Misfits Mid-Life Crisis……..

Misfits Mid-Life Crisis Adventures in Suffolk, Northamptonshire, Surrey & East London.

Week 391, Saturday 11^th until Friday 17^th December 2021.

There are only Nine weeks left of this blog.

This year I have been extremely lucky to have gone away with a few family members on a number of breaks/trips/holidays.  The friend I live with has started calling me “Beagnie” because I have had more trips than certain young Royals known for enjoying a large number of holidays a year.

Last weekend a number of us returned for the second time this year to Tuddenham Mill in Suffolk.  I love the Green fields all around, Mole hills dotted everywhere, birds I don’t see at home.  But most importantly I really enjoy the hot tub we have for ourselves during the duration of our stay.  Thinking about a hot tub realistically actually makes me shudder, I wonder how well it is cleaned (if at all) between groups.

Last year I thought I was being useful when everyone (including myself) decided to have a well-deserved afternoon nap, by adding lot of extra wood to the firebox to keep the water warm for later.  The result was the water had a temperature hotter than the service of the sun, it was absolutely scorching.  To cool it down we had to open a tap and stir cold water with a huge paddle for a long time until anyone dared attempted to dip a limb into the liquid.  Last week this happened again, but I was totally innocent on this occasion, in the word of singer Shaggy “it wasn’t me”.

Sunday early evening after another dip in steaming 42c water, mum both my sisters and brother-in-law sat on the porch of one of the nooks that we were staying in enjoying food and drink while listening to music when we became distracted by a bright light which didn’t appear to move in the sky.

Before I continue let me take you back quickly to the mid-1970s.  I was with others at a camp site which had facilities as basic as seen in the classic comedy film Carry On Camping.  One night a friend and I stumbled around in the dark searching for the loo, this was when we both saw Two brightly glowing figures ahead of us, Aliens we whispered.  As an adult I realise these were just other Homosapien’s back lit by a very bright light.  But at the time we totally convinced that we had seen visitors from another planet, certainly for a number of years I really believed that I had experienced something special.

Back to a few days ago the 5 of us stopped what we were doing to watch the extremely bright white light sat stationary in the sky.  It’s very difficult to know how far away it was, it could have been in the next village or beyond.  The sky was cloudy so it wasn’t a star, the light just hung in sky not far above the horizon in line with trees nearby.  After a few minutes the light seemed to turn slightly and then just faded, snuffed out as if a dimmer switch had turned it off.  For quite a while this strange sight became our number one topic of conversation.  But about 20 minutes later the light (or another) reappeared, this time we could see it shining through trees in the distance.  Unlike last time this light moved very slowly until it was not obstructed by the trees, in fact it appeared to be in exactly the same position as previously.  Once again everything stopped as we stared at the mysterious light hanging in the sky doing nothing until it faded out of existence.  For full transparency RAF Lakenheath is nearby but not in the direction of the light, so they were not responsible.  The conversation about what we had seen continued excitedly for a short time, until my brother-in-law our DJ pressed play leading to some more bad singing from everyone.  But everyone continued to look just in case the light returned.

The next morning I was still very excited about what I dubbed The Tuddenham UFO.  I am sure there is a perfectly rational explanation for the light, but I am a believer.  I have definitely seen things over the years that I am unable to explain (of course I am not talking about the 70s camping incident). Looking up at the night sky is something I do a lot, wondering if something or someone is doing the same looking back.  The night sky is a truly wonderful site, there is a lot we know but still so much we don’t understand.  Hopefully the family will return in 2022, all of us are looking forward to another dip in the hot tub, but I will always have one eye looking a strange light.  If it is Aliens I am most definitely ready for First Contact.

My Mid Life Crisis Conts……

This week I have watched:

“A Cinderella Story: Crimbo Story”, (2019).  “Andre Rieu”, (S2, ep 10).  “Andre Rieu: Welcome To My World”, (S4, ep 1).  “Angry Birds 2”, (2019).  “Blake’s 7”, (SC, ep 9).  “Buffy The Vampire Slayer”, (S2, ep 15).  “Click”, (11/12/21).  “Dads Army: Brother And I”, (S8, ep 7, TX: 26/12/75).  “Elves”, (S1, ep 3).   “Hanna”, (S3, ep 5 & ep 6).  “Have I Got News For You”, (S62, ep 10, TX: 17/12/21).  “Lexx”, (S2, ep 11).  “Lost In Space”, (S3, ep 4 to ep 8).  “Mr. Bean’s Holiday”, (2007).  “Money Heist”, (S5, ep 5 to ep 7).  “Shatner In Space”, (TX: 15/12/21).  “Stargate Atlantis”, (S4, ep 2 & ep 3).  “Star Trek (Animated Series), (S1, ep 1)(S2, ep 5).  “Star Trek Enterprise”, (S1, ep 19).  “Star Trek The Next Generation”, (S6, ep 5).  “Superman And Lois”, (S1, ep 3).  “Superstore”, (S6, ep 1 to ep 3).  “Taskmaster”, (S12 (S3 on C4), ep 5 (The 100th ep), TX: 21/10/21)(ep 10, TX: 25/11/21).  “The Adam’s Family”, (2019).  “The Benny Hill Show”, (S3, ep 2).  “The Graham Norton Show”, (S29, ep 12, TX: 17/12/21).  “The Kenny Everett Video Cassette”, (S4, ep 1, TX: 16/04/81).  “The I- Land”, (S1, ep 5).  “The One Show”, (ep 3328, TX: 16/12/21).  “The Sky At Night – Review Of The Year 2021″, (TX: 12/12/21).  “The Walking Dead – Worlds End”, (S2, ep 4).  “Upstart Crow A Crimbum Crow”, (TX: 25/12/17).  “Venom”, (2018).  “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”, (S9, ep 1, TX: 10/07/97)(ep 2, TX: 17/07/97).

“Doctor Who Watched This Week”……

“Marco Polo“, (S1, Prod Code D).  (Loose Cannon Recon for all eps).  Ep 6, “Mighty Kublai Khan”, (TX: 28/03/64).  Ep 7, “Assassin At Peking”, (TX: 04/04/64).

“The Keys Of Marinus”, (S1, Prod Code E).  Ep 1, “The Sea Of Death”, (TX: 11/04/64). Ep 2, “The Velvet Web”, (TX: 18/04/64).  Ep 3, “The Screaming Jungle”, (TX: 25/04/64).  Ep 4, “The Snows Of Terror”, (TX: 02/05/64).  Ep 5, “Sentence Of Death”, (TX: 09/05/64).  Ep 6, “The Keys Of Marinus”, (TX: 16/05/64).

This week I have listening to:

“30 Animals That Made Us Smarter”, (BBC World Service/Sounds)(S2, ep 25, 14/12/21).  “Coronavirus Global Update”, (BBC World Service/Sounds)(11/12/21) (12/12/21)(13/12/21)(14/12/21)(15/12/21)(16/12/21)(17/12/21).  “Anglophilia”, (S6, ep 2, 15/12/21).  “Doctor Who: Toby Hadoke’s Time Travels – Happy Times And Places”, (27.5, “The Time Monster”, 13/12/21)(27.6, 17/12/21).  “Griefcast”, (S8, ep 11 (ep 159) 15/12/21).   “Maximum Power  –  A Blake’s 7 Podcast”, (SA, ep 13, 12/12/21).  “Mystery Hour”, (16/12/21).  “NASA Curious Universe”, (15/12/21).  “NASA Houston We Have A Podcast”, (ep 225, 17/12/21).  “Nick Abbot Whole Show”, (11/12/21)(12/12/21) (17/12/21).  “Radio Astronomy (The Sky At Night Magazine)”, (21/07/17)(28/04/21). “Radio Times Doctor Who Podcast”, (12/12/21).   “Rob Beckett And Josh Widdecombe Parenting Hell”, (S3, ep 44, 10/12/21)(ep 45, 15/12/21)(ep 46, 17/12/21).   “Smersh Pod – Gremlins”, (16/12/21).  “Smersh Pod – Smersh Side Special  – On The Buses”, (13/09/17).  “Smersh Pod – Smersh Side Special – Robin Hood Prince Of Thieves”, (10/08/17).  “Space And Things”, (STP19, 07/01/21)(STP68, 16/12/21).  “Space Boffins”, (15/12/21).  “Space Soldiers Podcast – Flash Gordon Conquers The Universe”, (Chapter Twelve, “Doom Of The Dictator”, 11/12/21).  “Star Trek Universe”, (11/01/19). “The Audio Guide To Babylon 5”, (ep 57, 10/07/16).  “The Doctor Who Show”, (11/12/21).  “The Froth With Rhod Gilbert And Sian Harries”, (S4, ep 12(ep 48) 15/12/21).  “The Incomparable”, (The Incomparable Network)(ep 592, 12/12/21).  “The Skewer”, (BBC Radio 4/Sounds)(S5, ep 7, 15/11/21).  “Tripodscast”, (ep 5A, 11/12/21). “What’s Your Problem With Nick Abbot And Carol Mcgiffin”, (12/12/21).  “Wolf And Owl”, (ep 54, 15/12/21).

Songs I Enjoyed This Week, Were By:

“Morrissey”,  “Andy Williams”,  “Band Aid (1984)”,  “Climie Fisher”,  “East 17”,  “Elton John”,  “John Lennon And Yoko Ono The Plastic Ono Band With The Harlem Community Choir”,  “Johnny Mathis”,  “Jona Lewie”,  “Joy Crookes”,  “Keane”,  “Nat King Cole”,  “Peter Bjorn And John“Pulp”,  “Suede”,  “The Beautiful South”,  “The Pogues ft Kirsty MacColl”,  “The Waitresses”,  “The Zutons”.  “Wham”.      

Misfits Mid-Life Crisis Adventures in East London, Surrey, Northamptonshire and Suffolk.

This blog Week 390 start the 10 week countdown to the end of my Mid-Life Crisis. This ramble will end when Week 400 is reached mid February next year.

And Now On With The Ramble…..

This Crimbo (hopefully) the family will all be meeting up for the first time in 2 years. Many of us has been given a specific job or tasks, mine is Cheese and Biscuits. I am the official family Ambassador or Representative responsible for bringing a variety of dairy, vegetarian and Vegan alternatives to the party that can be spread or placed on top of a tasty biscuit.

This is a job that I am taking very seriously and have already purchased a number of different types of bickie (don’t worry Twiglets are included), olives and chutneys. All the cheeses will be bought next week. I realise I am running the risk of certain popular festive cheeses being out of stock because so many others will also have been tasked with the same responsibility and have bought early.

Now that we are well into December I am finally feeling a little more Crimbley, seeing strings of lights all over the place has even melted my icey attitude about when Crimbo should start. Don’t worry on the actual day I will be full of festive sprit, the empty bottles and cans scattered around will be proof of my enjoyment.

And Now For Something Completely Different……

The car has been making a scraping noises these last couple of weeks when going over bumps, lumps (sleeping policemen) placed to control the speed of traffic or the many potholes which appear to have been forgotten during the last 21 months that are just getting bigger and bigger on UK roads.

The scraping started to be more noticeable last weekend, because I have a lot of driving over the next few weeks (remember I have a lot of cheese to buy) I decided to drop the car off at the local garage that I have used many times over the last 5 years.

I don’t consider that I have OCD, but for a long time I have made a note of any mileage done even stating the location arrived at. The current little black book has been written in since this car came into my friends and my life.

When I picked up the car, it was explained what had been fixed but I cant remember what was said. What was interesting was when I looked at my little book there was 15 extra miles on the clock. I immediately pictured the car speeding out of the back door just as it did in the classic 80s film “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off”. Seriously I am not suggesting that anything illegal took place, but 15 miles is a lot. Maybe the car had been sat on a rolling road (I knew watching 31 series of Top Gear would become useful eventually) as the miles ticked by. In reality I suspect the vehicle had been taken on a test drive on local terrible roads. If over the coming weeks I see on BBC news that a car of the same description was used in something illegal then I may have to worry. Of course maybe the mechanic had to pop out and buy lots of cheese.

