Alex's even longer post thread.

[RCMerchant]

If trump loses (and I have no idea if he has, hasn't or if spontaneous combustion has taken the lot of them), will people spent the next 150 odd years displaying trump2020 flags. I mean the confederacy only lasted 4 years...

[Alex]

Feels like it has been a long, tiring week even though it hasn't.

It is the weekend now though and time to chill out. I see the head of the department of homeland security in the states has said the election was free and fair. So much for Mark's radioactive ballots conspiracy theory then I guess. The highest-ranking officer in the American forces has said they will defend the constitution and don't swear loyalty to a tyrant.

I am told the Chinese have a curse. May you live in interesting times.

Some behind the scenes fighting seems to be going on in UK politics. Two of the PM's closest advisors have quit in recent days. I haven't heard of one of the guys, but the other one is as greasy as any politician with the bonus points that he is unelected. He also has been very close to buffoon boris for many years and I bet he knows where a lot of skeletons are buried. It will be interesting to see what he says in the future.

[Alex]

Been messing around on the Classic version of World of Warcraft. Since I did it when the game was new I know a lot more this time about what to do than I did last time. I've got 45 gold at level 27, which is a fair bit. I need to have 100 by level 40 to buy a horse so I don't need to run everywhere and I am well on track to make that.

No idea if I will play all the way to level 60 or not again or just be done with a month of reminiscing.

[Alex]

It seems that the swing in politics across the world to the right that happened 5 or so years ago is assuredly in reverse. Countries which just a few years ago took a turn in that direction now appear to be swinging back the other way. This is something I thought would happen, although I pictured it happening ten years to a generation down the line, not the next round of elections. Even countries that stayed in the centre-ground or were left-wing leaning, have moved further to the left. Wither or not another world event will stop this swing, much as covid has stopped the right movement by exposing the traditional weakness of the right (or even increase it), remains to be seen.

Someone said to me recently that the left-wing acknowledges it has its lunatic fringe and tries to hide it, while the right-wingers actively try and pander to their lunatics to get their votes. Based on recent events, I'd find it hard to argue against that.

It is looking increasingly likely that our very own bumbling boris has been on the wrong side of some political manoverings. Still not heard any rumours about what exactly caused his two closest advisors to suddenly up and quit. Then again, I am happy enough that the one whose name I know is gone. He was a schemer on the level of Peter Mandalson, back in Tony Blair's day and I'll warrant that like Mandalson, his downfall was due to his own hubris. Then again, it does seem that if they don't die first, all political careers end in disgrace sooner or later. Mind you, some of them find disgrace after death...

Ash is suddenly skin and bones and eating all he can get his hands on. That'll be a growth spurt then.

[chefzombie]

i think he's gonna be tall and skinny like your brother, but with kristi's eyes and your chin.

[Alex]

I am hoping he will be taller than me, but with my broad shoulders, although me and Stewart have occasionally thought that somehow our children have been switched given their builds.

At the moment I am trying to write a brief for a 15-minute talk I have to do tomorrow. Doing it on the defensive aids suite that Tornado's used to carry. I am doing a course on being trained to train other people. Been doing that for decades without training, but now everyone needs to be trained to do that. Well, it is three days out of the office so I am not going to complain about that.

Watching a TV document about so-called cursed movies. I am not convinced there is any such thing. Willing to bet that if you look at any movie that people involved will have some degree of tragedy.

[chefzombie]

i can understand that, little rocketboy IS built like you, lol!
  the cursed movie thing, is it on tubi? there's a bunch of short things on youtube, but i'd like to see a full doc on it. i agree with you, though, it's not the movie.

[Alex]

i can understand that, little rocketboy IS built like you, lol!
  the cursed movie thing, is it on tubi? there's a bunch of short things on youtube, but i'd like to see a full doc on it. i agree with you, though, it's not the movie.

It is on Shudder.

[chefzombie]

poot. i guess i'll look into the free trial then.

[Alex]

I've been really wanting to watch a film that is only available on Shudder (Blood Vessel) and then another popped up on my radar (The Hallow) that piqued my interest, so I've taken the free trial. They have more stuff available on Shudder than they had when I looked at it back at the start of lockdown, but still not quite enough to keep me as a regular subscriber.

[Alex]

As part of my training to train people course, I'd to give a theory lecture today. I did it on the defensive aids suite on the Panavia Tornado (GR4 variant). Since my audience consisted of 2 chefs, a steward and two suppliers I'd to go light on the deep technical details (I hesitate to use the phrase dumbing down as that would indicate they are less intelligent. This isn't true, they just have training in other areas from me. The chefs for example know what temperature to heat milk in to kill an enzyme that would kill the yeast in a cake mix and stops it rising). Anyway, I think I managed to avoid completely losing them in the physics of the whole thing, except at the part where I had to explain how we achieve broad-spectrum interference. After it was all finished I was told that I sounded really confident and intelligent.

Hah! I practically live by the motto, bulls**t baffles brains and bluffing my way through things work-wise. I've managed 19 1/2 years of that so far. Only another three and a half to go. Or maybe five and a half. I think I will struggle to stay in past my 22-year point. I am entitled to my pension at that stage. It won't get any higher if I stay in longer, but I won't start getting it until I am out of the job. It feels like if I stay in I am doing myself out of money I am otherwise entitled to. It really will come down to how the economy is doing when I am coming up to my leaving point. I am daring to be optimistic that things will recover quickly after Covid and the Brexit won't be the disaster that common sense would indicate and that I might still see my hope of being out before I turn 50 come true.

Anyway, tomorrow I am doing a lesson on how to correctly wire up a UK plug. Compared to the ones you have in the US for example, ours are over-engineered monsters. Then again, our mains supply runs on 240 volts, while in the US they have a comparatively anaemic 110 volt supply if my memory serves me correctly. A UK plug may be the only thing more painful than lego to stand on.

[chefzombie]

110 for a regular wall plug, like for your computer, and 220 for stuff like fridges,stoves and AC's. my beloved FIL who bought me my freezer made a point of it being 110 so i could move it if i wanted to do that.
* watch tonight's colbert if you can, it's a riot! *

[Alex]

So one of the cabinet ministers that runs a department of behalf of the Prime Minister (he of the expanded waistline), was investigated and found to have breached the ministerial code of conduct by bullying his staff. Normally, this leads to the minister in question resigning. This time the PM has decided nope, she didn't break the rules. So his man in charge of doing these investigations has quit instead. She was fired in a previous role with the government for getting up to some hijinks with Israel.

Afraid I am unable to watch that, although I have been getting a lot of amusement recently from watching that Rudy Gulliani bloke. Wasn't he the one who came out of the September 11th attacks looking like he could be a future president or something? My how he has fallen. Always a shame to see that. I can respect his loyalty to what seems to be increasingly a lost cause.

[chefzombie]

yes, he's that guy. but he was still sane back then. his son, and  trump's son, have tested positive for covid, which is what happens when you refuse to take any kind of precautions. i have no sympathy, since they have the money to get priority treatment, unlike the majority of americans.
   i know i sound harsh, but my friend's son, younger than you, is now on a ventilator.

[Alex]

Well, Biden has a Covid team, while trumps team has Covid.