Churchill

There have been several recent portrayals of Winston Churchill in TV and movies recently - notably an Oscar-winning Gary Oldman in Darkest Hour and John Lithgow in The Crown.  Today I watched the film Churchill, which starred Brian Cox in the titular role.  I haven't seen the others to compare against, but this seemed like a pretty good performance - focusing on Churchill in the days leading up to the Normandy Landings.  I know certain family members of mine took issue with some of the historical inaccuracies in the film Dunkirk, and I definitely wouldn't recommend them watching this film as I think a lot of liberties were taken in this portrayal of Churchill.  I don't believe he was nearly as antagonistic towards Americans, Operation Overlord, Montgomery, and everything/everyone else as the film would make you believe.  I thought the most interesting part of the film was finding out about Field Marshall Smuts, someone who I knew nothing about and who I had never heard of before.  It's those little things and those little details that have really stirred up my desire to become a self-proclaimed expert in some historical event.  Ideally something in the 20th century that I can read and research about.  That would be kind of cool, and maybe give me back some mental stimulation that I've been lacking for a long time.

And yes, I now own a battery-operated fabric defuzzer.  Good grief.       

Quiz Time

In a classic example of getting old, I bought something recently that previously never even crossed my mind as something I would ever need.  Any ideas what it is?  Answer tomorrow.

Opening Day

It’s opening day of the baseball season today.  Whatever.  Of the big sports in the US, I find baseball the most difficult to watch – slow, boring and unsuited to modern times.  Not unlike cricket, but at least cricket has big Australian cheating scandals to capture the public’s interest.  Mind you, baseball is not short of a scandal or two of its own (ahem, steroids, ahem).  Regardless, I shall not be following baseball much this season – not much is expected of either the Seattle or San Diego teams, yet again, and as always most of the baseball coverage tends to focus on just the few teams with big money.  When you see how lame “baseball highlights” are in YouTube videos compared to similar compilations for other sports, it is no wonder that America’s pastime is past it’s time.

Too Much TV

As my DVR capacity has crept up to over 50%, time to make some tough decisions on my viewing habits.  I tried watching the rebooted Roseanne last evening, but couldn’t get through it – in a very similar vein to Will and Grace, I was only an occasional viewer of the original and so the reboot doesn’t hold the emotional resonance or humor to me that it might do with others.  And with the new Spring TV season having started, my DVR is definitely filling up quickly.  There are some high quality programs that I will not drop under any circumstances – such as the last season of The Americans starting tonight – but others I should definitely lose.  For example, Suits is not really that good a program and only worth watching for the curiosity of seeing Meghan Markle, future princess.  There are a number of series with high quality casts but not overwhelmingly positive reviews which will probably end up unwatched on my DVR – such as Trust and The Terror.  I also have a number of films on my DVR that are not exactly must-see.  Thank god I don’t subscribe to Netflix or Hulu, because there are about a billion more critically acclaimed programs to watch there.  And apart from Catastrophe, I haven’t watched any of the series available to me on Amazon Prime Instant Video.  Unequivocally, the TV market nowadays is over-saturated and it is just impossible to watch everything I want to.  I miss the days of the 2000's when there was only a limited number of must watch TV events.  And when, seemingly, I had better things to do than watch mediocre TV. 

Angst

Still majorly unhappy at work.  I’m not sure what is going on with my situation, and it is really stressing me out.  I’ve got one person telling me that I am going to be moving into a different group with a different manager.  But absolutely no mention or indication whatsoever from my current manager that anything is going to change for me.  It’s frustrating, and it’s making me very angsty.  I was told there would be some sort of announcement within a few weeks – and I was told that last week, but nothing yet.  If I’m going to stay in this job, then something does have to change – as I have reached the absolute limit of tolerance with my current manager, who is an absolute nightmare.  But even if I do get a new manager, things may or may not be much better – I’m not going to speculate too much yet, but I may be dropped straight into a Chinese cultural minefield.  Great.  Which is why I continue to keep an eye out for job postings of interest.  Came across one yesterday that piqued my interest – it was a position in Tampa, Florida.  A long way from being an industry hotspot, but a locale I would consider moving to despite never having been there.  I haven’t decided whether to apply – it would be a massive step into the unknown, so I might need some persuading, but that shouldn’t stop me from at least applying?  I don’t know – I don’t particularly want to continue moving from one job to another, and I don’t particularly want to continue moving from one city to another.  Which is why I would be prepared to put all my eggs into a San Diego basket – it’s the one city that I know, I like, and never wanted to leave before.  I still never heard back from the job there that I applied to a while back – which was and is massively disappointing – so I can only hope that another position there opens up soon.  But, sadly, I have no idea how picky I can afford to be nowadays – the gap between applying and actually getting an interview seems to be increasingly widening for me.  Conversely, perhaps I should just take a sabbatical and enjoy life for a few years living off my savings and doing things that I can do without the stress and limits of work commitments?  After all, it’s not like I need to save money towards a college fund for my non-existent kids.

