Boom Radio

At first delve, it’s rather heart-warming. I’d like to say glance but that defies the point of radio. I rather expected soe rap music designed to up the bass and take the speaker to the max. But it’s actually quite relaxing. It all seems quite new and welcoming, and there’s just a few adverts which only promotes further broadcasts. But then the adverts kick in. It’s nothing that you haven’t heard before, but it does try to educate the listener with simple facts about random towns, all of which you can receive the station. I’m told that it’s music for our generation, but I’m not told what generation I belong to. The voice sounds familiar. I think he’s been on a late-night local radio station. Then again, I’ve never known that. There’s some nice classics to listen to. I’d love to know who owns it and what transmits during its prime time. Is he an expat transmitting across the waves?

A Bright Spark

In a time when a company is likely to be at its busiest, it’s been decided by the top brass that this is the best time for the staff to take a step back to evaluate their learning. You’d think that they’d organise a quieter time for this campaign but it’s monetised. I suppose that it’s designed to encourage employees of all experiences to engage in the hope of winning some prizes. Each day, three quiz questions are asked about various topics and processes in the company. Between each question, a small video game as developed to earn extra points. There would be daily spot prize for entering, and your score would be entered into a league table to compete with other employees within the store, and with other stores. You also got engagement points for encouraging your colleagues to participate, with a team prize for the team that won the most points each week. And the name of the character hosting the event: Sparky. And each site even got a free cuddly toy of him.

England's Green and Glorious Land

It’s becoming a common thing lately. Patches of land containing precious woodland are being felled to make way for houses. You can guarantee that the better the view is, the bigger and more expensive the home will be. Even if the plan is just to make one building, it’ll focus on how many flats and apartments it can cram in or how many rooms are available; whatever makes the greatest return. Meanwhile, the wildlife that used to visit the area is forced to go elsewhere as their home is destroyed. It starts with maintenance work as trees are trimmed to avoid any incident with the road. Then it’s discovered that the wood inside is profitable enough to sell. Finally, once the land is butchered, they realise that they can make some money out of this hole in the ground. It’s annoying that something that was once was enjoyed by so many is now restricted to a privileged few.

There and Back Again

We’re on a mission. We’ve taken the girls out for a round of crazy golf at the shopping centre in the big town. We’ve been out for brunch but now we’ve got to get them back home in time for a dance rehearsal. We return to the train station to find out that there’s a tree on the line and that all services back home have been cancelled. We keep the girls calm by buying some overpriced pick-and-mix while trying to convince them not to go too mad on what they pick. We end up putting half of their choices back. I then managed to work out that we could catch a bus in the general direction of home and ring for help when we’ve got as close as we could. As the bus was a double decker, the youngest one got very excited and declared it was the best day out ever when we reached the station.

"It isn't sufficient just to want - you've got to ask yourself what you are going to do to get the things you want."

-Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Wanting things and completing objectives are simple. You can tell these to other people, but even if you instruct them it may never transpire to exactly what your vision is. It’s the method that you achieve them which is the problem. You need to work out the steps and follow them though. You might be able to discover them for yourself, you may be able to read up on shared experiences or ask other people for their knowledge, and you might have to pay them to achieve this. Even with a robust plan in place, the universe will conspire a plan to keep you straying from your path, or at least make sure that you get there the long way round. And even if you know how to get there, you’ve still got to take the time and effort to achieve it. And this comes from a president, so you know it’s going to be good advice. 

Hobsons Postman's Plum Porter at the Good Intent, Birmingham

You don’t see many wet-led pubs in the middle of a shopping precinct. There’s even fewer that donate the proceeds to charity. Whether the staff work for free in exchange for the experience or the costs are kept low to ensure maximum profit I do not know. I don’t even know where the profit’s going. From the outside, there’s a tiled corridor with a seated area outside. It might be meant for a smoking area but it’s a very chilled place to sit in, even if it is under a roof. Inside, there’s staff who greet you with a smile and are happy to serve you a beer, but they don’t offer too much local advice. Beyond the bar are a few bench-style tables while upstairs there’s balcony-style seating but the view is only over the shopping precinct below. The seating can be quite compact at times, and I wouldn’t expect it to be a destination for those who want to seek out new breweries.