I am very pleased to confirm that the car sounds as I remember it, I am really looking forward to the many happy miles over the coming weeks to visit family so I can watch them enjoy the Cheese and Biscuits spread I present them.

Something a little extra……

My sister and a friend held a joint B’day party, it was a lovely evening seeing people I have not seen for a long time. What was so exciting was that I had my hair and make up done professionally. I used to mess around each morning or work plastering my face with slap, until one day I realised how much sleep I was missing out on before travelling into work. As you can see my opinion of make up changed a long time before the pandemic.

Yes I am not a make up gal, but if someone wants to do it for me then I am more than happy to sit still for an hour or so. This latest experience was just as pleasant as the previous. The important thing I needed to remember was not to touch my face or hair before the party.

The party was a joy, I saw many people I had not seen all this year (or longer) I suspect the make up wouldn’t have been missed if I had not bothered, but I am glad I did. But I wont be doing it every morning, unless I can have a make up artist on call.

And Finally……

Heard a parent say to a child as they passed, “you shouldn’t have burped in front of father Crimbo”. The child just laughed.

What I Watched This Week……

“Alias”, (S1, ep 19 & ep 20). “Blythe Sprit”, (2021). “Britney”, (BBC Three Pilot)(TX: 30/11/21). “Click”, (TX: 04/12/22). “Cowboy Bebop”, (S1, ep 6). “Elves”, (S1, ep 2). “Fort Salaam”, (S2, ep 8 to ep 10). “Grimm”, (S1, ep 9 & ep 10). “Hanna”, (S3, ep 4). “Have I got News For You”, (S62, ep 9, TX: 10/12/21). “Horizon: The Sheep That Changed The Earth”, (TX: 23/11/21). “Horizon: The Trouble With Space Junk”, (2014-2015, ep 13, TX: 05/08/15). “How Its Made”, (S26, ep 5, TX: 08/10/15). “Lexx”, (S2, ep 10). “Lost In Space (2021)”, (S3, ep 3). “Stargate Atlantis”, (S3, ep 18 to ep 20)(S4, ep 1). “Star Trek (Animated Series)”, (S2, ep 4). “Superman And Lois”, (S1, ep 1 ep 2). “The Graham Norton Show”, (S29, ep 11, TX: 10/12/21). “The I-Land”, (S1, ep 3). “The Last Leg”, (S23, ep 9, TX: 10/12/21). “The Orville”, (S2, ep 13 & ep 14). “The Tomorrow People (1970s)“, (S3,“Secret Weapon”, ep 2, TX: 05/03/75)(ep 3, TX: 12/03/75). “The Walking Dead World Beyond”, (S2, ep 2 & ep 3). “Top Gear”, (S31, ep 4, TX: 05/12/21). “You”, (S1, ep 1 to ep 6). “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”, (S8, ep 12, TX: 06/12/96)(S9, ep 12 Compilation 2, TX: 24/12/97).

Doctor Who Watched This Week……

“The Edge Of Destruction “, (S1, Prod Code C). Ep 1, “The Edge Of Destruction”, (TX: 08/02/64). Ep 2, “The Brink Of Disaster”, (TX: 15/02/64).

“Marco Polo”, (S1, Prod Code D). (Loose Cannon Recon for all eps). Ep 1, “The Roof Of The World”, (TX: 22/02/64). Ep 2, “The Singing Sands”, (TX: 29/02/64). Ep 3, “Five Hundred Eyes”, (TX: 07/03/64). Ep 4, “The Wall Of Lies”, (TX: 14/03/21). Ep 5, “The Rider From Shang- Tu”, (TX: 21/03/64).

“Flux: The Vanquishers”, (13 (S39 since 1963), Chapter Six, TX: 05/12/21).

What I Listened To This Week……

“30 Animals That Made Us Smarter”, (BBC World Service/Sounds)(06/12/21). “Clinton Baptiste Paranormal Podcast – Crimbo Special 2021”, (10/12/21). “Coronavirus Global Update”, (BBC World Service/Sounds)(04/12/21)(05/12/21)(06/22/21)(07/12/21)(08/12/21)(09/12/21)(10/12/21). “Doctor Who Flashcast”, (S13, ep 1, 31/10/21). “Doctor Who: Toby Hadoke’s Time Travels -Happy Times And Places”, (27.3, “The Time Monster”, 06/12/21)(27.4, “The Time Monster”, 10/12/21). “Farscape (Muppets In Space)”, (The Incomparable)(09/12/21). “Game Of Thrones”, (The Incomparable/TeeVee)(S7, ep 3, 31/07/17). “Griefcast”, (S8, ep 10 (ep 158) 08/12/21). “Maximum Power – A Blake’s 7 Podcast”, (SA, 05/12/21). “Mystery Hour”, (09/12/21). “NASA Curious Universe”, (06/12/21). “NASA Houston We Have A Podcast”, (ep 224, 10/12/21). “Nick Abbot Whole Show”, (04/12/21)(05/12/21)(10/12/21). “Rob Beckett And Josh Widdecombe Parenting Hell”, (S3, ep 43, 07/12/21). “Smerch Pod – Side special”, (02/04/17)(11/07/17). “Smersh Pod – Thunderball”, (Pt 1, 19/07/21)(Pt 2, 20/07/21). “Smersh Pod – Tomorrow Never Dies”, (Pt 1, 29/03/21)(Pt 2, 30/03/21). “Space And Things”, (STP67, 09/12/21). “Space Soldiers Flash Gordon’s Conquers The Universe”, (Chapter Eleven, “Stark Treachery”, 04/12/21). “Star Trek Universe Podcast”, (16/06/21)(09/12/21). “The Adam Buxton Podcast”, (ep 171, 07/12/21). “The Audio Guide To Babylon 5”, (ep 56, 26/06/16). “The Doctor Who Show”, (23/09/15)(06/12/21). “The Friendship Onion”, (S1, ep 30, 07/12/21). “The Froth With Rhod Gilbert And Sian Harries”, (S4, ep 11 (ep 47), 07/12/21). “The Nick Abbot Habit”, (06/12/21). “The Radio Times Doctor Who Podcast”, (05/12/21). “The Space Above Us”, (ep 148, 09/12/21). “The Skewer”, (BBC Radio 4/Sounds)(S5, ep 6, 08/12/21). “WTB”, (S3, ep 17 (ep 60), 10/12/21). “What’s Your Problem With Nick Abbot And Carol Mcgiffin“, (06/12/21). “Wolf And Owl”, (ep 53, 08/12/21)(Bonus #24, 10/12/21).

The Music I Listened To This Week……

“Morrissey”, ABBA”, “Artic Monkeys”, “Athlete”, “Baccara”, “Band Aid (1984)”, “Boney M”, “Death In Vegas”, “Delays”, “East 17”, “Echobelly”, “Elastica”, “Fine Young Cannibals”, “Foster The People”, “Hole”, “Kasabian”, “Pet Shop Boys ft Dusty Springfield”, “Peter Bjorn And John”, “Pulp”, “Supergrass”, “St Etienne Ft Tim Burgess”, “The Darkness”, “The Pretenders”, “Travis”.

Misfits Mid-Life Crisis Adventures in East And Central London, Essex & Suffolk.

Week 389, Saturday 27^th November until Friday 3^rd December 2021.

Happy Bbay, MOZ, Hel and SAZ all on the same day.

If this is your first visit to this blog or ramble as I like to call it, you will notice at the bottom a list of entertainment I have enjoyed this last week.  At the top of the list of TV and Film enjoyed over the last week, if only there were qualifications for watching TV I would be regarded as an expert.  The current series/season of new Doctor Who is nearing its end (when this is published, the final episode will have been broadcast) this is a programme I love and always try to watch for the first time live.  This is because I fool myself that my viewing counts towards the national ratings of how many people actually viewed the programme.  Of course it doesn’t, sadly it makes no difference when I watch the episode, I have no influence at all.

Television ratings in the UK are collected by an organisation called BARB (Broadcaster’s Audience Research Board) which has been around since 1981.  To collect information about what programme have been enjoyed over the past seven days BARB use a major market research company to speak to 1000 individuals asking them various questions about their recent viewing habits.  They also speak to people in the Television industry asking their opinion about what they viewed.  However the main way that numbers are collected is with the help of about 5000 members of the public who have a metre attached to their Television (there is also software that can be used to register when a programme is watched on a Computers and other mobile devices).  These panel members also note if there is a visitor and if anyone leaves the room while the programme is being aired.  The stats are then collated by a clever system and the figure is published, I am not going to look this up as I suspect I won’t be able to describe it very well for the process to make sense.

In all the years that I have watched TV, spoken to others who watch the magic box in the corner of the room I have never met a person that is part of the official ratings panel.  This changed while sitting in a theatre waiting for a live comedy show to start, a friend I have known for years casually mentioned that there viewing habits are registered and are used as part of the official figures.  How and why has this not come up in conversation before, they know I am obsessed with TV.  There was so much I wanted to ask, but the comedy show which had been cancelled a couple of times over the last 20 months suddenly started.  The 1500 strong audience probably wouldn’t be pleased if I stood up and asked the comedian in the middle of the stage if he could give me another few minutes to discuss TV with a friend.

It’s only now I realise that we didn’t discuss this issue further.  But I promise the next time we speak in person or virtually I will bend there ear because I am extremely interested.  The most important fact I did confirm is that they watch Doctor Who live, so there viewing does count towards the official overnight ratings.  If they didn’t then the comedy gig wouldn’t have started, we would still be sitting in row H with every set of eyes in the auditorium turned towards us waiting for me to shut up.

I don’t do a lot of research; maybe I should have a look and see if I can become part of this very special but important club.  I wonder if anyone has registered more than once to bump up the ratings of programmes they love, there is always a loophole.

By the way the show with Henning Wehn was very funny, I laughed a lot.

And Now For Something Completely Different…….

As mentioned at the very top of the ramble it was my best friend and sisters (twins) B’day on the same day last week.  To celebrate I took my friend on a 120 mile (240 in total) road trip to my favourite place in England Southwold, a seaside town I know well.  Sadly I didn’t think this through because normally the family and I visit end of October when the weather is still good, plus I am lucky and don’t really feel the cold.  This of course was early December, it was dark and wet plus my friend really feels the cold.  When we parked beside the Lighthouse it was hailing, a couple of people during the few hours we the town had snow early morning.  I love the place and have raved each time I return to my friend, desperate for her to love it as much as I do.  I can confirm that she did have a nice time, but it was just far to cold to just mooch around.  In the future I have to plan these trips better and take her there when the yellow fiery ball in the sky makes one of its rare appearances.

I think the meal in the pub, and coffee and cake later on helped warm her up and pleased her the most during the day.

