#Powys Media

[hyperfashionist]

A Spoiltastic Journey

through the Entire Space: 1999 Canon

up to “Odysseus Wept”

Story 1: Eternity Unleashed

Chapter 2 of 12

Hello, imaginary reader! I'm back, with a chapter-by-chapter commentary on Eternity Unleashed. I can shout into this concrete bucket forever.

Spoily Chapter 2 commentary follows, under the cut. You have been warned.

Back to Chapter 1 of this story

Forth to Chapter 3 of this story

Back to original post on this story

Return to Series Preface

Forth to Story 2: The Touch of Venus

Chapter Two of Eternity Unleashed: A Spoiler-Filled Commentary

Talian is grown up and has become Milsa’s full-time carer after Bexan’s death.

Balor (now famous) shows up and says he’s quit the ezir (scandal! shock!) and become a medic.

Also, he’s found a cure for Milsa’s illness. Actually, he’s found a cure for death. 

Golly.

Technology

Transformation of Matter

A noteworthy feature of the technology of the planet Progron is that its buildings have dynamic architecture. These are introduced in the form of staircases, which reconfigure themselves as Balor traverses them, in response to his thoughts.

A full paragraph of poetic nonsense is dedicated to describing the scientific basis of this transformation of matter, and it is an exemplary piece of writing.

Transformation of matter at will is the key innovation within the last generation or so. Talian remembers visiting his grandad’s cabin in the woods on vacation and being confused when a window doesn’t appear on command.

Wearable Technology

By the time all the kids have grown up and Bexan has passed on, Milsa is wearing clothing made of the latest fashion, “expressan”, a fabric that changes colour with the wearer’s moods. It would have been nice to see what colours appeared during the scene Milsa was wearing it, since she admits to Balor in that same scene that she puts a brave face on it. There is mention of a “glow” of genuine positive feeling from her at the end of the scene, and I infer that that glow is coming from the expressan.

The nearest thing we have in present reality would be thermochromic paints and dyes, which, like ye olde-fashioned "mood rings", only react to temperature. It's imaginable that body-worn sensors might be able to detect mood with ballpark accuracy within the foreseeable future, and that this could be represented by colour changes in a wearable object.

Information Representation

They have books with pages, an interesting example of decentralized, distributed knowledge representation in a format which will already be familiar to some Earth readers. They write by hand on paper.

Transportation

They have “vehicles” which might as well be cars. Only these private "vehicles" are ever mentioned. No transportation infrastructure or networks are ever mentioned, except for a passing mention of the existence of streets.

Housing

People live in houses.

Communication

No communications networks are in evidence, and all messages seem to be delivered in person. News travels by word of mouth. Only a hundred pages in is there any mention of “listening devices” and then of a “signal stream”.

Arts and Culture

Ezir are not encouraged to read fiction, except in advanced classes for analytical purposes. They sometimes do read fiction recreationally, but only on the quiet.

I infer that fiction is frowned upon because it breaks the principle of alienation that seems to be the reasoning behind the strict separation of ezir (policy/thought) from ezariat (practice/implementation).

I further infer that emotional investment, or belief, or some combination thereof, is considered to be the root cause of the problems that resulted in the rise of the cult of Demeth. At least that is how it looks from the perspective of page 140.

Gender Balance

Not Specified

No new characters.

NB running total = 2

Female

No new characters.

F running total = 8

Male

Talian's grandad

M running total = 12

Back to Chapter 1 of this story

Forth to Chapter 3 of this story

Back to original post on this story

Return to Series Preface

Forth to Story 2: The Touch of Venus

[vintage1981]

Space: 1999 - Earthbound Gets a Reprint from Powys Media

E.C. Tubb’s Earthbound—originally published in a very small print run by Century 21 Books (Fanderson) and only available to club members—is now available to everyone in this new edition from Powys Media.

The novel features the long-awaited novelization of Earthbound—the only episode not included in the original 1970s books based on the first series of SPACE:1999 episodes. Also featured are novelizations of two early scripts written for the second series but with the format and characters of the first: The Face of Eden (which would later be rewritten and filmed as The Immunity Syndrome) and The Exiles.

A darker, grittier take on the series, these stories give fans a glimpse into an alternate literary universe through the inimitable storytelling of E.C. Tubb. Similar in tone to Earthfall, his epic reimagining/retelling of Breakaway, Earthbound pulls no punches and is a window into what Year Two could have been had the format and cast not changed.

Earthbound exists outside of canon, but it is also freed from the restrictions of canon. E.C. Tubb was given a free hand and has made these episodes his own. Readers may think they know these stories, but this novel may surprise them!

