Alex's even longer post thread.

[Alex]

Heading away on Thursday to go see my mum and sister for a week. We are going to catch a concert while we are down there and take Ash to see the Transport Museum. Let's hope he likes the trains there and doesn't have some kind of freak-out session. I honestly never know how he is going to react to these things. It has been a long time since we've last been down for more than a long weekend. We took Ash for his first visit to the school he'll be starting after summer. It has a large area with a sensory room kids can go hang out in if they are feeling overwhelmed.

Never had anything like that when I was at school. I suspect I'd have used it to hide from doing work. I spent a lot of time at school dodging doing anything I didn't have to. I did my classwork, but never let the teacher know I was finished because then you just got given extra work (I used to write short stories and make it look like I was working).

I much preferred college that way. You get an assignment, you do your work, and you are done.

[ER]

^ Learning is great, knowledge is great, school sucks.

[Rev. Powell]

Watching the old 60s Batman tv show. An episode was just on where the Penguin was running for mayor and Batman went up against him. The Penguin wailing about the election being fraudulent reminded me very much of a more modern villain. Gave me a chuckle making that connection.

Yeah, I've been rewatching that series and I saw that episode about a year ago. Eerie.

[Alex]

To be fair, that incarnation of the Penguin had better hair than who he reminds me of and a better dress sense.

Accidentally made a fan of Bad News today. I let someone hear the cover they did of Bohemian Rhapsody and they liked it.

It is indeed a crazy, mixed-up world out there.

Kristi went for a job interview today. She is looking at working with special needs adults. They've said she'll hear back in a day or two. All the volunteer work she's doing means she doesn't have a huge blank space for the past ten years on her CV, so I'd imagine that will help. The place she'd be working is a ten-minute walk from the house which doesn't hurt either. With the shifts she'd be working she'd be able to pick Ash up from school (passes where he'll be going on the way to work). The only issue is that neither of our shift rotations would match up for taking him to school in the mornings, but we'll get something sorted I guess.

Travelling down to Glasgow tomorrow. Hoping for a cool day. Hot weather in them tends to get too warm. Nikki is going to look after Elsa, so that at least means we don't need to take the cat with us and Ash is easier to travel with than Kristi (as long as it is daytime and he can watch out the window. If it is dark and he can't see anything he tends to get restless). The concert is in a metal nightclub that is part of the same building the train station is in, which means we shouldn't have to leave early or anything. I hate walking out of a concert early (unless I am not enjoying it ofc. Looking at you here Iron Maiden).

Still teasing Matt about him losing yet another character. In the year he has been playing he's averaged a PC death every two months of real-time. By way of comparison, I'd expect a normal character to last a year to eighteen months. Adventuring is a hard life.

[Alex]

Got a friend in the US who for several years has been getting increasingly upset about the gun violence over there. He's been keeping a log of what I think is just school shootings, but it might be all mass shootings (they rarely get reported over here any more so I don't know, and I don't feel like looking up the reports to find out). Anyway, he is talking about moving out of the states as soon as his kids turn 18. That seems a bit strange to me, I mean one of the two major reasons Kristi came over here is because she didn't want to bring Ash up somewhere where we had to worry about school shootings. Once he is over 18 I'd be less worried about that and he could make the choice himself of which country to live in.

Heading off around lunchtime today. Got some of the stuff looked out that I need to pack. Doesn't take me long though.

It is a really nice day for travelling. Lots of clear skies and not too hot. The trains aren't overcrowded either (avoid travelling on a Monday or Friday. They are always the busiest days for travelling, not to mention the most expensive. Sunday is similar but also has the additional problem of having fewer services running). Just passing through Perth just now. My old boss lives here, and the only one I'd describe as being a total arsehole. The man described himself as being old-school, but what he was, was a bully. I had little to do with him, but I did see him treat other people in a very objectionable manner. Still, he was terrified of his time in uniform coming to an end as he'd no longer have that power over people and wouldn't get away with treating them the way he did. He didn't need the job. He owned a farm and had more than enough money. I'd be surprised if he is still alive. Retired Warrant Officers have an average lifespan of 7 years after leaving. I figure that they are no longer in this constant high-pressure job, and their body used to living that way just shuts down early.

One of the many reasons I decided not to put everything into the job and changed my plans on climbing up the promotion ladder any further.

