Well, I went to the cinema. It had been a while and I was starting to miss it. More importantly I was panicking because I thought I might miss Dune and the local cinema is showing it once a day, but it turns out they are only showing the David Lynch version so I haven’t missed the extravaganza. I went to see Ten Rings. On the way I noted that the tide was pretty low and discussed this with one of the children. I think they get mildly embarrassed or something when I explain what I’m doing noticing silly stuff.
After the film I tweeted my rating of the film, giving away what I thought of it. Although actually I think my position on the film is a little more nuanced.
I rated Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) – IMDb – 6/10 https://t.co/cvy33R8cUY
I couldn’t leave the cinema as my children were with me, and if they weren’t I would probably have stuck it out. But, it wasn’t a good film. It was another Marvel film and mostly dull. We were the only people in the theatre and so spent our time checking out the view from different seats and generally having fun in the boring bits.
I will say this: this film is the biggest waste of Ben Fucking Kingsley I’ve ever seen. I hope he either fan-boy his way into the film or got fucktons of money.
Comms#1965, here’s what happened in that year:
The Gambia becomes independent from the UK.
400+ killed in Chile after an earthquake causes dam failures.
What the fuck -the US launch a test nuclear reactor into low earth orbit.
This past summer I have spent some time crafting words and paragraphs into letters to send to various organisations. Some were complaining, some were suggestions. This is a run down of what I’ve done.
The year started and also might end with me writing letters of complaint to British Gas Services. I pay, what I think is quite a bit of money, to British Gas Services to have my boiler maintained and fixed whenever it breaks. I had booked a repair session earlier in the year which kept getting cancelled by BGS. This was rather annoying as every booking pretty much required me to ask for time off work. When this was cancelled I looked a right tit. I think it took about four months for an engineer [actually a technician] to come and fix the boiler. I had, by then, written three letters of complaint and posted them to BGS. The first was quite polite. The second was more angry and “firmly worded” and for the third I just swore. How to you get anger and annoyance across once you’ve done the whole passive aggressive polite thing.
A sample of the writing from letter three: “I waited for some form of message, a text, an email, something but I heard nothing. So, out of curiosity I looked at the British Gas app and was quite surprised to see that an appointment was booked for 13th May. I had no direct contact about this. When I got to work after seeing this I saw my boss, booked the day off and organised my Friday around this appointment. A couple of days before the 13th I thought I would check the British Gas app on my phone just to make sure things hadn’t changed given the history we now have together. Fuck me if the date on my phone had now moved to the 21 May. I had no direct message to tell me this and it is sheer good luck that I found out. Once again, I had to go to work and tell them what had happened and spend MORE time rearranging a day off and musing about what a pissing waste of time all of this has been.”
Apart from the piss poor service from BGS and discussions with a complaints person over the phone, they did come through and offer me some money. I refused their first offer and their committee of “higher ups” agreed I deserved more. They are still on my shit-list as recent communications with them have been . . . . . . fraught.
Private Eye magazine has a column called Dumb Britain and in it they highlight the answers that people give to questions on TV and sometimes radio quizzes. I used to think this section of the paper was quite funny but as time has moved on I’ve realised that if you don’t know something, then you don’t know. I felt a connection to those poor souls being placed in the spotlight as if I didn’t know the answer then sometimes I thought I would probably give the same response as them. I could see how they got to that particular answer and it didn’t seem so dumb.
“As a fan and long time reader of your magnificent organ I felt it was time to defend the poor souls featured in the Dumb Britain section. General knowledge is just that, general and if you don’t know a thing, you can’t figure it out. It has very little to do with intelligence levels. Given the pressure of television or radio show recordings along with associated brain freeze most of the answers seem quite reasonable and not a cause for general concern that quiz contestants are proving how stupid Britain has become. My subscription remains intact,”
I did get a response from the editor of Private Eye but my letter wasn’t included in print which was a shame. It would have been my second such occasion.
“Thanks for your letter. Point noted.” Ed.
Electric-Charging-Point
I’d like a new car. Who wouldn’t? I would also like an electric car. Not just because as I write this the UK has run out of petrol but more because electric cars are the way forward, a way to the future, as long as we can generate the electricity in a green manner. There’s no point everyone having electric cars if all the carbon production is shifted to some arsehole end of the country where we have coal or gas fired electricity plants.
But, where I live is a tiny Victorian terrace street built as housing for the local brickworks and not built for any modern utilities. Running water, electricity. internet and gas supplies were not in the minds of those who built this housing. Very rarely can I actually park outside my house. If I return home to the street anytime after about 1500 I can be assured of having to park about a minute’s walk away from my house. This doesn’t really bother me that much. I’ve lived here long enough that it’s just the way it is. But, I’d like to be able to have an electric car and charge it. So, I wrote to the local council and asked them if they could fit some charging points in communal areas.
I had a lovely response explaining the rules of charging points and how the funding is allocated. I doubt very much that my village will be getting one and if I’m honest, I don’t think I can afford a new car anyway. Maybe I should get a fuck-off-big hybrid 4×4 and just drive it over the fields out that back of my house, fields that will soon be not-fields.
Bluewater Logo
Over the summer break I went to Bluewater shopping centre. I can’t remember what for, maybe I just went there by mistake, I probably mention it somewhere in this communication. Bluewater are quite clever with the hoardings they place over empty shops. They put pictures and adverts on them so if you aren’t looking too close the whole place still looks occupied. If you want to know how your economy is doing then have a look around the town centre or shopping centres. If there are empty spaces then your economy is fucked. Anyway, one of the closed shops was covered with an advert for Calvin Klein [I think] it had a man and woman about twenty foot tall both in their underwear. The man’s pose was full frontal, proper man-spreading. My immediate thought was “ooh, interesting choice” but it got me thinking.
Humans have such an obsession with nudity and the human form. The obsession is that we don’t want to see it. We think it’s rude to talk about penises and vaginas. We giggle at breasts. We talk about private parts. I suspect that a lot of this is historically a religious thing as sexual body parts are for procreation and sex. Sex is a private thing and so body parts must be private. Personally I don’t give a shit. All this guilt around sex and talking about body parts means many many people find it really hard to talk about problems they are having or even seeing the doctor about medical issues we have.
Isn’t it such a crazy world where extreme violence can be shown at lower age ratings in the cinema or on TV but sex, a completely natural and everyday part of life, gets a higher rating. We can’t show people loving each other but it’s easy to see images of people being murdered or killed in a spray of bullets. There’s an embarrassment about totally normal bodily functions that, I think, is really fucking stupid. These things need to be normalised. People need to feel comfortable with issues of their body. We need to change society to make these things acceptable to talk about and stop the shame people feel when discussing these things.
So, I wrote to Bluewater: “While walking around Bluewater and looking at the empty shop hoardings that you have I wondered whether you, as an organisation, should be adding to either social justice or general humankind with images instead of the ones you have. I understand that social justice might feel a little “political” and so maybe you could have some images that normalise the human body as a campaign to try and make people feel more comfortable about their bodies and talking about them. It is a big issue for many people to talk about parts of their bodies either in public should they be so inclined or to the doctor. There is a lot of shame and embarrassment incorrectly associated with various “private” parts of the body. This causes issues when talking about them or even downright mental stress for some people. Perhaps you could have some shop hoardings which attempt to normalise the naked body? Perhaps with images of parts of the body like those in science books? You already have massive posters of people in underwear but I think the next step is to show there’s no shame in openly talking about our bodies – especially to health workers. No doubt there would be some press attention for a shopping centre to have pictures of naked people, but I doubt it would be a negative thing for footfall. I’m not a social scientist or an advertising specialist. I thought I’d pass on my idea.”
The reply was a lovely, thanks, but no thanks, passed on to management etc. But I felt I had done my bit.
Comms#1964. What happened in that year?
US Surgeon General declares that smoking might be dangerous to health.
100 deaths in Calcutta because – religious riots.
Protests against de facto racial segregation in New York.
The last death penalty sentences carried out in UK.
I bought this album on music cassette form in Saffron Walden in the run up to some Christmas sometime. I knew of Yngwie Malmsteen as he was kind of infamous in my sixth form. A number of people had seen him in concert and so I got this. I think he was the first super-speedy, how does he do that, kind of guitarists I had heard about. There are plenty more but there’s a certain melody to his playing. I have and continue to listen to this album regularly.
