Euro 2022 Champions

I must confess to having watched none of the Women's Euro games until today, and even then only a few minutes to see when the game was going to end so I could play video games with my nephew (which didn't happen, damn extra time).  I didn't even know that they were airing any of the tournament games over here, but apparently they were.  But congrats on England being crowned champions.  However, I couldn't help noticing - why are there no non-white English players?  There seemed to be a distinct lack of diversity in the team.  A team that noticeably also played in all white.  It all seems a bit off.  Regardless, they should savor the win before they quickly return to obscurity.        

Mega Millions

Some lucky sod in Illinois won the $1.3 billion jackpot.  Not a certain somebody from Washington state sadly (at 1 in 300 million, or more accurately 5 in 300 million because I bought $10 worth of tickets, the odds were not in my favor).  I'm not sure I would bother continuing with this blog if I had won the jackpot.  So the fact that I'm writing this on a Saturday night, sitting in front of the TV bathed in sweat because it's so goddamned hot (we're still under an excessive heat warning), sucks.   

Sports

I shall not be watching a single second of the Commonwealth Games.  Mainly because it's not airing over here.  But even if I could watch it, I probably wouldn't - it's a second or third tier sporting event at best.  It's equivalent to watching a Championship game on TV, something I haven't done for a very long time.  I didn't watch a single second of the World Athletics Championship either, despite it being held relatively nearby in Oregon, and that is certainly superior to the Commonwealth Games.  My sporting viewing habits have been weird this summer, I didn't watch any of Wimbledon either (I found it quite sad that a Russian won on the women's side, and an anti-vaxxer won on the men's side) and I didn't watch much of the Tour de France either - just catching highlights from a few of the mountain stages.  Very unusual.  While waiting for the Premier League to start up again, my choice of sports to watch over the last few weeks has been Australian Rules Football.  It has started to become an important staple of my viewing habits.  Watching a game live in Australia is definitely high up on my bucket list now.   

Big Ben

My god, it's too hot to do anything.  Well, nearly anything.

Song of the Week #120

A somewhat interesting choice this week, as I only listened to this song for the first time ever yesterday as it popped up in my YouTube queue.  A one-hit wonder from the mid-70's, judging by the number of reaction videos on YouTube it was apparently a lot more successful in the US than it was in the UK - despite it being from a UK artist and recorded/produced in the UK (by Alan Parsons no less).  I've got to be honest, I don't know what to make of this song - it seems perfectly nice enough, but not exactly memorable enough or special enough to warrant re-listening.  Or reacting to.  With the high quality instrumentation - and you normally can't go wrong with some big strings - and it's mellowness I feel like I should like this more.  Am I missing something?     

Wordle Update

Well, my 56 day Wordle streak came crashing to a halt today as – for only the second time ever – I failed to get today’s Wordle.  No excuses about made up words this time – I got caught in a classic spin cycle: incorrectly guessing PINCH, WINCH and FINCH when the actual word was CINCH.  Damn that double C.  I’m not sure there are any other 5 letter words ending with INCH, so I only needed one more guess and I would have got it.  Shucks.  But my win percentage remains at 99% with an average of about 3.88 guesses, which is about right because I’m disappointed if I don’t get it in 3.  Note also that I play in Hard Mode (which you can change in Settings) – which basically means any revealed hints have to be used in subsequent guesses, so for example if your first guess reveals a yellow E then your second guess has to use E in a different position.  At least I got today’s Heardle in 4 seconds, which is the variation of Wordle that I also currently play and which I normally really struggle with because I am utterly useless at recognizing songs and remembering band names (I think some of you might like Heardle if you haven’t already checked it out yet).

Lunchtime

I went out for a lunchtime walk today, and that was probably a mistake because it was way too hot.  I easily got through all the water I took with me, and felt tired, sweaty and totally unable to get any work done when I got back home.  The only redeeming fact was that I did one of my regular trails near the British shop, so was able to get a sausage roll for lunch after the walk.  Nice.  I really need to learn how to bake them myself.  Tomorrow through Sunday are going to be even hotter - we are now under an official excessive heat warning.  Yikes.

America

The current state of America in a nutshell - a recent poll indicated that the majority of Americans say the US government is "corrupt and rigged against everyday people like me", and almost a third say "it may be necessary at some point soon for citizens to take up arms against the government".  Perhaps the saddest thing about this is that it doesn't surprise or shock me. 