My Mid Life Crisis Conts……

This week I have watched:

“Aladdin”, (2019).  “Alias”, (S1, ep 18).  “Babylon 5”, (S1, ep 10).  “Blake’s 7”, (SC, ep 7).  “Click”, (TX: 27/11/21).  “Cowboy Bebop”, (S1, ep 5).  “Dads Army”, (S3, ep 10, “Menace From The Deep”, TX: 13/11/69).  “Elves”, (S1, ep 1).  “Flightplan”, (2005).  “Fort Salaam”, (S2, ep 7).  “Full Ride On The Shuttle (STS135) Booster”, (Facebook)(TX: 01/12/21).  “Giant Whale Approaches Unsuspecting Paddle Boarder”, (Facebook)(TX: 07/10/21).  “Hanna”, (S3, ep 3).  “Have I Got News For You”, (S62, ep 7, TX: 26/11/21)(ep 8, TX: 03/12/21).  “How ‘No Time To Die’ Pulled Off James Bond’s Opening Chase (Entertainment Insider)”, (Facebook)(TX: 01/11/21).  “Lexx”, (S2, ep 9).  “Lost In Space (2021)”, (S3, ep 1 & ep 2).  “Miriam And Alan Lost In Scotland”, (S1, ep 3, TX: 30/11/21).  “Spitting Image Crimbum 2021 Special”, (TX: 03/12/21).  “Star Trek (Animated Series)”, (S2, ep 3).  “The I – Land”, (S1, ep 1 & ep 2).  “The Graham Norton Show”, (S29, ep 10, TX: 03/12/21).  “The Jonathan Ross Show”, (S18, ep 6, TX: 27/11/21).  “The Lakes With Simon Reeves”, (S1, ep 3, TX: 28/11/21).  “The Last Leg”, (S23, ep 9, TX: 26/11/21)(ep 10, TX: 03/12/21).  “The Lighthouse”, (2019).  “The Orville”, (S2, ep 12).  “The Vanishing”, (2018).  “The Walking Dead: World Beyond”, (S2, ep 1).  “The Wheel Of Time”, (Trailer).  “Top Gear”, (S31, ep 3, TX: 28/11/21).  “US Navy Railgun – Their Most Powerful Weapon”, (Facebook)(TX: 06/11/21).  “Whose Line Is It Anyway”, (S2, ep 1, TX: 10/11/89)(ep 7, TX: 29/12/89)(ep 13, 16/02/90)(ep 15, TX: 02/03/90)(S8, ep 2, TX: 19/07/96)(ep 6, TX: 16/08/96)(ep 7, TX: 23/08/96)(ep 8, TX: 30/08/96)(ep 9, TX: 06/09/96)(ep 10, TX: 13/09/96)(ep 11, TX: 20/09/96).

“Doctor Who Watched This Week”……

“The Daleks“, (S1, Prod Code B).  Ep 1, “The Dead Planet”, (TX: 21/12/63).  Ep 2, “The Survivors”, (TX: 28/12/63).  Ep 3, “The Escape “, (TX: 04/01/64).  Ep4, “The Ambush”, (TX: 11/01/64).  Ep 5, “The Expedition”, (TX: 18/01/64).  Ep 6, “The Ordeal”, (TX: 25/01/64).  Ep 7, “The Rescue”, (TX: 01/02/64).

“Flux: Survivors Of The Flux”, (13 (S39 since 1963), Chapter Five, TX: 28/11/21).

Live On Stage This Week:

“Henning When: It’ll All Come Out In The Wash”, (The Clifftown Theatre, Southend-on-Sea).

This week I have listening To:

“30 Animals That Made Us Smarter”, (BBC World Service/Sounds)(S2, ep 23, 29/11/21).  “Coronavirus Global Update”, (BBC World Service/Sounds)(27/11/21) (28/11/21)(29/11/21) (30/11/21)(01/12/21)(02/12/21)(03/12/21).  “Doctor Who: Toby Hadoke’s Time Travels – Happy Times And Places”, (27.1, “The Time Monster”, 29/11/21)(27.2, 03/12/21).  “Griefcast”, (S8, ep 9 (157) 30/11/21).  “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Buddha”, (ep 46, 03/12/21).  “Maximum Power – A Blake’s 7 Podcast”, (SA, ep 10, 28/11/21).  “Mystery Hour”, (02/12/21).  “NASA Curious Universe”, (29/11/21).  “NASA Gravity Assist”, (03/12/21).  “NASA Houston We Have A Podcast”, (ep 223, 03/12/21).  “Nick Abbot Whole Show”, (27/11/21)(28/11/21).  “Rob Beckett And Josh Widdecombe Parenting Hell”, (S3, ep 41, 30/11/21)(ep 42, 03/12/21).  “Radio Astronomy (The Sky At Night Magazine)”, (02/12/21).  “Radio Times Doctor Who Podcast”, (28/11/21).  “Smersh Pod – You only Live Twice“, (Pt 1, 01/03/21)(Pt 2, 02/03/21).  “Space And Things”, (STP18, 31/12/20)(STP66, 02/12/21).  “Space Soldiers Podcast – Flash Gordon Conquers The Universe”, (Chapter Ten,“The Death Mist”, 27/11/21).  “Star Trek Universe”, (30/11/21).  “The Doctor Who Show”, (29/11/21).  “The Friendship Onion”, (S1, ep 29, 29/11/21).  “The Froth With Rhod Gilbert And Sian Harries”, (S4, ep 10 (ep 46), 30/11/21).  “The Nick Abbot Habit”, (29/11/21).  “The Old Doctor Who Show”, (ep 121, 01/12/21).  “The Skewer”, (BBC Radio 4/Sounds)(S5, ep 5, 01/12/21).   “Tripodscast”, (ep 4, 27/11/21).  “WTB”, (S3, ep 16 (ep 59), 03/12/21).  “Wolf And Owl”, (ep 52, 01/12/21).  “What’s Your Problem With Nick Abbot And Carol Mcgiffin”, (29/11/21).

Songs I Enjoyed This Week, Were By:

“Morrissey”,  “ABC”,  “Bebox Dulux”,  “Berlinda Carlisle”,  “Black Sabbath”,  “Delia Derbyshire”,  “Iron Maiden”, “My Life Story”,  “Oasis”,  “Queen”,  St Etienne”,  “Talking Heads”,  “Terry, Blair And Anoushka”,  “The Jackson 5”,  “The Smiths”,  “The Temptations”.

Misfits Mid-Life Crisis Adventures in East London & Surrey.

Week 388, Saturday 20^th until Friday 26^th November 2021.

This week I am annoyed (again).  All establishment/business these days no matter what they do have processes and procedures that everyone is still getting used to because of what has happened since early 2020.

For me nothing is more difficult than trying to see the GP.  As with many up and down the country mine is still only doing phone consultations.  This week I thought I should book an appointment, I won’t bore you with what I wanted to talk to the Dr about, unless you are a medical professional of course you know how to contact me.  The earliest phone appointment was 15th December, it was mentioned if I rang at 8am the following morning I might be able to get one of the small number of daily morning slots mainly used for emergencies.  Of course at the time stated I was on the phone which rang and rang and continued to ring for a very long time never being answered.

During lunch I walked to the surgery, hoping there might be a cancellation.  I personally feel it’s easier to sneak into the Tower Of London than enter my Dr’s surgery.  Once through all the doors, the temperature checks, multiple hand sanitiser stations I reached the women who are really in control of the building, the receptionist.  I stood for over 5 minutes being completely (I realise they are busy, but no one even looked up) ignore by the emotionless people behind the counter which with its wall of Perspex across the top.  When I was eventually asked my information (a broken bucket with water** pouring out of it has more emotion than the women I spoke to) this had to be shouted for all to hear, not because of the plastic wall but due to a row of chairs placed against the counter to ensure that you really are many feet from the desk.  Of course the masks don’t help trying to say my name and address.

As expected there was nothing, and now the earliest appointment is December 17th.  All the way home I fumed not about the women but the service.  I really wanted to ask why is this service still like this, when business/establishment are trying to get back to as near as normal while still being careful to protect staff and customers/patients.  Why are surgeries’ not seeing people in person, or more than the tiny number that are In general waiting lists are getting bigger and bigger, people are really suffering.  Personally I feel that NHS has been closed for general everyday medical issues.  Everyone these days blames Covid, it’s the perfect excuse for something not working.  But I believe it’s not just because of the virus, in my uneducated opinion there are a couple of big reasons why the NHS (I just want to make it clear, I am not knocking the service itself) cannot cope.  My main suspicion is the years of government underfunding, and possibly Brexit.  There are possibly other reasons if I sat and thought about it.

A few minutes after I arrived home all hot and bothered, I was on the phone to a famous private health care provider and paid for an appointment in a few days’ time.  Sadly I know a couple of people who have had to go down this route to actually see a human being.  Something’s are really not easy to explain on the phone or show on a web cam.  Local medical services really need to try to get back to normal as best they can.  My surgery wasn’t much good before the pandemic; it usually took between 7 to 10 days to see someone.  I am not expecting this private consultation to be any different to an NHS one, in and out as quickly as possible.  Sadly this is the new normal for many, many people, but only if you can afford it.  What concerns me is all the people who don’t have the money and cannot wait 3 to 4 weeks to be seen.

** My apology to all buckets of water.

And Finally…….

Took my nephew and niece for a walk and a visit to a local coffee shop.  Afterwards they wanted to go home walking through the park in the dark and show me there school which was on the way.  The school glowed brightly because every light was on.  Being curious we approached a classroom, I stopped when I saw the back of women but both the kids reached the window and peered in.  The situation was amusing until I noticed that this person was talking on Zoom.  I suddenly realised this must be the teacher conducting a virtual parents evening.

It wouldn’t have been good if little faces were detected in the background, especially ones pulling funny faces and children who attend the school.  Of course I called them back (I am a responsible adult occasionally) and hurried away glad that we had not been spotted.

My Mid Life Crisis Conts……

This week I have watched:

“Alias”, (S1, ep 15 & ep 16).  “Another Life”, (S2, ep 8).  “Babylon 5”, (S1, ep 9).  “Ben Fogle: New Lives In The Wild”, (S10, ep 1, “Sweden”, TX: 29/10/19)(S11, ep 1, “Iceland”, TX: 07/01/20).  “Blakes 7”, (SC, ep 6).  “Click”, (TX: 19/11/21).  “Christopher Lee On Bela Lugosi”, (YouTube)(TX: 16/10/21).  “Cowboy Bebop”, (2021 live action)(S1, ep 1 to ep 4).  “Directing Doctor Who – Behind The Scenes – Doctor Who: Flux”, (YouTube)(23/11/21).  “Gardeners World:2021”, (ep 30  TX: 22/10/21).  “Final Space”, (S3, ep 7 & ep 8).  “Grimm”, (S1, ep 7 and ep 8).  “Hanna”, (S3, ep 1 & ep 2).  “Miriam And Alan Lost In Scotland”, (S1, ep 2, TX: 23/11/21).  “Rare Star Wars 1977 Alec Guinness Interview On Parkinson Talk Show”, (YouTube)(TX: 05/09/14).  “Saloms Lot”, (1979)(Pt 1 & Pt 2).  “Sort Your Life Out”, (S1, ep 4, TX: 25/11/21).  “Space 2099 Clip Reel – Marketing Trailer”, (YouTube)(TX: 15/04/19).  “Space 2099 Opening Credits (Updated)”, (YouTube)(TX: 25/09/21).  “Star Trek (Animated Series)”, (S2, ep 1 & ep 2).  “Stargate Atlantis”, (S3, ep 15 to ep 17).  “Taskmaster”, (S12 (S3 on C4), ep 10, TX: 25/11/21).  “The Bureau Of Magical Things”, (S1, ep 17 to ep 20).  “The Golden Girls “, (S7, ep 15 to 26).  “The Graham Norton Show”, (S29, ep 9, TX: 26/11/21).  “The Great British Bake Off“, (S12 (S5 on C4) ep 10, “The Final”, TX: 23/11/21).  “The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice”, (S7 (C5 on C4), ep 10, “The Final”, TX: 26/11/21).  “The Lakes With Simon Reeves”, (S1, ep 2, TX: 21/11/21).  “The Last Leg”, (S23, ep 8, TX: 20/11/21).  “The Orville”, (S2, ep 8 to ep 11).  “Top Gear”, (S31, ep 2, TX: 21/11/21).  “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”, (S1, ep 1, TX: 23/09/88)(ep 2, TX: 30/09/88)(S2, ep 3, TX: 24/11/89)(ep 14, TX: 23/02/90).

“Doctor Who Watched This Week”……

“An Unearthly Child, (Unaired Pilot)”, (Prod Code A)(Not Shown On TV Until 26//08/91).

“An Unearthly Child”, (S1, Prod Code A, TX: 23/11/63).  “The Cave Of Skulls”, (TX: 30/11/63).  “The Forest Of Fear”, (TX: 17/12/63). “The Firemaker”, (TX: 14/12/63).

“Flux: Village Of The Angels”, (S13 (S39 Since 1963), Chapter Three, TX: 14/11/21).