Now, here’s the thing. When I played this album a while ago I was trying to come up with ways to describe the differences in the songs. You, know , to be able to do a track listing and description of each. Now, the rub is, they all sound quite similar. Same pace, beat, style. I don’t mean to diminish how good this album is because I really do enjoy it. I like every song. If I had to choose a favourite then I would go for “Heaven Tonight”, it’s a lovely romantic song.
All I can say is that Yngwie can play very well. I enjoy this stuff. He was pretty good when I saw him in Shepherds Bush however many years ago.
Comms#1963 so here are some things that happened that year as curated by me:
George Wallace becomes Alabama Governor, what a cunt.
Valentina Tereshkova is first woman in space.
Kenya gains independence from the UK.
Sam Cooke and his band are arrested after trying to register at a “whites only” motel in Louisiana.
That’s definitely “hour” and not “shower” in the title of this communication. What kind of site do you think this is?! Recently I had the opportunity to spend some time at the Imperial War Museum at Duxford Airfield. Now, I’m going to skip all the issues I have with museums of war and empire, there’s plenty of time for that in future and past communications. However, I do love a pretty aeroplane and Duxford has fucking loads. In the last week I have spent three days at the airfield.
Camp Duxford
2523 (Linton) Sqn invited some of our cadets along to a weekend assisting Duxford in the smooth running of their Battle Of Britain airshow. We arrive there early(ish) on the Saturday and helped them out. We were allowed entry to the airshow once we’d done our jobs. It was a splendid day with plenty of propeller drive aircraft rumbling through the skies. For me, gas turbines hit the spot and so while not WW2 era, it was a delight to see a Whirlwind, Wessex and Sea King flying above Cambridgeshire.
Fighter Squadron – you need to look a little closer for full effect
Once the show was over we managed to get up close and personal with the three helicopters of the Historic Helicopter flight. If you ever thought your hobby was a touch expensive and not much gained from it, but you enjoy it anyway, then imagine trying to keep helicopters airworthy, for the hell of it. Photographs were taken.
Historic Helicopters
It seems to me that a good photograph is all about being in the right place and having the right amount of nudge with the big man in the sky to make the heavens look absolutely glorious. The golden hour in the communication title refers to the hour before sunset when the lighting for photographs is bloody amazing. The grand finale of the airshow was a flypast of fifteen WW2 era fighters. Such an amazing sight and sound.
Battle Of Britain Fighter Wing
I do worry slightly about a country celebrating not-losing a few battles. It is something the UK seems to do a lot. It’s as if it reinforces the natural superiority of the British above everyone else. The Brits have such nostalgia for things that only went their way though luck and good fortune that I guess it’s about time for that luck to run out. Oh, wait, now I remember the last five years.
I also spent a day at Duxford on Wednesday, just as a day trip to give some newer cadets the experience of a CCF trip along with seeing some amazing planes. We got up close to the Bristol Blenheim and some cadets even helped push a few Spitfires around to clear Shed 3.
Bristol Blenheim Up Close And Personal
There’s something about standing in a hangar staring at the only Blenheim in the world while surrounded by a collection of airworthy Spitfires, Hurricanes and Buchons. Some places are just a bit special. Much like the exhaust view on the Spit. Thanks BW.
Merlin – The Magical Kind
Comms#1962. Here are some things that happened in that year:
Algeria gains independence.
The first 24 hours of Daytona, is run as a three hour race.
John Glenn orbits the Earth.
The Centralia Mine Fire starts.
Slavery is abolished in Yemen [I mean, how the fuck did it take that long].
As we have one very busy week end it’s only two more weeks and then I can probably think about organising all the other stuff that needs to be done. In the past seven days I’ve been i/c of two cadet trips, both of which weren’t even known about four weeks ago. If you have any idea how long it takes for authorisation for trips to come through from the “higher-ups” then you’ll know that I’ve pretty much been a one-man miracle for the last month. On the Aerospace Camp I met BW and he had some events in the pipeline and invited us along. It would have been rude to say no and so I got to sorting them out.
The first of these joint trips was to attend the Air Charter Expo at Biggin Hill. It’s a hanger and hardstanding area full of executive jets ready to be chartered. It’s like a car show but for more expensive items. The cadets did some work and I drank some coffee so all was good in the world. I could have done without the rain storms on the way to Biggin Hill and slightly less exciting weather would also have meant the traffic might have flowed a bit better but we got there and everyone enjoyed themselves.
Gulfstream G450
My favourite aircraft for interior, comfort, and friendliness of staff was this G450. I neglected to ask how much it was to charter but then, if you ask those things, then you can’t afford it. The cabin crew I spoke to wouldn’t tell me who the most badly behaved celebratory was, but then again, they wouldn’t tell be the best behaved either. The crew were lovely, really nice people.
I got to sit in the cockpit of a King Air and this was quite strange as I’ve spent a lot of time playing the flight simulator and learning my way around the buttons and switches of this exact type. I didn’t have a go at starting the engines!
King Air Cockpit
While the King Air looked the poorer cousin of the display I would like to mention that the pilot of this craft seemed the most honest and genuine flyer there. He was really chatty and love talking to the RAF Cadets, it’s almost as if he ignored the actual people with money. I suspect he was just pleased to talk aviation and flying rather than trying to sell the plane.
A great time was had by all and the day went smoothly in the end. It’s a hard life sometimes.
This is communication number 1961 and I had forgotten that I was doing this stuff, so here goes, here are some things that happened in that year. The year being the common one used by most even if it’s white colonialism.
The Portuguese Colonial War begins.
Yuri Gagarin orbits the Earth.
French police attack protestors, possibly over 200 dead.
Had a lovely day out in the “it turned out to be nicer than expected” weather for a cadet trip to Lydd to use the long ranges there. A long range is anything over 25m. I have my range conducting officer ticket for short ranges and would like to get my ticket for long ranges but, one day. Lydd Ranges is a base with lots of space for shooting things down on the Kent coast within the Romney Marshes site of special scientific interest. As you might expect there is a Danger Area which extends out into the sea. If you are thinking “What else could we put near here to ensure almost the perfect disaster” and if your answer is: an airport and a nuclear power station, then you are in for a treat.
Lydd Dangerous Things
The three things that I have circled are, from top to bottom, an airport, Lydd live firing ranges and a nuclear power station. I suppose it doesn’t get worse than that for potential danger. This is a funny end of the world, some unique habitats and plenty of open space. The fact that access is restricted a lot also means that the wildlife has the space to get on with it.
At The Far End Of Lydd Serial 34
Serial 34 is a gallery range with manual targets. We had some firing practice from 100m where we zeroed the weapons and then did some firing from other positions from 100m and 200m. The wind was a bit much for newish cadets to have a go from further distances. We’d also want slightly better grouping sizes to be able to progress. If you double your distance then you double the size of your grouping [Theory Of A Group]. So, we’d be hoping for 100mm at 100m which would then lead to 200mm at 200m. Once you are beyond those sizes you aren’t really going to be hitting the target that much.
Lydd Ranges Serial 34
The morning was mostly cloudy with a little wind. In the afternoon the wind increased but the sun came out and so I have mildly weather affected skin on the parts of my body which were exposed – mainly my head. It feels OK about twelve hours later so I think I’ll be fine but I might look silly as I was wearing a baseball cap and so half my head is burnt along with a little rectangle where the cap size adjuster lives. Oh well.
This is communication number 1960. In keeping with recent tradition [not sure what happens when I get beyond the current year] here are some things that happened in that year as curated by me:
Humans descend to the lowest point on Earth.
12,000 dead after an earthquake in Morocco.
Blue Streak is cancelled in UK.
A U-2 is shot down over USSR.
Mauritania [the crappiest country you’ve not heard of] becomes independent from France.
I’m not sure when I started this journey but I’ve been flying [in a Sim – X-Plane] around the coastline of the world. I started on Anglesey in Wales and am currently in Iran. I suspect a future communication will just be a big long list of the airports visited as I complete this journey. I nearly turned around once I reached the Red Sea but have decided to see what happens as I head further east.
As I pass through airports I’ve been tweeting my journey. I’m not sure when I started doing that, I think I just wanted a record of the flights somewhere. They are in my virtual log book and also on a scrap of paper on the table next to me. The first one on the paper is Bamenda. I completed that flight on 13 July.