Foreword by Philip Harbottle

Foreword by Patricia T. Sokol

Afterword by Chris Bentley

[To Be] Published November 2022

[lixbf]

warum will jeder scheiß job nen fucking motivationsschreiben von mir haben? like geht euch doch bitte mal alle ins knie ficken ich will den scheiß gar nicht machen und jetzt soll ich mir ne motivation für den dreck irgendwo herziehen?? ja hey super ich bin "motiviert" mich hier zu bewerben weil man ja anscheinend irgendnen scheiß arbeiten soll und es schlimmeres gibt als diesen mist zu lernen aber ist ja nichtmal so als ob sich irgendjemand den mist wirklich durchliest

[drifftingg]

Ninja CREAMi

Tak wygląda maszyna (na amazonie jest 1 opinia z polskik więc nie wiem ile osób w polsce to ma ale cale social media są tym zasypane bo jest mega HYPE od ponad roku i to uzasadniony i to powie wam kazdy kto kupil) na zdjeciu sorbet z melona cantalupe

[trashybugs]

The info about irl Vortigern found it in a website called "early british kingdoms". Found Vortigern's info under "Founders" in the "Royalty" section. I wouldn't say he is obscure, it's just that information about him is scarce and the existing ones are somewhat unreliable, like Geoffrey of Monmouth's. Vortigern is heavily villanized by historians and the modern media. However, there are few records from his kingdom (Powys) that describes him as a respectable man. I guess bias everywhere lol.

Thanks anon! I'll be reading in my free time

I do admit im barely interested in Arturian or British hiatory back then, but im determined to learn more about the characters behind Obe-Vorti's name ^w^

And also i guess its because a lot of his history are conflated with fiction, the historian that i watch say that Vortigern is a fascinating figure for having mythical feel to it, for that reason

I really wish Fate expand more on him in the future, cause his identity in the series are basically Artoria's evil uncle or dude that shares the name with a fairy twink from a different dimension. because his setup is already very interesting

I mean, dude that drinks a dragon blood to unsurp the throne and become a giant dragon black hole the size of Britain is pretty raw 👍

[mikoo00]

Generalnie wczoraj spoko było w pracy nie wkurzali się że się spóźniłem 1.5h Ale ja to cały dzień przeżywałem każdy bląd to odrazu w glowie myśl ze mnie wywalą Znów bylem na serwisie i dołowało mnie ze nie mogę tak szybko pakować jak kierowniczka zmiany Potem poszedlem na lobby za taką jedną bo już szła do domu i wsm chujowo sobie radziła i liderka musiała za nią robic Bylem psychicznie wykończony i sie rozpłakałem nie mogłem się wgl uspokoić szedłem sprzątałem i ryczalem

Ale pracownicy zauważyli ze cos jest nie tak mi było wstyd ze sobie nie radzę i jeszcze bardziej się nakrecalem Pytali czy coś się stało a ja ze nie ze jestem zmęczony po prostu

To liderka mowila żebym zwolnił i nie gonił tak Ciężko było mi nie zapierniczać pomimo zemeczenia dosłownie nie potrafiłem ale po czasie się uspokoiłem Kierowniczka mi pozwoliła chwilę odpocząć się napić coli i posiedzieć chwilę i ze ta druga ma mi pomagać a jak nie to jej powie ze nic jej tu nie trzyma bo wgl się nie stara

No tamtą chodzi obrażona pewnie czuje ze zlw hierarchia jest niżej i zła ze teraz ja jestem na serwisie i musi ona sprzątać

Ale ja się nie dziwię ze mnie tam ćwiczą zamiast niej Jak z nią rozmawiam to się zastanawiam czy ona czasem na benzo nie jest bo tak strasznie zamula zawsze a nie tak ze raz na jakiś czas mi też się zdaza ale dalej jestem komunikatywny i zapierniczam

Więc jakoś poczułem że jestem doceniany mimo tego złego dnia i nie potrzebnie się nakręcam

Jeszcze jak tamtą liderka poszla na przerwe wszedł ten jeden co on co chwilę do mnie lata żeby coś zrobić a ja wiem zawsze co trzeba zrobić i i tak mialem to ogarnąć ale dobra xd Ta mi powiedziała że mam przetrzeć tacki i powili robic a tamten zaraz przyszedł ze trzeba pozamiatać to tamtą wzięła go na rozmowę i powiedziała żeby mnie nie cisnol dzis Nie wiem miło mi się zrobiło ze dbają o pracowników i są wyrozumiali

Ale pierwszy raz tak poczułem że ze mną jest chyba nie tak Normalna osoba by faktycznie zwolniła tempo a mi było ciezko