“Galaxy 4”, (BBC DVD)(Animated ep 1 to ep 4)(ep 3 original  B&W, TX: 25/09/65, Prod Code T).

This week I have listening to:

“30 Animals That Made Us Smarter”, (BBC World Service/Sounds)(S2, ep 22, 22/11/21).  “Box Of Delights”, (S3, ep 10, 06/03/20).  “Coronavirus Global Update”, (BBC World Service/Sounds) (20/11/21)(21/11/21) (22/11/21) (23/11/21) (24/11/21) (25/11/21)(26/11/21).  “Don’t You Want Me?”, (S1, ep 9, 18/11/21)(ep 10, 25/11/21).  “Griefcast”, (ep 156, 24/11/21).  “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Buddha, (ep 45, 26/11/21).  “Maximum Power: A Blake’s 7 Podcast”, (SA, ep 10, 22/11/21).  “Mystery Hour”, (22/11/21)(25/11/21).  “NASA Curious Universe”, (23/11/21).  “NASA Gravity Assist”, (19/11/21).  “Nick Abbot Whole Show”, (20/11/21)(21/11/21)(26/11/21).  “Radio Astronomy (The Sky At Night Magazine)”, (25/11/21).  “Radio Times Doctor Who Podcast”, (21/11/21).  “Rob Beckett And Josh Widdecombe Parenting Hell”, (S3, ep 39, 23/11/21)(ep 40, 26/11/21).  “Smersh Pod – The Spy Who Loved Me”, (Pt 1, 18/01/21)(Pt 2, 19/01/21).  “Space And Things”, (STP17, 24/12/20)(STP65, 25/11/21).  “Space Boffins”, (22/11/21).  “Space Soldiers Podcast – Flash Gordon Conquers The Universe”, (Chapter Nine, “The Pool Of Peril”, 20/11/21).  “Star Trek Universe Podcast”, (22/11/21)(23/11/21).  “The Adam Buxton Podcast”, (ep 170, 26/11/21).  “The Audio Guide To Babylon 5”, (the Incomparable)(ep 55, 16/06/16).  “The Doctor Who Show”, (01/11/21)(08/11/21)(22/11/21).  “The Friendship Onion”, (S1, ep 27, 19/11/21)(ep 28, 23/11/21).  “The Froth With Rhod Gilbert And Sian Harries”, (S4, ep 9(ep 45), 23/11/21).  “The Incomparable”, (The Incomparable Network)(ep 589, 14/11/21).  “The Nick Abbot Habit”, (22/11/21).  “The Skewer”, (BBC Radio 4/Sounds)(S5, ep 4, 25/11/21).  “The Spaces Above Us”, (ep 147, 25/11/21).  “The Supermassive Podcast”, (ep 23, 26/11/21).  “Toby Hadoke’s Far Too Much Information (Bonus Minisode) – Class Of 63”, (23/11/21).  “Toby Hadoke’s Time Travels  – Happy Times And Places”, (26.1, “Love And Monsters”, 26/11/21).  “Toby Hadoke’s Time Travels – Too Much Information”, (2.3, 22/11/21).  “WTB”, (S3, ep 15 (ep 58), 26/11/21).  “What’s Your Problem With Nick Abbot And Carol Mcgiffin, (15/11/21)(22/11/21).  “Wolf And Owl”, (ep 51, 24/11/21)(Bonus #23, 26/11/21).

Songs I Enjoyed This Week, Were By:

“Morrissey”,  “Brian Eno”,  “David Bowie”,  “Diana Ross”,  “Divinyls”,  “Don McLean”, “ELO”,  “EMF”,  “Elbow”,  “First Aid Kit”, “Gorillaz”,  “Lorde”,  “Nick Cave  And The Bad Seeds”,  “Pixes”,  “Sleeper”,  “The Bluetones”,.

Misfits Mid-Life Crisis Adventures in East London & Surrey.

Week 387, Saturday 13^th until Friday 19^th November 2021.

Before I start this ramble, I wanted to say I know there are many more important things to be annoyed about, the state of the planet including the environment, famine, war and diseases.  The way people in power seem to do what they like, with their fingers constantly in the till hoping that we won’t notice.

This week I got annoyed by television.  This will sound sad but I fondly remember the days of just 3 channels BBC 1, 2 and ITV when I was growing up.  If a programme was missed I would have to hope for a repeat in a couple of years or just get over it.  Terrestrial TV changed In 1982 when Channel 4 and 1997 with Channel 5 coming on to the scene to shake things up.  Old fashioned terrestrial TV’s days were number after the explosion of cable and satellite TV in the late 80s early 90s, which embraced technology (The Internet) this would eventually lead to digital broadcasting.  When I think of this type of television the biggest name in my opinion has to be SKY TV.  I don’t know this as a fact, but they must be the biggest of the multi-platform channel provider in the UK.

My first experience of so many channels that I didn’t know what to watch happened when I visited Canada in 1988.  As a fan of the magic box in the corner of the living room I was immediately hypnotised by the choice.  I’m surprised I saw any of that beautiful country because of the TV in my aunts flat.

Home Entertainment evolved again a few years ago when streaming services appeared.  I am now personally paying (no one’s forcing me, I realise) for a number of different services on top of the TV licence fee and the general satellite package that allows me to view what is considered a basic package of more than a hundred channels most I will never actually watch.  

Why am I boring you with this you ask?  This week Star Trek Discovery, series 4 was due to premiere on Thursday 18th November on Netflix .  Like a lot of people I discovered Star Trek in the 70s and have watched and re-watched (a number of times) every new series.  Two days before the new season was due to start news broke that the series had been pulled from the streaming giant in the UK and other territories because Paramount who own the rights want to stream it on their new service next year.  A couple of months ago all Trek disappeared in the US, so I am not totally surprised it happened here.  At the time of writing all the other older series are still available to watch for us at the moment it’s only Discovery.  Amazon Prime currently holds the rights in the UK to show Trek series, Picard and Lower Decks.  Series 2 of Picard is due in February 22, I don’t know if this will also only be viewable on the new Paramount+ when it becomes available, I wouldn’t surprise me if it did.  I understand why Paramount are doing this they want a slice of the extremely lucrative streaming pie.

I really was looking forward to the further adventures of the USS Discovery crew this week.  As I mentioned above, this is all about money, personally I think Paramount should be ashamed about the way they have dealt with this.  They already earn a huge amount of money from all the licensing of the thousands of Trek products, do they really need more.  Of course they do, streaming really is the future of home entertainment until a new technology comes alone.

As I mentioned I do miss the small number of TV channels I was exposed to as a child.  These days we are all Television programme controllers, who decide what and when we view something.  I very rarely watch live TV anymore.  One day I will schedule new Star Trek Discovery into my own personal channel on regular repeat.  If anyone wants to subscribe to my channel I am sure I can do you a special deal, you know where to contact me.  I won’t be in it for the money, honest.

And Finally…….

This week I said a little too loudly when out, “everything but the green”.  A couple heard as they walked past, I noticed a slight side glance back from one of the of people as they hurried away.  Not sure what they thought I was talking about, they didn’t appear to be old enough to remember “Everything But the Girl” in the 80s and 90s.  Or perhaps they thought I was talking about a certain green herb that a lot of people near the local tube station like to smoke.  

Its times like that I wish I had the confidence to have gone after them to reassure them all I was confirming was that evening I would put out the black and orange bin for the next morning.  The green garden waste was not due to be collected until next week.  See all very honest, but that’s how I worry what others think.  It would be better if I spoke a little quieter in future.

My Mid Life Crisis Conts……

This week I have watched:

“Alias”, (S1, ep 14).  “Another Life”, (S2, ep 7).  “BBC Children In Need: 2021″, (TX: 19/11/21)(I dipped in and out of the main programme).  “BBC Children In Need: 24hr Drumathon (With Owain Wyn Evans)”, (BBC Iplayer Live)(TX: 12/11/21).  “Children In Need: Sophie Ellis-Bextor’s Kitchen Disco Danceathon”, (BBC Iplayer Live)(TX: 16/11/21)(I dipped in to both challenges many times during the 24hrs). “Babylon 5”, (S1, ep 7 & ep 8). “Blake’s 7”, (SC, ep 5).  “Ciao Alberto”, (2021).  “Click”, (13/11/21).  “Crimson Peak”, (2015).  “Enchanted”, (2007).  “Fort Salaam”, (S2, ep 6).  “Grimm”, (S1, ep 6).  “Have I Got For You”, (S62, ep 6, TX: 12/11/21).  “Hunting The Essex Lorry Killers”, (TX: 10/10/21).   “Jungle Cruise”, (2021).  “Lexx”, (S2, ep 8).  “Miriam And Alan: Lost In Scotland”, (S1, ep 1, TX: 16/11/21).  “Missions”, (S2, ep 9 & ep 10).  “Predestination”, (2013).  “Star Trek (Original Series)”, (S3, ep 22 to ep 24).  “Stargate Atlantis”, (S3, ep 12 & ep 13).  “Strictly Come Dancing: The Results”, (S19, ep 8, TX: 14/11/21).  “Tangled”, (2010).  “Taskmaster”, (S12 (S3 on C4), ep 9, TX: 18/11/21).  “Thaddea Graham (Talking about Bel in Doctor Who Flux)”, (Twitter)(TX: 15/11/21).  “The Great British Bake Off”, (S12 (S5 on C4), ep 9, TX: 16/11/21).  “The Great British Bake Off: An Extra Slice”, (S7 (S5  on C4) ep 8, TX:12/11/21)(ep 9, TX: 19/11/21).  “The Golden Girls”, (S6, ep 23 to ep 26)(S7, ep 1 to ep 14).  “The Graham Norton Show”, (S29, ep 8, TX: 12/11/21).   “The Lakes With Simon Reeve”, (S1, ep 1, TX: 14/11/21). “The Last Leg”, (S23, ep 7, TX: 12/11/21).  “The Orville”, (S2, ep 5 to ep 7).  “The Sky At Night”, (TX: 14/11/21).  “Universe”, (S1, ep 4 & ep 5, TX: 27/10/21).  “University Challenge: Children In Need Special”, (TX: 19/11/21).  “Top Gear”, (S31, ep 1, TX: 14/11/21).  “V War”, (S1, ep 9 & ep 10).  “Van Helsing”, (S5, ep 12 & ep 13).  “What We Do In The Shadows”, (S3, ep 8 to ep 10).  “Whose Line Is It Anyway?”, (S8, ep 4, TX: 02/08/96).

“Doctor Who Watched This Week”……

“Flux: Chapter Three: Once, Upon Time”, (S13 (S39 since 1963), Chapter Three, TX: 14/11/210).

“Olaf Presents”……

 “The Little Mermaid”,  “Moana”,  “The Lion King”,  “Aladdin”,  “Tangled”, (All TX: 12/11/21).

