Hobbits Seeing Double!

So Peter Jackson is going to be filming "The Hobbit" after all, I hear today, but no wait, there will be 2 films. Then later I read that rather than breaking "The Hobbit" into two parts, the first film is to be a prequel. What prequel? I don't recall any prequel to "The Hobbit". Is someone just going to make something up? Because if they do it'll be a load of bloody nonsense! Surely they must split the book into 2 distinct parts. I have a feeling someone got their wires crossed someplace on the news reportage front!

Another slight copncern I might have is; just what angle will Jackson take for these films? "The Lord of the Rings" films were intended for a largely adult audience, as the book was meant for adults, but "The Hobbit" was written for children, but if he makes these films for children, there's a chance that he'll miss out at the Box Office. If I was Jackson I'd pitch this film at kids, but make it dark enough that and adult audience could take it seriously. Unfortunately, the book also has a large dose of humour, which I suspect will be lost in script writing.

Anyhow, as good as "The Lord of the Rings" films were, they could never do justice to Tolkien's writing. No slight on Peter Jackson, because nobody could have done the book justice, it's such a fantastic work, probably in the Top 10 all time books, in my opinion! As for that Harry Potter nonsense, I've never read those books and have no desire to, the films are so bad, I think they're insulting to children. The fact that so many adults also enjoy them speaks volumes to me about literacy in this country (and others too it seems). If that's you then I apologise, but seriously, read a book for grown-ups. Visit a library or something, feed your brain for a change, instead of starving it of oxygen in front of the T.V. I think I've said this before, but nevermind, it bears repeating

The Man Who Would Be God!

I'm reading "The War Of Wars" right now which is about the first proper World War. At it's heart, the man above... Napoleon Bonapart, clearly a very able General if a little bit on the short side. He was hardly the dwarf that many said he was, but at 5' 6", he was hardly a giant of a man. Like any good general, he was probably a closet homosexual, the book said that, I'm not just making it up. Men who win battles seldom have a way with the female species, that's for sure.

I still haven't got past his first campaign in Italy anyway, so it remains to be seen what feats of military derring-do he will achieve, although I have an inkling that just as he was born on an island, he is doomed to die on an island. Anyway he totallly revolutionized warfare. Just before his time, Generals liked to line their men up all gentlmanly like and have them all kill each other before tea time if possible. Napoleon mixed in some guerilla warfare, diversionary tactics not seen since Alexander or Caesar, and forced marches not unlike the Romans were acquainted with.

The stuffed coats of the aristocratic warring classes never saw it coming, and if the man hadn't been encumbered with God-like pretensions like great leaders before and after him, then who knows how far he could have gone... and those before and after him also. Once again I'm talking utter nonsense, howabout I finish the book and let you know how it goes?

Lying Their Heads Off!

I've told you before how recorded history and our perception of ancient times, is but a tissue of lies. I've been thinking about it, and it's no wonder that we generally accept the lies we're told about the past, because we're also being lied to constantly about the future and especially about the present. The governments are lying, the police are lying, the intelligence services are lying, scientists are lying, and we lie to ourselves when we acept their word as truth.

So, it's not hard to see how history is founded on lies, because the people who recorded it were being lied to at the time. The truth is something of an anomalie in history, it seems like it doesn't belong, because it is surrounded by lies. For instance, did Gnaeus Julius Agricola score a great victory over the Picts at the battle of Mons Graupius? History says he did, history being the written record of Tacitus, Agricola's son-in-law. Surely he wouldn't have lied or exaggerated about those events.

More recent memory make us wonder just how big the lies our own governments feed us, can get? Promised a referendum on the EU Constitution, and returned to power on that basis, only to slap the people in the face, and surrender sovereignty to the very people we fought 2 World Wars against. Unbelievable! Then there's climate change, what's really happening? I know what we're being told, and I know how it will affect me. Apparently I need to pay more Road Tax for my car, extra fuel duty if I fly and pay to have my rubbish emptied (which I already pay Council Tax for). Only in this way, can I save the planet! Would it be cynical of me to suspect that governments Worldwide are opportunists seizing on the chance to bleed us dry in the name of Planetary salvation?

I'm almost certain that the figures have been massaged. Yes, climate change is happening and man could be to blame, but we all know that countries such as the U.S., China and India, as well as some Eastern European countries are definitely not giving a shit, yet we must pay for it! Let me put it this way, no amount of money paid by people in the UK, or any household energy savings here in the UK are going to make a grain of difference. The goverment know that, it's time you realised... you're being lied to again!

