Alex's even longer post thread.

[Alex]

Well, last week was spent off work ill. This week we have a long weekend, then next week I have another long weekend. I like the thought of those nice short weeks. We have the first of a couple of management visits, so that means no work getting done, but lots of talking, drinking cups of whatever, then after work taking them on a distillery tour and then out for a meal afterwards.

Depending on how I use my settlement leave, normal leave and stuff, I could be working my last day around this time next year.

Oooh, that sends a rather nice chill running through my body.

In D&D, my group had to get into a walled-off area of a city. The roads into that part are guarded, but the wall is only 12 feet high and had no patrols going around it.

Two hours later, the group had decided how to get over the wall.

I felt like banging my head off the wall by the end of it. Perhaps they could have climbed through the hole I'd have made?

Maybe I should dump my idea of doing Shadowrun next. If a wall managed to stymie them so easily, gods only know what they would make of the plots and backstabbing betrayals that fill that game. Speaking of betrayals, the party has decided their nemesis isn't any of the various big bads inhabiting the world. It is a merchant who stiffed them on a deal.

[Trevor]

Two hours later, the group had decided how to get over the wall.
I felt like banging my head off the wall by the end of it. Perhaps they could have climbed through the hole I'd have made?

My landlords' son lives in the unit next to mine and because he is who he is, he thinks the rules of the place - no noise after nine, etc - don't apply to him. He is going to crap himself one night when I go through the dry wall between us with cricket bat in hand.

[Alex]

We have the first of two management visits this month, due today. This one we are looking forward to because we like at least one of the two guys coming up. The other one I do not know at all.

It is time for my 6 monthly assessment, which doesn't really mean much since it is an informal thing. If I struggle to care about my annual assessment which is a bigger thing, I'll let you figure out for yourself how much I care about this one. 448 days to go.

When our visitors land, we are going for lunch, then taking them on a tour of a distillery (Glen Moray), after which we will be taking them out for a meal. No doubt drinks will be consumed. If we get them drunk enough, they won't be in any fit state to ask us probing questions tomorrow*.  Such is what passes for a cunning plan these days. Still, we have a long weekend with the Easter holidays this week/start of next week. Then I have another long weekend for our visit to Bovington Tank Museum, so a 4 day week, then a 3 day week and then another 4 day week. That does not sound like a bad working pattern to me. Wish I could keep that one.

*I have actually used this as a tactic previously. We were going on a course and on the first day, the first thing you do is have an inspection. I deliberately gathered everyone on the course up when they arrived the night before it was due to start and then got them drunk in the knowledge that they'd be too hungover to prep their uniform properly and I'd look great by comparrison. It worked.

[Alex]

The management visit went well. We'd had a long talk with our line manager (the first time I'd met him face to face in the two years I have worked here, and he is leaving the airforce soon), as well as a senior engineering officer. The senior gave us his speel, and afterwards, I mentioned that in 10 or 11 weeks I'll be putting in my year's notice to quit. He looked shocked and asked if it was because of anything he had said.

[Alex]

After 20 years of playing the same edition of D&D, I finally managed to get my character into the Assassin prestige class. Woohoo!

We survived a fight with a rather monsterous creature that we had little hope of defeating (although I did manage to get a rather good hit in on it from behind and took it down about a third of its health. I'd have had to have been incredibly lucky to get that kind of roll a second or third time though). We, later on, found ourselves facing a horde of giant cockroaches as well as a horde of smaller ones. Anyway, the end result of it all was me getting enough XPs to level up and qualifying as an assassin.

In tonight's game, the party after some months of playing (although only 6 days of game time), are due to confront the serial killer who has been stalking the city. It is a boss fight for them and one of those ones where I take the training wheels off. If they die, then they die.

Took a trip into Elgin this morning. It was supposed to be a quick run in and out, but they are building a new housing estate along the route and somehow they'd managed to put a dip in the road that caused cars to go airborne and emergency repairs had to be carried out today. This led to long delays and everything running late. We went to visit the local gaming store, but they were closed for renovations. Ash had been expecting to buy another dice for his Mimic box, and got, well a bit upset about it being shut.

I was slightly vexxed about it myself as I wanted to buy some stuff myself.

The group encountered serial killer, The Creeper tonight and managed to kill him. It was rather easier than I expected, but equally, it wasn't a TPK (Total Party Kill, where everyone dies). The party have now descended into some caves beneath the building where they fought the monster. Something even more dangerous lies down there.

Taking Ash out tomorrow so he can at least hear The Animals play. We decided not to spend the £86+ for tickets as he doesn't like loud noises.

[Alex]

Might have to abandon taking Ash out as he seems to have a cold and just wants to sleep. Got a rather dry throat myself.

Still, it is a lovely day outside. Can't believe my big villain who I have been building up for months kept fumbling his attacks and died in 4 rounds. Urgh.  Still, they have not yet encountered the power behind the throne.

Started watching The Dresden Files, see if its any good or not.

[Alex]

One of the guys I play alongside in two separate D&D games has taken to standing in places that prevent my character from doing their things. In one game where I play a wizard, he stands in places that force me into melee range. In the other game where I play a melee character, he blocks narrow paths preventing me from getting into combat.

