Welsh Exile's Ramblings

It's been a while

2008-10-27T16:38:53Z

But I have finally posted here again.

Here is the news

1. I may have a job. It's only part time and it's just serving customer's in a shop, but after 8 years of being written off because of my knackered wrist it will be nice to be back amongst the working masses. I'll find out on Wednesday

2. My son Christopher (the "bigger than his dad" one) has started playing rugby. He's 17 now and has given up air cadets because he wants to get covered in mud, blood and bruises. He played his first game on Sunday afternoon against.....HMP Channings Wood! They lost to the prisoners, but you have never seen a more sportsman-like bunch in your life. One of them accidentally stood on Christopher and went out of his way to apologise to him the next time play was stopped.

3. I LOVE MY WIFE! No really, she's f*****g brilliant.

4. I have lost weight, over a stone in the last month! Only another 6 or 7 stone to go. I'm still a BFG, but not so much as last month.

5. NI cards. I am nearly 40 and have not had a National Insurance card since I was 18 and had my wallet nicked. I reported it stolen but never bothered getting another one. Now you need one to get a job, claim anything, exist etc. Apparently I may be an illegal immigrant. I know I'm Welsh in an English dominated country, but that is taking it a bit far really. ;-)

6. Stupid referees at kids sports events. Why bother being there if your not going to call it at least fairly evenly? Tiverton under 15's team obviously play to a different set of rules where they are allowed to punch, kick and high tackle, but their opponents are not. And watch out No4, Michael plans to get you back for kneeing him in the balls as he lay on the floor. I can see some tears coming in February

7. Cash. I don't have any. Why not? BECAUSE I HAVE KIDS! It's getting expensive just to keep them in school. We have to buy protective clothing, boots and other such stuff just so my 14 year old son can do his "Environmental Science" GCSE. Plus fees for rugby, a club tracksuit, history trips to France (aka Teacher's Jolly Trip) and other such stuff.

8. Relatives. Why is it ok for my in-laws to just turn up, unannounced and expect us to put them up for a week. It wouldn't be so bad if there were 2 or 3 of them, but 6 is going a bit far. I wouldn't do it to them, but I was dragged up to be polite and stuff by my mum. Still, now we are "away" for Christmas, honest we are. ;-)

That's all folks, more may appear as I find time and things take my interest.

Just because everybody else seems to be doing it.....

2008-02-24T08:41:53Z

Rules:
+ Pick 15 of your favorite movies.
+ Go to IMDb and find a quote from each movie.
+ Post them here for everyone to guess.
+ Strike it out when someone guesses correctly, and put who guessed it and the movie.
+ NO GOOGLING/using IMDb search functions.

Answers in bold
1. XXX - Hancock. I've got lunatics laughing at me from the woods. My original plan has been scuppered now that the jeeps haven't arrived. My communications are completely broken down. Do you really believe any of that can be helped by a cup of tea?
     YYY - Couldn't hurt, sir.
       A Bridge too far

2. XXX - Well. We'll see what the man's sellin'. THEN we'll shoot him.
    YYY - Good plan.
       Secondhand Lions

3. Well, if four of anything come at me at one time, you might lend a fist. Up until that I can pretty well take care of myself.
        Paint your wagon

4. Everybody gotta die some time, Red.
       Platoon

5. XXX - Only kin's allowed in here.
    YYY - Alice, are you blind? Don't you see the family resemblance? That's my brother.
       Remember the Titans

6. ~~Well, they've got a very good bass section, mind, but no top tenors, that's for sure~~.
       ZULU! Well done matgb

7. Someday I think you and I are going to have a serious disagreement.
       Last of the Mohicans

8. ~~Those giraffes you sold me, they won't mate. They just walk around, eating, and not mating. You sold me... queer giraffes. I want my money back.~~ Gladiator, spotted by granjero

9. XXX - Money is the world's curse.
    YYY - May the Lord smite me with it. And may I never recover.
       Fiddler on the roof

10. She's rude sarcastic. You two should get along.
       Lake Placid (so bad I think it's good)

11. Do you leave a light on after bedtime? Because I get a little scared in the dark sometimes. If it's a strange place.
       The Green Mile

12. ~~Forty years I been asking permission to piss. I can't squeeze a drop without say-so.~~
        from The Shawshank Redemption     big_blue_bear   got this!