Seatac Growth

Perhaps the growth in Seattle is best represented by the increase in choices of direct flights from Seattle to Europe.  Previously, my only option for a direct flight to London was with British Airways.  Now, there is also Virgin Atlantic and Norwegian Air to choose from.  There is even going to be a direct flight to Manchester through Thomas Cook starting this year.  And previously, the only options for other direct flights into Europe that I recall were Reykjavik (Iceland Air) and Frankfurt (Lufthansa).  Now, there are alternatives to fly into Germany (Condor, Eurowings) and you can fly to Paris (Air France and Delta) or Amsterdam (Delta), and also starting this year is a direct service to Dublin (Aer Lingus).  You would think the increase in competition would result in a decrease in air fares, but of course no chance of that happening – I’m sure the different airlines have some sort of unofficial agreement to keep flight costs artificially high.  All I know is that for a long transatlantic flight, I cannot book an economy seat – just the small extra space of premium economy makes a huge difference (especially for someone like me who is, medically, obese), plus the historically good chance I’ve had of getting a free upgrade.  I haven’t booked my flight back to the UK this summer yet, but hope to do so soon – but I will have to do some proper research rather than relying on price alone.  For example, Norwegian Air probably has the cheapest prices but the smallest seats and the most additional charges – but then they have a “Premium” cabin in addition to Economy so I need to check that out.  To be honest, I like the idea of flying into or out of another city – it gives me an option of spending a few days somewhere else.  If there was a direct flight from Seattle to Barcelona, I would definitely take that.  But since there isn’t, I’m wondering whether I would like to spend a few days in Iceland or Dublin as part of my trip back this summer.  Or not, and just maximize my time in the UK.  Decisions…. something I’m notoriously bad at.  I’ll probably end up doing what I always do and book a premium economy return flight through BA to Heathrow, but we shall see. 

Cult of Personality

Nope, not another post about Trump.  Just a link to a rock classic.

Also - just added a few photos of some cherry blossoms to Tuesday's post.

March For Our Lives

Thousands of people marching today against gun violence and for gun control - something I feel very strongly about, and heartily approve of.  I would have joined them, but it felt like more of a teenage/high school thing.  And that is the problem - as many people as were out protesting (including thousands in Seattle), I don't think it's ultimately going to change anything.  The NRA have already mocked the marches, politicians have already said they disapprove, and this is really not going to change minds.  Generation Z may be vocal in their protests, but it is the Baby Boomers in charge and making the laws and regulations, and they will not be so easily swayed.  And they have already been bought off by the NRA.  But even if we see no short term changes to gun regulations, it is clear that there is enough support and enough passion about this issue that something will be done in the long term - and that is heartening.

Opposites

I've been in the US long enough now to be plenty used to the American date format of month/day/year - so today is 3/23/2018.  Stupid, yes, but it is what it is.  But what continues to confuse me, even with the many years I've been in the US, is the order of home and away teams when displaying sports scores.  The home team is second, which is not intuitive.  Today, for example, I thought I was watching Exeter vs Bath in rugby, but what I was actually watching was Exeter at Bath.  So that was very confusing.  This game was on a delay, so they were able to switch round the team names in the score for the American audience.  But just to be even more confusing, when they show a live game of football or rugby here they just use the English TV feed with the home team listed first in the score.  What a nonsense.

Biden vs Trump

I'd back "Crazy" Joe Biden every time in a fight with Trump.  And I would pay a lot of money to watch that fight between two 70+ year old's - Trump would get his fat ass whooped.  It's ridiculous for a President of the US to lower himself and engage in such pettiness, but it is even sadder that it comes as absolutely no surprise - that is why Trump's presidency will be talked about in history for a long time as the worse America has ever, and will ever, have.

Patriots Day

I watched the film Patriots Day the other day - about the Boston Marathon bombings.  If the events of the film are to be believed, the character played by Mark Wahlberg was present at the bombing, the shootout and the end of the manhunt.  Nothing like a realistic portrayal of a recent tragedy.   