Parents

They’re big people who look after you. They supply you with a home alongside some comfort and somewhere to live. They hold you and cuddle you and aid you when you’re injured physically, but they’re unable to help you emotionally. You’ve got to dela with that yourself, but you’ve got to be sure that you’ll be listened to. But what authority do they have over you? You have to abide by their rules so that they will continue to provide for you. You may even get a treat occasionally. But they can be just as scary as any other stranger, especially when they’re cross with you. But all you have is the hope that they know what they’re doing, and their ways and habits are in your best interests. You have to trust them; especially when they think they own you. When you’re away from them you can do your own thing. But you’ve got to earn their trust to be given that freedom first.

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury

Something Wicked This Way Comes by Ray Bradbury
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was very enjoyable and refreshing to read. There’s some great themes in book, all of which stem from three central characters. It’s set in a simple childhood time where every encounter and expression should be fun and exploratory. There’s the joys of growing up and the things to look forward to, and the regret of ambitions not fulfilled, reflected by both Will and Charles. It’s as if both boys makes up a man of two different personalities since the bond that they share is so close. The imagery is fantastic, though it’s confusing at times as to whether Bradbury is writing it literally or is using metaphors, and there’s some very surreal moments which can only be attributed to the magic of showbusiness. I love the conclusion and Halloway’s choice. It’s a shame that he didn’t give into temptation once he realised how powerful the influence was. It may be a decision that he’ll regret in the future.

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The Breast Bed #empress 12

In an instant, Zhong, suddenly realised where he was and who he was with. For the last few hours, he’d been clinging onto the breast with his beloved empress, using her dark black hair that flowed over her mountainous globes as a bedsheet. He began to half wonder if he had made an impact before more urgent matters entered his mind. Could the empress feel his presence? If so, was it pleasure, defilement, pain or punishment? Would it be possible to escape without being noticed, if he hadn’t already? If so, how? The empress must have built up a sweat from having all that weight piled on top of her overnight, and the only way to relieve her while away from her chambers would be to have her servants scrub her… that was it! He’d pose as a servant as soon as he saw signs of her stirring from her slumber.

Advent Aproaching

The only way to know what’s behind the door is to open it, be it on a cupboard, a wall or even a trapdoor. Though, these days, there’s been a few advances in this field. We’ve put windows in. It may make the door less secure but at least you can see what’s coming. This then involved into the peephole, where you can see one side, but your counterpart can’t see the other (unless you’re unlucky enough to be the counterpart). And now you have the camera doorbell and you can choose whether or not you want to interact with your caller. But when you interact with a bit of cardboard, it hardly seems worth it. If you really wanted to, you could ask someone else who’s got the same version, but it takes all the fun out of it. But you probably know what’ to expect behind a cupboard door anyway. 

Green Hills of Otley #dreamdiary 145

We’re on a walk in the Yorkshire town of Otley. It’s served well be rail and I’ve parked the car at the train station. I’ve also done this walk before so if we choose not to do a circular route, we can just jump on the train to get back to the car. We follow the main road alongside a small, raised wall made of rock with wide open fields beyond. The road rises up a small hill which leads into the centre of town. We call into a traditional pub with an upstairs tiled parlour bar. There’s also a private dining room kept behind a large grey curtain. There’ a row of four handpumps but there’s not a single ale on them. Disappointed, we walk outside and head to the local Wetherspoons. It’s a big three storey building with six balconies above its ground floor. Upon each balcony sits a furry green grinch creature. Standing outside the pub is a giant one towering above them all. He’s hungry and plucks a smaller one off the balcony for a snack. 

Pershore Man in a Hat at the Rocklands Social Club, Redditch

So who is the Man in The Hat? Presumably he works at the brewery. He’s certainly going to remain incognito in sunglasses. Is he a man who likes to party? Is he a big fan of live music? Does he sit next to the fermenters with a saxophone practicing his talent while he encourages the yeast to germinate? You can just see him strolling out with a big grin on his face after a morning’s session, in a bright orange shirt and blue tie, and a suit to match with polished black shoes. He might even carry his jacket over his shoulder. Then he’ll get into his car and roll towards the nearest pub to enjoy the fruits of his endeavours, knowing everyone by name as he enters and entertaining the whole bar in between sips. Or he could be someone passing through for a beer, never to be seen again, but he’s inspired someone to create this tipple.   

Do you prefer Google Docs or Microsoft for writing your manuscripts?