Weather Alert

Oh no, it's our turn to get a "special weather statement".  The description is quite succinct: "VERY WARM TEMPERATURES NEXT WEEK ACROSS WESTERN WASHINGTON".  But I'm not sure it was necessary to issue an alert for highs reaching the 90s (90F is about 32C) and overnight lows in the mid 60s (65F is about 18C).  It doesn't seem overly extreme.  But I still might temporarily switch up from lunchtime hikes to early morning hikes (if I can drag myself out of bed early enough). 

The Green Planet

I've been watching The Green Planet, and every single episode I've watched so far I've fallen asleep whilst watching.  Normally that wouldn't be a problem with a David Attenborough narrated BBC nature show.  But for some reason, plants and trees can't seem to hold my attention in the same way that animals do.  Don't get me wrong, the production quality is a good as ever.  But perhaps the time-lapse photography - although impressive - is a little bit weird and off-putting.  The fake accompanying sound effects don't help either.  And you can't empathize with a plant in the same way that you can, for example, with a meerkat.   

Primary

I may not be an American citizen (yet) and not get a ballot, but I still received my "Snohomish County Official Local Voters' Pamphlet" this week for the August 2, 2022 Primary.  So I could have been voting, at the federal level, for US Senator and US Representative.  And at the local level, for Secretary of State, State Senator, State Representative, County Prosecuting Attorney and Public Utility District Commissioner.  I've already starting seeing some political ads on TV - with them all being attack ads, which I guess is fitting for the current political environment.  It's very depressing.  I did a quick scan of all the candidates and their summaries (containing stuff like elected experience, professional experience, education, community service and a statement) and it's the usual selection of nutcases and oddballs.  It doesn't take a genius to work out which ones are clearly right-wing extremists and a danger to society.  It's scary to think that some of these freaks will actually receive votes let alone get elected.     

Song of the Week #119

This week, a one-hit wonder from the 90's.  A song that I've heard countless times on radio, but I could have a million guesses at the band name and I would never have got it.  

Northern Lights

Occasionally you can see the northern lights from the Seattle area, and apparently last night was one such occasion.  I wish I'd known in advance, as I might have tried to catch it.  But I don't know exactly where I'd go to view it - somewhere easily accessible by road, but far enough away from any city lights.  That's a tricky one, but I think it would have to be near the water.  Like Skunk Bay, from which the following video was taken last night:

Spendthrift

I've just shelled out a load of money on a James Bond Moonraker Laser Gun Prop Replica.  What is interesting is that it cost me $600 on the US 007 Bond site, but it retails for 700 pounds on the UK 007 Bond site.  Based on the current exchange rate $600 is about 500 pounds.  So, it appears that I might have got a good deal?  Relatively speaking anyway - spending an exorbitant amount of money on some crappy replica is probably never going to be a good deal.  I'm a sucker.  And a spendthrift.

Lottery

I normally only bother buying a lottery ticket if the jackpot climbs to a ridiculous value.  We have reached that point.  The Mega Millions jackpot on Tuesday will be over half a billion dollars.  The statistician in me cringes that the odds of winning this jackpot are over 1 in 302 million, but the dreamer in me craves something as life-changing as this.       

Interlopers

I caught some interlopers in my yard today.

A mother, who didn't seem frightened of me at all when I got near:

And her 2 adorable fawns, who were a lot more skittish (I had to take this photo through my window screen in order not to frighten them off): 

South Bay Trail

Another mid-week walk to somewhere new, whilst my manager is out and the weather is good (though nowhere near as hot as you have it in the UK!).  This time I made the 1 hour 15 minute drive up to Bellingham, the last city before you get to the Canadian border.  Surprisingly this is the first time I've been there.  This was a 4 mile round-trip along the shoreline separating the "historic" Fairhaven district from downtown Bellingham (historic is in quotes because the definition of historic is very different between the US and the UK!).  Quite flat, and quite busy - parking was tough even as early as 10 am, and the number of retirees on the trail was noticeable.  Were they residents or were they tourists?  Don't know.  I didn't really explore Fairhaven very much, but seemed like a perfectly charming place worthy of a a couple of hours of exploration another time.  As for the trail, I had high hopes because this was a 4-star hike in my book.  This was not a 4-star hike.  The views of the bay were perfectly fine along a section of the trail on a boardwalk, but not exactly awe-inspiring compared to other shoreline trails, and half the trail you're actually hiking on the inland side of a railroad where you can't see the bay at all.  So I found it kind of underwhelming - if I was to come here again, might want to time it for sunset and stick to the boardwalk and exploring Fairhaven.