Landing at Bamenda, Cameroon. Part of the round the world tour in twenty minute steps. Started at RAF Valley, Wales have mostly followed coastlines. pic.twitter.com/HZ2nH0zYlV
I’m not sure in what format to have all the airports listed in the end. Watch this space and see what I say. If you are lucky and go to this MAP when I am flying then you’ll be able to see where I am and what I’m doing. My aircraft user name is Kertz. Click on the aircraft to see which one is mine. You might be told it’s a Cessna. I can assure you it isn’t. Because the JoinFS software I used works across platforms you have to tell it what you are flying. There are some categories, but over all I have found that the system works well and I’ve flown with a friend while they are based in Texas IRL.
You Can Track My Flights
Above is what the maps will look like if you can find me. When you click on the aircraft there is information about them that pops up. It’s quite a neat little trick.
This is communication 1959 and here are some things that happened in that year:
Alaska becomes the 49th USA state.
A referendum is Switzerland turns down women’s suffrage.
British Empire Day is renamed Commonwealth Day. Why do we still have MBE medals??
The hot weather of the last few days has broken and I think it’s meant to be more “normal” over the next week or so. I don’t mind really. As long as I can drink enough water I’m generally happy in any temperature. So, last night I woke with the clapping of thunder and I pulled my window shut. I slowly decided whether to properly get and and watch the lightning as there is a decent vista from the back bedroom but my decision was – go back to sleep. I’ve seen storms before.
When I woke and eventually checked my phone there were loads of notifications of movement detected from my home security system. I wrote about this in this communication. It turns out that the lightning set off the record feature of the cameras and I got some shots of the sky being lit up by electrical discharge.
The green bits and pieces in the video are where the camera thinks there is movement so generally they are best to ignore. Of the videos the camera recorded this one was the best with a decent image of the strike.
This is communication number 1958 and so here are some things, curated by me, that happened in that year of the common era:
Sputnik 1 falls to Earth and burns up.
Bertrand Russell launches CND.
BBC Radiophonic workshop is established.
The last fully rigged sail trading ship sinks carrying guano.
I have played this album precisely three times in its entity. I was given this by Shredder as a recommended thing to listen to. He was not wrong. I have played this album when I drove some pupils to Canterbury for a school visit – you want something you think most people will appreciate when driving others around. I have so much obnoxious music that it’s hard sometimes to find something suitable. I played this album over my Sonos system when building a climbing frame for the kids and then finally I played it the other day in preparation for this communication.
This is a brilliant album full of dirty, gritty, blues inspired songs that all sound great. It has a real down low feel to it whilst not being obnoxious. I do like it. I think it’s an album I will go for more often when I need something decent in the background.
This album is not anything like you would expect if all you know about ZZ Top is their songs from the eighties. It’s actually way better and I even like their rock stuff.
This is communication number 1957 so here are some things that happened then in the year of our lord:
The first frisbee
A hydrogen bomb accidentally falls from a bomber near Albuquerque.
A hurricane killed 400 people in Louisiana.
The Wolfenden Report was published in the UK recommending the legalisation of gay sex between consenting adults.
The village in which I live is under attack. The attack is probably the thing that is needed for the country. But I don’t like it and it’s raising lots of horrible feelings and selfishness. Part of the local council plan involves adding 900 houses to the village where I have lived for almost twenty years. I wrote about this before in this communication. 900 houses. Right outside my garden. It makes me angry while at the same time I know housing has to go somewhere and I’ve always thought that people who protest should accept progress for the greater good.
So, first I want to recognise the need for new housing. Apparently there is a need for lots of homes for people and they need to go somewhere. I suspect it is easier to build on fresh ground than to rework brownfield sites to make them habitable. We all know that the housing developers and land owners are in the back pockets of many Tories and probably lots of other MPs too. Where I live is like Tory world centre and most of the local councillors are that way inclined too. So I do believe that the housing companies get the easier route for more financial security rather than actually doing what is right for the environment and local communities. That said, there is a need for housing.
I live in Tonbridge and Malling local district. I live almost at the northern tip of the district. I live in the relatively poor part of the district. The southern area is much wealthier. Do I think there’s a correlation to where the new housing is going and the relative wealth of the area? Of course I do. The wealthy have the ability to fight these things or at least bribe their way to not having the new houses nearby. It’s always the poorer people who get fucked over by those in power because for the powerful it’s about power and money and nothing else really.
The Medway Gap area has had masses of housing development over the last twenty years and it continues. The company that owns the land, Trenport, I’ve written about before. They like to think they are doing good things I suspect but ultimately don’t care as long as they can make themselves more powerful and more wealthy. Here’s a picture of what land is going to be developed:
My Feelings Are Unsure About This
As you can see in the picture Eccles is the blob of housing just right of centre and the pink land is the area going to be developed. I’m pretty sure you can see that it’s all fields. Arable land for growing crops to feed this country. Now, to be clear, not all that land is going to be housing. Some of it will be made into recreational land along with a village car park and community centre. We already have a community centre, it’s the church and hall which can be used by locals. Parking is utter shit in my village but the new car park won’t be big enough, they never are. I think there’s a new shop involved there too but what happens to the current village shop?
All the land heading SW from the village of Eccles is my current view out the back of my house. I don’t really want that to change. I can see for miles. I can see fields and trees and the woods in the distance. It’s a calming positively enduring view that helps my mental health. It’s one of the reasons I bought this house.
I’ve looked at the “consultation” online and the questions are clever. One of them asks what I use the field for currently. Well, in reality I walk or run or cycle on the footpaths. The developers are going to keep the footpaths so that should make me happy but it doesn’t. The reason I walk along those particular footpaths is that the outdoor experience is best there. Wide open spaces in the middle of a barley field really make you feel good. Just having the footpath there through houses isn’t going to be the same.
I’m stuck. I don’t want this development. For mostly selfish reasons. I like my view. I like the fields. I like the ambiance of the village. It feels “country” while entirely surrounded by massive urban sprawl. I know we need houses. I just think there’s somewhere else they could go.
This is communication number 1956 so here are a couple of things that happened that year:
IATA finalises the phonetic alphabet.
96 US congress members sign a manifesto against de-segregation.
The last British troops leave Egypt.
The world’s first industrial scale nuclear power plant is opened at Calder Hall in England.
Just logged into 360 Radar to see what’s flying around [not that I hear anything]. I was just curious but I was shocked at what I found! I wasn’t shocked. I was pleasantly surprised but not shocked. I was trying to write in a click-bait format then, but I should’ve made the title completely click bait. Now I think about it, a lot of the titles of communications on this site are a bit click baity. I don’t really say what the communication is about I just write an obscure title. I can assure that writing them that way makes things much harder to look up in the future.
Nothing Over Kent
Nothing up there really. The Kent skies seem rather empty. Oh well, the flights will be heading over soon.
This is communication number 1955 and so here are some things that happened in that year of the common era:
60,000 non-whites are forcibly evicted from their homes in South Africa.
83 people are killed in a crash at Le Mans.
Ruth Ellis is the last woman to be executed [murdered by the state] in the UK.
I like this album. I don’t really like the production of the album and I know that’s a personal thing and Hrab is the person who is in charge of the whole thing. George Hrab has a podcast, or used to, called Geologic which I have spent some time listening to. He’s a science communicator and skeptic along with being a talented musician and song writer.
All the songs on this album are extremely well written. They cover lots of ideas from the skeptical community and make me smile whenever I listen to this album. Some ideas of the titles on this record:
God Is Not Great
Everything Alive Will Die Someday
When I Was Your Age
Death From The Skies – highly recommended
Small Comfort
This album has a lovely style and a great message to push to the listeners. I enjoy it. It’s not metal and that’s fine.
This is communication number 1954 and so here are some things that happened that year:
Eisenhower warns against his country’s intervention in Vietnam.
The first subway line in Toronto.
The Boeing 707 is released.
Food rationing ends in the UK.
Lord Of The Flies is published by a writer who worked previously as a teacher at MGS.
I think I’m going to stop. I’ve bought a beast of a machine with screens to match those abilities. I remember I first bought a PC for making music and I wasn’t really bothered about gaming performance, and that’s still mostly true. I’m not a hardcore PC gamer but I am very interested in flying. It just happens to turn out that the flight sim of choice – X-Plane is quite consuming of PC power. It’s also an odd program with the way it utilises the cores of the PC. Anyway. I’ve been trying to get the best flight simulation screen-age. I think I’m there although to use all the pixels to the maximum I will need another PC but that’s going to have to wait.