13. ~~I once fought two days with an arrow through my testicle.~~
       from Kingdom of Heaven      big_blue_bear got this too!

14. XXX - I hate you!
      YYY - Good. That is a perfect way to start.
       Highlander

15. XXX - Ah, now that's what I call a hell of a man!
      YYY - Aye, I like his dog too.
       The Longest Day

There you are, nothing to complicated as I am a man of simple tastes.....or was that a simple man with no taste?

Royal Bloody Mail my arse!

2008-02-13T17:36:45Z

Now I would just like to point out that I have no objection to paying customs dues on items I buy on-line from overseas. In fact I am quite happy to pay it so long as it is a fair and balanced amount. This does not however, extend to the Royal Mail charging me £8 handling! How exactly do the handle it any different you may ask....WELL THEY DON'T BLOODY WELL DELIVER IT FOR A START!!!!

So, a £3.92 VAT charge for a $45 item ended up costing me £11.92, plus my time and petrol to go and collect it. I can only assume that the note shoved through the door by the postman is made from some amazing rare tree found only in a small region deep within the amazon rain-forest, which is carefully cut down and lovingly turned into Royal Mail notes by a family of South American Indians, this being a skill passed down from generation to generation.

Or maybe it's a scheme by some fat suit working for Royal Mail to rip off the general public. It appears that the charge has gone up to £8 quite recently. From how much you may ask? From £4, which is a big f*****g increase in anybodies books. Hmm, how exactly are they still making a loss then?

Anyway, Royal Mail are now on my "Bunch of Bastards who need hanging up by their testicles and whipping with stinging nettles" list. Please note, this is not aimed at the postman him or her self, but the overpaid suits who decide this sort of thing and then sit back on their big fat salaries and collect their bonuses each year.

Now, I am going to rugby training, where I can take out my anger on a bunch of 14 year old kids! :-)

Mud glorious mud!

2008-01-07T08:46:12Z

Well No2 son (Michael) played rugby again yesterday. Following the delightful weather we have had lately the pitch was ever so slightly muddy......well, to be honest it was very, very muddy. It was a bit of a grudge match, Michael plays for Exeter Chiefs and they were playing Exeter Saracens. They played them earlier in the season and were royally stuffed 50 points to nil. Following that game 2 of the Chiefs so-called best players left to join the Saracens in a sort of sneaky "we aren't going to tell you, we'll just stop coming to Chiefs training" way. My view is that they have been no great loss as the team is playing better without them.

Anyway, yesterday both teams played very well and at half time the Chiefs were 5 nil up. The second half saw the Saracens make use of their vast number of subs, they made 10 changes, and they piled the pressure on the Chiefs who defended very well. The score went to 5 all and it looked like the Sarries were going to score again, but the pack nicked the ball at a scrum and the scrum half (about 4' tall but a very good player) broke away and the Chiefs backs supported well and scored under the posts, followed by an easy conversion. The scores were now 12-5 to the Chiefs. The Sarries came back very strong but ran into a solid defence again. With less than 2 minutes to go they got another try out on the right wing, but couldn't convert it so needed another score to win as they were still 12-10 behind. The Chiefs held out though and won the game. They have won their last 2 games now, both against very good sides, so hopefully they can keep it going.

The main point of this post is to show you this, one slightly muddy child. He was happy though and played very well again. Next week they are playing Tavistock in Tavistock, so an early morning beckons on Sunday.

The boy is better

2007-12-03T15:42:36Z

Michael (aka No2 son) played his first full rugby match since his operation and seems to have made a full recovery. He has spent all his time with the Exeter Chiefs Under 14's training to be a back (ie one of the blokes who runs about a lot), but Sunday saw neither of the 2nd rows turn up so Michael was drafted into the forwards (ie the blokes who push and shove a lot). Considering the fact that he has never played as a forward, let alone a 2nd row HE PLAYED A BLINDER! :-)

He was man of the match, despite them losing, and all of the coaches congratulated him on how well he had played. The forwards coach told him that he was now a 2nd row and the other two lads will have to play themselves back into the team. Even the other teams coach mentioned him to the Exeter coach. He is as happy as a happy person can be, while I have had to pay him £5. He gets £5 for a try and £5 if he's man of the match. If he keeps on improving like this it could be an expensive season for me. It worth it though, he's done really well all things considered.