This week I have listening to:

“30 Animals That Made Us Smarter”, (BBC World Service/Sounds)(S2, ep 21, 15/11/21).  “Brian And Roger”, (S5, ep 8, 17/11/21).  “Coronavirus Global Update”, (BBC World Service/Sounds)(12/11/21) (13/11/21) (14/11/21) (15/11/21) (16/11/21) (17/11/21) (18/11/21) (19/11/21).  “Farscape (Muppets In Space)”, (The Incomparable) (17/11/21).  “Griefcast”, (S8, ep 7 (ep 155), 17/12/21).  “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Buddha”, (ep 44, 19/11/21).  “Maximum Power A Blake’s 7 Podcast”, (SA, ep 9, 14/11/21).  “NASA: Houston We Have A Podcast”, (ep 221, 12/11/21)(ep 222, 19/11/21).  “NASA’s Curious Universe”, (Mini Episode, 16/11/21).  “Nick Abbot Whole Show”, (12/11/21)(13/11/21)(14/11/21)(19/11/21).  “Radio Astronomy (The Sky At Night Magazine)”, (08/11/16)(18/11/21).  “Rob Beckett And Josh Widdecombe Parenting Hell”, (S3, ep 36, 12/11/21)(ep 37, 16/11/21)(ep 38, 19/11/21).  “Smersh Pod – License To Kill”, (Pt 1, 26/10/20)(Pt 2, 27/10/21).  “Smersh Pod – No Time To Die”, (Pt 1, 17/11/21 (Pt 2, 18/11/21).  “Space And Things”, (STP15, 10/12/20)(STP16, 17/12/20)(STP64, 18/11/21).  “Space Soldiers – Flash Gordon Conquers The Universe”, (Chapter Eight, “The Fiery Abyss”, 13/11/21).  “Star Trek Universe”, (07/01/19)(16/11/21).  “The Adam Buxton Podcast “, (ep 169, 18/11/21).  “The Audio Guide To Babylon 5”, (ep 54, 29/05/16).  “The Doctor Who Show”, (15/11/21).  “The Froth with Rhod Gilbert And Sian Harries”, (S4, ep 8 (ep 44), 16/11/21).  “The Nick Abbot Habit”, (15/11/21).  “The Radio Times: Doctor Who Podcast”, (01/11/21)(08/11/21) (15/11/21).  “The Skewer”, (BBC Radio 4/Sounds)(S5, ep 3, 18/11/21).  “Toby Hadoke’s Time Travels- Indefinable Magic”, (11, 19/11/21).  “Tripodscast”, (Trailer)(ep 1, 16/10/21)(ep 2, 30/10/21)(ep 3, 13/11/21).  “WTB”, (S3, ep 14 (ep 57), 19/11/21).  “Wolf And Owl”, (ep 50, 17/11/21).

Songs I Enjoyed This Week, Were By:

“Morrissey”, “Blur”, “Cast”, “Catatonia”, “Embrace”, “Garbage”, “James”, “James Blunt”, “Longpigs”, “Manic Street Preachers”, “Mansun”, “Muse”, “R.E.M”, Rupublica”, “St Etienne”,  “Shed Seven”,  “Space”,  “The B52s”,  “The Good, The Bad & The Queen”,  “The Lightning Seeds”,  “The Sugarcubes”,  “The Wannadies”.

Misfits Mid-Life Crisis Adventures in East London.

Week 386, Saturday 6^th until Friday 12^th November 2021.

This last week many of the big budget Crimbum TV adverts have started to be shown, I am sure that this is earlier than normal.  The Retail sector of course has been badly affected over the last 20 months, so I understand why they are reminding people that they have lots of cheap tatt at extortionate prices waiting to be taken home.  In shops shelves have been bulging with glittery rubbish since late August, this gets earlier each year.  When the commercials appear, if I cannot fast forward them, I turn over for a few minutes or mute them.  Personally, I don’t want to be hearing Crimbum carols this early.  At the time of writing, I haven’t heard a festive pop song in the shops, but I suspect it won’t be long.  I love a number of Seasonal pop songs, what makes them special is the fact that they I would only hear a couple of times a year.  Hearing them for longer ruins their appeal.  

There are even a couple of houses nearby that have chains of coloured light all over the outside of the house.  They could of course have been put up for another religious celebration, but because they have remained up, I suspect they will be up until early January now.  Even my icy heart melts at a small number of lights on the exterior of a building, brighten up these dark afternoons.

I enjoy the season like most others, but everything over the last few years has started earlier and earlier.  Maybe I am a Grinch, to me Crimbum is a couple of days at the end of December a chance to have a few extra days off work, eats lots and watch even more trash than I normally do.  If I had little ones maybe my attitude would be different, children are excited from September onwards.  Between now and the end of December I will try not to mention the “C” word again.

Please don’t think I am a misery (any more than normal) I do enjoy that time of the year.  The season lasting longer and longer than it used to makes it less special.  

And Now For Something Completely Different……

I spend a lot of time in the garden feeding birds.  Originally there was one small feeder, 20 months later there are numinous feeding stations hanging around the garden.  I always make sure that there is plenty of food for my flying friends all year round; feeding the birds (and the gang of squirrels) gives me a real sense of satisfaction.  Recently my friend spotted a hedgehog one evening, typically while I was away. Now I regularly go out most evenings walking around with my phone torch hoping to spot a snuffling hog, so far no luck. 

As with most gardens, it tends to be visited by Sparrows, Starlings, Pigeons and various Tits (I haven’t seen a Tit for a while) plus my fave Robin’s.  Last year there were a few one-off special appearances by a Woodpecker, Parrot (there are plenty of them flying around, but this was the first time seeing one on the feeder) and for a few minutes a Kestrel keeping dry under a tree.

The reason I mention all of this is that the neighbours are having work done which has so far lasted a few weeks with the same workmen each day.  One of them has spotted me filling up the feeders every day.  Earlier this week he started to excitedly talk about how he spotted an Eagle in the garden.  Since then, he’s mentions it every time he has seen me saying he has seen it again and again.  There could be one hanging around, but I suspect it’s unlikely.  If there was one, I would expect see bodies of small birds that it had predated.  The garden is also visited by several cats that are always patrolling, working from home and having a view of the garden I would have expected to have seen one or two of them being agitated.

I have only been up close to a bird of prey at county fairs, and they are truly magnificent creatures.  I hope that if there is one locally it doesn’t hang around in the garden watching the workmen, because one of them is keeping an eye out for it and has said that he can get a lot of money for the bird.  It all sounds so sinister, but with the way the building trade has been affected by “You Know What” people are desperate for money anyway they can make it. 

And Finnally…….

Browsing in a book shop, remember them.  A woman started to chat; she liked my Star Wars T-shirt.  She mentioned her hubby did a SW podcast.  I have been trying to remember its name.  When she started to talk, I thought “do I know you”, or did she think I was someone else.  It’s very difficult to read a face when both are masked.

My Mid Life Crisis Conts……

This week I have watched:

“Alias”, (S1, ep 6 to ep 14).  “Another Life”, (S2, ep 6).  “Babylon 5”, (S1, ep 6).  “Beena And Amrit”, (BBC Wales)(Pilot, TX: 08/11/21).  “Blake’s 7”, (SC, ep 4).  “Cell”, (2016).  “Click”, (TX: 06/11/21).  “Grimm”, (S1, ep 3 to ep 5).  “Let The Right One In”, (2008).  “Mammoth”, (BBC Wales)(Pilot, TX 05/11/21).  “Monsters At Work”, (S1, ep 9 & ep 10).  “NASA/SpaceX: Crew 2, launch to ISS”, (NASA TV))(TX: 10/11/21 (early hours 11/11/21 UK Time).  “Propcast Two: The Human Factor”, (Enhanced Podcast Dalek 63▪88)”, (YouTube)(TX: 29/10/21).  “Sort Your Life Out”, (S1, ep 1, TX: 04/11/21).  “Spitting Image”, (Britbox)(S2, ep 9 , TX: 06/11/21).  “Star Trek, (Original Series)”, (S3, ep 21).  “Stargate Atlantis”, (S3, ep 10 & ep 11).  “Taskmaster”, (S12 (S3 on C4), ep 8, TX: 11/11/21).  “The Golden Girls”, (S6, ep 8 to ep 22).  “The Great British Bake Off”, (S12 (S5 on C4), ep 7, TX: 02/11/21)(ep 8, TX: 09/11/21).   “The Great British Bake Off An Extra Slice “, (S7 (S5 on C4), ep 7, TX: 05/11/21).  “The Graham Norton Show”, (S29, ep 7, TX: 05/11/21).  “The Hermit Of Treig”, (BBC Scotland)(TX: 09/11/21).  “The Jonathan Ross Show”, (S18, ep 3, TX: 06/11/21).  “The Kid”, (2000).  “The Loft”, (2014).  “The Night House”, (2021).  “The Orville”, (S3, ep 3 & ep 4).  “The Orville: Season 2 Gag Reel”, (Twitter)(TX: 30/04/19).  “The Outlaws”, (S1, ep 4 to ep 6).  “Twenty Something”, (Pixar, SparkShorts)(2021).  “Van Helsing”, (S5  ep 11).  “What We Do In The Shadows”, (S2, ep 5 to ep 7).  “Worzel Gummidge”,(S2, ep 1, “Guy Forks”, TX: 06/11/21).

“Doctor Who watched this week”……

“Flux: Chapter Two: War Of The Sontarans”, (S13 (S39 since 1963), Chapter Two, TX: 07/11/210).

“Rob & Romesh Vs, Watched This Week……

(S3), “Golf”, (ep 2, TX: 11/02/21), “Drag”, (ep 3, TX: 18/02/21), “Andy Murray”, (TX: 08/07/21).  “Team GB – Part 1”, (TX: 15/07/21), “Team GB – Part 2”, (TX: 22/07/21).  “Almost Everything”, (TX: 29/07/21).  

This week I have listening to:

“30 Animals That Made Us Smarter“(BBC World Service)(S2, ep 20, 08/11/21).  “Box Of Delights”, (S3, ep 9, 03/03/20).  “ Brian and Roger”, (S5, ep 7, 10/11/21).  “Clinton Baptiste Paranormal Podcast”, (S4, ep 6, 09/11/21).  “Coronavirus Global Update “, (BBC World Service) (06/11/21)(07/11/21)(08/11/21)(09/11/21)(10/11/21) (11/11/21) (12/11/21).  “Doctor Who”, (The Incomparable/TeeVee)(New Year Special, “Revolution Of The Daleks”, 02/01/21).  “Don’t You Want Me?”, (S1, ep 8, 11/11/21).  “Griefcast”, (S8, ep 6 (ep 154)10/11/21).  “Lazy Doctor Who”, (ep 223, 11/11/21).  “Maximum Power – A Blake’s 7 Podcast”, (SA, ep 8, 07/11/21).  “Mystery Hour”, (11/11/21).  “Nick Abbot Whole Show”, (06/11/21) (07/11/21).  “Radio Astronomy (The Sky At Night Magazine)”, (08/11/21).   “Rob Beckett And Josh Widdecombe Parenting Hell”, (S3, ep 35, 09/11/21).  “Smersh Pod – Dr No”, (Pt 1, 29/09/20)(Pt 2, 29/09/20).  “Smersh Pod  – From Russia With Love”, (Pt 1, 12/10/20)(Pt 2, 13/10/21).  “Space And Things”, (STP14, 03/12/20)(STP63, 11/11/21). “Space Soliders – Flash Gordon’s Conquers The Universe”, (Chapter Seven, “The Land Of The Dead”, 06/11/21).  “Star Trek Universe Podcast”, (05/01/19)(08/11/21).  “The Adam Buxton Podcast”, (ep 168, 09/11/21).  “The Audio Guide To Babylon 5”, (The Incomparable)(ep 53, 15/05/16).  “The Friendship Onion”, (S1, ep 26, 09/11/21).   “The Froth With Rhod Gilbert And Sian Harries”, (S4, ep 7(ep 43), 09/11/21).  “The Nick Abbot Habit”, (09/11/21).  “The Old Doctor Who Show”, (Ep 120, 10/11/21).  “The Space Above Us”, (146, 11/11/21).  “The Skewer”, (BBC Radio 4/Sounds)(S5, ep 2, 10/11/21).  “Toby Hadoke’s  – Happy Times And Places”, (25.5, “Genesis Of The Daleks, Pt 5″, 08/11/21)(25.6, Pt 6, 12/11/21).  “WTB”, (S3, ep 13 (ep 56), 12/11/21). “Wolf And Owl”, (ep 49, 10/11/21).

Songs I enjoyed this week, were by:

“Morrissey”,  “Blondie”,  “Delays”,  “Florence And The Machine”,  “Garbage”,  “Irene Cara”,  “Kate Bush”,  “Lana Del Rey”,  “London Grammar”,  “Mcalmont And Butler”,  “Meredith Brooks”,  “M.I.A”,  “Moloko”,  “OMD”,  “Peter Gabriel”,  “Plup”,  “Queen”,  “Rage Against The Machine”,  “Shed Seven”,  “Smiths”,  “Snow Patrol”,  “Spandau Ballet”,  “The Go Go Dolls”,  “The Hives”,  “Voice Of The Beehive”,

Misfits Mid-Life Crisis Adventures in Northamptonshire and East London.