Dziś na terapi mi powiedziała terapeutka ze w ten sposób reguluje emocje i ze moze byc to objaw głodu poczucie ze musze robic napięcie jakies takie Robota pozwala mi nie myśleć tyle dlatego tak latam pomimo załamań nerwowych generalnie się dowiedziałem że nie potrafię odpoczywać lol dziwnie mi z tym Pamietam jak na dtp kuba o tym mowil ze tez ma z tym problem ze nie może po prostu siąść odpocząć psychicznie tylko co chwilę robi coś i sie wykończył psychicznie

Terapeutka mi mowila tez żebym znalazł sposób jakis na to żeby nie myśleć o problemach itp i ze nie żebym uciekał w media społecznościowe bo to nie jest odpoczynek

Znów mi się przypomniało co na dtp mowili ze faktycznie konsumując media internet i wgl człowiek jest przebodzcowany więc jakis taki chwilowy detoks od internetu ma sens

Tylko problem w tym ze ja nie wiem co miałbym robic

Spacer nie chce mi się

Moze jak kupie strój kompie łowy to soe sam bez znajomych wybiorę nad rzekę i w ten sposób się zrelaksuje

Jestem w chuj przemęczony i to się zaczyna robić niebezpieczne Czuje ze powoli tracę kontrolę nad życiem i mogę stracić to nad czym pracowałem przez parę miesięcy a to już pierwsze kroki do zapicia No w każdym razie głody alkoholowe wywołuje

Pojebane

[brookston]

Holidays 8.28

Holidays

Bow Tie Day

Crackers Over the Keyboard Day

Criminal Appreciation Day

Crumbs Between the Keys Day

Dream Day Quest and Jubilee

828 Day

Emerati Women’s Day (UAE)

Emmett Till Day

End of the Fairy Tale Day

Giving Black Day (a.k.a. Give 828)

Gone-ta-Pott Day [every 28th]

Green Shirt Guy Day

I Have a Dream Day

International Read Comics in Public Day

Manifest 828 Day

Mariamoba (Republic of Georgia)

National Bow Tie Day

National Grandparents Day (Mexico)

National Over It Day

National Power Rangers Day

National Thoughtful Day

Nativity of Nephthys (Egyptian Goddess of Love)

Race Your Mouse Around the Icons Day

Radio Commercial Day

Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day

Russian Germans Day (Germany)

Scientific American Day

Significant Historical Events Day

Tan Suit Day

Watermelon Day (French Republic)

World Day of Turners Syndrome

Food & Drink Celebrations

National Cheese Sacrifice Day

National Cherry Turnover Day

National Red Wine Day

Stuffed Green Bell Peppers Day

Subway Sandwich Day

4th & Last Monday in August

Araw ng mga Bayani (National Heroes’ Day; Philippines) [Last Monday]

August/Summer Bank Holiday (UK) [Last Monday]

International Day of Cyber Attack Ceasefire [Last Monday]

Liberation Day (Hong Kong) [Last Monday]

Motorist Consideration Monday [Monday of Be Kind to Humankind Week]

Notting Hill Carnival (UK) [Last Monday & day before]

Social Justice Day (Antarctica) [4th Monday]

Independence Days

Holy Empire of Reunion (Declared; 1997) [unrecognized]

Luana (Declared; 2019) [unrecognized]

Moldova (from USSR; 1991)

Ohio Empire (Declared; 2008) [unrecognized]

Feast Days

Alexander of Constantinople (Christian; Saint)

Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Abkhazia)

Augustine of Hippo (Christian; Saint) [brewers] *

Ayyankali Jayanti (Kerala, India)

Constant Troyon (Artology)

Edmund Arrowsmith (Christian; Saint)

Edward Burne-Jones (Artology)

Feast of the Mother of God (Georgia, Macedonia, Serbia)

Festival for Luna (Ancient Rome)

Festival for Sol (Ancient Rome)

Festival of the Neon Revolution

First Onam (Rice Harvest Festival; Kerala, India)

Frank Gorshin Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Hermes of Rome (Christian; Saint)

Julian (Christian; Saint)

Junipero Serra (Christian; Saint)

Marimba (Virgin’s Assumption; Georgia)

Mariotte (Positivist; Saint)

Media Aestas III (Pagan)

More Rum Day (Pastafarian)

Moses the Black (Christian; Saint)

Uncle Norton the Elephant (Muppetism)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Sensho (先勝 Japan) [Good luck in the morning, bad luck in the afternoon.]