EU Must Be Mad!

Ah, the deed is done then. The people were promised a say, but when it really mattered, of course, the people cannot fully understand the concepts involved, so the great political minds of Europe went ahead and signed the "United States Of Europe" treaty for us. Now all we need to do is sit back and reap the rewards... which will be what exactly? I'm sure that I'm not alone in thinking that countries such as France and Germany will see this as just the result that was hoped for in the last 2 World Wars. Well, there patience has been rewarded, they now have control, and perhaps us Brits can finally be made to pay for having the audacity to stand up to them in the past.

We didn't stand up this time though, just rolled over to have our tummy ticked. My worst fear is that in some point in the very near future, some country is going to find themselves receiving a bit of a raw deal from this new arrangement, and will turn around and say, "Excuse Me Herr Germany and Madmoiselle France, but we've decided we'd like out of this treaty. They may well then be thrown a bone or two, but still not happy, they will simply be crushed by our new European Army, frogmarching along to "Ode to Joy", our new European Anthem, with the European Flag borne proudly aloft.

So we'll either find ourselves in a totalitarian state or we'll have a European schism and a European Civil War, just as the Germans are claiming the last 2 World Wars were, European Civil Wars. Yes, that's right, because we were all getting along great for ages before that weren't we? These people are blind if they think it will ever work, the best we can hope for are some special new European taxes to help fund a new Eurocratic workforce and Parliament. Maybe we'll get an EU VAT on top of existing VAT, that would help build up some gigantic EU MP's pensions. To be honest, I've never heard anyone say anything positive about the whole thing, apart from the deluded madmen pushing the idea along, does any normal person think this is a good idea? I'd love to hear it!

Lidl's Ladels the Labels!

You probably have a Lidl store somewhere near you, especially if you live in Europe, judging by the map above showing their progressive expansionist policy. We've had a Lidl's here for several years now, even though no-one knows how to pronounce it yet ("leed-ills", "lie-dills", "lid-dills"), everyone has their own way of saying it. Well, that's besides the point really. They've bulit a new store here, right next to the old one, only twice the size. What will they do with the old building? Nobody knows, but it'll give the old folk something to talk about until it's decided.

The new store opened on Thursday, and I had my first chance to go in there today. "How odd" I thought, "It's exactly the same as the old store, only slightly bigger and with a different flooring!" Yes, every sale item was in exactly the same location as it would have been in the old store, because the layout was the same too. And I still had to wait too long at the checkout, so no change there either.

They do have a nice big new car-park though, so that's something different I suppose. It's all came out of common good land that the Community Council sold to Lidl's for somewhere in the region of one million pounds I do believe. Now they have a million to spend, the local councillors are in a panic about what to do with it. They should just syphon it off through vastly over-inflated expenses claims like normal councillors would. It'll never do the town any good, we almost had a Tesco until last week when the whole thing was scrapped. That's the odd thing about this town, they keep building more houses, while all the time local shops and businesses have been packing up. Now, all we have is houses for around 20,000 and the odd corner shop. So let's build some more houses then, yes there are about 3 new housing estates in the pipeline!

Networking!

Today marked "abortive attempt to set up a home network part 1"! Well, it wasn't entirely a failure, I did manage to setup a LAN, the only problem being I had no Internet connection. I was working mainly on the basis that, if you plug everything in, the rest will be easy. It was only when my computer started waffling on about IP addresses that I realised I was out of my depth. Not that I don't know plenty about both networks and IP's, just that I've no idea what the computer wants from me because it won't say what the problem actually is.

It's all a moot point now anyway, because I was going to change ISP, but when I phoned to cancel, my present ISP had to go and better the deal I was after, so I've a new router on the way now, with instructions this time, and I'll get more bandwidth for less, with free phone calls as well. Sounds good, provided I can get it all working, and that's not a certainty by a long chalk.

Bizarre coincidence yesterday. I was on the train coming home, and a guy that's in my class at Uni was sitting a few seats back. He never ever gets this train as he lives in the islands and stays in Aberdeen during term, but he was off to a party in the Highlands. Anyway, I could hear him talking all of the journey, and assumed it was with someone he knew from Aberdeen who was also going to the party. It turned out be someone else I knew from College several years ago. So, we all knew each other, but never knew that we knew each other, if that makes sense?

Cloudbusting!

