Duncan Milne's Blog

A short Halloween poem, more clever than brilliant. Less macabre than creepy. But perhaps something to mark the season.

I saw,

an eye saw

It’s my nature that, I soar with every eye sore.

Through the crowded room,

Caught Her Eyes

I caught her eyes,

I cauterise the eyes she threw.

Watching the youth in her eyes,

Watching me euthanise.

Oh torments bred,

Open upon a floor dyeing red,

Lay books dying to be read.

In my surgery,

Among the surge and hurry,

Leaving a coat of waste,

Upon my waistcoat.

Running among mist reams,

Failing to hear missed screams.

Sins never to be forgiven,

Fleeing unbidden.

Fearfully meeting stares,

Upon meat eating stairs.

A scrap lace of forgotten,

remaining out of place.

Enter the Goodreads Book Giveaway between 3-20 September to win 1 of 3 copies of:

And Then They Ruined Everything

Books; which one is yours?

Grizzly

Quietly humming under his breath, ease began seeping into Martin’s muscles. Beneath him, the warm forest floor accepting his prone body like a familiar lover, laying to rest the physical and emotional weight of past days. A light breeze stirred a lingering aroma of dry pine, holding the fragrance like a revolving door, a flickering wisp between the departure of summer and arrival of autumn. Watching the setting sun causing shadows to stretch away, he knew the thin altitude would soon absorb day’s warmth into the evening air. Filling his lungs and savoring the moment, a smile crept to his lips, he thought, “what a great day.” His ebbing frustration displaced by a sense of control. Nature was smiling, encouraging his song, and beckoning tranquility from all around to join him in this moment.

At ease in the mountains, all of his immediate needs within reach. Without looking, he could access a tidy cache containing sustenance, communications, optics, and other equipment. He had more, of course, easily retrieved but stashed away in a pack concealed….

DOWNLOAD FULL STORY HERE

Link to page

Inspired by the novel The Death of Rock’n’roll, The Impossibility of Time Travel, and Other Lies

Need some background music while you’re reading?

Do you want to listen to the songs* that close out one chapter and open the next in And Then They Ruined Everything?

Click through to the Spotify link (login required) and journey through the story with the characters.

Enjoy the music, remember the time and places that you’ve heard these songs before; support the artists that make this all possible.

*Apologies to The Forbidden Dimension; Unbidden (Chapter One) isn’t available on Spotify so I’ve substituted Graveyard Line in it’s place.

Need some background music while you’re reading?

Do you want to listen to the songs* that close out one chapter and open the next in And Then They Ruined Everything?

Click through to the Spotify link (login required) and journey through the story with the characters.

Enjoy the music, remember the time and places that you’ve heard these songs before; support the artists that make this all possible.

*Apologies to The Forbidden Dimension; Unbidden (Chapter One) isn’t available on Spotify so I’ve substituted Graveyard Line in it’s place.

Lucy’s Gully day #hike #fern #shareyournz #travel #tasman #docnz #outdoors #winter (at Lucy’s Gully)

#HotDog Day; #legit or #justification? #travel #nyc #streetfood

What’s the best dawg? (at Coney Island Beach)

In a world full of #storms be the #lighthouse not the #raging #sea

#EgmontLighthouse #travel #nztravel #taranaki #shareyournz #BeWell (at Oakura Beach)

Dodd-Frank Act Extended to American Companies Overseas

American energy and mining companies will soon be under greater scrutiny by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). A new regulation passed on 27 June 2016, is hoped to assist in advancing U.S. foreign policy interests by promoting greater transparency about payments related to resource extraction companies.

While industry watch groups have generally lauded this initiative, the corollary is that American companies may face new challenges that do not apply to their competitors. American companies will still be expected to uphold a domestic standard while operating abroad, even if their foreign domiciled competitors do not, regardless of the local jurisdictions ethical views and commercial practices.

This home and away standard has the potential of creating a tension between the fiduciary duty that a company owes its shareholders and compliance with the home nation’s domestic laws.

The new SEC regulation is not unique, similar legislation exists in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, typically focusing on anti-bribery and anti-corruption objectives. In addition to being a difficult proposition relating to sovereignty, applying domestic standards abroad can create situations in which local practices are incompatible with domestic expectations. Companies are still required to convey their extracted resources to market and local regulators may not share an American company’s concern over an SEC regulation.

In addition to the extraterritoriality aspect of the regulation, industry pundits also express concerns that the new regulation will require the disclosure of propriety, or at least strategic, information. Regardless of the view taken, American companies have until September 2018 to develop a strategy to comply.

The SEC press release may be found here:

https://www.sec.gov/news/pressrelease...