Cherry Blossom

I'm sore.  Went for a long lunchtime walk (2.5 hours of solid walking, with a lot of elevation change thrown in) just to go to Washington Park Arboretum and check out the cherry blossoms and rhododendrons.  Not quite the spectacular color display I hoped it might be, but still a lot of trees were flowering and were very pretty (though I could have just as easily gone to take some photos of the flowering trees in the neighborhood streets near the office!).  I did take some photos - I'll aim to add them to this post later.  Then followed this up with some late afternoon ping pong - so I am unsurprisingly tired and aching.  The walk must have done me some good as I rediscovered some of my best ping pong form for the first time in ages.  Clearly I need to slack off work more often...!

Money money money money, money

I haven’t done my taxes yet, which are due in mid-April.  Another bureaucratic nonsense that can only happen in America – see also the healthcare system – where every single person has to file their own year-end taxes, and where a very small number of companies (particularly tax-preparation companies) make some very tidy profits.  And where the 1%, like President Trump, save on paying much tax by employing tax experts to find and exploit all kinds of obscure loopholes and workarounds.  His tax returns, that we will probably never see, would probably be very revealing.  In comparison, I have been looking at my meagre money and assets, and doing my bit to try to save on some taxes e.g. by making sure I maximize my IRA contributions – that stands for Individual Retirement Account and nothing to do with the Irish Republican Army – which are designed “to help you save for retirement and offer many tax advantages”.  These are retirement saving accounts on top of my 401k – which is a more typical work pension that I contribute a percentage to in every pay check I get.  But in all honesty I haven’t given much thought to proper retirement planning yet – I’ve still got another 25 years of employment to look forward to, if I last that long, so it still seems like a long way away – but I feel like I’m making the right steps to be in good shape should I ever reach retirement age without crippling healthcare expenses.  But I don’t think I invest my normal savings very well – too much tied up in my company’s stock through my Employee’s Share Purchase Plan, too much money invested in low interest accounts rather than something with a potentially much higher yield, and I haven’t even invested in buying my first house yet.  But, bottom line, I’ve got enough to live on without having to work for some time if need be – should that ever happen voluntarily or involuntarily – and that makes me happy.  I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the option of taking a sabbatical from work and doing some of those bucket list things whilst I’m still in relatively good health – something that immensely worries me won’t be the case 25 years in the future.  But what also worries me is the potential for crippling healthcare expenses when I’m older – so I do need to keep a not insignificant amount aside.  As much as it may be flawed, be grateful that you have a universal healthcare system in the UK.   

Littering

What is wrong with people?  This afternoon I, again, took some time to clean up some litter that had been thrown into the undergrowth on the edge of the road just outside my driveway entrance.  Some bottles, and some fast food takeaway trash.  This is intentional littering - someone has just chucked this out of their car window - and it's despicable.  They may be teenagers, it may even be some inconsiderate adults, but it seems to happen way more than normal for what is really a relatively light trafficked road.  I doubt I'll ever catch them - I can't see the bottom of the driveway from my house - but I reckon it's probably some individual who doesn't think twice about doing it.  Thanks for making it someone else's problem.  Douche. 

Cold War 2

Doesn't it feel like things are going to kick off with Russia?  They use nerve gas, we expel some diplomats, they expel some diplomats.  So what's next?  Given our tepid response so far, probably not much.  But what we should do is (a) some NATO exercises in East Ukraine (after all, they shot down that Dutch aircraft a while back and I don't recall any sort of response to that), (b) some retaliation against Russian-backed Syrian crimes against humanity, and (c) move the World Cup out of Russia.  And with too many suspicious ties, and continuing investigations, into Russian influence in Trump's election win and Trump's government, don't trust the US to act in our best interests.  In some ways, I admire Putin for doing what he does in full knowledge that there won't be any sort of meaningful response by the UN or anyone else.  But he has probably crossed a line now, if not already, and needs to be reined in.  But I don't think anyone can or will.  What a sad state of world affairs - but that is what happens when America is crippled by an incompetent government and presidency.         