The Beautiful Front View
I’m not going to go through the specification of everything. Needless to say I’m very happy with it all. The curved monitor is very bright! It also chucks out a lot of heat so I think I’m not doing my bit for the environment. To keep everything in this position there’s a level of chaos to the reverse view:
Takes To Have Beauty
The curved screen has its own stand and the two top monitors are connected via 100mm VESA things to different arms on the metre high pole screwed to the desk. Look, it all works fine and is lined up to within tolerances.
This is communication 1953 and so here are some things that happened in that year of the common era in keeping with recent tradition:
Derek Bentley is executed [murdered by the state] in Wandsworth prison.
The North Sea flood kills over 2000 in coastal countries.
There must be something about movie soundtracks when they are done well because I have a few. I’ve even got the Pulp Fiction and Reservoir Dogs soundtracks somewhere but I’m not sure they are on my Sonos system, I’ll have to look into that. The slightly bigger issue is that my PC does not have an optical drive. I’d have to break out my laptop from 2008 to rip the files onto the system, that’s easy enough even though I’ll have to chuck some coal in the fire.
This album is a great collection of songs used in the film Trainspotting. I think I would say they are all rather middle of the road, gentle paced songs. I don’t think there’s a bad song on there.
I do have some words to say about Born Slippy. This isn’t really anything about the song but more an anecdote about terrible behaviour by me. I was at a wedding reception/evening do, you know, the kind of thing where you aren’t good enough to be at the ceremony but you are allowed the food. I think it was at the Weald Of Kent golf club building thing. It was somewhere there, I don’t entirely remember for alcohol reasons. I might have had some drink because it’s a wedding. The DJ person put Born Slippy on and I danced a stupid dance but they cut the song halfway through before all the drumming bits. I recall having a bit of a go and made them play the whole song. I think it was just me on the dance floor but when the music moves you . . . .
This is communication number 1952 and so here are some things that happened that year of the common era:
Rioters target British and upper-class Egyptian businesses, it’s almost as if the class struggle and recognition for fair wages and rights has been eternal.
The B-52 flies for the first time.
The Roman Catholic church bans the books of Andre Gide.
I’ve recently been thinking about the lives of people and the ideas of privacy within those lives. I say recently but I titled this communication in early 2020 so recently for me means a few years. I just keep my thoughts ticking over, trying to come to conclusions.
Shall we start with those paragons of duplicity – politicians. When I was younger it was scandalous for a politician to have an affair. It would pretty much break their career and they would be in the press for a long time about it. Oh, shit, I think I am about to defend politicians here, but here is the thought process: I don’t care who a politician sleeps with [as long as its consensual]. I don’t care if their partner “forgives” them or not. I honestly don’t. I think that’s a matter for the politician and their family to sort out. Who are we to judge their own morality on relationships. The bigger issue is: does the politician tell the TRUTH about it to their partner. I just want my politicians to tell the truth. I genuinely don’t care who they fuck or what their emotional relationships are like. As long as those behaviours are consensual and within the law then that’s fine.
I don’t think having sex with someone else is a big thing. What’s important is that different people have different approaches to relationships and that should be recognised. I don’t think it matters what type of sex they have – heterosexual, gay, BDSM, etc – what’s important is that they can do their job and be truthful [hopefully they are intelligent too]. There’s a puritanical element to morality that still clouds this country and most of the world. We seem to think that someone having an affair makes them a bad person or unsuitable for their job. I don’t think it does. What’s important is that they deal with the emotional fallout of the affair correctly. Mind you, lying does make someone unsuitable for their job, unless you are a spy. When you are in a position of public trust you should speak the truth for the good of the public and not lie for your own ambitions. Funny how that is not the way our current PM works.
I think there’s an issue with the concept of marriage and being in a relationship that sexual-monogamy is either expected or promised in a public ceremony. Perhaps it is the idea that a “wandering” politician has broken a promise that gets the press and media all het up? I don’t think that’s what it is. I’ve never seen a line of questioning which goes on about “how do you feel about breaking your wedding vows? Why should we trust you now?”. Maybe that’s the bigger issue but the new would run with the idea of someone fucking someone else rather than the issues of trust and truth.
Let’s have a look at Boris Johnson for a moment as an example of my ideas here. He has plenty of children – the number is not even confirmed by him – and by different mothers. But who cares about that? As long as he has decent relationships with his children and is a good father to them then that’s ok. What should disqualify Johnson from office is the fact that he’s a proven liar. Oh, and he’s a racist too. Oh, and he’s not that intelligent also. The concept that this country elected him to power makes me sad. Really sad. Most people in this country are mildly racist and selfish.
So, the conclusion for me here is that I don’t care about your emotional lives or your sexual lives. I won’t make moral judgement on you for that. I will make moral judgements on you for lying or being selfish or not doing your job properly or blaming other people all the time. Accept your responsibilities and do your job.
What do we do if a politician is a racist? In recent memory it turns out that the UK elects them – see Priti Patel, Boris Johnson, a lot of the Tories. Should harbouring racist thoughts, or other views deemed unpleasant by modern societies, bar you from public work or, in fact, any job? I’m not sure. It’s probably best to leave politicians behind here because their whole thing is appealing to the public and when the public are mildly racist it means that’s what you have to be to get elected [as much as that depresses me]. Let’s look at someone with a job involving a position of influence. Let’s consider a teacher.
So, teacher Jack has ten years at the chalkface and is broadly liked by most people they work with. But they have a social media account under an assumed name and contribute and publicise racist literature online. In other aspects of their teaching job it is not clear that Jack is a racist and their attitude to pupils and staff from all backgrounds is normal. This person doesn’t push their agenda in lesson time but they are a racist pig. This is quite hard isn’t it. Jack is a racist but it doesn’t affect their job and they don’t influence pupils with their views. If it doesn’t affect their interaction with other humans then I guess that’s ok. Everyone is entitled to their own political views, no matter how objectionable by modern standards, as long as it stays in their head then I guess that’s ok.
Perhaps Jack let’s things slip now and then in discussions with staff. There are trigger words and phrases that are used by the far-right and now and then there are hints of these in the staff room. Does this matter? Should this person’s racist views disqualify them from their teaching position? Again I think it’s about influencing others. Most adults meet plenty of assholes in their lives and you learn to ignore them and keep them at arm’s length. You probably try to understand that political views are for each person to decide and you leave Jack be. However, as a teacher Jack is in a position of influence over children and young adults who are developing their own morality and political views. Hopefully these young voters of the future will listen to other views and form their own conclusions. What we don’t want is young people placing extra value to obnoxious views held by people in positions of influence.
It’s probably a good time to say that the zeitgeist moves and what is and isn’t acceptable morally and politically changes through time. I’d like to think that as we grow as a society we develop more tolerant views of others and accept people for who they are [within the common law – ie murderers are bad]. We have a lot of work to do to educate people on the wide variety of the human condition and to develop attitudes of trust and understanding. Just think about how society has changed and accepted homosexuality over the last fifty years, there’s still a lot more to do. To help us judge what views are more correct than others I try to use the golden rule of “just be nice to people” and “treat people how you would want to be treated”. I think if any of your own morality goes against those rules then you can fuck off. Hence, racist views shouldn’t be made public in positions of power or influence. I don’t care if you are racist but I do care if other see you and think that it’s ok to be racist.
So, I think I’m nearing a conclusion. I think that if you are a cunt then as long as you keep that private and out of influencing others then that’s ok. Be however shitty you want. If your behaviour influences others to be a prick then I think you need to be deplatformed. If you can’t push views of tolerance and being nice to all people then you shouldn’t be in those positions of power. This is where I hate the current bunch of politicians. They have been openly racist in the past and yet this country has elected them. They are seemingly unable to care for others and treat people nicely. They lack empathy and tolerance. They have a massive public platform on which to do these things and so they normalise this behaviour.
If you preach hatred or intolerance then you shouldn’t have a platform. There we go. I think I’ve made my conclusion. I’ll probably mess around with this while I run through the countryside shortly and I’ll make sure that any edits I make are highlighted.
This is communication number 1951 and so in keeping with tradition here are some things that happened in that year:
A fire on a train in Japan kills more than 100.
A blue sun appears over Europe dues to ash from Canadian forest fires.
A water storage tank collapses in New Mexico killing 4 and destroying 200 buildings.
I have a cheap home security camera system in my house. It uses my phone to know when I’m in the house and when I’m not, assuming that I always have my phone on me. I think I can set how far away from home it activates the camera alert system. I never normally have a problem with this system but the other day I was in the park playing cricket and it turns out I was on the border of the geofence. I never really hear my phone so I didn’t get to notice the alerts for auto-arming until I got home!