I’ve used Microsoft before Google for documents. It’s always been there, even before I was online I was able to access it. I’ve gotten rather good at it, even without taking a computer course I know my way around the various formats and how to get the layout exactly how I want. I can see the advantages of sharing files with other people, but to work on something in private, I’d rather do it without having to log on every time, especially if the internet is down. I know that I can get on and write my piece without having to worry about subscription issues because it’s always there on my hard drive and there’s no fear of getting hacked or losing my work. As long as I continue to back up, I don’t even need to keep entering account details. Plus, it’s very easy to get distracted if you’re constantly on the internet all the time. You only need to hover the mouse over the e-mail button…

Struck by Stardom

I’m planning to use this image for my Facebook page for every Star Wars Day. Hopefully, people won’t get too bored. I could have done with a little trim around the ears but I’ll just tells people that it was my tribute to Chewbacca. And the satchel strap is my take on Indiana Jones. I never took the time to find out if the droids actually moved or whether it was a light or a colour painted on. The guy behind me looks serious. You’d think that he’s wear something that makes him a bit more in character than a polo shirt, at the very least some overalls. Maybe he’s got too much maintenance to do. He could be recording me using his drones. Or maybe he’s getting nervous about all the attention his droids are getting. After all, they are the ones that everyone’s looking for. I’m just surprised how many of these characters started as comics.

 

Finding Dory

It’s great to see that the producers made a brief recap of the first film to refresh everyone since it’s been so long since the first film, although I did do some prep work and watch the first film in advance. This film is a lot less serious, and there’s fewer jokes involved and a lot more focus on the plot. I appreciate that it would have been difficult to make jokes about dementia, but there’s plenty more fish in the sea that they could have used. I also don’t understand why the producers decided to refer to Sigourney Weaver so much. There are moments that the animators have skipped to save a few bucks that I would have liked to have seen, like the moment when Dory and Hank commandeer a pushchair. However, the reunion of the fish is very emotional. It’s a film that demonstrates that sometimes you can triumph no matter how high the odds are stacked against you.

Bopping Around Brum

I headed into a city centre pub in my Spiderman jumper and sit in the beer garden with a pint before planning a few stops that I hadn’t been to before. I decided to try Tilt, a craft ale bar hidden within an old precinct which also had a diverse collection of pinball machines. For a game, I thought that the tables were a bit dear to play. Each table had cupholders and there was a basement with more tables, but a token system would have been better value. After ordering a very overpriced half of something, I set myself up for a quick game then a few beer friends came in for a quick drink so I was able to join them. Then my Redditch friends began to stir and suggest that we do a crawl in my home town, so I ended my expedition and took the next train home.

Shaw Thing

He has a sophisticated voice as if he’s been well-educated then spent his life in a former radio career. He’s a jolly man who likes to be humoured but he’s also fond of punctuality and making sure that things run like clockwork. He has white hair and thick round glasses with a chubby face. There’s a slight scar on one of his wide cheeks. Below that, there’s a bit of a beer belly followed by a waddle. Jeans and a polo shirt are his usual attire with black shoes, with a grey cardigan if it’s seasonal. He ages pretty badly. A stick is needed for transportation, followed by a walker. He’s sometimes accompanied by a younger woman of a Caribbean origin who collects him in a black minivan but I’m confused as to whether she’s his partner or his carer. And it makes things even more awkward if you decide to move onto another pub.

Haggling Fail

I was after some Lego Simpsons Minifigures. I offered 3 bags for £10 but they were sticking at £4 a go. I should have walked away and re-offered the deal later but I was too keen to get them. Then I’d thought I’d absorb the culture a little more and try a discussion panel. I headed into an auditorium where a chat was already in progress about upcoming films. I had no idea who the experts were and they didn’t show any clues (though I had walked in halfway through the discussion) but they had some interesting opinions about some upcoming sequels. Once it had concluded, I decided that I’d had my fill of comic book conventions and decided to head back to Brum while there were still good rail connections. I opened my new Lego miniatures on the train, and was delighted to find Homer Simpson in a suit and Hans Moleman with a skateboard.

The Key to It All

The time has come for our electric meter to be read. It’s a bit odd in this day and age as you’d think that a smart meter would do this for you, but apparently it just tells you the price when you’re using it. It has no online capabilities and we never got ours to work properly so we just decided it was just a conspiracy as it would probably cost more electricity to keep the thing running. So the time came for us to do a proper meter reading. But since the last one, we’ve had our kitchen done and we’ve no idea where we’ve put the key. We can picture where we used to keep it but we’ve got no idea where it is now. As my mother’s birthday was coming up, I managed to source a twin pack at a bargain price as a joke present. Ironically, the day after the reading was submitted a man turned up to do a manual one.