Week 385, Saturday 30^th October until Friday 5^th November 2021.

I love walking.  Apart sleeping and eating, walking is something I have done for many years.  It’s a skill I don’t mind blowing my own trumpet about and say I am quite good at.  If there were qualification for walking I think I could have a wall full of colourful certificates.

Seriously I really enjoy a nice walk.  Last week in Southwold I would disappear on my own for over 4 of 5 hours.  Mostly I knew where I was, thought there were times I had absolutely no clue and needed to stop look at my phone turning on the spot working out exactly where I was on the screen.  Of course I knew that I couldn’t really get lost, it was all an adventure being out and about on my own.  I have visited the area a lot over the last 10 years and thought I knew it well, during these walks I discovered a number of hidden secrets.  There can’t be many people who get excited at finding a working sewage works in the middle of nowhere, if anyone had been hiding in the bushes they would have thought I had uncovered an ancient city or lost temple from my reaction.  I stood wide eyed looking through the fence watching machinery just doing its job.

On the first walk I came across a lone bench surrounded by fields.  This became a base camp, each day I would sit for maybe an hour just watching fields of tall grass and reeds move in the breeze or birds flying around and landing on small patches of water.  The occasional dog Walker or cyclist would pass and not notice me, which was nice.

In late 2019 I had planned a walk through France which was to begin in April 2020 along one of the “Pilgrimage” routes.  The idea was to make my way to Spain eventually arriving in Ibiza in July to meet members of the family who would be there for a week’s holiday.  Sadly a global Pandemic put the brakes on that idea.  As I write this I can see the map and the books I bought to plan that route.

A friend who goes on walking holidays most years in the Lake District gave me information on shops to visit to buy proper shoes/boots and socks.  I really could have used those last week; because I had not planned the walks I just wore flat shoes that were already falling apart.  By the end of the trip they really were just held together by a few threads.

Last weekend I stayed with my mum and sister.  On recent visits I had gone on a number of walks down country lanes that don’t have any pavements meaning I would have to stop regularly to step up/on to the grassy verge allowing traffic to speed past.  Last weekend I enjoyed another long walk, stopping for food and a couple of pints in a pub/restaurant beside the Grand Union Canal.  There really was nothing to hurry about; when I arrived back to mums it was starting to get dark because the clocks had gone back in the early hours of that morning.  Walking country lanes in the dark with just the glow of my phone’s torch really wouldn’t have been clever.  I really should plan these walks a little more carefully.

Walking I know is one of the best forms of exercise a person can get.  One of the issues in the area I live in is its very flat and busy with people and cars.  Even in the parks and green spaces locally I can never really be alone.  I think it’s time I went to the shops that my friend recommended and buy decent walking footwear and socks and plan some walking trips as the UK has so many beautiful locations that I could visit and be on my own.  If all goes to plan In 2022 I will be travelling abroad, this will allow me to just go out and walk on my own, have adventures and enjoying the environment.  Being on my own is something you may have picked up is important, these last couple of years I have realised that I don’t really want or need to be around other people (this really has nothing to do with Covid.  I become less and less sociable years before we were all told to stay at home).

(I am fully prepared to be very wrong about this next statement) Walking is cheap and easy, there is no real need for a lot of equipment compared to other popular activities.  Earlier this year I fractured a foot which hurts now and then (Mum says it’s my age.  I hope the aches are because the weathers turned colder).  I am definitely finding walking enjoyable, it’s good for my sole and mental health and maybe my foot.

My Mid Life Crisis Conts……

This week I have watched:

“Alias”, (S1, ep 4 & ep 5).  “Blake’s 7”, (SC, ep 2 & ep 3).  “Click”, (TX: 30/10/21).  “Deep Rising”, (1998).  “Dug Days”, (S1, ep 1 to ep 5).  “Dune (Pt 1)”, (2021).  “Fort Salaam”, (S2, ep 5).  “Grimm”, (Pilot & ep 1).  “Have I Got News For You”, (S62, ep 5, TX: 05/11/21).  “How Its Made”, (S24, ep 2, TX: 02/10/14)(ep 4, TX: 16/10/14).  “NOVA: Looking For Life On Mars”, (S48, ep 5, TX: 24/02/21).  “Pema Chodron: What To Do When You Lose It Completely”, (YouTube)(TX: 10/02/16).  “Psychoville (Series 1) – Steve Pemberton And Reece Shearsmith – Rope”, (YouTube)(TX: 22/05/19).  “Ready Or Not”, (2019).  “Spitting Image”, (S2, ep 8, “Halloween Special”, TX: 30/10/21)(ep 7, TX: 23/10/21)(ep 6, 16/10/21).  “Stath Let’s Flats”, (S2, ep 4 & ep 5).  “Star Trek (Original Series)”, (S3, ep 20).  “Stargate Atlantis”, (S3, ep 8 & ep 9).  “Taskmaster”, (S12 (S3 on C4), ep 4, TX: 14/10/21)(ep 5, TX: 21/10/21)(ep 6, TX: 28/10/21)(ep 7, TX: 04/11/21).  “The Bureau Of Magical Things”, (S1, ep 16).  “The Enfield Haunting”, (SKY TV: 2015)(S1, ep 1 to ep 3).  “The Golden Girls”, (S5, ep 24 to ep 26)(S6, ep 1 to ep 5).  “The Last Leg”, (S23, ep 6, “The Last Leg Of The Planet”, TX: 05/11/21).  “The Orville”, (S2  ep 2).  “The Ranganation”, (S4, ep 5, TX: 31/10/21).  “Universe”, (S1, ep 2, TX: 27/10/21).  “Van Helsing”, (S5, ep 10).  “Wendy Carlos Demonstrates Her Moog Synthesizer In 1970”, (YouTube)(TX: 09/02/21).  “Wendy Carlos Interview 1989 BBC Two”, (YouTube)(TX: 04/09/19).  “What We Do In The Shadows”, (S4, ep 1 to ep 4).  

“Doctor Who watched this week”……

“Flux: The Halloween Apocalypse”, (S13 (S39 since 1963), ep 1, TX: 31/10/21).

“Rob & Romesh Vs, Watched This Week……

(S1), “Usain Bolt”, (ep 1, TX: 25/01/19),  “The NFL”, (ep 2, TX: 01/02/19),  “Fashion”, (ep 3, TX: 08/02/19),  “Superstar DJs”, (ep 4, TX: 15/02/19),  “Country Music”, (ep 5, TX: 22/02/19),  “Anthony Joshua….. Revisited”, (ep 6, TX: 01/03/19).  

(S2), “Ballet”, (ep 1, TX: 05/05/20),  “NBA Basketball”, (ep 2, TX: 12/05/20),  “Cricket: South Africa”, (ep 3, TX: 19/05/20),  “Cricket: The Test”, (TX: 26/05/20).

(S3), “Art”, (ep 1, TX: 04/02/21).

This week I have listening to:

“30 Animals That Made Us Smarter”, (BBC World Service)(S2, ep 19, 01/11/21).  ”Anti Social Show”, (ep 97, 30/10/21). “Brian & Roger”, (S5, ep 6, 03/11/21).  “Clinton Baptiste Paranormal Podcast”, (S4, ep 5, 02/11/21).  “Coronavirus Global Update”, (BBC World Service) (30/10/21) (31/10/21) (01/11/21) (02/11/21) (03/11/21) (04/11/21) (05/11/21).  “Doctor Who”, (The Incomparable/TeeVee)(S12, ep 9, 23/02/20)(ep 10, 02/03/20).  “Don’t You Want Me?”, (ep 7, 04/11/21).  “Griefcast”, (S8, ep 5,(ep 153), 03/11/21).  “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Buddha”, (ep 43, 05/11/21).  “Maximum Power: A Blake’s 7 Podcast”, (SA, ep 7, 31/10/21).  “Mystery Hour”, (04/11/21).  “NASA: Houston We Have A Podcast”, (ep 220, 05/11/21).  “Nick Abbot Whole Show”, (30/10/21) (31/10/21).  “Radio Astronomy (The Sky At Night Magazine)”, (20/05/21) (31/10/21).  “Rob Beckett And Josh Widdecombe Parenting Hell”, (S3, ep 32, 29/10/21) (ep 33, 02/11/21)(ep 34, 05/11/21).  “Smersh Pod  – Moonraker”, (Pt 1, 29/06/20)(Pt 2, 30/06/21).  “Smersh Pod – Spectre”, (Pt 1, 13/07/20)(Pt 2, 14/07/20).  “Space And Things”, (STP62, 04/11/21).  “Space Boffins Podcast”, (01/11/21).  “Space Soldiers Podcast – Flash Gordon’s Conquers The Universe”, (Chapter Six, “Flaming Death”, 30/310/21).  “Star Trek Universe Podcast”, (01/11/21).  “The Adam Buxton Podcast”, (ep 167, 02/11/21).  “The Audio Guide To Babylon 5”, (ep 52, 01/05/16).  “The Friendship Onion”, (S1, ep 25, 02/11/21).  “The Froth With Rhod Gilbert And Sian Harries”, (S4, ep 6 (ep 42) 02/11/21).  “The Nick Abbot Habit”, (01/11/21).  “The Skewer”, (BBC Radio4/Sounds)(S5, ep 1, 04/11/21).  “The Super-Massive Podcast”, (ep 22, 29/10/21).  “Toby Hadoke’s Happy Times And Places”, (25.2, “Genesis Of The Daleks, Pt 2″, 29/10/21)(25.3, “Pt 3, 01/11/21)(25.4, ”Pt 4, 05/11/21).  “WTB”, (S3, ep 11(ep 54) 29/10/21)(ep 55, 05/11/21).  “What’s Your Problem With Nick Abbot And Carol Mcgiffin”, (01/11/21).  “Wolf And Owl”, (ep 48, 03/11/21).  

Songs I enjoyed this week, were by:

“Morrissey”,  “Ash”,  “Bare Naked Ladies”,  “Basement Jaxx”,  “Cast”,  “Crash Test Dummies”,  “Cypress Hill”, “Delays”,  “Edie Brickell And The New Bohemians”,  “Edwyn Collins”,  “Frankie Goes To Hollywood”,  “James”,  “Moby”,  “Norma Tanega”,  “Stereophonics”,  “Suede”,  “The Blow Monkeys”,  “The Teardrop Explodes”,  “Yazz And The Plastic Population”.

Misfits Mid-Life Crisis Adventures in

Suffolk and Northamptonshire.

This week was the annual visit to Southwold with a few members of the family. Because of this I wont lie I haven’t written anything. However I can report that I spent the week eating, drinking, walking on the beach and through fields on my own watching nature pass by.

Because of this, the following ramble is just some holiday snaps. Be thankful that I am not coming round to your house, because I have hundreds of pictures that I could bore you with.

Until then, here are my holiday snaps.

Normal service of me moaning about something will resume next week.

My Mid-Life Crisis Cont’s

And Finally…..

Standing in a queue of a famous high street stationers/newsagent I watched an older man buy a lottery ticket. His card got declined a couple of times, this was when he started to say to the very young man behind the counter that he knew to the penny how much he had in the bank. And that the cashier would be embarrassed to see the amount in the account. The older man then pulled out a wad of notes flicking through them as if he was a 1990s comedy character. After paying he walked away still grumbling about his card not going through.

My Mid-Life Crisis Continues…..

