A life update

#28MilesInFebruary, charity, life, the universe, and everything, still alive

It’s been a busy week so there has been a distinct lack of posts.

I’ve been on a two day union event this week at Wyboston. It was a great event and very useful and inspiring. The only draw back was the luke warm evening meal, and a white americano that just a hot watery milky drink.

This union event was also a big deal for Dolly. It was her first overnight with mum. I was wondering how Dolly would handle it, and also how mum would get on with three dogs sleeping on the single bed in the living room.

When I called mum Wednesday morning to see how they got on I needn’t have worried. Instead of the usual phone call while I’m away (for whatever reason):

Mum: did you sleep ok?

Me: yes

Mum: well I didn’t your dogs wouldn’t settle and wouldn’t let me sleep.

It went completely different. Mum actually got some sleep, and managed to find space to sleep with all three on the bed.

With this first test passed with flying colours. I’m not worried about the two nights away for the health and safety course in a couple of weeks.

I did play some games last Friday. And hopefully I’ll get to talk about them in the next post.

I’m continually left speechless and amazed by people’s generosity when I see how much that has been donated for this 28 Miles in February.

The current total is £279!

That is such an amazing amount.

I’ve said previously I thought that when I signed up I didn’t even think I’d get close to the initial £150 target.

Then when that target was passed I thought it’d be cool to hit £200. But now with £300 so close. I’m just wow. How is this possible?

I really am touched, and so proud of my friends and family who have given so much to something I’m doing in memory of Nan. We all know how close I was to Nan, and how much she meant to me. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to express my gratitude to everyone for their generosity. The words “thank you” don’t seem enough. But at the moment they are all I have. Thank You.

If people are in a position to donate, and feel they would like to then I’m really appreciative of that, and very grateful for the generosity.

Just Giving Link

Facebook Donation Page

Back to work

#28MilesInFebruary, charity, life, the universe, and everything, still alive

Returning to work on Wednesday after basically two weeks off was a bit of struggle.

I’d gotten used to the relaxed, gentle start to the day. Ok my waistline wouldn’t have taken much more of the breakfast routine. The ham I cooked not only gave mum and me a couple of meals (ham, egg, and chips). But also was a major part of my breakfast. Along with eggs, beans, the best black pudding I’ve ever had from Stornaway (part of an amazing hamper that was sent to me by Duncan’s parents), and sausage. So not quite the full English. But still bloody good.

Dolly feels like she has always been with me. She has fitted in that well.

Obviously Dolly has had to adjust to the work day routine. Which she has done really well. Better than me I think!

Mum did hurt her shoulder Thursday lifting Dolly onto her bed. Luckily mum seemed back to normal the next day.

I need to say a big thank you to all those that have donated so far. The initial target of funds to raise was £150.

This figure was a default when the charity set up the donation pages when I signed up.

I didn’t think I’d even get close to this total.

But the generosity of my friends and family I actually reached that target on the 2nd January.

The actual current amount raised so far is £168.

Which is amazing. I’m stunned.

I’m taking a low key approach to fundraising because I know how difficult times are for folks financially. I don’t want people to feel pressured to give money. I’d much rather people are made aware of the charity Alzheimer’s Research UK, the work they do, and the impact of Alzheimer’s and dementia has not only the individual with it, but also the loved ones around them (often acting as the carers).

If people are in a position to donate, and feel they would like to then I’m really appreciative of that, and very grateful for the generosity.

Just Giving Page

Facebook Donation Page

Starting off 2025 in style

Fenland Gamers, Game day, game night

Friday was the first club night of the new year. Yes technically not a proper club night but a get it to the table night. But still it was attended by eight members. A very good turn out.

We played an eight player game of Shadows Over Camelot with its expansion.

I’d never played the game before and we were lucky and honour that Jeff had bought along his copy.

This is one of those classic games that is out of print. So copies especially with the expansion that go for silly money when they come up for sale.

Along with Battlestar Galactica it’s probably the most famous and highly rated hidden traitor game out there.

Although I think The Thing board game should be up there with them.

Being probably the inspiration of the other games mentioned. You can see some familiar mechanics. Such as the shuffling up of cards before revealing them. The ability of the traitor to reveal themselves and then create chaos. Unique character abilities, and other similarities I’ve not listed.

I do like hidden traitor games. They are like a co-op game but with an edge. Everyone is meant to be working together to achieve the collective objective. But did you fail that mission because some-one had crappy cards and had no other option, or was that the work of a traitor?

We had a great time playing the game, plenty of laughs and suspicion being thrown around with comments like “that’s just what a traitor would say”.

Plus the traitors failed, and King Arthur and the knights of the round table succeeded.

A great evening of gaming.

Sunday saw me up early and over to Charlene’s for some gaming. Apparently it was Ben’s idea to start at 10am.

So on the way I stopped and picked up a selection of croissants to have with a hot beverage.

We started off the days gaming playing Fromage.

Fromage was interesting because it’s got this cool down mechanic and rotating board that’s split into four quarters in a “worker placement” style game.