A Demonstration of Force

There were quite a few museum pieces out including people turning cogs to generate power from giant machines. There was even an R2D2 unit. Afterwards, I circled the hall and watched the Jedi battle it out with lightsaber demonstrations. They even let younger folk have a go. I was tempted to meet a celebrity but it was £30 to get in line and even more to get a signed photo or something else signed. And it all took place behind black curtains so you couldn’t even get a glimpse of anybody. Alongside the lightsaber demonstrations, there was also a group demonstrating their building skills and I managed to get a selfie with an R2D2 lookalike. There was also a full-sized X-wing but there was a big queue to sit in the cockpit. I went to get a baguette from the food court then I attempted a bit of bargaining with one of the toy sellers.

Business Buzzwords

I’m assuming that contact is required with other human beings for these words to have any affect. Reach out. You’re appealing for others to assist you. I’ve got my hands in the air but nothing is happening. If I was in a public place it would like I’d be asking a question or casting a vote. It might take a while to be noticed. Catch up. You could also just be sitting at home watching your favourite soap. Still, it’s an encouraging one as it urges you to raise your game and be on a higher level. Check In. Something you have to do at a hotel, but you can often do it through an automated system. Double down. Is it encouraging you to do twice as much as you already are? It just sounds like a lot of work. Touch Base. Is it encouraging you to get in touch with home? Although you could do it alone but you shouldn’t really. At the end of the day, you’re just saying words. They don’t have any contextual meaning unless you link them to something. Otherwise you could just be taking part in an exercise program.

Howzat?

There’s a toy giveaway and Mario sans moustache certainly attracts the crowds, especially when he acts up to receive freebies and they persuade him to catch one in his cap. It turns out to be the usual Kinder Egg plastic rubbish, only it’s slightly bigger and it’s in a square plastic box with cardboard packaging. I’m introduced to my friend’s friend and we go and check out some model toys and we continue our tour of the convention. I take a shine to the Steampunk corner. I’ve never heard of it before. It’s based on someone’s novel and it’s all based in the Victorian era but everything runs on steam no matter how futuristic it is. People wear waistcoats and goggles combined with top hats which are presumably used when they operate their machinery. Wood is used instead of plastic while metal is still the dominant material and women wear corsets because of all the steam.

Why I'm not voting Blue next time

I don’t think I can vote for the blues ever again. I’ve never known a time when more of our institutions have gone on strike. Postal workers. Train drivers. Nurses. Teachers. Paramedics. They’re all saying it’s about pay and conditions. These are apparently highly skilled jobs that make more money than I do. I’m coping, and I wonder if their moneymaking skills are really up to scratch. Then again, their income may have to sustain more than one person. So costs are going up because the cost of our energy has increased. We’re not sustainable on our own, of which we were assured that we would be if we left the E.U. War has broken out, and we’re expected to sit down and take it like we’ve lost rather than stand up for ourselves. In the meantime, we’ve had three changes of leadership because of corruption and because of the government’s inability to do the job that it’s supposed to. Get a spine!

Quicker than the Eye by Ray Bradbury

Quicker Than the Eye by Ray Bradbury
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

There’s the need to explore the spooky and the unexpected but rarely does Bradbury delves into the character to share what experience this had on their lives. He’s tried everything from different periods to things that are commonplace to us but are totally unknown to his inhabitants. Some are quite hard without a bit of context leaving the reader with an unsure sense of why some of these events are occurring. But there’s always a scene to make the reader chuckle, no matter how grim the subject matter is or where the inspiration comes from, and everything seems to carry on unaffected afterwards. The main event was a bit disappointing and I felt that it was an out-of-body experience that was a bit unrealistic. I felt that his afterword was inspirational and gave great advice to budding writers. He reveals that even the smallest thing can encourage you to write something, even if it means nonsense to others.

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"I don't count my sit-ups. I only start counting when it starts hurting because they're the only ones that count."

-Muhammad Ali.

It’s hard to measure progress when it’s easy, but the trouble is that you need to learn your limits. If you’re not tracking where you get up to, it’s going to be very hard to determine if you’re improving. You might be trying to discover your weakness, but you need to recognise how that weakness might occur. But this can vary depending on other environmental conditions. When you get used to something, you might have a chronological clock to be able to track how long it takes you to perform a certain number of tasks. Or it may be likely that you have someone else to keep track of this for you so that you can focus on keeping going. It’s OK to push yourself but pushing yourself too far will take longer to recover to a medium that you’re familiar with. But on the other hand, it does show that you’re not willing to takes things easily. But it is a shame that you have to suffer to achieve what you want.