Stream of Consciousness

I’m writing this at 6pm, sitting at my desk in my cube in my very quiet and very empty office – myself and the cleaning/security people are probably the only people still here.  All the more depressing when there are gorgeous blue skies this afternoon/evening  - I did pop out for a walk earlier, and should be a nice sunset about the time I probably leave.  I would have left for home earlier, but it looks like there was a crash on I-5 so I’m waiting for my traffic app to tell me when the estimated time home is less than 35 minutes – which tends to be my trigger for leaving.  Been a tough week – busy, and still no developments in my job situation.  Though I have, again, been reassured that I will be moving groups and getting a new manager, and that an announcement to that end is coming in the next few weeks.  We shall see.  It can’t come soon enough – getting increasingly disillusioned with things here.  I suspect I shall continue to keep an eye out for San Diego jobs, no matter what else happens.  Also thinking that I need a break – I might take a couple of days off work at the end of next week so that I can decompress.  I quite like the idea of spending a few days in Portland, Oregon – but having just checked the weather forecast, that won’t be happening this time.  Canada is also an option, but I’m saving a long weekend to Vancouver or Victoria for one of the big US holidays – 4th July or Thanksgiving.  But seeing more of Oregon is definitely on my to-do list for this year, plus also I’d like to go to Chicago later this year – a city I’ve never been to before.  Plus a trip back to the UK this summer – something I’m definitely looking forward to.  A lot of this is wishful thinking – hope I can actually get off my ass and plan/get the most out of these trips!  My mood could also be affected by tomorrow’s sporting events – a big 6-pointer for Palace against Huddersfield, and then I hope at least England can stop Ireland getting the Grand Slam.  Don’t care that it’s St Patrick’s Day tomorrow – I’m sure there will be more drunks than normal out and about tomorrow evening, though thankfully not as many here as in some of the other US cities with a much more prolific Irish heritage.  And March Madness is currently going on – a sporting event that is inexplicably popular, and that I am wildly indifferent to.  I have, over time, acquired an appreciation for and enjoyment of professional basketball – but I can’t, and won’t, say the same about college basketball.  A check of my app reveals that my time home is down to 34 minutes, so I’m going to stop typing now and head home!     

Census

I got some mail recently telling me that I had been "randomly" selected to complete a household survey and provide the information to the United States Census Bureau.  Completion of the survey was mandatory and required by law, so I spent a long 30+ minutes completing it online yesterday evening.  What a pain in the ass.  And a lot of personal data that I wasn't comfortable providing.  They said that the data was protected and would only be used for "statistical purposes" - but with the sheer number of question on residency and citizenship, I wouldn't be surprised if the government use this data to pick up illegals.  They don't send a survey to everyone, so not sure why I happened to be sampled.  But if they try to follow-up with me on my responses, I won't be happy.   

Bargain

Who can't resist a deal like this?

Messed Up

Some big differences between the US and the UK over the weekend.  It WASN'T Mother's Day here (doesn't happen until mid-May) and the clocks went forward.  I should be used to it by now, but the pointless exercise of changing the clocks by an hour has really messed me up.  I'm not tired until very late, and I'm struggling to get out of bed in the mornings.  Though I suspect the change in time has really only made a bad situation worse.  Thanks to the stresses and strains of my job and my job situation, I'm not exactly sleeping well anyway.  I need a vacation.  And a new job.

Candy Crush

I hate myself.  I resisted for 5+ years, but finally I gave in and have downloaded Candy Crush onto my phone, and now I can't stop playing it.  Even at work.  Sad.  My only promise to myself - not to spend a single penny on the app, even when I inevitably can't get past a difficult level.

Getting Old

Today was the "iHeart Music Awards".  Nope, I didn't watch it.  But I saw 5 artists mentioned as performing.  2 of these I've heard of, but never actually heard their music (discounting Game of Thrones): Ed Sheeran and Maroon 5.  The other 3 I've never even heard of, let alone heard their music: Cardi B, Charlie Puth and Camila Cabello.  I am really getting that old?  I've never really been a chart music listening kind of guy at the best of times, but at least I used to have a passing knowledge of who is in the charts.  Now I don't.  I don't know whether that is a good thing - reflecting a more refined taste in music - or a bad thing - not in touch with contemporary music culture.  Someone like Lady Gaga is a big name - she even did a Superbowl performance - but if she passed me in the street, I wouldn't have a clue because I have absolutely no idea what she looks like.  I fear that I am most obviously showing my age when it comes to music - I haven't bought a new album for years, the artists I like the most are either dead, split up or haven't released anything good for absolutely ages, and even the contemporary "indy" music I wake up to on my alarm radio I am indifferent to.  I haven't even embraced the new methods of consuming music - I don't do Spotify, I don't listen to Sirius Radio, I don't do Apple Music, or any of the other streaming services.  If I start listening to NPR - America's equivalent to Radio 4 - then you have permission to put me in a home.

France 22 - 16 England

I can't decide who was worse - England, or the refereeing.  I'm going to go for England.  Shocking.  Where the hell was the urgency?  I didn't see the Scotland game, which didn't air here, but I thought England were supposed to be the second best team in the world behind the All Blacks, but it sure didn't look like that.  Sadly makes the last game against Ireland irrelevant.  I was considering the possibility of going to an Irish pub at 7 am in the morning next weekend with a friend and his wife (who happens to be Irish) to watch what should have been the decider next week.  On St Patrick's Day.  Now I probably won't bother.  Shame. 

