Tag: penguin

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CCF Camp BZN

I spent a week at RAF Brize Norton recently with the Combined Cadet Force RAF Section from work. I had a great time but more importantly all of the cadets we took had a good time. We were very busy and it was extremely tiring but I got so much from it.

Here’s a list of things that we did (mostly because I can’t be bothered to compose prose for this):

  • 5.56 shooting at the outdoor range. After over twenty years of not shooting a weapon I was very happy with my twenty shot grouping.
  • Grob Tutor air experience flying with 6 AEF at RAF Benson.
  • RAF Section Visits to:
    • Air Traffic Control
    • Fire
    • Armoury
    • JADTEU
    • 47 Air Despatch
    • Survival Equipment
    • SERE
    • Dog Handling
    • DMTS
    • Support Eng Flight
    • XXIV Squadron
    • Parachute Training School
  • DCCT – I managed to pass my RAF shooting test with a score of 65/75
  • Low Ropes
  • High Ropes
  • Laser Target Practice
  • Ten Pin Bowling

The Officers’ Mess was a delight and a wonderful building that overlooked the runway about half way along. My only problem was that the Friday of camp was the Officers’ Summer Ball and while my room overlooked the runway it also was directly above the bar and next to the funfair that was set up for the ball. That night I slept in the cadets billet as a supervisor rather than not sleep in my room in the mess.

Here’s a selection of photographs I took during the week. I can’t share some of the really cool stuff we saw because it’s covered by the OS Act.

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Transformers: Age Of Extinction

I went to see this at the cinema last night. It was the first time I had seen a film in about two months due to commitments elsewhere. Over at IMDB I rated this film a 4/10. Go to this page to see what that means.

Overall, I just got fed up with this film. I was quite happy with the first hour of the film. It was a Michael Bay film and so I wasn’t expecting much. I’m not a massive Transformers fan and I wasn’t excited about this film but it was something to see. This film was 165 minutes long and after the first 60 I felt every minute of the remaining CGI fest. This film could have been 2 hours long and much better for it. It suffered from what Phil Plait calls “too-much-stuffism“.

The characters were two dimensional. The story line was fantastical. The acting was poor. Kelsey Grammer was pretty good but Stanley Tucci was absolutely over the top and brilliant he was the only high point of the film apart from a gratuitous top-of-the-legs-shot of Nicola Peltz. This isn’t really a film I’d show my children eventually as once you’ve seen one battle between Transformers you have pretty much seen them all, there wasn’t anything that stood out as new or different.

While I was writing this I had a lovely idea of a sentence to end this communication.

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Daily Fail

I shouldn’t really pick on the Daily Mail because it is like shooting fish in a barrel. This was the MAIN headline earlier today:

Daily Mail Headline

Firstly, my response to this is “you are stupid and you should say NO to her”.

A bigger issue with this, apart from the celebration of the outliers of society rather than concentrating on reinforcing the good of society, is that this was the FIRST story on the Daily Fail website today. I’ll say that again: The FIRST.

Today there are massive public sector strikes, the government are bringing in a snooping law and there are wars still killing people around the world. Even the soccer world cup is on at the moment and this was what the Daily Fail chose to inform the world about. Tossers.

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False Debate

Well, I have had this communication as a draft title since 8 April 2014. I thought I should write some more on sceptical thinking matters since I wrote the piece on osteopathy. I have returned to this matter today because for the last few days the virtual world has been lit up by the news that the BBC are no longer going to be allowed to have quacks and frauds on TV programmes to give the “two sides to every story”.

In a nutshell you take a generally accepted view on reality and interview an expert in that subject and then because you can’t appear to be biased you give a nutter the chance to speak about what they think. So you might have someone on the news or science programme discussing evolution and to “balance” the argument (there is no argument, evolution is pretty much done and dusted) you get some religious nut who really thinks the Earth is 6000 years old and therefore evolution can’t exist.

When a view of reality is considered fact (as far as we can accept it) you then have to understand that it takes a huge amount of evidence to over-throw those views and not just someone from a lobbying group going on about how climate change doesn’t exist.

Here’s the link to the Telegraph’s new story.

Just in case you were wondering, here’s some things that are scientifically accepted:

  • Gravity
  • Evolution by natural selection
  • Immunisations
  • Anthropogenic Climate Change

Here are some things that are considered bullshit:

  • Young Earth creationism
  • Homoeopathy
  • Chiropractic
  • Osteopathy
  • Reflexology
  • Zero loss power machines
  • Astrology
  • Crystal energy

Here are some things you are welcome to argue the toss about but there is never going to be proof of the positive:

  • Existence of god and or gods
  • Telepathic powers
  • Mediumship
  • The “soul”
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Rainbow

Here’s a picture of a rainbow over Barrack Block 15. Lovely times.

20140629-085802-32282109.jpg

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Station Visits

This communication is another in the long running series about my cadet experiences in the Air Training Corps. I have a sneaky feeling that I didn’t always fill my 3822 in all the time as I am sure there were more visits than this, but this is the only record I have. To see other communications on this topic just search for 3822 in the box on the right.

30 Jul 1986 RAF Neatishead – RADAR
22 Nov 1986 RAF Uxbridge – Range
26 Aug 1987 RAF Little Rissington
18 Feb 1988 USAFB Mildenhall – RADAR and refuelling
13 Apr 1988 Trodos Radar Station – RADAR
1 May 1988 RAF Alconbury – Propulsion
27 Jul 1988 RAF Waddington – Swimming pool
27 Jul 1988 RAF Cranwell – Leadership
16 Aug 1989 USAFB Lakenheath – Everything
17 Aug 1989 RAF Coltishall – AEF
18 Aug 1989 RAF West Raynham – Supply, RTU, Fire
6 Aug 1991 RAF Swinderby – Airfield
7 Aug 1991 RAF Newton – AEF
9 Aug 1991 RAF Donna Nook – Bombing Range

As a teaser the next set of communications considers my shooting career in the cadets and will, I assure you, be scintillating.

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Special Courses

Continuing the interestingness of my Air Cadet record of service I now give you the section on Special Courses.

Junior NCO Course – Carver Barracks
30/31 March 1989 L98A1 Training – Carver Barracks
21 May 1989 SNCO Drill Instructor – Carver Barracks
22 – 27 October 1989 Adventure Training – Blackshaw Moor
21 – 26 October 1990 Adventure Training – Anzio Camp

There will be more to follow. This was a short section of the 3822.

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Quite Proud

I have received my commission in to the RAF VR(T). For those of you who don’t know, the VR(T) branch of the RAF is for adult uniformed officers in the cadet forces. I am officially now Pilot Officer Parish RAF VR(T). I am attached to Maidstone Grammar School Combined Cadet Force, RAF Section.

Commission
Commission

I have completed some duties already and I am looking forward to doing more in the future. I shall inform you of bits and pieces, but on the whole this isn’t really the correct forum for me to write or say anything about work as this website is public. The CCF unit is attached to the school where I work and so I will write communications when I think it is suitable. It’s a bit like my twitter account: I am quite aware that everyone can see it and so I control what I write. My friends know the real me, not necessarily the readers of these communications.

 

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Accomplishment

According to my Up by Jawbone band, I have completed 3,500,000 steps since I started wearing the device. This isn’t really the total amount I have walked because there have been periods of time where the band hasn’t worked properly and I’ve been waiting for a replacement and also I didn’t use it for about a year when I ran. So, ultimately, my real total of steps is far more.

Up Steps

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