We've got new neighbours at one side. Kristi had a chat with the wife, and it seems her dad knows me. She told me the guys name and all I could do was say "It really doesn't ring any bells." Maybe if I saw his face, but there are a lot more people who know me, than whom I know. If you aren't important to me, then I am just not going to waste any memory on you. Doesn't matter if you are a nice person or not, I've just never felt the need or want to try and recall anyone I am not dealing with on a regular basis. I am more likely to be nostalgic about times* or places than people.

Got one of the really old train carriages sitting beside us at the moment. I wonder if it has a steam train at the front? I know they are terrible from an eco-friendliness point of view, but there is something about those old engines.

The trip down was fine with no problems the whole time. Got to my mums sometime just after 19:00. Elizabeth had beer waiting for me and mum had dinner. I like going home to visit. Kristi only wanted to visit for a long weekend so Ash wouldn't miss nursery. I said I wanted to stay a bit longer, but she could go back home with Ash a few days earlier if she wanted. I was slightly looking forward to the thought of spending some time with them without anyone else, but she decided to stay down the extra couple of days with me after all.

*I don't mean like 16:20. I mean like the summers of 1992, 1998 or 2002 for example.

[RCMerchant]

^ there have been 196 people killed in mass shootings from Jan. to March this year alone. That's not counting the ones that happened in April so far!
There were 647 mass shooting in 2022.  That number is not how many people died. That's just the shootings themselves! 

[Alex]

^ there have been 196 people killed in mass shootings from Jan. to March this year alone. That's not counting the ones that happened in April so far!
There were 647 mass shooting in 2022.   That number is not how many people died. That's just the shootings themselves!  

Over the roughly twenty years the US was in Afganistan, you lost (I think) 2400ish soldiers, so if that figure is right that is approximately 120 people dead per year in a warzone. I wonder how that compares to the number of dead from domestic shootings and the public reactions to both.

[ER]

I think the horror of mass shootings is more about Americans being the way Americans are than they are about the guns themselves. Mental illness is simply not properly addressed in America, and we Americans, frankly, have a propensity for violence in our culture. We seem more comfortable with violence and even killing than I've noticed people in other nations do, and I am not sure why. So mass killings are an expression of the sense of violence that lies inside America's soul. I don't know that anything short of some paradigm shift in who Americans are and how Americans feel will ever end these needless tragedies, but I honestly don't think there is any realistic way to keep someone determined to get a gun and do damage with it from getting a gun. Maybe laws could prevent guns from being the object used in domestic murders and other spontaneous acts of aggression, but not these spree events that see so much carnage. The black market would always make guns available to someone with money and a will. You, me, anyone in the US could get hold of an assault rifle today if we really made the effort. Could that be changed? I don't know how? The war on drugs didn't work, and with money to made in black market weapons, well, there'd always be someone willing to sell for the right price, whatever the legal risk.

I have two children in school, and I am in regular contact with mentally ill people, some with histories of violence and no means for them to be gotten treatment. And one gun can do much harm. It's a reality of life today and it is terrifying, honestly.

[Alex]

Apparently a big reason why we avoided any Muslim extremist gun attacks is because the people selling the guns are very aware of the backlash and police attention that would then come back on them, so they won't sell guns to extremists.

[Alex]

Well, it looks like I will be going to the US in May. It also looks like I'll be going without Kristi as she got accepted for her new job. It's good news and I've been pushing for her to get one for a long time now so I can't complain, as much as I want to. Hopefully, she will enjoy working there. I am going to start my application for my new job soon. I guess my experience with weapons will come in handy for what I am going for.

Has anyone else ever noticed that the climax to Christopher Nolan's Batman trilogy is merely a higher-budget version of the scene from the 60s one where Batman is desperately running with a bomb, looking for a safe place to dispose of it? I'll never watch that film in the same way.

Got bought a statue of Lemmy today. The only problem is that it is incredibly fragile and I'll need to transport it home without it breaking. I'm sure I'll get it done though and if the worst come to it, I can generally fix breaks no problem. Still, it would be nice not to have to.

[Trevor]

Apparently a big reason why we avoided any Muslim extremist gun attacks is because the people selling the guns are very aware of the backlash and police attention that would then come back on them, so they won't sell guns to extremists.

