I am. Queen Gwendolin de Rhohindera, first of her name, Guardian of the Moonlit Isles and Warden of the Northern Reaches. It has now been 3,542 days since I last had a drink and everyday is a new challenge.

What you know about what's weak, what's tight?

War of the Suns: Kuomintang v Imperial Japanese Army 1937 - 1945

150 years

Honoré Daumier: What was the purchasing power of 1 franc in 1838?

Honoré Daumier was a French printmaker, caricaturist, painter, and sculptor, whose many works offer commentary on social and political life in France in the 19th century.

A prolific draftsman who produced over 500 paintings, 4000 lithographs, 1000 wood engravings, 1000 drawings, 100 sculptures he was perhaps best known for his caricatures of political figures and satires on the behavior of his countrymen, although posthumously the value of his painting has also been recognized.

Literature often mentions that Daumier was a relatively poor man, who followed Corot’s advice that an artists should always have debts in order to really be appreciated by his surroundings.

Year	Francs	Product
1835	0.5	price for 1 pound of tobacco
1835	50	monthly subscription for La Caricature
1835	0.3	unlimited bus ride in town
1836	72	annual subscription for Le Charivari
1837	45	price for the Album Caricaturana, containing 80 plates in black and white
1837	55	price for the Album Caricaturana, containing 80 plates in colour
1837	1.5	prix fixe dinner (two main courses, dessert and a pitcher of wine)
1838	30	monthly salary for an unskilled worker
1839	32	price for the Album Les Moeurs Conjugales, containing 60 lithographs
1839	800	Complete collection of Le Charivari from 1/1/1832 to 12/31/1838: 12 volumes
1839	0.75	Portraits of politicians, which appeared in Le Charivari (price per print)
1840	40	payment which Daumier received for each lithograph supplied to Aubert
1840	5	payment which Huart, Jaime, Biais etc. received for each text supplied to Aubert
1841	9	price for the Album Physionomies Tragico-Classiques, containg 15 lithographs
1841	7.5	rent for a costume ball outfit
1842	0.05	price of 0.25 litres of milk
1842	2	price of one "vol au vent"
1842	0.2	ticket to the public baths on the Seine
1842	3	price for a (natural) sponge
1842	2	Train ticket 1st class Paris-Orléans
1842	1.5	Train ticket 2nd class Paris-Orléans
1842	1	Train ticket 3rd class Paris-Orléans (without roof!)
1842	0.2	admission to the "better", private bathing houses
1842	0.1	admission to the public bathing houses

Beat Takeshi

Wadi Halifa

I had two days in Wadi Halifa until the next packet steamer.
The R.R Hotel, the Raffles of the sands,
had rooms and ghosts to spare. Many to be found
recounting past glories under the portrait of George V.

There we were lads, blackamoors to left of me,
hottentots to the right. MacDonald’s light regiment
was still a mile away. Well, we formed up the square
and (the door opens and a gust of sand blows in. Hands
go to cover drinks automatically, like they’re about to
tip them over and perform a magic trick). Varicose
necks chortle at the punch line. The stories all prattle
off the same chorus line of names - Wadi Halifa,
The Wells of Abu Klea, Atbara, Shendi, Omdurman,
Khartoum, Fashoda. Kitchener’s entire army camped
in one room. Everyone of them a Lancer in the 21st.
Everyone of them Churchill’s batman.

The air outside is just as hot, but dry. Drier than the
vermouth inside. One old soul blown in over the dunes
lies supine in a crack of shade. His voice as hollow as

his face.

You may die from the sun, but only after the silence
drives you mad. That’s what I will always remember
from the desert. Jeddson couldn’t deal with it. Nor could
Burnaby. What could we three know, we were railway
surveyors from Cardiff. Drawing a straight line across
a land that was always moving, always changing. Pegs
you lay down the day before across solid rock now led
down to a bed of quicksand. Walking straight for a whole
day to come back across your footprints from the morning.
Silent voices on the wind. Mirages, visions. Day after
day, mile after mile. Three years we spent in that desert.
Burnaby went mad of course. Not all at once mind you.
But slowly, it crept into his eyes. I would catch him tearing
up my pegs. He wouldn’t even admit it was him who did it.
Jeddson went mad of course. All at once it was like some-
thing snapped inside. He jumped up from the camp one
night and ran straight off into the desert with no shoes or
water. Never saw him again. Never saw him again. I
tried to go back, but Burnaby had torn out the
pegs, destroyed the compass, torn out my eyes.
He left me out there, in the silence.

The stink of the bar. Bolshieness. Pure
Bolshieness. If the Sirdah had heard of it,
well... Did I tell you of the time I met His Lordship?
Kitchener I mean. It was back in ninety-eight
when I was still with the 96th light foot.

Aye, and no doubt the last time the words ‘light foot’
were ever used to describe you, Burnaby.

Ignore these drivellers dear boy. Pride of the corps
we were. Off to Omdurman to kill the Mahdi and
full of piss and vinegar. Revenge for Gordon and
all of that. Set out in the vangaurd with Jeddson
and Davids, the three of us into the desert like a
triumvirate of dervishes. Oh, the adventures we had.

Ancient Mariners