Geo-Notifications
I should have counted the notifications, but I didn’t. Next time I head to the park I’ll make sure to take note of how many times I get told about the system arming or disarming.
This is communication number 1950 and so here are a few things that happened in that year of the common era:
64 die when a submarine sinks in the Thames Estuary.
South Africa passes a law to formally segregate the races.
The Korean War begins.
The Roman Catholic Church makes up some shit about the virgin Mary.
US military advisers are sent to French Indo-China to advise the French.
This is a boring list of things I did each day during my summer break to remind me that; a) it’s OK to do little, and b) I actually did accomplish things. Days one through seven are listed in this communication, note that day one in that communication is actually day 0 in this communication.
Day 8 – I went shopping for tools and timber but came home with very little. I was disappointed. I went to the cinema to watch F9 and the film met my expectations. I tried having a run but my legs felt heavy and I hated it. I completed one of the Gran Turismo challenges. I played with recording flights in X-Plane and then messed with camera positions.
Day 9 – I went shopping for timber and tools and came home happy but poorer. This day was entirely about making the new sleeping system. It was successful. It was hot and I sweated through clothes. I listened to music on the Sonos Roam while I made stuff. I went to see Old at the cinema. I figured out a way to see my MagicMirror display from elsewhere in the house using the server version. I set up some static IPs for home equipment.
Day 10 – I spent the day completing the building of the sleeping system. Now I just have to worry about painting it and also sorting out the flooring. A scientist friend came over for a cuppa and it was nice to see them. I sweated through more clothes in the afternoon as I completed the sleeping system build. In the evening I watched Jupiter something on Netflix.
Day 11 – This day was about weapon training some cadets. So I had to get up early, head into work and spend the day teaching stuff. When I got home I adjusted the ceiling light in the bedroom and pondered when to start painting. I am acutely aware that I haven’t really had a break yet and I can’t keep going at this pace. So I am not heading out to get painting equipment, I will do that Thursday when I have some clear time. I can let you know that while I was sawing wood upstairs the dust was leaving the room via the window and then heading back into the dining room which means everything feels a bit shit.
Day 12 – Another day of weapon training. It went well and the cadets learnt the weapon system. I got home and had a 10km row. Then tutored someone the basic mathematics of matrices while they were in the Bahamas. After dinner I did some Minecraft things, I was in the nether getting a load of ancient debris after I died recently and lost all my equipment. I watched an episode of Archer.
Day 13 – This day started with a walk around Ham Marshes, proceeded with a trip to Homebase and then painting primer layer on the sleeping system followed by an evening meal with Penguin.
Day 14 – Travelled to the Imperial War Museum at Duxford to meet AB, who I see on average once a decade at the moment. Came back from there and once home entertained my sister and her family for a while. Then it was peaceful and we watched some B99. Dinner was take out. Ordered some masking tape for the sleeping system and picked up some lights for that room.
Day 15 – Cricket in the morning then food shopping because I ran out of time in the week to get to Sainsbury’s. A nap in the afternoon, a race around Mount Panorama in Gran Turismo, and then painting the sleeping system in the evening.
Day 16 – Put mattresses into the sleeping system and installed the lights into the sleeping system. Joined lights to the house lighting system. Had a nap while “watching” some Olympic sailing. Had a ride in a Tesla and spent the afternoon with a bunch of colleagues from work celebrating a retirement. Watched an episode of Jupiter’s Legacy which I think I’m enjoying.
Day 17 – Flew somewhere in X-Plane. Had a run. Re-fitted the PSVR to the PS4. Moved the PS Camera so that some games are more playable. Put down the flooring underlay in the new sleeping system room. Moved stuff from the garden to the front ready to load the car tomorrow for a trip to the dump. Didn’t have a nap! Watched the latest episode of The Grand Tour and it was a little boring. Watched final episode of Jupiter’s Legacy but as I write this now I honestly couldn’t tell you what happened, might have to watch it again.
Day 18 – There’s parking restrictions outside my house apparently so loaded up the car with the things from yesterday but someone had kindly taken a load of metal kit that I had put outside. I did suspect that some of it might disappear. There’s now Google recommendations on my TV streaming device and I wonder how long it will take before I delete all my Google data? Took stuff to the dump. Booked cinema tickets. Had a run. Played Minecraft. Watched Race To Witch Mountain. Put up two sets of shelves in the sleeping system. Watched the last ten minutes of Jupiter’s Legacy again just to remind myself what happened and then watched first episode of Homeland. Read a little.
Day 19 – Did some virtual flying. Booked a dentist appointment. Had a run. Overate at lunch so decided not to have any dinner. Went to see Jungle Cruise. Played quite a bit of Minecraft with the aim of finishing my reclaimed island and building a mob spawner. Pumped up the front tyre on my bike to see how slow the puncture is. Considering making a “meadow” instead of a lawn in the garden. I hate mowing the lawn. Also considering stopping the SSRI I’m currently on.
Day 20 – Downloaded some more desktop backgrounds for the PC. Flew somewhere in X-Plane. Had a run. Played Minecraft. Had a walk. Played Minecraft while listening to Test Match Special. Had flooring for the sleeping system delivered. Read some of my book on The LAW. Decided to stop taking my SSRIs and anti-histamine to see what happens.
Day 21 – Had another flight in X-Plane, I think I’m halfway down Namibia at the moment. I ordered some furniture for the sleeping system. I went to the village shop to get a newspaper to put the front page under the flooring in the sleeping system but they don’t have The Guardian and I ended up buying the Telegraph. I will not be putting this under the flooring, just using it for cutting out guides. Spawned the wither in Minecraft and it destroyed the world, found a backup and looked around that to see how much work I needed to do, it was a few days old. Had lunch. Ate too much of the wrong stuff. Played some more Minecraft but ended up feeling massively motion sick, had to stop playing and actually sleep for an hour. I think this was a reaction to the food rather than coming off any drugs I have been taking. Didn’t do much after that. I moved some tools from the tool storage area to the house ready for floor laying. I considered what to write in a note to place under the floor. I watched Shadow In The Cloud on Amazon and Black Widow, also watched the first NFL match of the pre-season.
Day 22 – I should be in Germany today with Smith attending M’era Luna. I am not. It was postponed. So I went to Sainsbury’s to get bananas, coffee and a copy of the Guardian. I also picked up some furniture from Argos for the sleeping system. Built the sleeping system floor. It was my first time laying laminate flooring and I have to say I actually enjoyed it. I listened to Test Match Special while I did this. Decided I needed some floor edging and it was just after lunch so I went to McDonald’s and then Homebase. Shortly after that I continued the flooring and was finished around 1700. I spent some time clearing up and then made a desk for the sleeping system. Finally I stopped, played Minecraft for a while and then ended up watching an Israeli Netflix thing.
Day 23 – I had a run and then tidied up around the house putting loads of things away that had been displaced for the Sleeping System. I put some glue of wooden items that needed a little structural reinforcement. I flew somewhere in X-Plane, I think I’ve actually made it to South Africa now! I played Minecraft for a while gathering materials from the Nether. Nap time. I spent about an hour trying to figure out why my Sonos system wouldn’t see the music I have on the NAS drive, with plenty of googling I worked it out but it was a little frustrating, the system is now working fine. Smith came over and we watched plenty of M’era Luna along with Boondock Saints II – All Saints Day.
Day 24 – I pottered about the house after writing a Fooyah communication. I flew in X-Plane, played some Minecraft, just generally chilled out. Around midday I went to Bluewater to buy some socks. I wouldn’t normally go that far just to get socks but I needed to be somewhere until it was time to go to the cinema to see The Suicide Squad. So, I walked around Bluewater four times and while there I pondered whether there was a way I could calculate pi from the number of steps it takes me to walk slightly different routes around the shopping complex. I bought socks and headed to the cinema. Once home I had dinner, fitted some LED extensions to the sleeping system and then played a little more Minecraft. I read some of my book and watched episode two of Hit And Run. Somehow I decided I wanted MORE tattoo on my arm.
Day 25 – I wrote some stuff for here and emailed a company about their product. I went for a long run.
I then played Minecraft for a while and decided to have a map wall within the base area. I might go exploring tomorrow, I accidentally killed a villager and the iron golems were not happy with me, I killed them to stop them attacking me. I thought more about tattoos and what design to have for more ink on my arm. I flew from Cape Town in X-Plane and now I think I might need to do 300 mile stints to actually start getting somewhere, it has taken an age to get to the south of Africa. Work beckoned next and I logged in, wrote some emails, customised some Teams and started to organise OneNote, this would save me an hour or two upon return to the workplace. I watched a couple of episodes of Katla and also read some of my book about the law.
