They are always practising. If you want people to do their jobs in extreme stress then they must always practice. That’s what this RAF A400 Atlas was doing at Biggin Hill yesterday. I was looking at 360 Radar because something interesting flew over or I heard something interesting fly over. I then noticed this A400 practising approaches at Biggin Hill. To get home from there the Atlas would have to either fly low over the Cities of London and Westminster or head out over me keeping a low level to avoid the approaches for City Airport. It headed out to me.
Atlas Fly By
I rushed to get my camera and headed outside performing a lens change while walking. I got out just in time and saw the A400 pretty much fly over my house and head north to go home. These guys tend to practise approaches to unfamiliar airports but normally at other military airfield where the noise and sight isn’t that bothersome. This year they have been doing plenty at civilian airports such as Edinburgh, London City, and Biggin Hill. This means the pilots and crew are used to going new places. This is so that when there’s a massive need for moving people to decent hospitals they can fly them for Covid treatment. Either that or they’ve been told to look good by the government. I’m quite convinced that the weekly Chinook flight through London is a “show of force”, a reassurance to the population that the boys in blue are there and ready.
I’ve been playing this while writing some communications on here and I don’t think I’ve really listened to this album. I don’t recognise any of the songs. This is bad, I think. I’ve seen Therapy? and I really enjoyed the gig.
This communication follows Odd in a view of what’s going on with my website. This isn’t an interesting place, as I wrote on the home page nine years ago it is just a place for my ego and my thoughts which mostly aren’t pretty! I have found that trying to construct arguments for this site has helped me elucidate my reasoning where my “in head” arguments tend to be more: well, that seems the right thing to do. Why someone would try to login to my website is beyond me, maybe they want control to direct all my readers to spam or to be able to inject some ransomware? Who knows.
139.5.242.87
This IP address has tried to enter the control area of this website 21 times in the last week. It’s interesting, but I don’t know why. Maybe I’m in the wrong business? This is all I know about them using my limited resources. No doubt there’s much more out there somewhere and if I could be bothered.
City: Delhi Region name: Delhi Country name: India ◉ Latitude: 28.650406 ◎ Longitude: 77.23721 org: Excitel isp: Excitel
87.119.178.66
I wonder where this one comes from? City: Tallinn Region name: Harjumaa Country name: Estonia ◉ Latitude: 59.433 ◎ Longitude: 24.7323 org: Elisa Eesti isp: Elisa Eesti
47.75.186.204
This one tried to login 19 times in a two minute window sometime last week.
IP address: 47.75.186.204 City: Ningbo Region name: Zhejiang Country name: China ◉ Latitude: 29.878204 ◎ Longitude: 121.5495 org: Alibaba isp: Alibaba
It would appear that these bots try to login using common login names a few times and when they get refused they move on to another poor soul who runs WordPress. I do wonder if I’ll get properly hacked soon. Time to run some back up software.
Look, you know what you are getting with a Rammstein album. Excellent, hard German industrial metal – or whatever genre the posh people think it is – which I’ve just checked and it is Neue Deutsche Härte apparently. This is Rammstein’s second album. I first heard this band in the early 2000s when a friend, Sara, gave me two albums because she had to many and she thought I would like it. I mean, she wasn’t wrong. This band is one of my all time favourites.
What you need to know is that you should have all the Rammstein albums and you should play them regularly. Don’t think too much about the lyrics, I’ve found it’s best not to know. This band is amazing.
This album has Engel, Du Hast, and Bück dich all massive songs with excellent live performances.
It would appear that many very good albums begin with an S. Or it’s that many decent album titles just happen to begin with an S. I’ve found in life it’s often helpful to think about the direction of causality.
I recently had to upload a photograph to a website for a photographic ID pass thing. I had already cropped the digital image to upload and then I noticed the website’s insistence that the photograph be <=40kB. Now, that’s not very big at all, especially when you consider that my cropped photo was about 150kB. So I resized the picture until it was just below 40kB. Then I uploaded it.
But.
Nope. The dimensions were incorrect! The photo had to be between 3.5 and 4.5 cm tall. Now, I ask you what does this mean? I’d already got the photograph to be within the correct size with respect to data but now I had to make sure it was the correct size in terms of cm. But, it depends how many dots per inch you are using. There was no information about the dpi the photocard people were using. It just had to be guessed!
Who does that these days? Who specifies a “paper size” for an image when you upload it? This was a classically terrible piece of web design made for bureaucrats who don’t understand what your average person understands about images and sizes. It was crazy. Do they not have an algorithm to just print the image to a particular size depending on the largest dimension? It was a frustrating ten minutes messing around with uploading files and cropping images along with resizing the image. What started off as a good detail photograph ended up almost pixelated.