Starlight

I've been enjoying some limited-edition Coca-Cola Starlight this week.  What the hell does "Starlight" taste like I hear you ask?  Well, the outside of the can doesn't exactly help - describing it as "Space Flavored".  What the hell does that mean?  And I'm not even going to try to analyze the list of ingredients - the usual selection of addictive and unhealthy chemicals and corn syrup.  But, to my detriment, I like my soft drinks - and I quite like this.  But only as a one-off.  It's quite sweet - not sure how to best describe it, but I've read stuff like it tastes like minty cotton-candy sprinkled with vanilla (!), ginger and lemon furniture cleaning products (!!) and various other more sensible descriptions.  Clearly nobody has the same taste experience - which is something in itself.    

Wasps

Oh no, a few days ago I discovered a wasp nest right in the tree by my back patio.  It can't have been there long as I surely would have noticed it, but it's quite big and quite active.  And makes me quite uncomfortable if I go out there to sit outside or refill the bird feeders, in case these little buggers see me as a threat and decide to attack me.  I mentioned it to my landlord, and he said he'd deal with it.  So yesterday evening, he drove his all-wheel car across the yard and up to the tree, wound down his car window, soaked the nest with some spray, and quickly closed his window and scarpered before they reacted.  Did it help?  Apparently not, because the nest was still active today.  So I think he is about to do the same thing again tonight.  I'm not expecting it to make much difference this time either.  I'm tempted to say that he really needs to get a professional in to properly and safely remove the nest, but I don't think he will because he is a bit of a cheapskate.  So lets see how things are tomorrow, but I fear I might be stuck with a load of wasps right outside my back door for quite a while.  Great.   

Song of the Week #118

This week ... a bit more Deep Purple because I feel like it.  And this is a great track.  I don't know where to start - the keyboards, the vocals, the guitar, the drums, all on point.  But I'm going to say that the guitar riff - especially when the drums and keyboard come in on top of the riff - is one of the best in rock history.  If this track doesn't get your feet tapping and your head nodding, then you are dead inside.

 

Middle Fork Snoqualmie

I was very naughty today.  Because it was a sunny day and my manager is on vacation, I decided to take a long lunch and go for a hike.  I ended up being out most of the day.  I went to the Middle Fork Snoqualmie trail, due east of Seattle and about a 1 hour 15 minute drive away.  This was a new trail to me - but since you are mostly walking under a forest canopy, a good choice for a hot day.  Although the trail ostensibly follows the middle fork of the Snoqualmie river upstream, for most of the hike you can't actually hear the river let alone see it because the trail meanders away from the river and into the forest, although you do cross over some streams.  The trail has some gentle elevation change, but nothing too excessive - at least in the part of the trail I did - and is surprisingly well maintained.  I think the trail is about 15 miles total, one-way, so as you can imagine I didn't do all that.  My plan was to walk down the trail for 1 hour, then walk back for another hour.  But actually ended up hiking for over 3 hours - about 7 miles according to my phone - and I was absolutely knackered by the end of it, so that was probably too much.  And although the trail didn't start very busy, I started encountering more people on the way back and then I hit a load of rush hour traffic on the drive back, so I was out for much longer than I planned.  And, the shock, I actually took some photos today.

    

Caution

I think I need to be a bit more careful about how I talk about some of my work colleagues.

Goodbye Boris ...

 ... and good riddance.  Please don't do a Trump and continue to dominate the headlines.  To be honest, I've barely been following Boris's demise - but it might be one of the rare times that I agree with Russian media when they called him a stupid clown.  But what did catch my attention was this amusing insight into what the British government really think of the British people:

Right back at you.   

The Green Knight

You've caught me in a contemplative mood tonight.  I've just finished watching The Green Knight, a film from last year that is kind of related to Arthurian legend and set in those times.  And it's certainly one of the more thought-provoking films I've seen for some time - purposely ambiguous, fantastical, moody, confusing.  It's one of the few films that as soon as watching it, I didn't delete it from my DVR because I want to watch it again.  It's the kind of film that critics will like, but audiences - particularly dumb American audiences - will not like.  If you're looking for something a bit different, I'd recommend it - 3.75 stars. 

