Penguin – Fooyah – Ian Parish

July 31 2026July 31 2026

It’s Not Any Flavour

I recently realised that I have some reward points in my X-Plane shop account. It looks like I’ve spent enough money to get some “free” extras. So I purchased the L29 for X-Plane. I’ve been flying around in it and it’s nice and smooth. It doesn’t react to anything as fast as the other military planes I have but it’s nice.

The picture is me flying from Hildesheim to Hannover checking out my new scenery files. Now, it turns out that the title of this communication is a reference to a Monty Python sketch that is about an albatross. The problem is that the L29 is really called the Delfín and it’s the L39 that is the Albatross. Oh well, maybe I’ll get the plane correct next time!

July 30 2026

Raging Bull

I went to the cinema to see this film. There aren’t that many films on at the moment that aren’t made for kids because it’s the school holidays and Cineworld are catering to that audience. I might even go and watch The Odyssey again just to have a few hours in the cold – it’s been extremely warm recently. I might even have to see Evil Dead Burn just to get a few hours out of the house. Anyway, I think it was low tide along the estuary, I’m writing this quite a while after actually going to the cinema. After watching the film I rated it on IMDb, there are rules to this to ensure consistency so you should read those before complaining about my score. Controversially I rated this film 7/10.

I enjoyed this film. I’ve been watching a lot of older “classic” films recently, having started The Godfather series. Raging Bull was a good film. It feels like these types of films, historical epics I would call them had the time to develop characters and understanding. I can appreciate how the film was made and that it was very good. It just affected me less than I was expecting. I don’t know why.

July 22 2026

Building Plans

For whatever reason a while back I decided to build a “big thing” in Minecraft and I kinda broke my own rules while doing it. Until this point I had made it a mission that all builds shouldn’t be able to be seen from the main base on the shoreline. I failed to do that with this build:

So, I am going to build some sea cliffs to hide the superstructure of the platform. I’ve started the basics of the sea cliffs and we will see what happens. I’m looking forward to it, but I’m also scared at the same time. There’s a lot of work to be done.

July 20 2026

Racing Spa

One of the weekly events that happen in Gran Turismo is a time trial around a particular circuit in a particular car. When I logged in recently there was a timed lap challenge around Spa-Francorchamps in a Porsche. I always try and do these events as they are an easy way to make some in-game money. With this particular circuit the game seemed very strict with track limits – there were bollards on some corners and if you touched them it invalidated the lap. Here is my laptime result:

The world record is 2:30.316 and then levels of greatness are done in terms of percentage time added on. I managed to get a GOLD time on this circuit. This makes me very happy. I’m normally somewhere around a mid-silver. I’ve only had two gold times before. I think this will bag me a million in-game credits.

Above is my overall results from the online challenges and races. I don’t really enjoy the races because it’s quite common to get bumped off the circuit and all your qualifying practice and time are just ruined. The time trials are more interesting and a better way to compare yourself to others.

July 9 2026

Supergirl (2026)

The weather is, currently, terrible. It’s about the third week of heat. Two weeks ago it was mid-30C. This week it’s low 30s. Fortunately at work I am in air conditioned rooms, but I do feel guilt about that, the electricity use and carbon output is high. So, as the world warms we use air con which creates more energy use and more carbon. When I leave the buildings at work I enter an oven. I’m fed up with sweating in my own house for no reason other than weather. I’m fed up with my head feeling hot, it’s very annoying. I’d like to be able to sleep in a nice cool room. Given the terrible weather it’s worth seeing a film just to spend a couple of hours in a cool room. Towards the end of this film I almost felt chilly!

This trip to the cinema was slightly later than yesterday’s. That means that the tide was almost highest as I drove in. There was a tiny little bit of mudbank that looked like a little beach, inviting to all. I will admit that the river and the view of Rochester the other side was very pretty. On leaving the cinema the tide was at its highest and no mud could be seen. I was stuck behind someone driving around 30% the speed of normals so I used the time to observe the water.

After watching this film I rated it on IMDb and, of course, there’s a system. You can read about that system here or if you want to can refuse to learn anything and be annoyed with how things turn out. I rated this film 6/10.

I actually enjoyed this film. I am not a fan of superhero movies, I think they suck artistically and morally. But I did enjoy this one. The story is pretty standard. But the filming was ok and I thought the script was decent. I was happily surprised that it didn’t take place on Earth although the girl in the film looked remarkably human with oddly human morals and attitudes. I guess I shouldn’t worry about realism in a superhero film.

Why do baddies in films always have face-art? The main baddie in this one had tattoos and metal pins in his face. When this person arrived I kinda hoped they were going to make him a nice person, you know, shock the audience with a “don’t stereotype people” vibe. But, no, he was the baddie and not particularly interesting at that. Leather, tattoos and piercings don’t make you a baddie. If anything they tell of emotional worries. Please, please, please can we have some heroes that have face art or look ugly or are just slime. I guess this film is trying to please the masses in a time when all the baddies in the world are white old men.