It’s fun. I like how you can only do something in the segment of the board facing you. Each segment is different, and focused on a particular mechanic like area control, or getting pairs.

I manage to trigger the end of the game, and sneak a victory by a single point.

While Charlene was tied up in the kitchen we had a quick three games of Strike.

What can I say it was quick and fun. It’s a great little filler.

With Charlene back, her daughter Annabelle joined us for a game That’s Not A Hat.

This a bluffing game where you need a good memory. Sadly none of us had that. We struggled to remember our own card let alone what others had.

But somehow I won not getting a single point when the others managed to get at least one before Annabelle triggered the game end by getting three points.

For me my day of gaming finished with a game of Distilled.

Distilled is interesting. It has a drafting element, only lasts seven rounds, unique player powers.

The distilling mechanic is interesting because the ingredients cards you have collected to make a recipe are shuffled together and the top and bottom are removed. From the remaining cards you possibly make the recipe, score points, earn money, and get the drinks label to gain a bonus.

You always get two basic ingredients each round during the draft. It’s now you also spend money to buy more powerful cards like better ingredients, or fancier bottles, and even employees.

You can have up to three employees that usually give you some sort of ability to use each round, and an end of game scoring bonus. You are kinda building a mini engine.

I took an early lead completing my signature recipe before the others.

We took a brief pause during play for pizza that Charlene generously provided. However that wasn’t enough of a distraction to stop the others catching me up on the points and overtaking me.

In the end Diego won by a single point beating Ben. I wasn’t even close.

A big thank you to Charlene for hosting, and her generosity of providing the pizza. It was a great day of gaming.

BCB Crusader Mk1 Cooking System

#28MilesInFebruary, #backtothehills, Camping/hiking gear, charity, Cooksets, fund raising, hiking/backpacking/camping, outdoors

Here we are with my second new setup for making a brew whilst out on a walk or even a meal. But this is equally at home on a backpacking trip also.

The BCB Crusader Mk1 Cooking System isn’t the lightest cooking system by a long shot.

There are two versions of the cook system from BCB. The main difference between the two are the crusader cooker and cup. The Mk1 crusader cup has a capacity of 750ml, whilst the Mk2 has a capacity of a litre. I also think the Mk2 crusader cup is lighter. The crusader cookers are also very different. The Mk1 is much shorter and meant to be a solid fuel only stove. While the Mk2 is taller, more ventilation, and can use multiple fuel sources. Whether that’s solid fuel, alcohol burners, or even a fire.

I’ve gone with the Mk1 version because it is a shorter form factor compared to the Mk2.

A brand new Mk1 cookset from BCB comes in at £95. However you can pick used ones (army surplus) much cheaper. For your money you get the following: “Plastic Mug & Water bottle (Osprey / NATO), Crusader Cup Lid, Crusader Cup, Crusader Cooker, Zulu Belt pouch, Fireball Flint and Striker” (plus some solid fuel blocks).

It is possible to use a Trangia with the Mk1 Crusader cooker if you use an alcohol stove cross stand (see the photos below).

How the crusader cup would be used with the crusader stove
The plastic Osprey water bottle, plastic cup, lid, and ferro rod
The Crusader stove
How the Trangia can be used with the Mk1 crusader stove
Everything inside minus the Trangia
How the Trangia can be used with the Mk1 crusader stove a better shot
The inside of the pouch showing the little pocket
The belt pouch
The official plastic lid and the third party (eBay) metal lid

Ok the water bottle has a capacity of a litre, and its companion plastic mug has a capacity of 500ml.

Compared to the Boundless Voyage titanium cook set in the previous post this is heavier. For starters it has the water bottle and mug which the other set doesn’t have. Oh and the handy ferro rod. And to be fair you would need to have if using the other set. Otherwise I don’t think the difference in weight if considering just the cooker and crusader cup, although heavier is too big.

The advantage this has over the Boundless Voyage setup is you can use just solid fuel tablets with it, with no need for a meths burner. Saving a bit of weight there. Granted not a great deal. But still.

For the record I also have the Mk2 crusader cooker. So for me that is also an option. But also shows you can just buy the bits of this system that you want quite easily. It’s also possible to replace the plastic crusader lid with a third party (usually custom made, see photo above) metal lid.

What I like also about this setup is it’s literally bombproof. After all this is designed for use by the British Army. It’s meant to be able to take a lot of abuse.

Well that’s the brief look at the BCB Crusader Mk1. I think I have at least one other newish one to share in another post. So more to come.

Boundless Voyage Titanium Cookware Set

#28MilesInFebruary, #backtothehills, Camping/hiking gear, charity, Cooksets, fund raising, hiking/backpacking/camping, outdoors

This is the first in a series of posts where I will look at recent purchases that can be used as a cookset for backpacking/camping. These are cooksets for a single person, not intended for cooking for multiple people.

I think any of these cooksets covered in this and future posts would be great in a day pack for a walk, or possible backpacking trip.

Yet again a YouTube video got me ordering more gear.

This time it was the Boundless Voyage Titanium Cookware Set.