This Week I Watched……

“Abraham Lincoln Vampire Hunter”, (2021). “Alias” (S1, ep 2 & ep 3). “Another World”, (S2, ep 3 to ep 5). “Apollo’s Moon Shot”, (S1, ep 5, TX: 14/07/19)(ep 6, TX: 21/07/21). “Autumnwatch: 2021”, (ep 1, TX: 26/10/21)(ep 2, TX: 27/10/21)(ep 3, TX: 28/10/21)(ep 4, TX: 29/10/21). “Autumnwatch: 2021: Extras, Autumnwatch Spectacles”, (TX: 26/10/21). “Autumnwatch: 2021: Extras, Autumn Wonder”, (TX: 29/10/21). “BBC Breakfast – Mandip Gill Interview”, (TX: 28/10/21). “Babylon 5”, (S1, ep 5). “Blade Runner 2049”, (2017). “Blake’s 7”, (SC, ep 1). “Click”, (TX: 23/10/21). “Entertainment Insider – How Noiseless Props Are Made For Movies And TV Shows”, (Facebook)(TX: 23/07/21). “Ghostbusters”, (2016). “Have I Got News For You”, (S62, ep 4, TX: 29/10/21). “Joe Lyycett Vs The Oil Giant”, (TX: 24/10/21). “Harry Potter And The Philosopher’s Stone”, (2001). “Mrs Browns Boys Live (Halloween Special – 10th Anniversary)”, (TX: 29/10/21). “Panorama: Coca-Cola’s 100 Billion Bottle Problem”, (TX: 25/10/21). “Spitting Image”, (Britbox)(S2, ep 7, TX: 23/10/21). “Star Trek (Original Series)”, (S3, ep 19). “Stargate Atlantis”, (S3, ep 6 & ep 7). “Stath Let’s Flats”, (S3, ep 1to ep 3). “Taskmaster”, (S12 (S3 on C4) ep 6, TX: 22/10/21)(ep 7, TX: 28/10/21). “The Great British Bake Off”, (S12 (S5 on C4), ep 3, TX: 05/10/21)(ep 6, TX: 26/10/21). “The Great British Bake Off An Extra Slice”, (S7 (S5 on C4), ep 3, TX: 08/10/21)(ep 6, TX: 29/10/21). “The Golden Girls”, (S5, ep 21 to ep 23). “The Last Leg”, (S23, ep 4, TX: 22/10/21)(ep 5, TX: 29/10/21). “The Orville”, (S2, ep 1). “The Outlaws”, (S1, ep 1 & ep 2). “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon – William Shatner’s Overwhelming Trip To Space Was A Wake-Up Call”, (YouTube)(TX: 15/10/21). “The Truth About Brandon Lee Finally Revealed”, (YouTube)(TX: 20/01/20). “Universe”, (S1, ep 1 TX: 27/10/21). “Van Helsing”, (S5, ep 7 to ep 9). “William Shatner Reviews Impressions Of Himself – Vanity Fair”, (YouTube)(TX: 14/09/21). “You Again”, (2010).

Doctor Who Watched This Week……

“Praxeus”, (S12 (S38 since 1963), TX: 02/02/20).

This Week I Listened To……

“30 Animals That Made Us Smarter”, (BBC World Service/Sounds)(S2, ep 18, 25/10/21). “Brian And Roger”, (S5, ep 5, 27/10/21). “Clinton Baptiste Paranormal Podcast”, (S4, ep 4, 26/10/21). “Coronavirus Global Update”, (BBC World Service)(23/10/21)(24/10/21)(25/10/21)(26/10/21) (27/10/21)(28/10/21)(29/10/21). “Doctor Who”, (The Incomparable/TeeVee)(S12, ep 8, 16/02/20). “Don’t You Want Me?”, (ep 6, 28/10/21). “Game Of Thrones”, (The Incomparable/TeeVee)(S7, ep 2, 24/07/17). “Griefcast”, (S8, ep 4 (ep 152), 27/10/21). “Maximum Power – A Blake’s 7 Podcast”, (SA, ep 6, 24/10/21). “Mystery Hour”, (28/10/21). “NASA: Gravity Assist”, (29/10/21). “NASA: Houston We Have A Podcast”, (ep 219, 29/10/21). “Nick Abbot Whole Show”, (23/10/21) (24/10/21)(29/10/21). “Radio Astronomy (The Sky At Night Magazine)”, (23/12/16)(24/10/21). “Rob Beckett And Josh Widdecombe Parenting Hell”, (S3, ep 31, 26/10/21). “Smersh Pod – Skyfall”,(Pt 1, 15/06/20)(Pt 2, 16/06/20). “Space And Things”, (STP45, 08/07/21)(STP61, 28/10/21). “Space Soldiers Podcast – Flash Gordon Conquers The Universe”, (Chapter Five, “The Palace Of Horror”, 23/10/21). ”Star Trek Universe Podcast”, (22/10/21). “The Adam Buxton Podcast”, (ep 166, 25/10/21). “The Audio Guide To Babylon 5”, (ep 51, 17/04/16). “The Friendship Onion”, (S1, ep 24, 26/10/21). “The Froth With Rhod Gilbert And Sian Harries”,(S4, ep 5 (ep 41) 26/10/21). “The Nick Abbot Habit”, (26/10/21). “The Space Above Us”, (145, 29/10/21). “Toby Hadoke’s Happy Times And Places”, (25.1, “Genesis Of The Daleks”, ep 1, 25/10/21). “What’s Your Problem With Nick Abbot And Carol Mcgiffin”, (26/10/21). “Wolf And Owl”, (ep 47, 27/10/21).

This Week I Enjoyed Music By……

“Morrissey”, “Beck”, “Blossoms”, “Blur”, “David Bowie”, “Heart”, “Jeff Buckley”, “Jessica Pratt”, “KT Tunstall”, “Kate Bush”, “Ladyhawke”, “London Grammar”, “Pulp”, “Queen”, “Ryan Adams”, “Saint Etienne”, “Shed Seven”, “Sultans Of Ping FC”, “The Human League”, “The Police”, “Vangelis”, “Wolf Alice”.

Misfits Mid-Life Crisis Adventures in East London, Northamptonshire and Suffolk.

Week 383, Saturday 16^th until Friday 22^nd October 2021.

This week it was Mum’s B’day.

And a year since Spike passed away.

Earlier this week I learned a valuable lesson.  After work I needed to drive 2 hours north to my mums because the next morning I was taking her and my sister a couple of hours east to meet up with other members of the family also driving in that direction to spend the week together beside the sea.

Due to not being in a hurry and because I won’t be home for about 10 days, my friend and I wanted to finish a ghost story series we had started the day before.  This type of drama will be available to view for years to come but we had binged episode after episode and only had 3 left.  So we did the only thing we could do but watch the rest.

About 20 minutes after leaving home when I joined the M25 my heart sank because on an Illuminated sign overhead I read that there were not one but two sets of road works resulting in diversions.  Each time I came off the London orbital motorway I took a risk and followed large lorries, hoping that they really were going my way (there were diversion signs, but the ones standing up were not clear).  Luckily they were, I genuinely have no idea where I was, as you can tell I am not a Sat-Nav driver I prefer an old school paper map.

Once I reached the M1 to head north almost immediately I spotted a sign informing of another set of road works that covered 2 adjacent junctions, my third division during this journey.  This time the route twisted and turned through dark country roads (previously I squeezed down residential streets not made for that amount of traffic especially at night).  As before I followed large vehicles with fingers crossed.  When I eventually saw sign informing of my return to the motorway, I was so pleased to finally be on the way to my mums.

My journey didn’t get better, once off the Motorway as I reached mums sleep village.  One road from her cul-de-sac I had to stop because of road works blocking the road.  This extra diversion my 4th was not a problem, I knew where I was going.  The only issue was negotiating and zigzagging the badly parked cars of sleeping residents.

I arrived at mums just after 2am; a journey that should have lasted 2hrs became nearly 4.  All because I wanted to finish the last few episodes of an ok(ish) ghost story that had some nice jumpy moments but if I am honest was a bit of a disappointment in the end. Especially as my friend and I sat there for a number of minutes as the credits rolled chatting aspects of the story that confused us.

If I had been sensible and left in the early evening after eating, 3 of the 4 detours wouldn’t have affected me because the motorway closures take place at 10pm.  Yes, I really have learned a valuable lesson this last week, watch less rubbish on the box and knuckle down and do what I should do.

And Finally……

I have written before how my friend and I are proud adopted parents of a Hamster.  A few evenings ago we spotted him asleep in a clear tube that leads to and from his main house/nest.  His eyes were closed; we spoke in hushed tones not wanting to disturb him because he looked so cute.  We hoped that when he woke up he would want to come out and have some contact with us before we turned in.

We both turned away for less than a minute distracted by something shiny on the TV.  Looking back the little sod had scampered back deep into his home.  I suspect he saw us coming, so pretended to be asleep just waiting for us to turn our backs.  We didn’t see him for the rest of the evening.  We really do seem to be living with a moody teenager.

Next Week will be the annual family visit to Southwold.  I am excited, are you?

My Mid Life Crisis Conts……

This week I have watched:

“Adam Savage Meets Neil Armstrong’s Apolo 11 Spacesuit!”, (YouTube)(TX: 31/07/19).  “Alias”, (S1, ep 1).  “Another Life”, (S2, ep 1 & ep 2).  “Blake’s 7”, (SB, ep 12 & ep 13).  “Fort Salaam”, (S2, ep 3 & ep 4).  “Gardeners World”, (2021, ep 28, TX: 08/10/21)(ep 29, TX: 15/10/21).  ”Guilt”, (S2, ep 3 & ep 4).  “Have I Got News For You”, (S62, ep 2, TX 20/10/21 ** cancelled from 15/10/21)(ep 3, TX: 22/10/21).  “How It Works: Spacesuits On The ISS”, (YouTube)(TX: 12/12/18).  “It Chapter Two”, (2019).  “Late Night Mash”, (S1, ep 8, TX: 21/10/21).  “Only Murder In The Building”, (S1, ep 9 & ep 10).  “Spitting Image”, (Britbox)(S2, ep 6)(TX  16/10/21).  “Stargate Atlantis”, (S3, ep 4 & ep 5).  “Star Trek (Original Series)”, (S3, ep 18).  “Star Trek Lower Decks”, (S2, ep 10).  “Taskmaster”, (S12 (S3 on C4), ep 5, TX: 21/10/21).  “The Bureau Of Magical Things”, (S1, ep 15).  “The Bureau Of Magical Things  – Totally Wild”, (YouTube)(TX: 06/07/18).  “The Curse Of The Nun”, (2018).  “The Golden Girls”, (S5, ep 13 to ep 20).  “The Graham Norton Show”, (S29, ep4, TX: 15/10/21).  “The Great British Bake Off”, (S12 (S5 on C4), TX 19/10/21).  “The Great British Bake Off An Extra Slice”, (S7 (S5 on C4), ep 4, TX: 14/010/21(ep 5, TX: 22/10/21).  “The Haunting Of Bly House”, (S1, ep 1 to ep 9).  “The Haunting Of Hill House”, (S1, ep 1 to ep 10).  “The Orville”, (S1, ep 11 & ep 12).  “The Ranganation”, (S4, ep 3, TX: 17/10/21).  “The Sarah Jane Adventures”, (S1, ep 3).  “The Sokol Suit And The ‘Seal That Keeps You Alive”, (YouTube)(TX: 14/12/12).  “Van Helsing”, (S5, ep 5 & ep 6).

“Doctor Who Watched this Week”……

“Nikola Tesla’s Night Of Terror”, (S12, (S38 since 1963) ep 4, TX: 19/01/20).

“Fugitive Of The Judoon”, (S12, (S38 since 1963) ep 5, TX: 26/01/20).