New Tooth is here

2007-11-09T16:14:31Z

Well, it's in anyway. It was stuck in at midday and I was not to eat or drink for at least 2 hours, at least thats what the attractive dentist lady said in her sexy Polish accent. It's a hit with my wife anyway, apparently much nicer than the gradually going black dead tooth I had before.

Anyway, I'm off to have something to eat now as I missed my lunch (which, to be honest, won't hurt me as I'm a fat b....loke!).

Stupid Tooth

2007-11-04T00:39:58Z

On Thursday I had the dubious pleasure of going to get a crown fitted to the dead tooth I have. This took 45 minutes, a bit of pain and a large (£194) dent in my cash. The dentist then fitted a temporary crown, which will be replaced with the proper one on Friday this week.

Except the temporary crown is currently sat in front of me with a big split down one side. I have done as I was told, being very careful with it. In fact I have been living on soup and other such soft foods since Thursday. So why has this happened? I have no idea except that it's a stupid tooth.

Of course, no dentists are open tomorrow, so I am stuck with a big hole in the front of my mouth that should have a tooth in it.

Not happy. That pretty much describes my state of mind. Plus I had to pick up No1 son from an Enter Shikari concert in Plymouth. I look like a prize fighter who came off worst in his last fight.

Stupid Tooth!

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

2007-10-29T14:55:14Z

Good things from the last couple of weeks include meeting snapesbabe and shrublette, seeing matgb again after a long break, sorting out some stuff that has needed doing for too long and getting smiles from my wife for doing things without her asking. It doesn't happen very often as I just don't see things as she does, to her it's dirty, to me it's fine! Anyway, I got a surprised "oh, you already cleaned the kitchen" and then a cuddle and kiss, so we were both happy.

Bad things. Well, spent too much money again. No1 son (the 6' 1" target of shrublette's cushion attacks) had his 16th birthday, which wasn't cheap. Then, yesterday, it was decided by Tina that No2 son's (the one with hair, lots of hair) bedroom needed rearranging. To me this always seems to be an excuse for cleaning the bits of a room that never get seen, like behind the wardrobe. Anyway, said wardrobe promptly fell apart and had to be replaced by 2 chests of drawers??? Yes, I'm as confused as you are. Anyway, yesterday was then spent driving around until we found said chests of drawers, then buying them (financial ouch) and transporting them home so we could put them together. Except all the tools were at my step-daughters, so out we go again and then come back to put them together. They are solid wood and well constructed. 8 screws in each drawer, plus dowell's and glue. Much better than the wardrobe. Anyway, she likes it, he likes it and I have to pay for it at the end of the month. And we have had to tax the car, which isn't cheap dammit!

Ugly thing is this, which I find sickening. I don't expect the pathetic individual responsible for the death of this animal will ever be found, but I hope he gets his just rewards. What enjoyment is there in killing such a rare creature and mounting its head on a wall? It's so bloody pathetic that I am saying nothing more about it here.

Anyway, that's about it for my ramblings today. I'm off out to play with toy soldiers again tonight, so all of you behave while I'm gone.

Another month passes

2007-10-19T21:44:18Z

and I have still done sod all really. I am off to the christening of my latest grandchild on Sunday. 3 grandchildren by the age of 38 was not in the plan, but marry an older woman with older kids and everything changes. No2 son is recovering well after his op, but the schools are off this week which means he is at home all week annoying me. At least his brother had the common sense to organise going away with the Air Cadets for the week.

Please note, I am not, in any way whatsoever, complaining about marrying an older woman. I am probably the happiest married man you will ever meet and she still makes me go "PHOOAARRRR" when ever I see her.