Marvellous Mario

As I enter the exhibition halls, more and more people start to appear in cosplay costumes and some of them are being screened to get through security. There’s crowds of people circulating through the aisles in costumes and others stooping to take pictures. There’s a whole gang of batmen and I’ve got no idea if they’re attendees or part of the staff so I feel a little weary of taking photographs. But then I find my friend who’s a veteran attendee and knows the protocol. He’s dressed as Super Mario and tells me that’s it’s generally OK so long as you ask them first and most people are very friendly. I guess that they want to meet you first to make sure that you’re not a looney and that you’re going to be decent enough of what to do with the pictures. We walk about and I take note of the things that I’d like to explore then we head to a talk about a Magna toy launch.

Saving the World with Cake #dreamdiary 144

I’m upstairs in my house. I look out the window and see a fight breaking out on the front drive of an adjacent close. There’s kids running around everywhere. I reach for my phone to call the police then I remember that I’ve left it downstairs. I then realise the house has a handset in the very room that I’m in. I start to dial then in the distance I hear police sirens so I hang up. When I replace the handset, three young schoolboys are staring up at me. I turn my attention back to the window. People are running away at the sound of the sirens. I lean out of the window and direct a police car to give chase up the hill. Then a second car arrives and I direct it towards the other group who have fled to the end of the road. An old lady drives down the hill in her small box car, and in the confusion she parks on my driveway. She gives a sympathetic smile, puts the car into reverse then drives across the road and into the opposite garden fence which tips the car over. I tell the schoolboys that we should go and help and head down the stairs. As I walk across the landing, I notice a pile of angel cakes and pancakes sitting in the corner. I pop my shoes on then open the door to discover that both the lady and the car have disappeared. It’s been a crazy few minutes so I decide to share the cake. I ask one of the schoolboys to bring it down, then discover that the plates are all in the dishwasher. I find a few serving trays and we go outside to serve cake. 

Steaming into the Future

I’m at a comic book convention! It’s my very first one. I’m travelling up on my own and I only know one person who’s going so rather than don a full costume I decide to be a little adult and wear a Christmas jumper depicting a Spiderman suit. I put this on only when I’m on my final approach to the train station. I could have offered to drive and split the carpark fee with my friend but that would mean sacrificing some of the pubs that I’d planned to visit on my way home, which was also an alternate plan if I decided that I didn’t like the event. There’s also a problem with trains as some of the London-based services are on strike which makes the faster trains a bit crowded. I opt for a north-bound train and the announcement that the guard makes as we start to arrive at the station makes us all sound very special.

Scabs

Where has this black and blue blot come from? It used to be skin, then there was an accident followed by pain and a bit of blood which has all gone now, but there’s this crystalised dark patch in its place. Why isn’t it soft like the rest of my skin? Why does it feel unnatural? I’m hoping that the soft stuff is hiding underneath, but when I try and look I get a bit of sticky pain followed by more blood. Then the whole process starts all over again. How long will it take to go away? It might heal the body as a whole, but it sure does look ugly. Of course, the key is not to pick at it to let the body heal, but if you can get rid of the hardened bit it will certainly look and feel more natural rather than something that’s been infected. Why can’t I rub something onto it to make the whole thing softer of even disappear? Why can’t I keep things the way they were?

Sadler's Samkova's Stache at the Rising Sun, Redditch

This is probably the last time that I drank from this brewery. I’ve got no idea whose moustache it is and can only think that it was a commemorative brew in aid of Movember. The brewery itself had quite a following especially when a TV series aired featuring the same title as some of their products. There was a real chance here to earn some extra cash. But I was pretty disgusted after all the effort to build up a client base in and around the West Midlands that they would just sell out to a bigger brewery in the Lake District. I wonder how many people made the move and how many were axed. Come to think of it, a lot of the local pubs have stopped stocking it too. I wonder if it’s still sold in bottle form in supermarkets. I’ll have to check as I don’t usually buy my beers from there.

Monsters at Work

This series reprises the roles of an earlier show and portrays monsters coping with their ongoing change just as everyone has this year, although it’s a shame that the producers didn’t initialise a lockdown theme in the monster world. The supervisory characters don’t seem to have much intelligence here which pretty much allows anyone to get away with everything. And just as in real life, you do get a sense of unfulfillment while at work. It’s set in environment that children might not understand and adults might not want to watch it. There’s plenty of character storyline but few comic moments other than physical ones and not like the jokes that Wazowski is training his employees to undertake. I would have liked to have learnt a bit more about the other departments in the company rather than focus on a core two, but that meant that more characters would have to be developed. However, a second series is planned.