Why doesn’t Supergirl just laser-eye all the baddies? If she has that power, and she does, then would it be more efficient just to sinter them all from a distance and with accuracy rather than fist punching them all into buildings that then crash down endangering all the innocents? I didn’t care for the Supergirl costume, but I guess that’s gospel according to some pictures that a bloke drew fifty years ago.

Overall I enjoyed the film. Probably won’t watch it again but there are definitely worse ways to spend two hours when it’s 32C outside.

July 7 2026

Obsession

So, the weather is pretty hot here at the moment. I’ve been lucky that I’m mostly in rooms with air conditioning this week. We have activities running and I’m teaching kids how to race in Gran Turismo. But, when I leave school it’s still a touch hot. The car said 33C just now as I drove home. So, for a couple of extra hours in the cool I went to see Obsession at the cinema. There had been screenings before today but they started late and I didn’t think I wanted to be out that late as I might fall asleep! Today’s showing started at a sensible time. The tide in the river was rising but not highest, it was saving that for my exit from the screening as it was high tide when I headed home.

After watching the film I rated it on IMDb and there is a whole level of thought that goes into that. You should read this communication to understand how the system works. I rated this film 6/10.

I enjoyed this film. Although there were supernatural elements they were very superficial and didn’t really have any effect on the whole story. A wish coming true can be considered a small thing. I liked how the film coped with the obsession of a person by someone else. The pain for the obsessor when they felt spurned was really highlighted. Not that I’m defending obsession itself, that’s a terrible thing and not healthy. Another thing I enjoyed was the lack of jump-scares, these I find childish and atmosphere ruining. This film had a couple but they weren’t played to be massive jump-scares.

I would say the film was a touch dark. I guess it’s meant to be. It’s detailing the worst of human behaviour and the shadows and silhouettes dehumanise the characters. Maybe that makes it more comforting for the audience. If the lighting was bright and pretty there would be large incongruence with the mood of the film. Overall this was finally a good horror movie done well.

June 25 2026

Scary Movie

This trip to Strood was more to get out of the heat and to be somewhere environmentally comfortable than to actually watch a movie. Also, I have just finished some extra-curricula work marking mathematics exams for an exam board and this was my first evening of freedom for a while so it needed to be noted in some way. I noticed that the tide was middling on my way to the cinema. I parked in the shade but neglected to take account of the lack of hills in the distance so, although I was aware the sun would move, the car was in the direct sunlight when I left to drive home! It was around 34C in the outside air but because the cinema can be a bit chilly sometimes I did carry a fleece with me to the showing, just in case my legs got cold.

The custom since around 2013 is that I rate each film I’ve watched on IMDb and there’s a system to it to try and make my ratings consistent with something. You should read about that system within this communication. I ended up giving this film 6/10. In the past I would have tweeted my result, but I left twitter when it started to become a cesspool and I’m glad I did. So, no embedded tweets within these pages anymore.

The film itself was childish, stupid and very much in a category of “american stupid humour”, a categorisation that I use for this genre. The forth wall was broken within a minute and without it’s self-referential themes this film would be nothing. I kinda enjoyed it and it made me chuckle a few times. There was a lot going on visually as well as within the script and it kept me busy looking around for the jokes.

The n-word is used a lot in this film but in appropriately suitable contexts and never in hate, even so it still made me feel slightly uncomfortable – I think that’s probably some type of white-guilt that I feel. There were many jokes about a gay character and they were funny but I wasn’t sure if they amount to homophobia. The character isn’t aware that he is gay, but it’s obvious. There wasn’t any hate towards that character I think the jokes were more playing on his saying inappropriate things at the wrong time. Part way through the film I found myself checking the jokes and then decided whether I should find them funny. It removed me from the film a little bit.

One of the characters is a less-mentally-developed person and, again, there were jokes around that. But, I don’t think any of them were aimed at the disability. The stereotype was harsh, as all stereotypes are, but again, this removed me from the movie and made me consider the ethics of what was happening on the screen. As it happens this character had some of the best and most pertinent lines in the movie, pointing out the stupidity of the current government of the USA.

The film was full of references to popular culture and I’m sure I didn’t spot all of those. There were jokes about the state of social discourse in the USA along with sketches that highlight the inerrant racism in the american culture and government agencies. Overall I enjoyed the movie and the way it took the piss out of the USA. It certainly has made me think about what is appropriate to be shown on the big screen.

There was a trailer for the last Jackass movie and I think I will go and see that. I tried showing my kids some scenes from the film and they just didn’t find people deliberately getting hurt that funny. I was crying! maybe it’s because of the era in which I grew up.