Interesting things... clouds! We've all seen odd looking cloud formations at some time or another. I could have spent a little longer finding some more pictures, but you know how it is? You'll just have to make do for now!

As far as I'm aware, none of these photos were photo-shopped, but you never know, especially with that last one... looks a little dodgy to me!

Sick Again!

Had enough of my whingeing yet? No, I didn't think so, else you wouldn't be reading this would you? Well I've managed to steer clear of illness since about March I think, but it was just too bloody much to ask that I last until after tomorrow, which is the last day of Uni until next year. Not only that, but I thought that I might just skip tomorrow, because it's a long enough day travelling into Aberdeen in the best of health. Doing it while ill would be slightly sado-masochistic. Then I remembered those GTCS forms and disclosure that I was talking about yesterday. They have to be handed in, which means that I have to go in tomorrow.

Yeah yeah, laugh it up, enjoy my suffering, but remember "What goes around..." Well I suppose it could have been worse. If I'd been ill on school experience or while writing my assessment, that would have been more than a nuisance, and anyway I can console myself with the fact that it's the last day, and I have until January 7th to recover. I suspect I might also have other sel-inflicted ilnesses to recover from before that time!

Oh, and I see some great news from Labour this morning. Ed Balls, has decided that all new teachers should be educated up to Masters level. That's nice of him, I've just spent 4 years at College and Uni, and just as I'm about to make a little bit of money, someone thinks that I should start teaching and undertake a Masters at the same time. Genius idea, but why? A teacher should know all they need to know with a degree and a year's teacher training (plus another probation year before becoming fully registered). If they still can't teach, then how exactly is a Masters going to help, there's not going to be anything in a Masters which can be passed on to the pupils, so what good would it do?

The only good that could come from being a teacher with a Masters, is that it would give you a way out of the profession, probably into much better paid work. Yes, teacher's are reasonably paid, but not nearly as well paid as they could be elsewhere. People teach becasue they want to, it's certainly not for the money. If you were to do it purely for the money then you'd be a nervous wreck!

I Hate Filling In Forms!

It has just been one of those weeks so far, the kind where you think that you won't have much on, then spend most of it chasing up paperwork. In my case both professional and personal documentation. First there was that assignment I had to submit yesterday. OK, got that in! Then I had an application for disclosure to fill in, my second in less than a year ( at £20 a time). I have to apply to the GTCS (General Teaching Council Scotland) in order to be "allowed" to qualify as a teacher (that's £55 this year and £40 every year after). These are exactly the sort of things you need as a 4th year student with a family and no money, in the run up to Christmas!

Anyway, had to apply to the GTCS online, had problems with that, had to phone them up, eventually got it sorted. Had to print off the completed forms and direct debit mandate, to send off with the disclosure form. then I had to go to the library to photocopy a birth certificate, passport and driving licence to send off with that as well.

Next up, my daughter wanted some book off of Amazon, so I logged in and bought it for 1 pence. Great, no, not so great, my account had my old credit card details. Easy, I'll just change the card details and everything will be fine. Would it let me do that? No, it wouldn't! I deleted my old details then couldn't enter my new details, so I had to enter my credit card details to buy the book and then it automatically updated my profile. Ah, the wonders of technology, everything's arse about tit!

Read A Bloody Book (Again)!

You know me by now, I like to moan about the same things again and again. Well, I've finally got my assessment submitted, hardcopy and electronic copy for the plagiarism software to chew over. Now, I'm going to purchase some drink and try and read some of the books I've squirreled away over the last 2 months. I was into Waterstones in Aberdeen and was sorely tempted to buy a Conn Iggulden book that I spotted, but then I thought I should probably read the Conn Iggulden book that I have, and see if it's any good, before I buy anymore of his works.

What was I going to moan about this time? Oh yeah, grown ups who haven't read books. I know I've done this one, but it's still happpening and it makes me sick (something was said in a lecture today, that's why, triggered me off). It's compounded (or aggravated if you like) by the fact that the T.V. is virtually no longer watchable. No wonder people are detached and socially inept. I blame the parents, because it is the parents. If a mother or father never reads and there are no books in the house, what sort of message are they sending to their children? I've even heard people say that they've learned everything they know from the telly, and I believe them because they know jack-shit!

Scotland is failing miserably in the three "R's" and all that's needed is a few books on a book-shelf in every home, turn the telly off for a little while now and again and read some books. It's not hard and it can be very rewarding. It stimulates the imagination, it improves literacy and you might just learn something!