San Diego

As much as I love San Diego and would love to move back there - especially given my current job situation - the Visit San Diego tourism ad that I keep on seeing on TV ALL THE TIME is driving me crazy and making the unthinkable happen and me hate the place.  Perhaps the only way to stop seeing the ad is to move there!

Echo

Another company-wide work gift to celebrate a drug approval or drug launch or something.  And, yet again, a gift that I am more than likely to never ever use.  An Amazon Echo Dot.  I don’t care much for owning a smart speaker, since the only inevitable evolution of these will be to start spying on you.  And I just don’t see the point – why do I need this thing to control my house, I’m perfectly capable of doing that myself.  It is just providing solutions to things that are not a problem in the first place.  It came with a connected light bulb – so now I can tell it to turn on the lights instead of getting off my fat ass and switching them on manually like the old-fashioned fuddy-duddy I am.  Ridiculous, and yet another step towards turning us all into the obese and feeble humans seen in WALL-E.  It’s constantly listening, like the Big Brother it wants to be, and I just find that somewhat suspicious and off-putting.  So just shoot me an e-mail if you’d like one for a Christmas present!       

Some things never change

Work.  Really disappointed.  They’ve just announced an organizational change in my group, and I thought they would finally confirm my moving into a different group with a different manager.  Nope, absolutely no mention of me.  Gutted.  Let down.  Frustrated.  Unless they make another announcement – unlikely now – I am stuck with my manager who I increasingly detest.  It is clearly time to step up my search for a new job.  Unquestionally my hopes and desires are falling on deaf ears, and I cannot trust anyone around me.  I honestly thought something would change this time – and I was promised as much by certain people - but it hasn’t, and I should know better.  This is beyond disappointing, this is soul-crushing.  I cannot continue to work here in the status quo, something has to change – and that is all I ask in order to stick it out for a bit longer in Seattle and at my current company.  How long do I give it now?  So, so incredibly frustrating.   

Second Amendment

America doesn't have a gun problem.  It's perfectly rational that Americans have the right to keep and bear arms.  And it is really difficult to purchase them - they don't even appear for sale in random flyers that I get every week.

America the Beautiful. 

Alicia Keys

Following in the footsteps of Elton John last year, today we had another “celebrity” give a short talk and performance at our company (or at least in our Californian office).  Clearly they wanted to make full use of the piano that they brought in for Elton John, because it was Alicia Keys today.  I have no idea if she is nearly as much of a diva as Elton John, but the whole thing ran late and was kind of rushed – at least Elton John was on time.  I know of her, but really know very little of her actual music – not really my thing, I didn’t know most of the stuff she performed, but it was a good albeit brief performance (despite embarrassing audio issues on our company’s end) and quite apparent that she is a very accomplished pianist and singer.  Makes you wonder how much they pay for these corporate gigs – it must be big money for what is really very little work, plus probably a huge donation to their charity.

Oscars

My thoughts on the Oscars ... who cares.  I certainly don't.  Instead, I watched Homeland really plum the depths with a Waco type episode.  Homeland is a long way away from it's best, but still infinitely more watchable than the Oscars.

2 Worlds

People affected by the opioid crisis.  People who support Trump.  2 huge aspects to America today, and 2 worlds totally alien to me.  Perhaps a middle America thing.  Perhaps a reflection of the homogeneity of the people I know.  Perhaps a reflection of my sheltered existence.  But certainly things I don't understand, and probably never will.  And probably the reason why I find documentaries about both so fascinating.

Mattress

I've had a really bad back all this week, and I think it started by my trying to sleep on the different side of my bed last weekend for a change.  What-a-mistaka-to-maka!  The springs in my mattress are apparently all messed up, at least on one side of my bed, and I haven't been the same since that uncomfortable night's sleep.  I've put off having to get a new mattress for so long, but I don't think I can leave it any longer.  I might take the chance on ordering one online - it might mean not being able to test it before I buy it, but they are so much cheaper, I don't have to deal with the sales people at a mattress store, and they normally have generous return policies.  Time to do my online research and try to identify which online review sites are actually genuine.  That can be tricky...   

Missing T-Shirt

It's stunning how frustrating something as trivial and insignificant as having seemingly lost a t-shirt can be.  It's not even a great t-shirt - one I got from work a few years ago.  But I have absolutely no idea what I've done with it - accidentally thrown it away, left it in a hotel room or similar, got lost when moving house, whatever.  But it's really doing my nut in - and I can't stop myself from constantly going through my stuff hoping I've just mislaid it somewhere and I'll chance upon it.  And looking for it in the middle of the night.  Not healthy behavior.  But I'm pretty sure it has gone.  Boo.