In today’s blog I had planned to tell you about yesterday’s trip to see GANTOB at The Manse, Badenoch. This was going to be combined with some musings on five letter words that contain two occurrences of the letter K (for Wordle type games, before you ask).
However, after a long exchange of messages with GANTOB this morning, escalating to a slanging match by phone this afternoon, I have had to change my plans.
GANTOB is not happy with yesterday’s blog. I typed it up as soon as I returned to my Edinburgh flat last night, just missing the midnight deadline. I mentioned Kreative Tyranny early on, as previously agreed with GANTOB. It certainly felt that I was pushing my limits. At 82 years of age, after travelling approximately 260 miles by bus in a single day, without my usual frequency of refreshment, and far from adequate toilet options, I would have much preferred to go straight to bed. But I wrangled with the website and filed my copy.
GANTOB is not persuaded. Her background in sales, and her current obsession with Curt Finks, means that she wants strictly defined parameters. She was adamant that I choose a number and stick with it. She would not accept a range. After what seemed like hours of wrangling we agreed that I will stick to exactly 400 words per daily blog. Luckily, I am not bound by very rigid Finks-style criteria (e.g. the specified count of each letter and number that he imposed on himself for 20 years). And neither are there Ernest Vincent Wright-type rules on the letters that I cannot use (see Gadsby and the missing letter “e”).
Which leaves me just about enough words to explain how GANTOB and I met.
You might have read GANTOB’s pamphlet “The Houseguest”. The short answer is that I am the Reverend K_____.
Don’t worry: I am long retired, and no longer “do” religion. You are not going to be subjected to a Finks style sermon.
What you might also know is that GANTOB sometimes writes two versions of her pamphlets (see, for example, Antiklimax).
After GANTOB’s shock discovery that I had worked out her identity in The Houseguest, we exchanged a series of emails and established something of a rapport. These emails became an unreleased version of GANTOB’s The Letter. How I identified GANTOB’s identity in the first place is another story.
THE BENEFAKTOR
Monday 25 September 2023
GANTOB blog 