Umu Limnu (Evil Day; Babylonian Calendar; 40 of 60)

Premieres

Animal Crackers (Film; 1930)

Cain's Jawbone, by E. Powys Mathers (Novel/Puzzle; 1934)

Come Clean, by Puddle of Mudd (Album; 2001)

The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas (Novel; 1844)

Do the Evolution, by Pearl Jam (Animated Music Video; 1998)

54 (Film; 1998)

Flying Leathernecks (Film; 1951)

Gallipoli (Film; 1981)

Get Rich Quick Porky (WB LT Cartoon; 1937)

Honeymoon in Vegas (Film; 1992)

I Have a Dream, by Martin Luther King Jr. (Speech; 1963)

Let’s Get It On, by Marvin Gaye (Album; 1973)

Lohengrin, by Richard Wagner (Opera; 1850)

Mary of Scotland (Film; 1936)

Mickey’s Follies (Disney Cartoon; 1929)

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (TV Series; 1993)

Narcos (TV Series; 2015)

The New Mutants (Film; 2020)

Perri (Disney Film; 1957)

Personal, 19th Jack Reacher book, by Lee Child (Novel; 2014)

Phineas and Verb the Movie: Candace Against the Universe (Animated Film; 2020)

Private Lessons (Film; 1981)

Q. Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!, by Devo (Album; 1978)

Rope (Film; 1948)

Smile, by Katy Perry (Album; 2020)

Song of the Thin Man (Film; 1947)

Studio 54 (Film; 1998)

Tease for Two (WB LT Cartoon; 1965)

Travelling Without Moving, by Jamiroquai (Album; 1996)

The Truth About Mother Goose (Disney Cartoon; 1957)

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (Film; 1992)

Victoria (TV Series; 2016)

Walk This Way by Aerosmith (Song; 1975)

Yankee Doodle Bugs (WB LT Cartoon; 1954)

Today’s Name Days

Adelinde, Aline, Augustin (Austria)

Augustin, Tin (Croatia)

Augustýn (Czech Republic)

Augustinus (Denmark)

August, Gustav, Kustas, Kustav, Kusti, Kusto (Estonia)

Tauno (Finland)

Augustin, Elouan (France)

Adelinde, Aline, Augustin, Vivian (Germany)

Damon (Greece)

Ágoston (Hungary)

Agostino, Ermete (Italy)

Auguste, Guste, Ranna (Latvia)

Augustinas, Patricija, Steigvilė, Tarvilas (Lithuania)

Artur, August (Norway)

Adelina, Aleksander, Aleksy, Augustyn, Patrycja, Sobiesław, Stronisław (Poland)

Augustín (Slovakia)

Agustín (Spain)

Fatima, Leila (Sweden)

Agustin, August, Augusta, Augustina, Austen, Austin, Austina, Austyn, Gus, Gustava, Gustavo (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 240 of 2024; 125 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 1 of week 35 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Coll (Hazel) [Day 21 of 28]

Chinese: Month 7 (Geng-Shen), Day 13 (Wu-Wu)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 11 Elul 5783

Islamic: 11 Safar 1445

J Cal: 30 Hasa; Nineday [30 of 30]

Julian: 15 August 2023

Moon: 92%: Waxing Gibbous

Positivist: 16 Gutenberg (9th Month) [Mariotte]

Runic Half Month: Rad (Motion) [Day 1 of 15]

Season: Summer (Day 68 of 94)

Zodiac: Virgo (Day 7 of 32)

Calendar Changes

Rad (Motion) [Half-Month 17 of 24; Runic Half-Months] (thru 9.9)

[downthetubes]

The chequered history of Space: 1999 novelisations revealed in new videocast

Author Philip Harbottle guides us through past and present Space:1999 novel publishing in his latest engaging podcast

Episode 50 of Philip Harbottle’s enjoyable 1950s British Science Fiction videocast is a longer episode, moving away the subject matter from the series overall title to reveal more of the behind the scenes history of the Space:1999 novelisations. The videocast in includes background on the recent Space: 1999 books published by Powys Media, along with other previous reprints, and feature comment…

[kashicloud]

