Mid Calder Gala Day: Gala Day Season Begins... and Ends

The band is struggling.

Last year we had an issue where the key members of our drum corps decided (not unreasonably) that they wanted to try their hand at competition. They let it be known that they would be available to us when they were free, but when there was a clash they would prioritize their competition band. This was unfortunate, but understandable - but it meant that for much of the gala day season we were really struggling for people.

At the end of the competition season our pipe major started looking around for an alternative drum corps, be that recruiting new people, or even hiring a tutor and training a new drum corps. However, nothing came of that - indeed, over the winter it became apparent that 'our' drummers had left their competing band, and so should now be available to us. Unfortunately, a few months ago they joined another competing band, and so we were once again stuck.

In the meantime, however, we've also lost much of our pipe corps - between family commitments and various age-related health issues we've found that our regular attendance at practices is less than half a dozen, some of whom aren't able to march any distance.

And so, when the time came to determine which events we would be doing this year, we found ourselves in real trouble: there was one event at which we had sufficient numbers for a pipe corps and one that was a 'maybe', and only one event at which we had a drum corps. And so we've ended up having to cancel all our other events for the year. (It's also worth noting that those events are themselves ailing - we've lost both our Christmas events, we've lost our local gala day, and we were down to only a handful of potential events anyway.)

Anyway, Mid Calder gala day happened on Saturday. It's one of the more involved events: the third-longest parade, followed by lunch, followed by three or four mini-events as we play around the village.

We met at the school, as always, and as always proceeded to agonize over uniform: jackets or no jackets; capes or no capes? In the end, we went with neither jackets nor capes - a bold decision, but a lucky one as it happened. We had a pipe corps of seven, which is one more than the absolute bare minimum, and a drum corps of three (including a bass drummer). So an okay, but not great, band.

And from there it was all pretty straightforward. Except that I came away absolutely convinced that it was the right decision to cancel the other events, because it was very evident that we were struggling for lack of practice - several people weren't playing drones, there were chanters cutting out, and we'd had to restrict our repertoire to a mere five sets (not what you want when you have a long parade to do).

The highlight of the day was the lunch - my understanding is that the local butchers supply the food, in which case they come highly recommended. And then the three mini-events were fine, but no more than that.

And that's gala day season, at least as far as the band is concerned. And, indeed, that's the year's performances with the band done. (We do have our local gala day this weekend, and it will be good to be able to actually attend - I usually miss it. And I have some other solo piping events.)

As for the band, I'm afraid I'm going to have to take action. I'd really hoped not to have to do so, since I was enjoying not having the stress of having to run things, but we just can't go on as we are. So two things are evident:

1. If the band is to continue we need to be able to take on events, confident that we're actually able to fulfil them. And, as I said, it's entirely reasonable that 'our' existing drum corps want to go and compete (if you want to know how good you can be, that's pretty much a necessity), and if they're competing then they're not able to attend events with us. But that means that we need to recruit (or train) a new drum corps - we have to assume that 'our' drum corps are not available at the key times that we would need them, so need to make other arrangements. But I'm not in a position to do anything about that.
2. What I am in a position to do something about is the situation with pipers. As I mentioned, we've seen a massive drop-off in attendances at practice, and some of the reason for that (and also the consequence of that) is that practices themselves have become largely depressing - we've been drifting, not really doing anything of value, and only actually playing the bagpipes on those rare occasions when we can be bothered. That's something I can change - it's just a matter of imposing a little more structure and committing to actually practicing. So I guess I'll get started on that, and we'll see how it goes.

And maybe next year will be better. Maybe.

Day 150: Update on Goals

It seems no time since the last update, but as we've reached Day 150 of the year, it's time for another update on goals:

• Books: By this point I would hope to be at 14.79 books completed, which I passed quite some time ago. That said, I've just hit a set of "doorstop" fantasy novels that have turned out to have tiny print, so I may have a problem here...
• Weight: This is drifting along. It's okay, but by no means great.
• Church Website: This has made significant progress since the last update - I have populated pages for all the groups, and now just need to get the details in place. Then an update of what's already there, and things will be looking good.
• Garden: I've also made a big step forward here - the various holes were filled in and grass seed sown. I'm not sure that's going to bear fruit, as Lion (not to mention the birds) seem intent on undoing my work. But we'll see. I still need to fix the loose slab (on a wall, not a steps as previously reported) and get rid of an old gas cylinder, but it's looking reasonably hopeful.
• Blog: The target for this point in the year should be a little over 49 posts. I'm around that point, so things are looking good.