Day 26 – The day pretty much always starts off with a coffee and writing stuff for this site. So that’s what happened this day. After morning stuff was complete I went for a bike ride. I didn’t intend to go so far but that’s what happened, next time I think I’ll go some other route as the ride back along the river path is irritating, there are too many people. Once back I decided what to do and settled on watching Chernobyl 1986 on Netflix which was an OK film. It was a bit too long as is the fashion with Netflix films these days, they seem to suffer Netflix creep and become more than two hours. I also completed a flight from Overberg to Port Elizabeth using autopilot, now I need to find time compression.
I had a phone call appt with the Docs about aching fingers and joints and then tutored a kids over Teams. I also tried logging into my “personal” account on the whole RAFAC Bader system. There was a short email chain about ranges that we had hoped to run. Dinner with two episodes of Archer and then some Minecraft where I finished of my map and did some of the farming jobs. I saw an episode of Katla which I am enjoying for now.
Day 27 – I had some bloods taken at the surgery to see what’s wrong with my hands. There were a couple of times this day that they hurt a lot when really they shouldn’t. I then loaded the car with stuff I wanted to take to the dump/tip/refuse centre/recycling centre whatever you want to call it. The booked time wasn’t until the afternoon so I left the windows open slightly in the car so the wet wood wouldn’t smell out the car. I had some time before anything happened and so decided to get on the rowing machine for an hour. While rowing I watched about an hour of Sound Of Metal but now I need to remember to finish it! I played some Gran Turismo taking part in two online races around a wet Red Bull Ring short circuit. Both were clean races and I actually got a fastest lap in the first – very satisfying. Tip time followed by an hour when I just needed to keep busy so I filled the car up with petrol and wasted some time at Rochester Airport where I met an ex-cadet JB who was having flying lessons! I then travelled to the cinema to watch The Last Letter From Your Lover. Then it was home time, dinner while watching some Archer, Minecraft mining for gold and an episode of Katla.
Day 28 – I wrote some stuff for this site, sent a letter to Private Eye magazine, played X-Plane and had a chat with one of my sisters. I went for a run still trying to lose some weight, I suspect that I’m eating too much rice and might need to cut that down a little as part of my main meal. I went food shopping and upon return I ate my lunch. The there was time for a little Gran Turismo which was me trying to race around the Red Bull Ring mini but I got kicked from the server, in a mood for a challenge I took on the Lewis Hamilton challenge around Suzuka, I got a bronze. Most of the day I was listening to Test Match Special on BBC except for my run where I was listening to lectures about information theory and they’ve just reached an explanation of the thermodynamic property entropy. I watched some Brooklyn 99, some Australian show about fairies and elves, then I watched some Katla. Oh, I also read some more of the book on The Law, my word, it’s terrifying.
Day 29 – I wrote a letter to Bluewater management people. I will explain in these pages sometime if I get a positive response. Went to cricket and I did my 10,000 steps before cricket was over along with reading another chapter of my law book. On return to the house I played some Minecraft for a while, like maybe three hours, but damn it I enjoyed it. I’m probably going to record some walk around videos to show off the current base. All day I’ve been listening to the cricket on the radio as England take on India at Lord’s. Dinner was fish and chips. I played around with the rooming settings on my Hue lighting system and I think I fucked up a load of the automations which I might have to delete and restart, that’s a tiny bit annoying. I then read some of the book on the Law [in the UK] and watched the final episode of Katla which I really enjoyed.
Day 30 – I’m trying to write this reminder of what happened on day 30 two days after it happened and I think some of the details get lost. I mean, I can remember what I actually did in broad strokes but all the little details have gone. So, here goes. I think I tried to fix the Sonos issue with my MagicMirror but it still doesn’t seem to work very well. I am going to leave it and not worry about it. Then I drove to Hatfield Heath to see my parents. We had lunch at Harlow Mill Beefeater and also had a walk to look at a prisoner of war camp from the second world war. Upon returning home we watched the final episode [currently] of Brooklyn 99. Not sure what I’m going to watch now!
Day 31 – I was planning to have a run early this day but I got caught up trying to fix something else. Ah, yes. There was an issue with topping up pay as you go phones and it took an ages to sort out. I also tried to figure out a way to cash out some of my Electroneum as the price had gone to a reasonable level again. The last time ETN got this high I hadn’t proved who I was to the company with address and ID and so I didn’t get to cash out in time before the whole price collapsed again. In the years I have had ETN I have managed to double my meagre investment. I did figure out a way to cash out without tortuous dealings with trading websites and international money transfers. It almost felt like I was money laundering – which I wasn’t. Then travelled to Pinn’s to spend some time there with a plan to go canoeing. The weather closed in and the timing of the tide just made things a little tricky so that plan was binned. Upon return to home some games were played. I was trying to work out what to watch. I’m not that fussed by Hit And Run. I tried Them on Amazon Prime but it didn’t grab me, so I am TV show less at the moment.
Day 32 – Emailed a podcast about swans in Maidstone. I did my longest flight so far in X-Plane although I did use time compression for some of it – Maputo Itnl to Beira, Mozambique. Rather than 50 to 100 mile hops I am now aiming for 200-300 in my journey around the world. I had a run which was about 10km and then I played on Minecraft. I’ve decided to do some large scale landscaping. I snuck out to the shop for bread and then I made some lunch. I cleared out a wardrobe of old stuff. More Minecraft. Followed by dinner. Then more Minecraft, the landscaping required much resource gathering. Read a chapter of my book on the Law.
Day 33 – Woke up around 0630 following a kind of work-stress dream so decided to get up rather than go back to sleep to purge the thoughts. Backed up Minecraft world and generated map for web-viewing. I wrote some stuff for this site and then went for a quick run. I think I should use the word “short” rather than “quick” there as a shorter run would be a better description. After that I looked at my “smart casual” clothing for when I stay on RAF bases and decided I either needed to buy new trousers or new shoes. I opted for the new shoes element of that and had to go to Bluewater. There was a list of other things needed there too so it wasn’t a complete waste of time and given I purchased shoes which should go with the clothes it was probably a success. Another good thing about the shoes is that if I choose to wear them at work then my boss won’t like them as he hates brown shoes. The afternoon was dedicated to organising video uploads and playing Minecraft. I’m still landscaping my medium term base area and I’m in the – it’s still kinda fun but going to take ages – part of the build. I did my longest flight so far in X-Plane. After dinner I did some more Minecraft and then finished my book by The Secret Barrister.
Beira to Nacala, Mozambique. Furthest flight so far! 545 miles cruising at Mach 1.06 at angels 30. pic.twitter.com/4aNDXhlxZY
Day 34 – I woke at 0400 wondering why people were moving cars around outside. Who is doing things at that time? Backed up MC world and created a map output while thinking about the best method for my underwater rail system. Played for a short while creating some of the underwater tunnel. Then I went to see my sister and her family in deepest, darkest Essex. My nephew is a Royal Marine Commando and it was good to have a proper chat with him about the whole process and Commando course. On the way home I went to Costco and spent around GBP130 on supplies to get me through the next few months. After being home for a while it was time to start reading my new book by Neal Stephenson.
Day 35 – I wrote some things for this site and then pretty much played Minecraft most of the morning while getting jobs around the house completed – such as clothes washing and weedkilling. I might have ordered a weapon attachment, it goes on a picatinny rail, to help improve my shooting and also my marksmanship instruction – thanks to my nephew and the Marines for that idea. After lunch I played some more Minecraft and realised that the track I had laid for a railway wasn’t going to work as the corners were on inclines and you need space. I almost rage-quit at this but decided I would do some farming for a bit before maybe attempting to sort this mess out later in the evening. I’m probably going to record a walk-around video of Base II sometime in the next few days. I went for a run. I then headed to the cinema to watch The Night House, the traffic was really bad and so my timings would normally mean that I make it to the filmhouse around five minutes before the programme starts the state of the roads meant I got there ten minutes after the start of the programme which actually meant I missed all the shitty adverts. Upon return home I played some Minecraft – sorting out my railway corners – and then read a little of a book.