[ad_1] Not one to let “horrific” weather stop him, Craig Muir left his house in Hay-on-Wye in Powys, Wales, early Tuesday to take his usual walk up Hay Bluff when he spotted something large, shiny and new.Standing there in the distance, like a beacon, was a silver monolith with no apparent trace as to how it got there or what it was doing in that spot.It looked like it had “just been dropped down from space,” Mr. Muir said during a telephone interview on Tuesday. The sighting immediately captured media attention, calling to mind similar mysterious objects placed around the world in late 2020.“It must be some sort of art installation,” he said. “If you didn’t know anything, to look at it, you could have easily thought it had been dropped off by a U.F.O. or something.”Describing the location of the monolith as “the middle of nowhere,” Mr. Muir said there were no visible tracks, but he did see some footprints.“I don’t know if someone else had seen it,” he said.Mr. Muir, 37, who works as a stone mason, said the monolith stands roughly 10 feet tall, and that it’s about a foot-and-a-half wide at each point. He said that he didn’t know how deep into the ground it goes.Calling it a “perfect monolith,” Mr. Muir said it was “exactly like the ones they have in Egypt” but “made of steel, and there’s no markings on there at all.”The monolith appears to have been made from surgical steel, he said, adding that he did not think it was aluminum because “it had too much shine to it.”“I’d say it was like a surgical steel because obviously whoever’s done it doesn’t want it to rust,” Mr. Muir said, noting that the monolith must have some heft to it because it wasn’t moving at all despite the strong winds. He also described it as “very, very smooth, very shiny, very crisp edges.”As someone with welders and metal fabricators in his family, Mr. Muir said he’s around metal a lot, and it was his professional opinion that whoever crafted it did a “real good job.”“There’s no obvious weld marks,” he said. “It was very, very neat.”Mr. Muir was apparently not the only person to see it. Richard Haynes, who spoke to WalesOnline, said he had spotted the object while running on Hay Bluff.“I thought it looked a bit bizarre and might be a scientific media research thing collecting rainwater,” he said.The Welsh monolith is only the latest of these objects to suddenly, almost magically, appear.For a time — a few weird months in the depths of the pandemic — things like the one in Wales seemed to be popping up everywhere. A bighorn sheep survey in Utah spotted the first, in November 2020 in a remote canyon in Red Rock County. Even though that one was dismantled under the cover of night a few days later, others were soon built in California, Romania and Turkey.People widely called them monoliths, because they were large and sheer and appeared in surprising places, like the thing in “2001: A Space Odyssey,” albeit without as much of an aura of mystery and dread. In a few cases, people took credit for their creation. Some other people sought them out, seeking a strange metaphysical experience to rival those in the film. Mostly, though, people took cellphone photos and made internet jokes.Hay Bluff, which overlooks the town of Hay-on-Wye, is a hill located inside of Brecon Beacons National Park, Mr. Muir said. Unfortunately, it’s this setting that could do away with the monolith sooner rather than later.“I can’t say how long it will be there, to be honest,” he said. “Knowing our national parks, they don’t take lightly to things being installed without their permission.”Alan Yuhas contributed reporting and Susan Beachy provided research. [ad_2] Source link

[hyperfashionist]

A Spoiltastic Journey

through the Entire Space: 1999 Canon

up to “Odysseus Wept”

Story 1: Eternity Unleashed

Return to Series Preface

Forth to Eternity Unleashed, Chapter 1

Skip to Story 2: The Touch of Venus

WHAT?

"Eternity Unleashed" is the first story in the Powysverse canon of Space: 1999, which unifies and continues the timeline of the 1970s TV series, novels, and novelizations. 

It is the first part of William Latham's original novel, "Eternity Unbound". It is the backstory to the filmed episode "End of Eternity", which I won't link because I'm keeping call forwards to a minimum as I work through the storyline.

According to the author, it's "a brand new novella at the beginning that tells you all about Balor’s rise and fall on Progron".

"He saw a future without pain, without suffering, without end.

​"He unlocked the mysteries of life and death, and united a world, launching a new age.

"Only to find that death was sacred. That life without death led to damnation.

"And salvation would be found in pain and suffering.

​"From the depths of madness, he will change a world, forging a new path leading ultimately to exile in the far reaches of space.

​"Where he will face eternity...alone."

All this is fully consistent with the cheerful tone of Space: 1999 Y1, so we're starting as we mean to go on.

WHEN?

Chronologically, "Eternity Unleashed" takes place "centuries before 'End of Eternity'."

Sequentially, "Eternity Unleashed" is the first story in the Powysverse and the backstory to "End of Eternity" 23 stories later.

"Eternity Unleashed" is the first part of the book "Eternity Unbound", published in February 2005, the joint-third Space: 1999 book published by Powys Media.

WHO?

The novel is written by William Latham. 

Its central character is a guy by the name of Balor, who we'll meet in person when his episode comes up for discussion.

According to Powys: "ETERNITY UNLEASHED chronicles his ascent from outsider to honored scientist, from ruthless despot to imprisoned exile." 

According to the author "There’s a little bit of Napoleon in Balor’s story, I suppose.  A little bit of Hitler."

WHERE?

Balor hails from the planet Progron. Hi to all my Progron readers out there. Represent!

Powys Media are in the USA. I don't know if there are any copyright libraries in the USA that might have it. I searched the Library of Congress and didn't find it there.

As for public libraries, I swear I did a search that turned up one (1) copy in one library somewhere in Florida. However, I can't find it in my history. It's very unlikely that many public libraries will have copies. I assume it turned up in Florida because of proximity to the Space Coast.