Photography

It's been a long time since I posted photos from any walks or hikes I've done.  And that is because I haven't taken many photos to post.  Most of the hikes I've done recently are ones that I do regularly - I tend to stick to a selection of trails that are close and convenient - so unless I encounter something really unusual then I won't get my phone out.  But I don't even feel particularly obliged or motivated to take photos on trails that are new to me, like some I've done this week.  This is sometimes because the weather hasn't been cooperative.  It's sometimes because these new trails are not particularly photogenic - which might be one of the main reasons I haven't done them before.  And it's also because some of the best hikes to photograph are too demanding for my fitness level - which is unfortunate because I think they might have some of the best views.  But I will try to do better - particularly as the weather forecast for the next few weeks is looking good, so no excuses to not get out.    

Resurgence

It's nice to see Kate Bush get some long overdue resurgence in popularity, particularly in the US, thanks solely to the TV show Stranger Things.  A show that I've only ever watched the first episode of, which wasn't enough to hold my interest.  The radio station that I wake up to has, mercifully, even started to play Kate Bush's version of Running Up That Hill, rather than the crappy cover version that they had been playing.  So it is time for a prediction.  I think Stranger Things has one more season left, so it will undoubtedly promote a resurgence in another popular 80's artist.  Who will it be?  My prediction - Eurythmics and Annie Lennox.  Someone else who, judging by some of the song reactions I see on YouTube, that most Americans do not know about.         

Song of the Week #117

Yet another classic 80's tune this week.  One that I haven't heard for ages until recently, and one that I haven't really heard many times, but is unequivocally a feel-good song.

Independence Day

Happy 4th July!  Or, just to be more American, should I say July 4th?!  Those crazy Americans and their stupid date customs of month before day.  However it is not just one day off work today, but thanks to our company's summer shutdown I've got the entire week off work.  Something I would probably appreciate more if I was actually busy with work!  I was planning to go to Oregon tomorrow - down to Crater Lake in the south of Oregon, the only national park in Oregon.  But thanks to the crappy spring weather, some winter road closures are still in effect around the lake.  In addition, some of the hiking trails that I want to go on are still partly covered with snow.  So I've made the tough decision to postpone the road trip to hopefully later in the year.  That's the second time I've done that this year - that's not a good precedent.  I fear I'm becoming something of a homebody.  One more characteristic of myself that I need to change before it's too late...       

Lego Update

The Lego Titanic that I want is still sold out - despite being released about 8 months ago.

The Lego Back to the Future Time Machine that I want is still sold out - despite being released about 3 months ago.

The good news, Lego are releasing another James Bond Lego set.  Nowhere near as big or as complicated as the Aston Martin DB5 released a while ago, but it does include the first actual James Bond mini-figure.  I WILL get this when it's released at the start of next month.

Fireworks

We've not even got to 4th July yet but the fireworks have already started being set off, beginning yesterday evening.  When it was still daylight.  Despite it being illegal.  Despite it being illegal in most areas of Western Washington now.  Despite loads of signs being put up saying that fireworks are illegal.  It's ridiculous.  It's disappointing.  But fireworks continue to be pretty easy to obtain (I think you just need to go to tribal land and one of the firework stands they have set up there).  And there is absolutely zero enforcement of firework bans - not helped by the terrible policing situation we have statewide and nationwide right now - so complaining about them is utterly pointless.  It's the animals I feel most sorry for, both domestic and in the wild, who have to put up with the noise and disruption.  I should probably just accept it, and go watch an official firework display somewhere.        

Roger

What's this now, another crappy photo of a rabbit?

Well, this one is a bit more interesting.  You see those steps to my house in the photo?  Well that is - or was - where that cute little bunny ran to when it was spooked.  So yes, I think it was living under those steps - or at least it was using the steps as a convenient hiding place.  This could be considered the closest I currently have to a pet.  However I use the past tense, because my landlord has cut the grass since that photo was taken and I haven't seen it close to my house since.  I feared it would be scared away or scared to death.  But the good news is that I saw the bunny happily munching away on some grass on the other side of my driveway yesterday.  Which is a relief - because this was a really small, really young and really adorable bunny, who I would be sorry to not see again.  Some farmers or gardeners may consider them pests, but I do not.  As opposed to finding a dead mole in my yard the other day, which brings me only joy.  I haven't been afflicted by mole hills as bad as I have in other years, but they are still popping up on the fringes of my yard.