As you all know, I grew up during a war and at school, all the teachers were armed all the time, including when sports teams traveled to away games on buses. If someone tried to attack a school then, they would get an ass full of buck shot for their troubles. 

[Alex]

Had an awesome night last night. Nanowar of Steel weren't terrible and Tragedy were great. I got to sing with Disco Mountain Man and got a selfie with Lance. Me and Kristi had a nostalgic walk around Glasgow and then we headed back to our usual meeting point where we spent a few hours downing Dark Matter before heading to the gig.

Me, Lance and Dave.



Disco Mountain Man evidently floating.



Mo'Royce and Disco.



Andy Gibbous Waining and the new guy whose name I am not sure of.



Andy gave me one of his plectrums which I can add to the collection. The gig was over earlier than we expected, and since we'd transport booked for midnight, we spend a few more hours drinking before heading home. Going out to Saltcoats today to meet up with Leona, see if I can get anything out of the poor girl.

EDIT. Leona had to phone and cancel. Her mum was up ill all last night. Hopefully we'll get a chat before I go home, but I am pretty busy next week.

[Alex]

Heading up to Kilmarnock to the local Sherrif Court. By local I mean local to where my aunt died, not local to where I live. It's a long ass boring bus trip that I did every day for over a year between one of my old jobs and then going to college. It was a town on the way down back then. A few years back a shopping mail opened up out of town and that seems to have dealt a death blow to the town centre. Nowadays, I bet the shopping complex isn't doing too great itself.

Meant to bring a book to read but didn't pick it up on the way out.  The family are all popping into Irvine for the day. I'll meet up with them on the way back. Pretty sure I am the youngest person on the bus, so that hasn't changed in the past more than 20 years.  Think I've only been here once sin all the years since. Kristi was not impressed with the town when she saw it.

Passed by a factory I used to work at just before I enlisted (now closed), a builders I had a summer job with (long out of business now). Hell, every company I used to work for went out of business after I left.

If that trend keeps up life around here could get very interesting. I only know of 2 ways that the military goes out of business... Still my new job isn't exactly a million miles away from my old one (I am not saying what it is though until it is confirmed that I have it). I'll be starting my formal application process for that next week. Not allowed to start the process until I am less than 90 days away from my exit date, and it takes a month for my application to be processed, plus I need to pass a medical and fitness test. Funny, not using guns was part of what I was most looking forward to about leaving. Now, I am expecting to use then a lot more as in a daily basis instead of the two weeks a year previously.

Back to the gym next week then. I reckon I can pass it, but I get competitive  at these things, especially if there are younger guys present.

Made it to Crosshouse hospital, not far to go now.

I emember when Kristi had a couple of missionaries  over for dinner and they told us they were being sent to Kilmarnock next. All I could say was "I'm sorry."

[Alex]

Well that was a wasted journey. Partly my fault. I didn't check some paperwork  had printed out correctly the way it was on screen and partly because the solicitor messed up on how to fill things in.

Just great. I'll have to wait until I am back home to fix it and then come down again. I've not been in the best of moods today and this won't improve it any. I spent the whole appointment listening stony faced and thinking about the principals of marksmanship, how to prepare an aimed shot, getting into a stable and supported firing position, lining up the mark, how much pressure there should be on your shoulder, holding your breath for a few seconds, put a little bit of pressure on the trigger, blink to clear your eyes, then squeeze the trigger til you hear the bang anbd slowly release the trigger so your rifle keeps aiming in the same direction. How quickly you do that depends on the rate of fire order you've been given.

Only slightly less boring than listening to legal jargon.  Normally when I am doing those weapon drills I've got song lyrics going through my head. Well, unless it's live firing and you've got too much else on your mind for anything else. Your world is reduced to this tiny little circle (well unless you are using iron sights) and that is all yo can see. If the guy beside you is stupid enough to get up and move in front of you, the first you'll know about it is when your vision is suddenly blocked (for some reason they always run infront of the man beside themselves weapon). 9 times out of 10 you'll pull your head back to see what is going on. The other time, well, just don't wander in front of people firing guns.

[Trevor]

Meant to bring a book to read but didn't pick it up on the way out.  The family are all popping into Irvine for the day. I'll meet up with them on the way back.

Is that the Irvine mentioned in the Proclaimers song?