The only way to buy the book is on the second-hand market because it is permanently out of print. It is extremely rare because Powys used a print-on-demand service and did not publish ebooks.

WHY?

According to the author: "He’s a fun character to play with, first of all. […] I convinced Mateo [Latosa, head of Powys Media] that it made sense to at least try looking into Balor’s past a little, and those flashbacks were just way more intense than I think we’d been expecting them to be.  There was more of a story there than just the little glimpses we got in 'Resurrection'. Back-story, I mean." 

Also according to the author: "[Mateo Latosa] was interested in seeing the novella from me because I’d never really written any science fiction about a whole new culture or anything like that, and he was curious to see what I might do with it."

And: "I think by the end of The Balor Saga, we’ll know why Balor acts the way he acts, or at least we’ll see the evolution of his particular brand of evil."

HOW?

The author says: "The first story has elements of 'Frankenstein' in it, I suppose, but not really as many as you’d think. There’s something of a love story in there, believe it or not."

About the process, the author says: "Stepping back, I had to take Balor in 'End of Eternity', subtract the influence of a thousand years of isolation from him, and then figure out who he was.  So he needed flavors of who he is in the later stories, but he obviously couldn’t be the same guy.  Then, I needed to map out a beginning, a middle, and an end for the novella, that basically shows Balor coming to power and then losing it so he can be exiled."

The Story So Far

"Eternity Unleashed", book section from original novel "Eternity Unbound", 2005 (Y1)

Spoiler-Filled Analysis

The Bad News

I haven't really got any spoilers, because I don't have the book UPDATE: I got it! Read the chapter-by-chapter commentary, starting here.

The only information I have about the book is what's on the open web. Most of the reviews I could find online give little or nothing away.

Amazon UK has no reviews, but I did find some in other countries, where it is rated 5 out of 5 stars and accompanied by three reviews that praise it highly.

According to this review: "First, a brand new account of Balor of how Balor became who he became - from his childhood on Progron, through adulthood and his progression into a psychopath. And all possibly sparked by being spurned in love…..!"

BUFFY: Every maladjust has a reason.

I generally assume that the Powys books are for an audience of existing Space: 1999 fans who are very familiar with the material. However, this review says "Eternity Unbound" is a standalone novel that can be enjoyed by anyone.

Up Next: The Touch of Venus (story of past events)

I hope to do one post a day, but that isn't always going to be possible.

Hopefully tomorrow, though, we'll move on to the next "story of past events", the portion (pp. 2-42) of John Kenneth Muir's original short story "The Touch of Venus" that takes place before Breakaway was even thought of.

UPDATE: or go to my commentary on Chapter 1 of Eternity Unleashed!

Return to Series Preface

Forth to Eternity Unleashed, Chapter 1

Skip to Story 2: The Touch of Venus

[welshvalleystoves]

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Welsh Valley Stoves Severn Farm Industrial Estate, Welshpool, Powys, SY21 7DF 0800 776 5160 https://welshvalleystoves.co.uk

[lavienbleuuu]

Be Alive Now

“The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.” — W.B Yeats

We live in a shallow society which is why so many people are so petty and spiritually depleted.

Complainers, ranters, “success” hounds, mall shoppers, status seekers, political junkies, media consumers, outrage sniffers, money lovers, “hustle and grind” gurus, the circus of the modern world is endless.

Very few people understand what it means to simply BE. To be aware. To be madly alive with the brief time given to them. Fear is born out of continuously kneeling at the altar of security. Freedom is sacrificed for comfort which is why so many of us in contemporary society become mere cogs in the machinery of life.

Is there any wonder why more and more people today are suffering from stress, anxiety, and depression?

Our inherent genius and curiosity seemed to be etched out of many of us at a very early age. And we seem to be proud of it. Our minds are tethered to our conditioning and belief systems and we become chained to the manufactured ideals of culture.

We become like the majority who find their identities in careers and possessions and status — the dominant values of the modern world. We are people who seem to be solely concerned with “having” and “appearing” a certain way to appease society. It’s an empty mode of existence.

American physician and psychotherapist, Dr. Alexander Lowen, observed that “few people in our culture have the courage to be themselves. Most people adopt roles, play games, wear masks, or put up facades. They do not believe that their genuine self is acceptable.”

Lowen believed this mode of being was inevitable in a technological culture where people’s “values are sacrificed for money and power.” When one abandons authenticity, Lowen points out, they become “tormented by the contradiction between the inner reality and the outer facade.”

This is where we’re at.

But friends let me tell you, on your deathbed, the blues skies and the birds and the wind in the trees will be immensely more significant than your retirement account.