Oh, the central heating has packed up, so it's not nice and warm here....in fact it's quite chilly in the morning. I have bled all the radiators, but it wasn't that as there was no airlocks in them. Mr Plumber is coming on Monday so I hope its not going to get colder this weekend.

It is now 22:45 and my darling wife and I are going to Tesco's. Stupid 24 hour opening!

IT'S BENIGN!

2007-09-24T08:39:39Z

I have (finally) heard back from the consultant and Michael's tumour was benign! Ecstatic does not cover it really.

That is all, it's going to be a good day.

Well I asked him to leave!

2007-09-19T13:09:09Z

It would appear that threatening a pushy Jehovah's Witness "Watchtower" seller with sticking his magazines up his arse is threatening behaviour. It would also seem that him still being a pushy prat after being told "I'm not interested" three times, "Please leave" twice and "If there is a God, with the shit that is happening in the world I don't want anything to do with him" once does give me some leeway with the local constabulary when he called them. His comment that "If you believed then your life would be beter" didn't exactly mollify me, espescially with what my son is going through at the moment.

Basically I'm not being charged with anything but, and I'm not sure how I can cope with this, I AM NOW BLACKLISTED BY THE LOCAL JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES!!!!!!

Oh well, life goes on. At least they won't be knocking on the door every month.

An update for "Friends" is that No2 son goes into hospital tomorrow.

And finally....AAARRRR, where's me grog? See, I be trying to be piratical on this fine day. 'tis bad luck not to, so 'tis. Now where be that there buxom wench?

I am now playing Infection, please join my team

2006-11-29T23:35:10Z

Well, I have just got back in from the games club where I played PBI by Peter Pig, which was fun. My valiant British defenders managed to hold off the advancing Hun's and win the day for the King.

Then, when I get back I see this, from Mat and have to join in ('cos I's stupid).


my status

my team status

infection status

game status

So here I am folks, beware for I am a ninja pirate.
Although I am still trying to work out how to swashbuckle silently and with ninja stealth?

In fact, how does one buckle a swash anyway?

GAH!

2006-11-16T20:58:54Z

OK, the last couple of days there have been several things that have annoyed me. No, lets be honest to start with, they have pissed me off!

No 1
The local council run dump, or as it is now called "Recycling Centre". This fine establishment is manned by a multitudinous group of fluorescent jacketed retards, most of whom seem to be either Irish or Polish. Upon arrival a group will descend upon your vehicle to see if there is anything they want to claim for themselves. As soon as they have checked that out they return to their cups of tea. Not too bad you might think, until you decide to actually put anything on the ground.

"Oi, you can't put dat dere, dat goes in da metals bin." Which is cunningly hidden behind a huge truck and has no signs to say what it is for. The same thing applies to cardboard, paper and wood. Is it me or is the "Tip" now a place for a bunch of pikeys to make a living? Why are all these morons there if you have to sort your own rubbish out? What DO they do all day except piss people off?

No 2
The rubbish men who collect the household rubbish. Not that many years ago the binmen would collect your bin from the top of the drive, carry it and any boxes or bags to the lorry, empty the bin into said lorry and then put the bin back at the top of the drive. In fact, a fine service which was appreciated.

Nowadays the rubbish is sorted so they only take 1/2 of it each week. It must ALL be placed in the relevant wheelie bin, which must then be left on the pavement for them to drag it to their truck. This marvel of modern engineering then empties the bin for them and they sling it back on, hopefully, the same side of the road they got it from. Any boxes or bags that don't fit in the bin will be left, as they might split a nail or break into a sweat if they have to pick something up.

And this is progress? I don't think so.

No 3
This! This is so fu***ng stupid it defies all logic. There are times I think that all judges and solicitors should be taken out and beaten until they return to the real world. In fact I'm so pissed off about this that I can't be arsed to say anymore about it.

No 4
Bus drivers! Why do they have the opinion that their indicators give them the right to pull out instantly, with no regard for anybody else on the road. The car in front of me had to slam on his brakes today, meaning I had to do the same, as did the car behind me, the van behind him and so on and so on.

