Uncategorized – Page 27 – Five Miles Out

Throw Your Safety Overboard

The summer term at Meridian in 1981 was almost the perfect summer. It had the spectre of our planned move away due to dad’s new job, but it was the best time if I put that to one side. In fact the occasional days off to go and look at houses in Essex was almostContinue reading “Throw Your Safety Overboard”

It is no lie I see deeply into the future

Time travel into the past is impossible, at least under Einsteinian physics. It is strange that it is the only dimension where movement is only possible in one direction, though a Grand Unified Theory may explain it – it may be related to why there was a fraction more matter than anti-matter after the BigContinue reading “It is no lie I see deeply into the future”

We’re Living in a Powder Keg

Brightlingsea’s pubs had a famously relaxed attitude to underage drinking. The police had a minimal presence and as long as there was no trouble in the village they pretty much ignored us. It used to have 13 pubs, plus the Sailing Club, Yacht Club, British Legion, Community Centre and the Football Club – 18 placesContinue reading “We’re Living in a Powder Keg”

Like someone took a knife and drove it deep in my heart

I really like Cher. She has had a long career with a variety of music, starting with I Got You Babe, going through the Disco 70s, soft rock 80s and EDM 90s. She has survived an abusive husband, had a hugely successful TV career and a film career that includes an Oscar for Moonstruck. ItContinue reading “Like someone took a knife and drove it deep in my heart”

Cosmos

Playing Role Playing Games (RPGs) was a totally geeky thing to do in the early 80s. Nowadays people play games like this online with virtual simulations and it is seen as pretty normal. In light of the fact that computers at home were in their infancy we used imagination. Our first game of choice wasContinue reading “Cosmos”

Do You Ever Wonder Why?

This blog is meant to be a positive thing, not harping on about negative things in life. This will be one of the exceptions. I have already done several posts about people who I worked for that were brilliant, it would be very false if I did not talk about the two who were veryContinue reading “Do You Ever Wonder Why?”

You used and made my life so sweet

You used and made my life so sweet Moving to Brightlingsea did help with buying American comics. When I first started buying them I could only get them on my visits to Newmarket. Slowly Royston newsagents started stocking them. They were in the shops three months after their US release date (confusingly US comics coverContinue reading “You used and made my life so sweet”

Well, Another Crazy Day

When I left Icknield Walk I moved onto Greneway Middle School. There were many primary schools in Royston but only two middle schools. I was lucky it was only about seven minutes from our house – until we moved after my first year. Our first year we had Miss Sage as a teacher, though sheContinue reading “Well, Another Crazy Day”

For the punk motherfuckers that’s showin’ out

For the punk motherfuckers that’s showin’ out I am going to try to be fair here and highlight my own ignorance. Britain looks like a different place from somewhere like Brightlingsea to the way it does from London (or, I imagine, Birmingham, Manchester, etc.). Race and racial representation look different when almost every face youContinue reading “For the punk motherfuckers that’s showin’ out”

The Best of Men

When I started at Monoux the College had been frozen in aspic for years. It was 2007 and Curriculum 2000 was still to be implemented. Kim Clifford got rid of the Deputy Principal and Director of Finance and recruited Sardip Noonan and me in to replace them. There was a split between the old timers,Continue reading “The Best of Men”