Be. Alive. Now. As the great writer, Llewelyn Powys once said, “We should grow less involved in society and more deeply involved in existence.”

To live in the mode of “BEING” instead of the fruitless manner of “HAVING” is to be active, not in the mindless busy sense, but inner activity, to give expression to one’s own deep-seated yearnings and talents. To renew yourself daily, to grow, to learn, to be in forever search of the sublime.

Do dangerous things. Uncivilize a bit. Explore the natural world. Forget about your reputation. Put your bare feet on the earth. Be astonished. Create something.

It was the great Jiddu Krishnamurti who once reminded us:

“It is very important to go out alone, to sit under a tree — not with a book, not with a companion, but by yourself — and observe the falling of a leaf, hear the lapping of the water, the fishermen’s song, watch the flight of a bird, and of your own thoughts as they chase each other across the space of your mind. If you are able to be alone and watch these things, then you will discover extraordinary riches which no government can tax, no human agency can corrupt, and which can never be destroyed.”

[brookstonalmanac]

Holidays 8.28

Holidays

Bow Tie Day

Crackers Over the Keyboard Day

Criminal Appreciation Day

Crumbs Between the Keys Day

Dream Day Quest and Jubilee

828 Day

Emerati Women’s Day (UAE)

Emmett Till Day

End of the Fairy Tale Day

Giving Black Day (a.k.a. Give 828)

Gone-ta-Pott Day [every 28th]

Green Shirt Guy Day

I Have a Dream Day

International Read Comics in Public Day

Manifest 828 Day

Mariamoba (Republic of Georgia)

National Bow Tie Day

National Grandparents Day (Mexico)

National Over It Day

National Power Rangers Day

National Thoughtful Day

Nativity of Nephthys (Egyptian Goddess of Love)

Race Your Mouse Around the Icons Day

Radio Commercial Day

Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day

Russian Germans Day (Germany)

Scientific American Day

Significant Historical Events Day

Tan Suit Day

Watermelon Day (French Republic)

World Day of Turners Syndrome

Food & Drink Celebrations

National Cheese Sacrifice Day

National Cherry Turnover Day

National Red Wine Day

Stuffed Green Bell Peppers Day

Subway Sandwich Day

4th & Last Monday in August

Araw ng mga Bayani (National Heroes’ Day; Philippines) [Last Monday]

August/Summer Bank Holiday (UK) [Last Monday]

International Day of Cyber Attack Ceasefire [Last Monday]

Liberation Day (Hong Kong) [Last Monday]

Motorist Consideration Monday [Monday of Be Kind to Humankind Week]

Notting Hill Carnival (UK) [Last Monday & day before]

Social Justice Day (Antarctica) [4th Monday]

Independence Days

Holy Empire of Reunion (Declared; 1997) [unrecognized]

Luana (Declared; 2019) [unrecognized]

Moldova (from USSR; 1991)

Ohio Empire (Declared; 2008) [unrecognized]

Feast Days

Alexander of Constantinople (Christian; Saint)

Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary (Abkhazia)

Augustine of Hippo (Christian; Saint) [brewers] *

Ayyankali Jayanti (Kerala, India)

Constant Troyon (Artology)

Edmund Arrowsmith (Christian; Saint)

Edward Burne-Jones (Artology)

Feast of the Mother of God (Georgia, Macedonia, Serbia)

Festival for Luna (Ancient Rome)

Festival for Sol (Ancient Rome)

Festival of the Neon Revolution

First Onam (Rice Harvest Festival; Kerala, India)

Frank Gorshin Day (Church of the SubGenius; Saint)

Hermes of Rome (Christian; Saint)

Julian (Christian; Saint)

Junipero Serra (Christian; Saint)

Marimba (Virgin’s Assumption; Georgia)

Mariotte (Positivist; Saint)

Media Aestas III (Pagan)

More Rum Day (Pastafarian)

Moses the Black (Christian; Saint)

Uncle Norton the Elephant (Muppetism)

Lucky & Unlucky Days

Sensho (先勝 Japan) [Good luck in the morning, bad luck in the afternoon.]