This week I have listening to:

“30 Animals That Made Us Smarter”,(BBC World Service)(ep 17, 18/10/21).  “Anglophilia”, (S3, ep 3, 04/06/19).  “Brian And Roger”, (S5, ep 4, 20/10/21).  “Clinton Baptiste Paranormal Podcast”, (S4, ep 3, 19/10/21).  “Coronavirus Global Update”, (BBC World Service)(16/10/21)(17/10/21) (18/10/21)(19/10/21) (20/10/21)(21/10/21)(22/10/21).  “Doctor Who”, (The Incomparable/TeeVee)(S12, ep 6, 02/02/20)(ep 7, 09/02/20).  “Don’t You Want Me?”, (S1, ep 5, 21/10/21).  “Farscape: Muppets In Space”, (The Incomparable)(20/10/21).  “Griefcast”, (S8 ep 3,(ep 151) 20/10/21).  “I Can’t Believe It’s Not Buddha”, (ep 1, 16/09/20)(17/10/21).  “Maximum Power – A Blake’s 7 Podcast”, (SA, ep 5, 17/10/21).  “Mystery Hour”, (21/10/21).  “NASA: Gravity Assist”, (22/10/21).  “NASA: Houston  We Have A Podcast”, (ep 218, 22/10/21).  “Nick Abbot Whole Show”, (16/10/21)(17/10/21) (22/10/21).  “Radio Astronomy (The Sky At Night Magazine)”, (06/05/21)(15/05/21) (21/10/21).  “Rob Beckett And Josh Widdecombe Parenting Hell”, (S3, ep 29, 19/10/21)(ep 30, 22/10/21).  “Smersh Pod – Live And Let Die”, (Pt 1, 01/06/20)(Pt 2, 02/06/20).  “Smersh Pod – The Man With The Golden Gun”, (Pt 2, 19/05/20).  “Something Who”, (ep 12, 06/02/20).  “Space And Things”, (STP13, 26/11/20)(STP60, 21/10/21).  “Space Soldiers Podcast – Flash Gordon Conquers The Universe”, (Chapter Four,“ The Destroying Ray”, 16/10/21).  “Talking Bottom”, (10/09/21).  “The Adam Buxton Podcast”, (ep 165, 19/10/21).  “The Audio Guide To Babylon 5”, (ep 50, 05/04/16).  “The Friendship Onion”, (S1, ep 23, 19/10/21).  “The Froth With Rhod Gilbert And Sian Harries”, (S4, ep 4 (ep 40) 19/10/21).  “The Nick Abbot Habit”, (18/10/21).  “The Old Doctor Who Show”, (ep 119, 20/10/21).  “Toby Hadoke’s Time Travels -Too Much Information”, (2.2,”The Survivors”, 18/10/21).  “WTB”, (S3, ep 11 (ep 53, 22/10/21).  “What’s Your Problem With Nick Abbot And Carol Mcgiffin”, (18/10/21).  “Wolf And Owl”, (ep 46, 20/10/21).

Songs I enjoyed this week, were by:

“Morrissey”,  “Baby Bird”,  “Coldplay”,  “Cyndi Lauper”,  “David Bowie”,  “Death In Vegas”,  “Doves”,  ”Erasure”,  “George Harrison”,  “Keane”,  “Louis Armstrong”,  “McAlmont And Butler”,  “Manic Street Preachers”,  “Paul McCartney And Wings”,  “Soft Cell”,  “Sonny & Cher,  “Suede “,  “Suzanne Vega”,  “The Foo Fighters”,  “The Jackson 5”,  “The Lemonheads”.

Misfits Mid-Life Crisis Adventures in Northamptonshire and East London.

Week 382, Saturday 9^th until Friday 15^th October 2021.

But everything this year has changed with private companies Blue Origin, Space X and Virgin Galactic who have all successfully travelled into sub orbit for a few minutes (Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic), or low orbit for several days and long visits to the ISS (Space X).

One day I dream of seeing a launch with my own eyes for real standing a few miles away following the rocket uphill as it passes through the clouds as vibrations rattle through my chest.  All the launches I have witnessed live have been over the internet, including watching in secret at work with the bosses sitting nearby.  Every time I watch a live launch/landing or Spacewalk is a thrill.  These last couple of weeks I watched two launches that captivated me in a way that others haven’t.  Space X’s Insprisation4 low Earth orbit three-day mission (max altitude of 364 miles – 585km) and Blue Origin’s second passenger sub orbital flight which lasted about 10 minutes up and down (which reached an altitude of 66 miles – 107 km).  These really have made me feel that Space flight will become at some point in the near future (30 to 50 years) as routine as travelling on a Jumbo.

Watching actor William Shatner travel with Blue Origin this week gives me hope that I might get the chance to view Earth as he did.  Of course this won’t be for years to come, but if technology continues to improve, resulting in more and more launches this should bring the price down.  Think of how expensive airplane travel was between the 1940s to 70s, better and bigger planes made travel more affordable (not always cheap) for many.  There is a real possibility that ordinary people will be able to travel into orbit and look back in wonderment at our home slowly turning in space.  The type of trip I am talking about is what Captain Kirk did this week, straight up have a look out of the window experience micro gravity for a couple of minutes before strapping in and return to terra firma.  Sadly longer journeys to the Moon and beyond won’t be possible for a very long time.  Maybe my nephews and niece future children will have the chance to travel to places I can only dream of today.

Space flight will become routine one day, I desperately hope that I will be around to strap in and experience the pull of multiple G’s before seeing the blue our of fragile atmosphere above the land passing below.  If I do manage to suddenly make a bucket of money because of being arty, writing a bestseller and/or directing a movie I will be contacting Elon, Jeff and Richard straight away to book my seat.  If my arm was twisted and I had to say who would I really like to travel with, it would be Space X because I want to go as fast and as high as possible and wear a funky launch and landing pressure suit.

William Shatner has always been a favourite actor; Captain Kirk is a hero to me and many others.  This week I think he touched many more people’s hearts with his passionate speech about what he experienced.

And Now For Something Completely Different……

The temporary admin job has commenced and I am enjoying it, bet you never thought you would read a comment like that.  All I am doing is moving specific data from one system to a spreadsheet which is submitted daily by email.  Sounds very boring, but after feeling so stressed for years working in a call centre boring is good.  At the moment I suspect I have a couple of weeks of work left, after that I really don’t know.  Because it’s part time I really must use the extra spare time I have wisely, it’s all in preparation for next year.

And Finally……

After spending time (weeks and months) befriending a couple of neighbour’s cats that regularly visit the garden.  This week they both realised I was not a threat and approached close enough to be stroked.  In the grand scheme of life it’s not much of an achievement, but both occasions pleased me so much.

My Mid Life Crisis Conts……

This week I have watched:

“Click”, (TX: 09/10/21).  “Babylon 5”, (S1, ep 1 to ep 4).  “Blakes 7”, (SB, ep 11).  “Blue Origins – NS-18 Shepard Space Flight Mission With William Shatner – Live Launch and Touchdown”, (YouTube)(TX: 13/10/21).  “Entertainment Insider – How Hollywood Twins Scenes Have Evolved Over 100 Years”, (FaceBook)(TX: 12/02/21).  ”Entourage”, (S8, ep 2 to ep 8).  “Final Space”, (S3, ep 6).  “Fort Salaam”, (S2, ep 1 & ep 2).  “Futurama”, (S1, ep 1 to ep 3).  “Guilt”, (S2, ep 1 & ep 2).  “Late Night Mash”, (S1, ep 7, TX: 14/10/21).  “Monkey World”, (S11, ep 2, TX: 2018).  “No Time To Die”, (2021).  “Only Murders In The Building”, (S1, ep 8).  “Orangutan Jungle School”, (S2, ep 1, TX: 31/07/19).  “Rich House, Poor House”, (S2, ep 2, TX: 26/10/17).  “Spitting Image”, (Britbox)(S2, ep 5, TX 09/10/21).  “Star Trek (Original Series)”, (S3, ep 17).  “Stargate Atlantis”, (S3, ep 1 to ep 3).  “Starship Troopers”, (1997).  “Taskmaster” (S12 (S3 on C4), ep 4, TX: 14/10/21).  “The Blob: A Genius Without A Brain”, (TX: 29/09/21).  “The Bureau Of Magical Things”, (S1, ep 14).  “The Conjuring”, (2013).  “The Conjuring 2”, (2016).  “The Goes Wrong Show”, (S2, ep 4 & ep 5).  “The Golden Girls “, (S5, ep 11 & ep 12).  “The Great British Bake Off”, (S12 (S5 on C4) ep 4, TX: 12/10/21).  “The Orville”, (S1, ep 10).  “The Ranganation”, (S4, ep 2, TX: 10/10/21).  “The Sky At Night”, (TX: 10/10/21).  “The Walking Dead”, (S11, ep 8).  “Whose Line Is It Anyway”, (S10, ep 7 to ep 9).  “Van Helsing”, (S5, ep 3 & ep 4).

“Doctor Who watched this week”……

“Skyfall, Part 1”, (S12, ep 1, TX: 01/01/20).

“Skyfall, Part 2”, (S12, ep 2, TX: 05/01/20).

“Orphan 55”, (S12, ep 3, TX: 12/01/20).

This week I have listening to:

“30 Animals That Made Us Smarter”, (BBC World Service/Sounds)(S2, ep 16, 11/10/21).  “Box Of Delights”, (S3, ep 7, 25/02/20).  “Brian And Roger”, (S5, ep 3, 13/10/21).  “Clinton Baptiste Paranormal Podcast”, (S4, ep 2, 12/10/21).  “Coronavirus Global Update”, (BBC World Service) (09/10/21)(10/10/21)(11/10/21)(12/10/21) (13/10/21)(14/10/21)(15/10/21).  “Doctor Who”, (The Incomparable/TeeVee)(S12, ep 3, 13/01/20)(ep 4, 20/01/20)(ep 5, 26/01/20).  “Don’t You Want Me?”, (ep 4, 14/10/21).  “Full Disclosure With James O’Brien”, (S1, ep 3, Simon Amstell, 18/03/19).  “Griefcast”, (S8, ep 2 (ep 150) 13/10/21).  “In Poor Taste”, (ep 124, 13/10/21).  “Lazy Doctor Who”, (ep 222, 12/10/21).  “Maximum Power: A Blakes 7 Podcast”, (SA, ep 4, 10/10/21).  “Mystery Hour”, (14/10/21).  “NASA Houston We Have A Podcast”, (ep 217, 15/10/21).  “Nick Abbot Whole Show”, (09/10/21)(10/10/21)(15/10/21).  “Rob Beckett And Josh Widdicombe’s Parenting Hell”, (S3, ep 27, 12/10/21)(ep 28, 15/10/21).  “Smersh Pod  –  The Living Daylights”, (Pt 1, 04/05/20)(Pt 2, 05/05/20).  “Smersh Pod – The Man With The Golden Gun”, (Pt 1, 18/05/20).  “Space And Things”, (STP12, 19/11/20)(STP59, 14/10/21).  “Space Soldiers Podcast – Flash Gordon Conquers The Universe”, (Chapter Three, “Walking Bombs”, 09/10/21).  “Star Trek Universe”, (11/10/21)(14/10/21).  “The Adam Buxton Podcast”, (ep 164, 10/10/21).  “The Audio Guide To Babylon 5”, (The Incomparable)(ep 49, 20/03/16).  “The Friendship Onion”, (S1, ep 22, 11/10/21).  “The Froth With Rhod Gilbert And Sian Harries”, (S4, ep 3 (ep 39) 12/10/21).  “The Nick Abbot Habit”, (11/10/21).  “The Space Above Us”, (144, 15/10/21). “Toby Hadokes Happy Times And Places”, (24.1, “Dalek”, 11/10/21).  “WTB”, (S3, ep 10 (ep 52),15/10/21).  “What’s Your Problem With Nick Abbot And Carol McGiffin”, (11/10/21).  “Wolf And Owl”, (ep 45, 13/10/21).

Songs I enjoyed this week, were by:

“Morrissey”,  “Air”,  “Arlo Parks”,  “Artic Monkey”,  “Aztec Camera”, “Catatonia”,  “Del Shannon”,  “First Aid Kit”,  “Fleetwood Mac”,  “Florence And The Machine”,  “Jean-Michel Jarre”,  “My Morning Jacket”,  “Pixies”,  “Shakespeare Sister”,  “Shed Seven”,  “Sixpence None The Richer”,  “Tame Impala”,  “The Beautiful South”,  “The Clash”,  “They Might Be Giants”,  “Thompson Twins”,  “Yazoo”.