I used to let buses out, but having seen the increased "Fuck you" attitude of the local bus drivers lately I won't anymore. And woe betide any of them who hits my car while I am following the highway code while driving. Oh, I have checked by the way, no where in the highway code does it say stop for buses, so sod them!

There you go, that's got that lot off of my chest. I won't even mention teachers who give a whole class detention because one kid was misbehaving. Or the prat who keeps riding a mini-motorbike up and down my road at 2am!

draich_goch @ 2006-11-16T20:30:00

2006-11-16T20:30:05Z

OK, first of there's this one.

You scored as William Wallace. The great Scottish warrior William Wallace led his people against their English oppressors in a campaign that won independence for Scotland and immortalized him in the hearts of his countrymen. With his warrior's heart, tactician's mind, and poet's soul, Wallace was a brilliant leader. He just wanted to live a simple life on his farm, but he gave it up to help his country in its time of need.

</td>

William Wallace

83%

Maximus

71%

Indiana Jones

50%

El Zorro

50%

Lara Croft

46%

Batman, the Dark Knight

38%

Captain Jack Sparrow

38%

James Bond, Agent 007

33%

The Terminator

29%

The Amazing Spider-Man

29%

Neo, the "One"

17%

Which Action Hero Would You Be? v. 2.0
created with QuizFarm.com

Well, at least I'm not James Bond, like Mat.
And then there's this one

Which Princess Bride Character are You?
this quiz was made by mysti

So that's the fun bit done. Normal service will shortly be resumed.

Lying Bastards!

2006-10-06T13:25:16Z

My car has recently been off the road due to the IR key fob deciding to stop working. Unfortunately the immobiliser is built into the central locking that is activated by the key fob. So the car wouldn't run. grrrrrr.

So I ordered a new, shiny IR key fob from a bunch of lying bastards. This new key fob costs over £85 in advance. Just for a damn key fob, not a whole key as the metal bit that fits in the ignition is an extra £70. Plus it takes "5 to 10 days". Now, despite ringing up beforehand to say I would be coming in to get a new key, the shining stars of customer service that work for a bunch of lying bastards choose not to tell me that I needed the old key so they could order a new one. So I went home again to get the old key. GRRRRRRR!

I then forked out £85, left my phone numbers and went on my merry way, well not that merry as I was off to a funeral. And waited.....and waited.......then I waited some more. On the tenth day (today), I rang them to be told that the person who dealt with the order was not in yet and he would ring me back. So I waited some more, until midday, when I rang them. Finally I got to speak to the shining star of customer service and he said "I tried to ring you". It turns out that they try to ring you a grand total of once, if your not in too bad . GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!

So I go to get my key, slightly annoyed and more than a little ready for some more crap service. I wait for the shining star of customer service to appear. only

"You need to book the car in to the service department to have the key coded to your car" says he.
"Is that right" says I.
"Yes" says he, with an annoying smirk on his annoying face.
"Give me my key" says I.
"Eh?" says he, smirkless now.
"Thanks" says I somewhat sarcastically and leave, new key and all.

Then I get home and try my new, shiny key fob on my old car and, amazingly, it works. The central locking works. The immobiliser turns off. The car starts. The car moves. I am mobile again. So the key didn't need coding at all.

So fuckface who works for a bunch of lying bastards was a lying bastard too. Bottom line is if you need something that only a Renault dealer can get for you, GO SOMEWHERE ELSE!

Wargame this Saturday

2006-10-04T11:44:09Z

On Saturday I shall be at Clifton Road Games playing a 15mm WW2 game using the much vaunted and well liked Blitzkrieg Commander rules. The game will be either Russians vs Germans or Allies (British/Americans) vs Germans. Mat has said he will be there, after I give him a wake up call anyway and there is always space for other willing players. So if anybody is interested then feel free to turn up.

It does help that my in-laws are done this weekend. Oh dear, I have to go out on Saturday, there's a shame isn't it! ;-)

I had the dubious pleasure of marshaling paintball on Sunday. Yes, Sunday was the day with torrential rain and thunder and lightning. Instead of finishing at about 6pm I finally got home at 8. Heavy rain delayed the start, which delayed the finish, then more heavy rain delayed the cleaning up at the end of the day. aaarrrgghhhhh!