Day 36 – I emailed the cinema about a dodgy speaker in screen 8, it makes an annoying rumble during what are meant to be quiet parts of the film. I wrote some things for this site and continue to chase a new high score in terms of communications per month. Realised I’m not going to beat the previous high communications per month as I hit 68 in May 2013. Fucking 68! I do know I was emotionally a mess in that year so I think I was using this as a distraction method. 68! In a short month! As I write this the details of Day 36 [only yesterday] are fading so the following might not be temporally correct. I played a lot of Minecraft, trying to sort out the New Holland base area and finish the landscaping plans I made. I printed out some cadets ready for a trip to Lincolnshire. I had a run. I went shopping for odds and sods at the supermarket. I watched some of Le Mans 2021, which started at 1500 BST and continues into Day 37. I watched a submarine film called Phantom on Amazon Prime and then Black Island on Netflix. I flew to Zanzibar in X-Plane seeing what fuel consumption is like at high altitudes and working out max range of the T-7N CAS.
Day 37 – Overall this day was slightly annoying. I don’t feel I achieved much, but I did what I needed to do. So, I wrote for this site and played X-Plane. Then I went for a run. After that it was ironing and polishing time of uniform and clothing for the next few days in Lincolnshire. I watched the rest of Le Mans [the race not the film] and then played Minecraft for a little while. I had booked to go to the cinema and so I headed over to Rochester for that. I went to see Reminiscence even though I knew nothing about it. On the drive home I thought one of my headlights had blown and when I checked it, it had. So, it appears I’m now in “I need to buy about four headlight bulbs” season which always happens and I honestly don’t know why. I hope they don’t break on my trip up to the north. I overate and then went to bed. I’m just feeling a little shitty, I think because of the headlights on the car. I don’t think I’m anxious about the trip north. Plus, I need to remember that I’m on the come down from quitting my anxiety pills and so a little reaction over the next few weeks is expected.
Day 38 – I packed the car up and headed down to Hythe to meet with Jase and his family. We played on the beach and had an ice cream. The sun was out and I think I got some sunburn on my head – but I didn’t try to cover up so it’s my fault entirely. What a twat. Around midday I got in the car and drove to RAF College Cranwell. In the car I listened to a series of lectures on language development and the history of words within language. I got warned in to my room and sorted out my clothes etc. I went to the dining room and had dinner and then met some friends in the bar and we chatted for a long time. It was great to be seeing people whom I hadn’t seen in two years. It was also very nice to be out of the SE corner of the country and to be SOMEWHERE ELSE. I didn’t sleep particularly well this night because it was the first night in a new place and the brain does funny stuff to you.
RAF College Cranwell
Day 39 – An early get up and get ready to head to RAF Syerston. Breakfast in Daedalus Dining Room and a thirty minute journey to Newark and RAF Syerston. Today was about meeting people and seeing what they do on the RAFAC National Aerospace Camp. Things I did are covered in more detail in another communication. Needless to say, I had a great time, made some new contacts and learnt a lot, because I always do. Three of us staying at Cranwell bonded and we went for dinner at a local pub called the Hare and Hounds, in Fulton. It was a lovely meal.
Day 40 – Another early get up because of marshalling duties at RAF Syerston and also warning out of the mess and packing the car. I actually had a job today and also learnt about PTT and Blue Wings. The afternoon was filled with an airshow, more in this communication. I did some more marshalling and then said my goodbyes as I was off to meet LK in Peterborough. We ate dinner at a The Cuckoo in Alwalton, it was another lovely meal. I think I freaked the waitress out when I couldn’t decide what dessert to eat and I just asked her to pick what she thought was the best. I ended up with banoffee pie and very nice it was too. I then drove home to Kent and arrived around midnight.
Day 41 – Extremely tired upon waking and spent some time on the PC along with trying to get my boiler to work – it seems OK but had made noises as if the water had been turned off for a while, maybe there were issues while I was away? I had a run and then a shower – the boiler seemed to work ok, perhaps the boiler was just having a funny half hour. I did some CCF paperwork ready for a hopeful trip to Biggin Hill, paid the import tax on a device I’ve ordered from the USA, and then watched an episode of Pine Gap [which I am enjoying even if the mechanisms of intelligence gathering are pure fantasy]. I got some time out the house as I spent an hour helping someone with their maths and then on the return I bought some bread, Danish blue and coleslaw and thoroughly enjoyed my dinner. I’d mentioned this combination during conversation at the meal in Lincolnshire. I watched another two episodes of Pine Gap, read a little and then went to bed. While falling asleep I thought about where to hold the RAFAC PAC.
Day 42 – I had coffee. That’s how most days start. I then organised where to have a tracked item left, in case I wasn’t at home. I flew, in X-Plane, to Yemen or at least an island which Yemen owns. A quick run then followed and I listened to some lectures on the Story Of Human Language. I’ve been naming my runs on Strava after pieces of learning I’ve listened to while pounding the streets. I popped into work to chat to some about a cadet trip and then did food shopping on the return home. I recorded a Minecraft video and uploaded that to my YouTube channel. Then I collected my children and chilled for the rest of the day while I grapple with a shitty boiler and attempt to get some continuous hot water rather than the three seconds and then shut down I’m currently getting. These things are absolutely great when they work correctly but utter shit and stress when they don’t. In the evening I watched some more Pine Gap and will finish it tomorrow.
Day 43 – Had cricket early in the morning but started writing a communication about education which may or may not get published here. While at Linton Park Cricket Ground I noticed a Spitfire doing trips up from Headcorn and following or being followed by a helicopter, I’m quite curious to see what that’s all about. The afternoon consisted of trying to motivate the boiler to produce some hot water which I managed and so I did all the things you would when hot water is intermittent. I emailed Mantis about rifle selection within their app and they replied really quick which was nice. I’ll probably write stuff here about them soon once I’ve got hold of a real rifle. Downloaded my Twitter data but can’t find a way to make it fit with the page on this site that already exists, will mull it over. Then it was rocket launch time, the field out the back of the house has been harvested and there’s plenty of space to aim for. I played Minecraft and entered the Nether to get some blaze rods but ended up dying loads and it made me grumpy. I lost all my cool kit. The evening meant I watched the final episode of Pine Gap and tried reading for a while but I was tired and my eyes kept losing focus!
Rocket Launch 001 – 28 08 2021
Day 44 – Wrote some stuff for this website. I dropped my Skiddaw mug that I bought in the Lake District and coffee and china went everywhere, I guess I’ll have to buy another one as it was a way of measuring what mountains I’ve climbed. Went for a run and listened to lectures on the history of languages around the world. Persuaded the boiler to work for showers. Popped out to measure some new baths and get some car headlight bulbs as we are now in my Prius-Hates-Headlamp-Dipped-Bulbs season. Upon returning home I played a little Minecraft and also kinda pottered around the house doing house stuff. I scanned some books I no longer want with the Music Magpie album and then boxed them up ready to send from the Post Office. After spending time at NAC it is clear that I have to add a third screen to the PC, which I did but also will wait and see if I actually like having it there. I didn’t watch anything this particular evening, preferring to read my book.
Day 45 – Started the day with drafting some emails cadet related and then put some rubbish out into the bins. It should be bin day. But it’s a bank holiday and there have been issues with the contractors etc. Who knows? Today was mostly spent at the cricket club with the children playing a couple of games and there were end of season celebrations. Upon returning home I was aching a lot and so didn’t go for my planned run. Instead I ran around the Minecraft world doing admin type things and trying to get my tools back to a decent level of enchantment. Because I’ve used so many resources getting killed in the Nether I am going to spend some time building those things back up ready for an attempt to kill the End Dragon. Although I still need to find an end portal! I watched Tomb Raider, the one without Jolie. Then I read a bit.
Day 46 – I woke early and was slightly annoyed by that. The first appointment of the day was for a call from British Gas about a new boiler quote. It was booked for between 9 and 10 and I was told it would take around 45 minutes to complete. When it got to 0945 I looked again at the confirmation text and realised I had the wrong date by about a month. Oh well. Next we went to the park and played some cricket along with rocket launches 003 and 004. There was a parachute deployment failure on launch 004 and the deceleration on Earth-contact force the rocket to lose it’s cylindrical stability and sadly that ship will fly no more. Returning to home meant some cadets admin before getting annoyed at it all and having a nap. In the afternoon the current boiler was due to be fixed but it’s been working well for two days and as expected it can’t be fixed when there’s nothing appears to be wrong with it. In the evenings We’ve been watching the Turner and Hooch show on Disney – which isn’t bad except for the lead actors face – and The Bureau Of Magical Things. I read for a bit and the quit to bed. Not a satisfactory day for some reason.