Here’s a strange thing: this website has been hacked twice. Once in 2016 and once in 2020. Someone managed to insert some code into the php that meant whenever I looked at the site it looked and behaved normal but to everyone else it took you off to a bad place. I’m not sure why they would target me, there are only about three people who regularly read these pages, I don’t have a massive audience. I would imagine that I wasn’t deliberately targeted but these people just keep trying with any website they find using automated processes. Every now and then they get this site and attempt to login or use a WordPress vulnerability.
Login Attempts
In the last week there have been 33 attempts to login to the admin area of this website. I honestly don’t know why. I don’t have any financial details of anyone in this site. It’s quite strange, why would they target little ol’ me?
Cuntries Blocked
These are the places that the attacks have come from recently. Turkey is a new one on me, mostly it seems to be Russia and China whenever I look. No real surprise there as both countries are engaged in massive online media attacks and pushing fake news to empower themselves. Both those countries see the long term. Just look at Brexit and Trump.
Fortunately this website has survived on the recent server and I have become quite good at knowing what to look for. I’m also better at backing up this website. I have, in the past, considered leaving this place and consigning Fooyah to the death-eather but I think I actually enjoy this place and it gives me a focus and a particular way to think about things. Thanks all for reading.
So, here we are. It’s nearly August and the world is still in a state of pandemic. In the UK you finally have to wear masks in shops and the USA is slowly burning down as they struggle with the racism of the last four hundred years. Not that the UK is in the clear on that, hopefully there will be recognition over the next few years of how this country is built on the misery and murder and enslavement of the many.
I think I need to get out and use my camera. I shall do so this week at some point. I feel I could do with a change of scenery, something nice to see or at least somewhere else to be. I am not going to go anywhere special and I am convinced that the opening up of the country is going to cause massive health issues – while at the same time I am aware that this is about trying to reduce the overall risk to health from lockdown – or at least I would like to think that the government are intelligent enough to think that way but I don’t think they are.
Flight Sim Set Up
This is my current flight sim set up. I’ve got a Saitek HOTAS system and an Android tablet for displaying instruments along with using the phone as a moving map display. On screen is a Grumman Goose with turboshaft engines.
Rochester Castle
I went for a bike ride and decided to see Rochester Castle. The ride involved a national cycle route and was actually quite enjoyable. On the way to Rochester I followed the course of the valley of the river but the return journey was completed by heading over the top of the Downs.
“circa”
I met Penguin for a meal at The Bell. This is our usual meeting place and we both decided that the precautions put in place would be ok. The pub had set itself up really well and we ate outside. It appears that the manager now knows us and is happy to order the food for us which means there’s more time to catch up. I took this photograph, not because I was “out”, but because the sign says “circa” 1393. The circa part of that amused me immensely. Hopefully by the end of next week I will have some better tales to tell. I could always get some more album reviews completed!
Sometime last year I managed to run home from work and then the following day run in to work. This I did once. Mostly because I lost the fitness bug and also because I became mentally unable to do much. I might have written about it somewhere within these pages but I can’t remember and I’m not going to search. I wanted to get more exercise and try to lose some mass but I wasn’t in the right frame of mind. Earlier this calendar year I was feeling bad about the environment and how much we have messed up the future of this world for my children’s generation. I think the Extinction Rebellion demonstrations really got me thinking. So, I decided maybe I should ride a bike to work. I’d save a little on petrol, use less fossil fuel and keep fit. I decided I would investigate a bike.
Then. The world blew up. I was working from home and there didn’t seem to be a reason to suddenly investigate a bike. Once my routine had settled I started looking at bikes online and getting advice from friends. Would you believe it? Every fucker was buying a bike for something to do. It would appear that walking or running was too hard work for them and loads of people got the biking bug. I couldn’t buy a bike. I still planned to though. Mind you, this also meant getting a shed that would fit the bike as I don’t have a garage or anything like that to store the machine.
A few weeks ago I checked a local bike shop’s website and THEY HAD STOCK. Well, I was browsing really, not that bothered about buying at that point, but if I didn’t order something then I would be waiting another few months so I pressed “add to basket”, added some accessories and then waited for my delivery date. It took about 8 days for the bike to be in shop. I guess that’s not so bad. It’s very easy to forget that in this world some things you have to wait for, we are so used to everything being there right now. The next issue was a bike carrier for the car. In case I wanted to take the bike to the other end of the country and to move small bikes around. My car, Bora Horza Gobuchul, is a stupid shape and so I had to spend quite a bit on a bike carrier. Having now used it, I’m not sure I would take bikes on a long journey but it functioned well.
On delivery day I was persuaded to buy a year’s maintenance plan for the bike. I have no idea if that was good value for money but it seemed sensible. I haven’t maintained a bike, ever. Even when I was young all I did was make sure the tyres were at the correct pressure. I never really cleaned a bike or did any other type of maintenance. Pretty similar to my motorcycle history too, washing bikes was something other people did. The bike now rests in my dining room and will eventually live in the shed, but as you probably know, there is a seven week delivery time for a shed!