The upshot of all of that: things are actually looking good on almost all fronts. Here's hoping that continues!

The Flash

"The Flash" has finally made its way to Netflix and so, being at something of a loose end, I've gradually watched my way through it. It is offensively bad.

Firstly, though, there are some good things:

• Seeing Keaton back as Batman is really good fun. In fact, all three of the Batmans in this film do really good turns, with two of them giving their best-ever performances in the role.
• Similarly, Sasha Calle is really good as Kara. There's not much too the role, and they seem to be doing a weird take on the "Red Son" Superman comic, but that's fine - she does well with the material she is given.

And that's it. There are many, many bad things (spoilers from here):

• Basing a film about a character whose main trait is that he is annoying is an... interesting choice. To base it around two instances of that character, each more annoying than the other is not a good idea.
• The CGI looks terrible. Seriously, it is genuinely woeful at times. I've seen AI-generated videos that are streets ahead. The zombie cameo by Christopher Reeve is the absolute worst of them all, and the one that leads me to call the film offensively bad, but it's far from being the only offense.
• As with all time-travel films, it has a scene detailing the "rules" of time travel for the universe. As with all time-travel films, they're utter nonsense. However, these have absolutely no rhyme or reason... and serve to make the events of the film impossible even in-universe (if changing time affects both the future and the past then you can never again get back to the point that you've changed - the point in time no longer exists).
• There's a comic book trope called "women in refrigerators" where a woman exists in a story solely to die offscreen in a suitably horribly manner and thus motivate the (inevitably male) hero into action. "The Flash" features a particularly egregious version of this: the action is motivated by Barry's desire to prevent the murder of his mother (which happens off-screen). He does so, but Nora Allen is then given all of two scenes in the film, absolutely no character development, and indeed we learn basically nothing about her other than that she's "nice" (and that from the perspective of her son, so hardly an unbiased source). And then, as in so many time travel films, the resolution is to go and put things back the way they were - back into the fridge with her! (And to compound things, having learned his lesson not to meddle with time, Barry decides "what the hell" and does so anyway, this time managing to save his father, who had been falsely accused of the murder all along. I'm not saying there's a double standard or anything, but...)

Anyway, that's that. It's not the absolute worst film I've ever seen, or even the worst I've watched all the way through. But it's right up there. Avoid.

Beavers Sleepover

Funsize has been attending Scouts for a few years: first Squirrels, then Beavers, and she moved on to Cubs at Easter. Surprise! has likewise just started at Scouts, in the Squirrels section. You'll note that neither FS nor KS are currently members of Beavers, and yet this weekend I found myself helping out at a Beavers Sleepover event.

Basically, it's a story of events transpiring seemingly without rhyme or reason, and all just falling out to make for a good outcome: just as Funsize moved up to Cubs we were contacted by Scouts asking if we would be willing to be PVG checked - this being a requirement to be involved as parent helpers even on an occasional basis. (This is one of those good things that causes a problem, as an awful lot of people who otherwise would volunteer time and expertise are put off by the need for the check. And while organisations can promise that it's entirely benign, as indeed it is, it's entirely understandable that people don't want to invite the government's attention. But, yes, I'd much rather be in a world where those checks are in place. As I said, a good thing but not without its problems. Anyway...)

So LC and I completed our PVG checks a little while ago. Meanwhile, the Beavers camp ran into a small problem in that some of the leaders who had meant to attend suddenly found themselves unable. And so they could either cut down the number of places for Beavers to attend camp, or find a replacement. But where to find someone with the required PVG checks at short notice...?

As it happened, this past weekend was that rare thing - a weekend when we otherwise weren't really doing anything and so one of us could indeed arrange to go help out at the camp. And let's be honest - I wasn't going to let the children miss out just because I couldn't be bothered. So that was that.

For obvious reasons, I can't say too much about the camp itself: it ran from Saturday morning to Sunday afternoon at one of the Scouts camp site, it was in a fixed building rather than under canvas, and there were 17 Beavers in attendance and 5 adults.

As might be expected, it was good fun but very tiring - lots of activities, lots of keeping people together, safe, and entertained, lots of cooking and then washing up. Conceptually it wasn't much different from the BB camps I did back in the day: yes, a mixed group rather than all boys, a younger group than I've previously been with, and more focus on outdoor and adventure activities, but all all generally quite familiar.