June 15 2026

Disclosure Day

I went to the Medway Towns to watch this film, the trailers had made it look pretty good. On the way to the cinema I found Temple Manor, again, a very old building in the middle of an industrial estate and open at “various times” but not the day I visited. I think I’ll have to keep my eyes open to head over on a day it is open. The tide was waning and about two thirds height upon entry to the cinema. After watching this film I rated it on IMDb and there is a guide on this communication to explain the scoring system. I rated this film 4/10.

I wonder if I have a psychological limit for the length of films? I know I was watching this one and at some point, I didn’t look up how long into the film, I thought “can’t this be over already”. Maybe it is a length of film thing or maybe that was a measure of what I thought about this particular film? This is a well-made film. All the components are there. For some reason I just wasn’t grabbed and carried along. Maybe it was too long, maybe the film itself couldn’t hold me enraptured, but the film is just a bit “meh”?

The background of this film was one of impending world war. This was subtle until it wasn’t. It played out in a couple of scenes but it wasn’t there for others. It was inconsistent. The idea that the world would be convinced by some video appearing on a news show is somewhat childish. I look at online sources these days and part of me wonders how much of the footage or photographs is just wrong. There are some good news sources at the moment, places we can trust, but there’s so much out there that is incorrectly labelled or blatant lies that I don’t think people would be convinced. Then again, the lies do convince a lot of people. Perhaps I’m wrong about this.

The action scenes in this film were suitably actiony. But at the same time they felt somewhat overused and tired. Oooh, maybe that’s how I’m feeling at the moment. I’ve seen too much of the world and now nothing really surprises me anymore? Films need to be clever to make me feel good about them? I don’t think it’s that. I watched The Godfather recently for the first time and that held my attention and I really enjoyed it. It is also a rather long film. So maybe the fault is modern cinema?

I left this film feeling underwhelmed. I pretty much shrugged it off. It was remarkably “meh”.

June 9 2026

Does The Uniform Mean He Deserved It?

May 31 2026

Waterway Protections

For quite a while I had been interested in visiting Tilbury Fort, it’s got a gorgeous footprint and is close enough that it should be on the list of things to do. As the crow flies it’s not that far away, the problem is the River Thames is in the way and that means using the Dartford Crossing. This is a road route that is permanently congested, the queues are normally a few miles long and I don’t think I’ve ever really figured out why. The government are going to try and fix this by digging a new tunnel under the river further out from London, this is called the Lower Thames Crossing and I think it’s one of the largest infrastructure projects in Europe.

So, I went to the Fort and it was lovely. The weather was pretty good, warm but not overly sunny. I wandered around the buildings and looked at the views. There’s something quite fascinating about waterways. There were a number of ships nearby because Tilbury is a freight port. I do like the humming throbbing sound of engines that rumbles through the air and ground. I find it therapeutic.

While wandering Tilbury Fort I found out about another fort not too far away and so I decided I would head there after this place. Tilbury Fort was very interesting. It was used as a defence of the river along with another fort on the south bank of the river that could cover the entire waterway. The fort is no longer used as a garrison and some buildings had to be demolished because of bomb damage from the second world war but the gunpowder magazines still exist.

The magazines were very interesting as there has to be protections from sparks so everything inside was made from wood and rope. There was no ironworks around because of the risks of explosions. The doors were made from copper and workers in these places were not allowed to wear “outdoor” clothes. There were special clothes and footwear at the entrances to these places to reduce the risk of sparks. There were even separate tunnels for lights. These would be where candles and flames could be safely transported and then placed behind glass so they were insulated from the actual magazine. Very interesting.

Shortly after that I drove through some very interesting roads to get to Coalhouse Fort. This was also set up to defend London from attack by the river and it was another very interesting building. Some of the outhouses were used to check the degaussing of warships during the second world war. Ships were degaussed at Tilbury Docks but then checked as they headed out to sea using under river electrical tests. If they failed these then the ships were sent back.

While I was at Tilbury Fort I could hear what seemed like cars racing constantly. Initially I thought this was because “Essex” but it was so constant it couldn’t be racers rushing around the streets of Grays. Also, at times it sounded as though it was coming from over the river in Kent but because of the consistency of the noise I knew it couldn’t be boy racers. While driving to Coalhouse Fort I passed the construction sites for the Lower Thames Crossing and I’m pretty sure the engine noise I could hear was coming from there. The new tunnel will enter somewhere near Thong in Kent and appear between the two forts I visited. Maybe that will stop the eternal congestion? Personally I don’t think we should be building new roadway infrastructure because it will only encourage more traffic. What we need is massive investment in public transport so that people start ditching cars, but that’s just me – wanting to solve all the worlds’ problems.