In the first game, my wizard is going to cast a spell called Command. Unless he resists the spell, I can give him a one-word command and he has to fulfil it. I was going to have him "Run", but if I say "Charge" instead, then he'll have to run into combat. He isn't a melee character and this is rather dangerous for him but no more dangerous than the positions he keeps putting me in.

In the other game, well Merri is an assassin. She has a much more straightforward approach to sorting out these issues...

Painting up these two at the moment.



Thinking about collecting the full set from the cartoon.

Just watched what I thought was a pretty good low budget horror. The acting was better than I normally get in these things and it could be considered slightly Lovecraftian (Deep Ones). Thought maybe RC and Indy might like it (although Indy I should warn you in advance, there are no boobs in it). Anyway, it is free on YouTube if anyone wants to watch it https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0JXyO0tBAnQ.

Having a real thing for creature feature type horror movies just now. Fed up with slashers and zombies right now.

The management visit from the guy who was the final nail in the coffin for me leaving the RAF has been delayed (I have my doubts that it will ever happen tbh) again. I had to cut short my holiday to be here when he visits. This guy is not earning himself any brownie points in my book at all.

Ash decided every time we visit a games store, he needs a new dice. To stop the floor becoming a deadly trap filled with d4's (either you know what they are and why they are so dangerous or you don't), I bought him a dice box. This has become one of his favourite toys. Anyway, I heard cry out in pain and came running through to find he'd dropped his dice box on his foot, but what was really worrying him was his dice collectionbeing scattered all over the floor.

[Alex]

Early start tomorrow. We are leaving at 5 am, so Ash (who does not wake up easily) is going to be so happy about us dragging him out of bed at 4 am. Unless he happens to wake up in the middle of the night which does happen occasionally. Right now he is completely crashed out, but in 10 minutes he can be up and running around wanting to watch Micky, yet after a full night's sleep, he is slow to awaken.

I had wanted to fly down to London, but we've ended up taking the train. Longer trip, but I guess much less hassle going through airports. At least we are just passing through there though. I find it a very dirty, tacky and seedy place. I mean all cities have that feeling to a degree, but everywhere I went in London the first time I visited it seemed to be that way. Too damn many people as well. Still, who knows, maybe I'll bump into boris the fat and get to kick him in the nuts.

Now that would make my day. Not quite as much as if I win the ride in the Tiger tank, but y'know, still pretty damn good.

My co-worker and boss had a mid-level argument. I could tell it is just a stepping stone to a bigger one though. Still, they have the next couple of days in work to talk things over, sort it all out. I just don't think it will happen.

[Alex]

Well, getting Ash out of bed went better than expected. Indeed he has been a hyper ball of energy so far. Warm weather is predicted all day. We are sitting on the train at Aberdeen train station (which for 20 years I have been convinced is the coldest single spot anywhere on the planet), waiting on it leaving for London. It is a 7-hour journey, then travel across London and finally off for another couple of hours on a train to Darlington.

Nice views out the window. Kristi bought Ash a chocolate-covered biscuit. I am not impressed as he now has chocolate-covered hands and a matching face.

[Alex]

After 4 days of travelling that is us back home. Friday we started at 4 am, went up to Aberdeen and then took a train down to London, walked across part of it and then took another train down to Dorchester. We stayed there overnight, and then got up in the morning for another train to Wool and finally a bus to Bovington Tank Museum. I got to run around quite happily seeing lots of my favourite WW2 tanks and quite a few other vehicles, like a pair of Kubelwagons. The travelling and lack of sleep were taking its toll on Ash though so we didn't spend the whole day at the museum, leaving just before 2. By that point I'd seen everything I wanted to see, including the Tiger, running around, For a beast that weighs north of 50 tonnes and is 80 years old, it couldn't half move some. Afterwards, we had to head back into and across London to meet up with a friend near Heathrow airport. We had a meal with him and chatted for a few hours. He was claiming that there were no game stores near him. I mentioned one offhand that I knew of, and Kristi googled a few others for him, including one in his home town he was unaware of.

Sunday, we headed back up to Scotland (with some relief for me. You can taste the pollution in the air around London and I was worried about it causing Kristi to have an asthma attack). We stayed the night in Aberdeen before taking our final train ride home today. I am hoping Ash is all done in and ready to sleep tonight after everything we've put him through.

In the meantime, I have a lot of tanks to paint up (mistakes were made, but I regret nothing!).

Well, two tanks. In all fairness, the rest were merely armoured vehicles or anti-tank guns.

Lots of pictures incoming:





Panzer III


Ha-Go (Japanese Tank and not a very good one at that).


Panther Tank. My favourite WW2 tank. I didn't actually know that the museum had one of these, so coming across it was a nice surprise.

[RCMerchant]

Dam! So cool!

[Alex]

Exploring inside a WW1 tank.




The workshop.

[Alex]

British Flag from the siege Tobruk (I think. I did read the story behind it, but I read an awful lot of stuff). Just below it, you can see part of a 12-foot wide flag that Hitler had created to fly over the city when it fell, but instead, it ended up as a war trophy.

[Alex]

Ash wondering what any of this actually is.


The tank museum is beside the Royal Armoured Core camp.




I think this is a Sherman M4A4.

[RCMerchant]

Back in the early 70's we had a WWII era Army Jeep in the barn.
We were just renting the property, so it wasn't ours. I wonder if it's still their?