My starring moment, such as it was, came with the discovery that there was no hot chocolate, which put something of a dampener on the "hot chocolate and pancakes" for supper plan. I therefore proceeded to magic up some hot chocolate (a big spoonful of chocolate spread in a pan of milk, heat gently while stirring constantly).

All in all, it was a good time. The children all seemed to really enjoy themselves, they were a good bunch, and it was all just friendly and relaxed. And the weather was glorious, which always helps. A good use for a weekend, really.

(I was asked at one point if someone had had "the conversation" with me about becoming a leader on a permanent basis. And they had indeed - I can't imagine it's lost on them that someone who is willing to come help with a camp might be willing to do more, and they're always in a position where the biggest constraint on what they can offer is based on the availability of leaders. Unfortunately, I did have to note that time is very limited. As I said, this was a rare 'free' weekend for us, and evenings are even more scarce.)

The Boys

I've been watching "The Boys" for some years now, and it has just come to an end. Sadly, this is not a glowing recommendation.

I really enjoyed the first few seasons of the show - it was something new, it was well made, and in both Vought and Homelander they had some pretty compelling villains. Unfortunately, somewhere in the fourth season (or maybe the fifth) it took a wrong turn.

The fifth and final season, then, was a massive step down in quality, on a par with "Game of Thrones" - it all suddenly seemed very small and mundane, the things that had seemed fun and edgy were mostly just dumb and repetitive (notably Soldier Boy), and frankly it all just became a slog through to the end.

In particular, it really seems that the creators had a massive axe to grind - Homelander became a thinly-veiled stand-in for Donald Trump... but a caricature of what a particularly mad subset of the American Left think Trump is. (I don't really understand their need to do that - Trump has flaws enough without having to invent them. This was just silly.)

I was also fairly deeply offended by the "Homelander thinks he's God" plotline in the final season. Not because of the villain's latest insanity, which was to be expected. But the show was then populated with a multitude of caricatures of what the American Left think modern, and especially American, Christianity represents - the only good Christian character was portrayed as abandoning her faith, while all the others were a cavalcade of liars, hypocrites, and general shits. Not one was actually willing to stand up and condemn what was going on. (And, again, this where the "Homelander = Trump" parody fails. Because while there is a distinct lack of public condemnation of Trump from America's religious right, it's also important to note that Trump has, in fact, not claimed to be God.)

Anyway, the finale was slightly better than the rest, and the final resting place was as it all should be. So there's that, at least. Mostly, though, I'm just glad it's done.

Also of note, while this season was airing the news was broken that the spin-off, "Gen-V", had been cancelled. On one hand, this was disappointing - that was a show I was enjoying. On the other hand, it means that this is a really good off-ramp from that universe, and since I have no desire to get sucked into their prequel, "Vought Rising", I'll be taking that opportunity.

Oh well. A shame, but not a disaster, I suppose.

#15: "The Silmarillion", by J.R.R. Tolkien

It Happened Again

Speaking of endings...

Saturday should have been one of the most glorious days in the history of Scottish football. We'd had the most fascinating season of my lifetime, and entered the final week with two games to go and one point between the top two teams, with both having difficult games ahead. Hearts then won their midweek game, while Celtic struggled in theirs... only to be given a controversial penalty at the last minute to win the match.

I didn't see the footage at the time, but have since, and while the video is truly bizarre, it does also appear to be a legitimate penalty. I'm not sure what the Motherwell player thinks he is doing, but somehow it does seem he contrives to put his hand on the ball when simply heading it would have been easier. And, of course, the same rules apply in the first minute and the last minute of the game...

And so we went into the final game with Celtic playing Hearts in a league decided. This, of course, basically never happens: almost every year someone has won the league some weeks before (almost always Celtic), and in the rare occasions when it is undecided it is usually between Celtic and Rangers who are not allowed to play each other on the last day (for fear of crowd trouble). So to have a title decider you need two unlikely things to happen at once.

Anyway, we kicked off in glorious sunshine, and what turned out to be a really interesting game ensued: Hearts were the better first half, and scored a deserved goal. They were then somewhat unfortunate to concede a penalty, and an equaliser, just before half time. But then in the second half Celtic were the better team... without quite ever getting there. Then, about five minutes from time came the decisive blow, as Celtic scored again.