Umu Limnu (Evil Day; Babylonian Calendar; 40 of 60)

Premieres

Animal Crackers (Film; 1930)

Cain's Jawbone, by E. Powys Mathers (Novel/Puzzle; 1934)

Come Clean, by Puddle of Mudd (Album; 2001)

The Count of Monte Cristo, by Alexandre Dumas (Novel; 1844)

Do the Evolution, by Pearl Jam (Animated Music Video; 1998)

54 (Film; 1998)

Flying Leathernecks (Film; 1951)

Gallipoli (Film; 1981)

Get Rich Quick Porky (WB LT Cartoon; 1937)

Honeymoon in Vegas (Film; 1992)

I Have a Dream, by Martin Luther King Jr. (Speech; 1963)

Let’s Get It On, by Marvin Gaye (Album; 1973)

Lohengrin, by Richard Wagner (Opera; 1850)

Mary of Scotland (Film; 1936)

Mickey’s Follies (Disney Cartoon; 1929)

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers (TV Series; 1993)

Narcos (TV Series; 2015)

The New Mutants (Film; 2020)

Perri (Disney Film; 1957)

Personal, 19th Jack Reacher book, by Lee Child (Novel; 2014)

Phineas and Verb the Movie: Candace Against the Universe (Animated Film; 2020)

Private Lessons (Film; 1981)

Q. Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!, by Devo (Album; 1978)

Rope (Film; 1948)

Smile, by Katy Perry (Album; 2020)

Song of the Thin Man (Film; 1947)

Studio 54 (Film; 1998)

Tease for Two (WB LT Cartoon; 1965)

Travelling Without Moving, by Jamiroquai (Album; 1996)

The Truth About Mother Goose (Disney Cartoon; 1957)

Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me (Film; 1992)

Victoria (TV Series; 2016)

Walk This Way by Aerosmith (Song; 1975)

Yankee Doodle Bugs (WB LT Cartoon; 1954)

Today’s Name Days

Adelinde, Aline, Augustin (Austria)

Augustin, Tin (Croatia)

Augustýn (Czech Republic)

Augustinus (Denmark)

August, Gustav, Kustas, Kustav, Kusti, Kusto (Estonia)

Tauno (Finland)

Augustin, Elouan (France)

Adelinde, Aline, Augustin, Vivian (Germany)

Damon (Greece)

Ágoston (Hungary)

Agostino, Ermete (Italy)

Auguste, Guste, Ranna (Latvia)

Augustinas, Patricija, Steigvilė, Tarvilas (Lithuania)

Artur, August (Norway)

Adelina, Aleksander, Aleksy, Augustyn, Patrycja, Sobiesław, Stronisław (Poland)

Augustín (Slovakia)

Agustín (Spain)

Fatima, Leila (Sweden)

Agustin, August, Augusta, Augustina, Austen, Austin, Austina, Austyn, Gus, Gustava, Gustavo (USA)

Today is Also…

Day of Year: Day 240 of 2024; 125 days remaining in the year

ISO: Day 1 of week 35 of 2023

Celtic Tree Calendar: Coll (Hazel) [Day 21 of 28]

Chinese: Month 7 (Geng-Shen), Day 13 (Wu-Wu)

Chinese Year of the: Rabbit 4721 (until February 10, 2024)

Hebrew: 11 Elul 5783

Islamic: 11 Safar 1445

J Cal: 30 Hasa; Nineday [30 of 30]

Julian: 15 August 2023

Moon: 92%: Waxing Gibbous

Positivist: 16 Gutenberg (9th Month) [Mariotte]

Runic Half Month: Rad (Motion) [Day 1 of 15]

Season: Summer (Day 68 of 94)

Zodiac: Virgo (Day 7 of 32)

Calendar Changes

Rad (Motion) [Half-Month 17 of 24; Runic Half-Months] (thru 9.9)

[linandara]

This is the day of Orthodox Epiphany/Timkat and the birthday of Edgar Allan Poe. I am thinking darkened thoughts about the Future. I used to believe in happy inevitable progress, Steven Pinker and friends, rationalism, space faring civilizations. From 2020 on it feels like we are going back to public witch hunts, invading armies, political prisoners, forbidden topics, tribalism, torture, executions, reign of unelected tyrants, etc. Maybe it is an illusion. Maybe statistically we are doing better and better but media and social media skew the picture. I don't know. But consequently I started to respect more the Past. Myths, legends, folklore, spirituality, magic, mysticism, even religions. And maybe those science fiction writers are right who imagine the future of cool new technologies but of the same people, solving the same human problems again and again... #escape #linandara #wonderlust #dreamscape #innerwork #adventurethatislife #portal #digitalart #layersofexistence #feeltheforce #thoughts #mood #illustration #history #life #humanity #AI #aiart #livingmeaningfully #calendar #iamdreamer #curiosities #futuristic #mage #saint #knight #art #otherness #otherworldiness #fantasticworld (at Newtown, Powys) https://www.instagram.com/p/CnnD2OsN728/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[miicorp]

For those concerned

Powy plush is okay after the recent attacks on one of Mii's facilities. She never brings her daughter to the workplace, let alone one of her many facility branches. Power plushie is safe and home with Miss Mii most likely tucked in bed at this time. Thanks for the concern,

Mii's social media manager.