The players all seemed to enjoy it though, which is, at the end of the day, the main thing. The first game in the afternoon say a large number of young ladies, who had never played before, run around like a flock of starlings. If one went one way all the others followed her until she stopped, then another one would head off, to be followed by all the others again. It made me smile.

Mind you, after the first game they changed. Once realising that it doesn't hurt much they seemed to switch into "RAMBO" mode and went crazy. One girl fired over 1600 paintballs in 6 games. It has made me want to play again though. Time to save some pennies up methinks.

Gamesday, the Alamo game and pleurisy.

2006-09-25T07:17:06Z

It's over! Gamesday is, well, mad. There are too many people who have no idea about any other figure manufacturer than Games Workshop. £25 for a ticket and the place was packed with kids and young lads carrying bags stuffed to overflowing with GW stuff. Yse, the Golden Demon stuff is shiney, but do they play with them or just spend many hours crouched over a figure, ruining their back and eyesight? Anyway, I'm sure they all had fun.

I was helping to run a Legends of the Old West Alamo game, with Nathan, Scott and Brian. The game involved 2000pts of Mexicans (we don' need no stenkin' bodges) against 1000pts of Texicans in the Alamo.

The game is broken! There, I said it out load and hope somebody takes note. 2000pts of Mexicans come out at 260 infantry, 12 cavalry, 1 howitzer and 3 big cannons. 1000pts of Texicans came to 74 infantry and 2 little cannons. There is no real difference in the stat lines for the troops. The Mexicans generally have a lower "pluck" (leadership), but they can all have a sergento, who brings it up to the Texican level. They also cost a lot less, so the Texicans are always outnumbered. Cannons are big sniper rifles, that cannot miss the gate of a fort. Given that the cannon is strength 10 and does D6 wounds this means that the defence 9, 6 wound gate lasts 2 turns at most. They never bloody miss! And howitzers are, apparently, able to zero in on troops that no Mexican anywhere on the table can see and then kill them all! One howitzer shot killed 8 out of 10 Texicans the other side of a building and behind a wall!

Now I quite like playing LotOW as a cowboy type gang game. It's fun, easy to pick up and you can play a couple of games in an evening. It does not, however, work so well for the massed battles as done in the Alamo book, mainly because the points for Mexicans are too low and there was insufficient playtesting done. I did help to playtest it and we sent in a rundown of what we thought was wrong. ie. The cheapness of Mexicans, the accuracy of smoothbore artillery and howitzers and the fact that the Texicans never, ever win.

All our thoughts were ignored and the book came out as is. Ho hum, we did try.

Gamesday did end with a bit of a shock for me. At 4pm I got a phonecall from my wife to say Christopher, my eldest son, was on his way to hospital in an ambulance with severe chest pains. Now, normally that would be a worry but he was also away with the Air Cadets, so my wife couldn't get to him. 5 minutes later I was on my way home from Birmingham NEC, which takes between 2.5 and 3.5 hours depending on traffic. Half way I got another call to say that it wasn't critical and they thought it was Pleurisy. I got home at about 7pm to find that he was about to be discharged and brought home by one of the instructors from his squadron. He finally got home at about 10pm (as he wasn't let out until just after 8pm) and that was that. Except we have no idea what they found! No letter or advice on what to do, what he needs to take or anything. So we are off to the doctors this morning to find out.

I would like to say a very big thank you to Linda and Nathan. You were a great help yesterday and I really do appreciate it. Thank you

Gamesday, Mexicans and HOW EARLY?

2006-09-23T19:34:29Z

Tomorrow I have the (very) dubious pleasure of helping out on a game at Gamesday in Birmingham NEC. I will be helping out on the Alamo game for Warhammer Historical, pitting several hundred valiant Mexicans against the dastardly Texian rebels. All in all we have 240 Mexicans against about 70 Texians, so it should be over very quickly. Espescially as the rules are slightly broke, but I'll leave that or I'll get told off. Anyway, if anybody who reads this (well, either of you really) is there drop by and say hello, I'm the fat git with a beard.