This led to Hearts having to push hard for another goal that would win them the title. And, in turn, this left them vulnerable at the back, and so with 30 seconds to go Celtic had an opening, surged forward, and scored into an open goal.

What should have happened then is that the game restarted, they played another thirty seconds or so, and the match ended with a well-fought and deserved Celtic win. A real shame for Hearts, but Celtic came into form at just the right time, and the season plays to the very last whistle of the very last match.

What actually happened, though, is that there was another pitch invasion, in a repeat of the disgraceful scenes from the Scottish Cup quarter-final.

A few things before I go on: the SPFL and the match referee are claiming that the match was ended. This is not the case. The final whistle had not blown before the pitch invasion started, and play did not resume thereafter. That's an abandonment. I understand why that happened, and I also understand why they're claiming otherwise (as an abandonment creates all sorts of complications, especially with Celtic having been declared champions), but details really matter.

Ultimately, two things, though:

• Playing those last few seconds wouldn't have made any difference to the outcome. Celtic were indeed the best team on the day, and at the end of the season the league table doesn't lie - they were, just, the best team across the season.
• There must be a proper sanction applied for this, and it must be of a footballing nature. Deduct points for next season, or close a stand, or something. Not a fine, because that's meaningless.

And if the SPFL or SFA won't address this, the Scottish government and the police must. Enough is enough - I'd suggest a statement that if it happens again, the police will no longer attend home matches of the club involved, meaning they can't complete those fixtures. Put them on notice: sort it out, or we'll put you out of business.

(And, yes, it was Celtic fans this time. But this hasn't even been the only horrifying incident associated with Scottish football this week, and it wasn't Celtic fans who were responsible for the other.)

And so the curtain comes down on another Scottish league season, what should have been the very best this millennium. Congratulations to Celtic on a deserved championship. You disgust me.

Good Omens 3

"Good Omens" is perhaps my favourite book, and certainly one of the ones I have read most often. The first season of "Good Omens" is likewise really solid; about as good an adaptation as is at all possible for the material. The second season, "Good Omens 2" is likewise good, though not as good, but leaves the series in a really good place for a stellar third season.

Instead, we get a single 100-minute episode to wrap up the story. The reason for this is nothing at all to do with the cast, the crew, the funding, or anything like that - it's all entirely down Neil Gaiman and his well-publicised issues.

Which is really unfortunate, because it has utterly destroyed this final episode. There's a load of good material here, and the interplay between the main two characters remains the highlight of the show. But it's all far too truncated, with ideas being thrown onto the screen and then rushed through, time and again. And it doesn't help that the while thing is inevitably marred by the off-screen stuff.

The consequence is that this is probably as good a finale for the series as was possible... but it leaves me wishing that they'd just stopped after the first season.

So:

• If you've watched the first two seasons, you'll probably want to watch this to see how it ends up. Try to temper your expectations.
• If you've only watched the first season, or you're just starting, I'd recommend stopping after the first season. Sadly.
• If you haven't watched any of it, I'd be inclined to stay away. But maybe that's just me. In any case, I wouldn't watch beyond the first season.

All of which is a sad way to end things.

About "The Worst Witch"

My record of books read today adds "The Worst Witch Saves the Day", which is the fifth book in that series. I have not previously recorded the previous volumes. So, what's going on?

The answer to that is that each night for the last several years I read to one or both of Funsize and Surprise!. The plan was that Funsize and I would finish the "Harry Potter" series and then LC and I would switch, and I'd read to Surprise! while she read to Funsize. It seemed like a good idea, but has met with a certain amount of resistance.

Anyway, in addition to my reading to Funsize, for a while we had an arrangement where she read to me - a few pages a day, which quickly builds up. We seem to have moved beyond that, as she's now reading more and more books at school so doesn't need the practice in the same way.

The first such book she read was "The Worst Witch", which was then followed by "The Worst Witch Strikes Again", and then "A Bad Spell for the Worst Witch". She then started the fourth book in the series, "The Worst Witch All at Sea" before we completed "Harry Potter", and I then finished it off.

We've now started book six, "The Worst Witch to the Rescue", and will no doubt complete the sequence at some point. Meanwhile, Surprise! and I are most of the way through the "Thomas the Tank Engine" stories, which are fun to revisit, after which I think we'll be tackling "Winnie the Pooh".

#15: "The Worst Witch Saves the Day", by Jill Murphy (a book for Funsize)