Day 47 – I wrote stuff for this site and then went for a run. I played some Minecraft, I’m just collecting equipment and resources ready for an assault on the Nether. I definitely did not buy an ultra widescreen monitor for the PC and associated monitor stands for the other two. I had my eyes tested and there’s been a mild deterioration in my close up eyesight but not enough for me to spend more on new lenses. In the afternoon I went to the cinema. Not a lot happened in the evening as far as I can remember. I watched an episode of Archer, read for a while and then went to bed.
Day 48 – Now officially the holiday ended on Day 46 and so Day 47 should have been the first day at work but we do some shifting around of training dates and voila! 47 and 48 cheekily exist as extras. Can’t complain about that. Did 10km rowing as the weather is a bit pants and doing a different exercise action is probably sensible. Am wondering when my order from Cadet Direct will arrive and also looking forward to testing my Mantis X system tomorrow. Fixed some music on the iPhone as I had repeated songs and then accidentally deleted both versions! I don’t use iTunes for putting music on my phone mostly because iTunes is a heap of shit in terms of software and how it works. I sorted out the screens on the PC and gave the box a good vacuuming. The whole thing worked once it was put together so that was good. The afternoon was mostly some cadet admin, trying to find shirts and shorts and deciding where to order food from. In the evening I had a chat [via text, I’m not a sociopath] with Pom and we caught up a little. I watched an episode of Archer and then read for a bit.
This is communication number 1949 and so in keeping with the newish tradition here are some things that happened that year:
A B-50 completes a non-stop round the world flight with in flight refuelling.
The term Big Bang is first coined.
Siam changes its name to Thailand.
Laos is formed but isn’t independent from France.
The first year in which no African-American is reported to be lynched in the USA.
I took a trip to the cinema to celebrate the final day of freedom from work and I watched Free Guy. Before I let you know about this film there are certain aspects of the format that are required.
The tide as I drove into the cinema estate/area thing was very low. I could see the final edge of the mud banks and the boats moored close by were definitely below road level. I rated this film on IMDB and there’s a communication dealing with the rating system here. Now, I wasn’t sure how to rate this. I was border line between a 6 and an 8. This is the difference between me probably watching the film again and me not bothered about watching it again. I settled on a 6/10 for reasons given below but mostly because I’m in the middle on seeing this film again.
So, I really enjoyed this film. I laughed out loud and I loved all the contemporary references even though I didn’t recognise any of the YouTubers at least I was aware that popular Tubers exist. I will say that I think the trailer did a slight misjustice to the film and it didn’t pan out the way that I expected at all. I was expecting to be kind of bored but the film kept my attention and it worked. If you like computer games then I think you’ll love this film. I like computer games and I thought the film was really good.
Now for the – why is this a 6/10 and not 8 bit. As I left the cinema I wondered whether I would go and see this film again or download it to see if I can spot all the clever references that I know they put into it. My kids were trying to persuade me that it was worth an 8 and I would agree with them. I think the film is an 8/10 but the system I developed can’t be messed with and as I’m not that fussed about seeing the film again, it gets 6 stars from me.
This is communication number 1948 and so here are some things that happened in that year. I guess I should be planning what to do with communication number 2000 and also what do I do when I get past the current year IRL?
Railways are nationalized in the UK
The US Supreme Court rules that religious instruction in public schools violates the constitution. I want to point out that “In God We Trust” is nowhere to be seen yet.
I genuinely am unsure where to start with this one. I first saw Top Gun in Eastbourne [I think] on a cadet camp in 1986. We were meant to be going rock climbing and abseiling but the weather was poor so we went to the cinema instead. We were based at Crowborough training camp for this camp. We were a good bunch of cadets and for me there are a few things that are foremost when I try to remember the camp. I remember seeing Top Gun. I remember watching Alien in the girls’ block, it was the only place with a TV, and then after the film I shit bricks running down to where we were billeted because I was scared and it was foggy. We played this album over and over in our billet along with the Status Quo song “You’re In The Army Now”, oh and The Final Countdown, which I was convinced was part of this album for a long time. On a navigation exercise our little troop was going through quite tough gorse stuff and Chaz Randall tried running. I think he made it a few steps and then just crashed into the ground, it was hilarious. Our troop or flight was Nick, Lisa, Charles, Gummy and me. There’s a photograph somewhere, I might try and find it.
So, this isn’t about the film, which [upon adult reflection] is a heap of shit apart from the first 4’06”. This communication should be about the music and so here we go:
Danger Zone – a brilliant song made even better with all the references in Archer.
Mighty Wings – cuts after the snaps of the snare!!!
Now here’s a problem. I was going to write these reviews of the songs as they played on my system but Sonos has just informed me that the files are corrupted and can’t be played. So, I just checked my phone. Same thing there. Fuck! It could be that only some songs from this album are corrupted and I reckon I could fix them easy enough. But, how do you check all six thousand or so songs on the NAS Drive just in case you want to listen to that particular song? Double Fuck. This has probably opened a can of worms and hours at the computer as I try to check all the music I have. I’m not even sure I have a CD of this, so maybe I bought it from iTunes? If that’s the case it’s easy. If not then the quickest and simplest thing to do is to download the songs from iTunes. I’ll be back shortly.
Haha, shortly! I had though I’d be able to find where I’d purchased this in iTunes and just press the download button. You would think that is how this works, but oh no. It turns out that in the past I’ve “hidden” the downloads for this album and so I had to go through menu options that aren’t obvious to then show which ARTISTS I had hidden before. Now, as you are aware this is a compilation album and so I had to download the songs one-by-one under the headings of the artist. There wasn’t a compilation album download option. Jesus H, this is a pain. How very frustrating almost everything iTunes is. Well, the album is sorted and on the NAS drive so it’s playing right now.
Mighty Wings – It’s a great 80s tune, a mixture of pop and a hint of rock there. It’s great.
Playing With The Boys – As long as we recognise the masses of macho-homo-erotica included in the film and when this song is playing – so this is a pretty good song for singing along with. Wholly 80s. Much like the entire album.
Lead Me On – Gosh, is there a bad song on this album?? This is fantastic 80s pop stuff. Maybe the entire album should represent the 80s at a Decade Of Music competition.
Take My Breath Away – The worst song on the album?? Smushy trash, but the hopes and dreams of so many teenage boys during the 80s.
Hot Summer Nights – a solid 80s track. Rolls along a little more than the others, a slightly more level headed verse with a great chorus. Oh, and guitars!
Heaven In Your Eyes – This beats Take My Breath Away in poorness. I’m just not a ballad fan. Still, it’s a good song to belt out now and then.
Through The Fire – A menacing start leading to a mostly normal rock verse and then . . . . a chorus with 80s themes that will take you back to the disaster years [Piper Alpha, Chernobyl and Herald Of Free Enterprise].
Destination Unknown – Look I don’t know how the song selectors did it but this album is full of cracking songs to sing along with. This song falls a little flat for me but it’s part of this album and so has a place in my heart.
Top Gun Anthem – I dare you to try and play this song and NOT get goosebumps [no pun intended]. The opening of the film [remember the first 4’06” has this song ticking along in the background and it’s fucking great. However, if you fancy getting too much riffage then the main theme of this song can get to you when they perform the key change.
This album is a must for everyone who remembers the 80s. Don’t be giving me that shit about not remembering the 80s because you were out of it on drugs. We all love this album.
This is communication number 1947 and so here are some things that happened in that year of the common era:
-67C is recorded in Snag, Yukon.
A large loss of civilian lives in Taiwan as there is civil disorder.
My relationship with Dokken has mostly been down to an album I bought when I was about seventeen, it’s called Beast From The East. I also had the album Back For The Attack in my collection for ages. This particular album is a much later addition to the collection and bought because I really liked the dynamic shift from the live album to the studio version when I got Back For The Attack. I am not sure I’ve played this one in its entirety. It’s on now and the opening song is a short sketch to get us to the title song. After that it’s a mixture of songs that appear on the live album and songs that don’t. It’s classic cock-rock. I do like it. I don’t think there are any particular surprises here, you know, songs that make you go WTF? It’s a solid album.
This is communication 1946 and I’m hoping I might be able to find more “interesting” stuff in the Wikipedia entries than just death and destruction. Mind you, I get to chose what I write within and I think I’ve been focussing on human rights and natural disasters!
Project Diana is successful.
The republicans filibuster a bill for equal rights for workers.
Women vote for the first time in Japan and Italy.
The Philippines is granted independence from the USA.