As an aside to the above, I would like to make it clear to all and sundry that I will not paint 25mm Napoleonic figures ever again. Mexicans from the Alamo period wear what is basically French Napoleonic uniforms and I hated painting them. Dull dull dull dull dull. Never ever will they darken my paint table again.

So there.

Tomorrow I will be leaving dark Newton Abbot at 5:30 am (yes, that's in the morning Mat). This, I have decided, is a stupid idea and whoever decided that we need to be at the NEC by 8:00am needs a swift kick in the bollocks. I will crawl out of my lovely warm bed, containing my lovely warm life, just before 5:00am, drag my old body downstairs and make a cup of tea (TEA Mat, not 'orrible coffee), then I'll make a flask for the journey and wait for my taxi to appear. After the short, stroppy and grumpy little bugger arrives (;-)) we will set off, along with 3/4 of the Mexican army.

Wish me luck, it's going to be a bloody long day.

It's about time!

2006-09-21T07:00:54Z

Gah, I keep forgetting to put anything on here.

This annoyed me somewhat yesterday. I do feel sorry for muslims at the moment as the actions of a few fanatics is having an adverse effect on them, but it's having an adverse effect on everybody else too. Abbu Izzadeen (or Trevor) said afterward that if you live in a non-muslim country you work to change it into a muslim country. Sorry Trevor, there is another option. You move to a muslim country and leave us the f**k alone. How's that for a plan? Before anybody decides I'm a racist (or maybe religionist) I'm not. I have muslim friends and relatives, who are all fine people and I am glad they live in Britain. But then again, they don't go around trying to change me into a muslim or supporting the acts of terrorism carried out by muslims.

I visited a friend I have not seen for a long time yesterday, which was nice. He's going through a messy divorce at the moment, which is not so nice, but has also had a few business problems due to a "friend" stealing from him (and also screwing his soon-to-be ex-wife while my friend was helping to move the "friend's" business). Talk about a scum bag. The "friend's" business is one that I had planned to buy some stuff from, but now they can whistle and I'll spend my money elsewhere. As they say, what goes around comes around, so I'm waiting patiently now for something to happen to this fine, upstanding member of society. Especially as his business was in financial trouble anyway. Here's hoping he gets what he deserves.

On a more cheerful note (see, I'm not a total miserable bastard) I bought the new Warhammer
game. £40 brings in a new "mini" rulebook, some more dice and over 100 figures. I have now got to get Matgb to play it a bit more, then possibly the old farts I wargame with on a Monday too. But the bottom line is "MORE DWARVES........WOOHOO!"

We started another campaign last week, American Civil War using the Eagle Game's Civil War board game and Fire & Fury wargames rules. The first turn saw two battles, one near Washington that Matgb is going to report (eventually) and the other in Kentucky, with a report here.

Right, I'm off for a cup of tea before starting the days labours. Catch you later

Portsmouth and "Damn"

2006-07-29T11:01:01Z

I'm back! Not that anybody would have missed me. My wife and I managed to have a few "kid free" days in Portsmouth and had a nice, relaxing break. We saw the Historic Dock with HMS Victory, HMS Warrior, the Mary Rose etc etc etc. We even went on a boat ride around the dock, seeing all the ships that the current government have decided are surplus to requirements. These included one of the Illustrious carriers, 3 Type 42 destroyers and 3 Type 23 frigates. Seems to me that the "New" Navy will be a bit short handed for the foreseeable future, as we don't have any replacements in service for any of these ships yet, in fact the only ones being built now are the newer Type 45 destroyer, but they are a long way from service.

Anyway, back to Portsmouth. We went up the Spinnaker Tower, which is something I will never do again as heights and I don not get on. At all.... In anyway ever! I had to go up as Tina wanted too and wouldn't have if I had stayed at the bottom. The view is very nice, but why do they need to but a section of glass floor in? Bastards!

We also went to a few museums, including the DDay museum, and the Blue Reef Aquarium. All in all it was nice to have a few days away. We just relaxed in the evenings and did as little as possible, but that's a nce change when you have kids.