Commute Vehicle
My observations on the first ride I had in over twenty years was that it was not a smooth ride. I did a little tarmac but mostly footpaths across fields which are fine to run on but cycling caused arse issues. I was being bumped all over the place and I did wonder if rear suspension would have been sensible, then I realised that the front suspension didn’t seem to be doing much. A even cycled down the North Downs on a footpath that I normally run and I found that a little scary as I had to keep the brakes on the whole time and was convinced I was going to hit the gate at the bottom of the track. I’ll have to try again soon.
On another ride with other people it turned out that the level of comfort was much better because we weren’t travelling so fast. The bumps in the footpaths seemed levelled out with a lower speed and perhaps there’s a lesson for me. I will have to try another ride soon across some tracks and see if I can go slower. I’m not convinced I will be able to, we all have our natural riding speed I reckon.
I’ve completed a practice commute, to see how sweaty I get and to check out the route. I got very sweaty. I’ll have to plan cooling down time and somehow work on the logistics of shirts and clothes which will be ferried in the car on days that I can’t use the bike. I’m also slightly worried about being able to see in the darker months but will figure that out when it happens. I’ve got a good head torch I use when running so maybe I can fit that to the bike helmet? Who knows? Plenty of time to think about it.
I actually have quite enjoyed discovering new stuff. More paths further from home. There’s plenty to explore and further to travel. I’m looking forward to it all. Except the cars.
With all the recent lockdown easing and opening of shops etc every now and then I still have to think to myself THERE’S STILL A PANDEMIC. While this doesn’t really calm me down it does let me remember that my cautious approach is still sensible. I am not really looking forward to the deaths that will come in September in trade for the economy. This is mostly what this is about. Making sure the economy is OK while we accept a certain number of deaths. How does a government accept that trade off? How have governments always accepted that trade off? Or, do they just not understand the implications of their actions? Humans are terrible at assessing risk and probabilities, our brains just aren’t built in that particular way. It’s why we have mathematics and science. Science allows us to remove the human brain and observations from the problem so that we can really see what is happening. Maybe there are times when not understanding science and disease and maths and transmission vectors would make it easier to cope with all this? I have removed most social media from my daily references and am doing my best to avoid “live” news. The news shouldn’t be covered “live”. The news should be reflective and evidence gathering before announcing “news”.
What Are These?
Above is a picture of a Toucan Crossing and a Pegasus Crossing. I wonder if you know what they are? They were definitely invented after my passing into adulthood as I didn’t know about them until I had to do a Highway Code test for the RAF. A Toucan Crossing allows both pedestrians and cyclists to cross the road, we needed a special crossing for that apparently. The Pegasus Crossing allows horses and riders to cross the road. I’m not sure what the rules are for a horse by itself. When I did my first Highway Code test there were three Pegasus Crossings in this country so it’s not really a surprise I didn’t know what they are.
Attacking Apaches
There’s been some military helicopter action over here recently. These Army Air Corps Apaches from Wattisham flew over Rochester Airport and then turned around above me as I was out running through the vineyards on the southern slopes of the North Downs. Very nice to see as we get very little military traffic down this way due to the bustling airways heading from the London Airports to Europe. Normally the best we can hope for is a A400 out of Brize Norton heading over at around 25,000 feet. It’s a noise beast and easy to hear.
Pouncing Pumas
Then there were two Pumas from RAF Benson flying eastwards and this photo was taken from the garden. These two then landed at Invicta Barracks in Maidstone which would have been lovely to see. One of the cadets got some great photographs of them. Oh, and yesterday while out exercising I saw a Spitfire in D-Day markings flying low on its way back to Biggin Hill. The Spitfire is actually quite a common sight down here as they fly from Biggin to the White Cliffs of Dover.
I started this communication with a moan and I don’t want that to continue because I have too much to say and need to feel happy with the day. I am not happy with the government or most of the world’s reaction to this pandemic threat. But, I have to just keep my own risks low and manageable and make sure that I don’t become a danger to my family and friends.
Leafy Lane
I took this photograph on my first cycle ride. It’s lovely. A trail up the Downs just by Wouldham.
This most definitely is not a Harry Beck type map but maybe I should produce one. This map goes with the previous communication about the Minecraft world that I inhabit and the underground system that I made. Apparently we are now working on an infinity room in the server, whatever that is. I hope I have enough RAM to cope with that!
This map shows an aerial view of the meadow area of the server world. The straight lines represent different sections of the underground system.
Meadow Underground System
RED – from Meadow Station to Harbour 1
WHITE – from Harbour 1 to Main House
ORANGE – Meadow House to Harbour 2
YELLOW – Harbour 2 to Mountain Base
Do these colours match the colours of the lights in each tunnel? Of course they do! Below is an overview of most of the world so far. We have discovered some deserts and a cold region but have yet to find a jungle biome which is a little annoying.