DAMN! comes about because of this. David Gemmell is one of the authors that I read for entertainment. His books are easy reading but certainly enjoyable and he really brings his characters to life. It's a shame that he died so young and I will miss not having new stuff by him.

That's it. I'm off to find something to eat and veg out until Tina gets back from her shopping trip with her daughter. The kids are back tomorrow, so normal service will be resumed then.

Godamn it's hot....and I'm a bit annoyed

2006-07-18T13:15:24Z

OK, it's a bit too hot now, somebody had better turn the thermostat down.

NOW!

One thing that has raised my internal temperature slightly is the fact that my step-son, who is 31 years old but acts like a spoilt 6 year old, has got a catalogue for himself but has somehow switched it to this address now he's not paying for it. So, it would appear that bailiffs are coming here to remove his posessions (that there aren't any of) to pay the bill.

Now, I'm in a quandary. I know he hates me and blames me and his mother for everything bad that has ever happened to him. Apparently it's our fault that he's a thief, takes drugs, gets arrested for driving without a licence and pisses off everybody he ever meets. But, and here's the thing, do I

A - Find out where he lives and tell the bailiffs?
B - Find out where he lives and go around to slap him myself?
C - Ignore it and tell the bailiffs he doesn't live here?
D - Do Something else?

A and B have the downside of upsetting my wife, so are probably not going to happen no matter how much I want them to.

Why is life never easy?

Foolball, Bovington and Mum

2006-07-02T17:56:02Z

It's OVER! Thankfully its now all over and the hype about England will end. I'm sorry for the English foolball fans, but the World Cup is an annoying occurrence every 4 years that irritates my wife as all her soap-opera's get messed around. That makes her grumpy with me, as its apparently my fault, even though I have more interest in the price of rice in China than in foolball.

Today I got to sneak off to the wargames show at Bovington Tank Museum, and to see the tanks. It was alright, but I think I have been too many times in the last few years so I'll be giving it a miss for a few years now. They have moved a few things around, but its 95% the same as the last times I have been.

My Mum get's back today from her 3 month holiday in New Zealand. I spoke to her this morning and she had a great time over there, seeing all the sights and doing whatever it is holiday makers do in New Zealand. She is back here for a few months and then moves to Crete to live, so cheap holidays beckon for us then. It'll be good to see her again though.

Plus its damn hot. It's hotter at Bovington though. The car was at 38'C today, which is damn hot.

MOT's

2006-06-24T09:20:51Z

It seems that the rules regarding MOT repairs have changed. It used to be that you could take your car away to get it fixed and then get a free retest within a specified time. Now if the car leaves the MOT place you have to pay again for the retest.

Is it just me or is that a way for the Government to make more money from people who can't afford a new car?

Well, it pissed me off when I found out. Luckily our mechanic is in the same place as the MOT garage, so it doesn't apply to us, but many people are going to get caught out by it. Bastards!

I am now officially skint until next Saturday. I have a grand total of £3.26 to my name. MOT, new tyres, kid going to France and two niece's birthdays have all eaten into this months budget and it has finally given up, rolled over and died. It's a good job I don't need anything this week. And I can always sit in and watch the football...........

OK, that last bit was a lie.

Why can't we do things like this more often?

2006-06-20T12:00:59Z

This is just amazing. How is it that we can do things like this while, at the same time, we have car bombs and terrorist attacks?

It reminds me of an old friend of mine who died some years ago after fighting against cancer for many years. His strength and spirit was inspiring, no matter how bad he felt he was always worried about the rest of us and could make us laugh no matter what had happened. People like that are rare and I wish he was still here. He died less than a week before his twentieth birthday, after he was given less than 6 months when he was twelve.

I miss him.

Aaaarrrggghhhhh!

2006-06-18T09:19:50Z

What an awful display of so-called rugby. I am not talking about England getting beaten by Australia, I AM referring to the complete stuffing Argentina gave to Wales yesterday. Talk about crap, Wales may as well have not turned up. Complacency, schoolboy errors and a general lack of initiative was the impression. Depressed is the word. God knows how we are going to get this mess sorted out before the World Cup next September, hopefully some of the 21 injuries/not fit/rested players will be ready by then.