What do you get for your money? For starters you get an 800ml canteen cup aka a pot, a mesh storage bag, a lid for the pot, and what they describe as a wood stove. Like some of the canteen sets out there this cooker allows you to have a fire to do your cooking. However for me that would be a last resort.

The problem for me with using this type of cooker/stove with a fire is the scar it would leave behind. Not very leave no trace. Yes you could use something to place this on to try and avoid that. But I think it would still leave a mark on the ground.

Everything inside
Wood stove
folding titanium spoon, and a BCB Fireball Flint and Striker
Goshawk OP-100
800ml canteen cup aka a pot
800ml canteen cup aka a pot
Goshawk OP-100
Wood stove
Lid
Mesh storage bag

My preference for heat source would be a Trangia or some other alcohol/solid fuel stove. The stove then acts like a windshield and pot support.

The lid itself for the canteen isn’t very tight fitting.

What I like about the pot is that you have the handles on the side plus the handle to hang it with. Although to be fair I’m more likely to be using this handle to remove the pot off the heat than hanging it over an open fire.

I’ve not weighed it but it is listed as weighing in at 230g.

To this cook set I’ve added the Goshawk OP-100 alcohol stove, a folding titanium spoon, and a BCB Fireball Flint and Striker.

Plus at just shy of £38 (from Aliexpress) this isn’t bad value for a cookset.

This is a nice compact cook set that doesn’t take up much space. The only thing I’d need adding to this is a cup of some sort.

28 Miles in February: Why?

#28MilesInFebruary, charity

I decided to do something.

After seeing an Alzheimer’s Research UK ad on Facebook for a fundraising event. I thought I can do that.

But more importantly I have a personal link to this. Mind you I could make a personal link to one of the many Cancer, Mental Health, or Animal charities as well.

So why this particular one for Alzheimer’s Research UK?

I’m doing this one for Nan.

There is not a day I don’t miss her.

Nan was never diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or dementia. But she had (most likely) dementia.

Luckily during those declining years before Nan passed away she still recognised myself and mum. However we still had to watch as Nan deteriorated physically and mentally.

In the early days of Nan’s dementia I would be asked daily if I had a car, and who the red one outside belonged to. Sometimes it would be more than once during the day I got asked it.

Often in the later stages Nan would regress to being a child wanting her parents. It was heartbreaking hearing mum tell her they were no longer with us. We even had to constantly remind her she was in her own home.

There would be times when Nan would get angry with mum for no reason and try to hurt her or spit at her. Nan had no strength to do any harm. But I would often just hug her and tell her that I loved her when she was like this. I think it helped her calm down.

The two attack chihuahuas were great companions for Nan. Although how Loki ended up with her dentures on more than one occasion I’ll never know.

In the final years I was unable to visit my son because the distance was too great to do in a day. It took two of us to look after Nan. Particularly to get her on the commode. So my only contact during that time was several phone calls a week with him. I even had to give up working for the final couple of years to be a full time carer.

I used to bake mainly for Nan. After a sourdough loaf came out of the oven I’d take it round to show Nan. The act of touching the warm loaf with her hands used to bring her some pleasure. As did holding a hot mug of tea. Although Nan barely had a mouthful or more of whatever I baked (getting her to eat was a struggle). I baked for her. I’ve not baked since she passed away.

So yes it’s hard having to watch a loved one going through such a horrible slow, cruel death.

And that is why I’m doing this challenge of walking 28 miles in February.

I’m doing it for Nan. For those also going through the same. And to help find a way to prevent others having to go through the same.

If you are in a position to support me I’d really appreciate any donation you can spare. Or if you are unable to you can still help by sharing this post on your social media places.

You can donate in either of these two places (links below)

Just Giving Page

Facebook Page

There will be posts in the run up to the start of February about my prep, and how I plan to tackle the challenge. Then during February there will be progress updates.

Thank you so much for any support you can give and for reading this.

5…4…3…2…1…Thunderbirds are go!

Game day

Monday afternoon saw Dave kindly play host to an afternoon of gaming with Jonathan and myself.

There was only one game on the agenda to play. That was the 2015 released Thunderbirds the board game. A game I have owned since it came out but never played!

Thunderbirds the board game is designed by Matt Leacock (yes he of Pandemic fame). The game itself is based on Pandemic but with some changes to make it more thematic.

If you own a copy of this game open up the rule book and their listed amongst the kickstarter backers is my name. Yes your assumption is correct I did indeed back this game on kickstarter.

At the time of the campaign it ticked a lot of boxes for me. I liked playing Pandemic, I was a fan of Thunderbirds. Why wouldn’t I back a game that combined the two?

As a kid I used to watch Thunderbirds whenever it was on tv. I was jealous of my friends that had one or two of the metal models of the shows iconic craft.

Although I did have the Thunderbirds/Captain Scarlet lp. I listened to that a few times over the years as I grew up. Thinking about it, that and the Snow White read along record may have been the start of my love of what would later be radio plays.

I have a vague memory of playing briefly the Thunderbirds computer game that came out in the mid eighties. But it doesn’t stand out as one of those gaming moments like say playing Revenge of the Mutant Camels, Ghostbusters, Jetpac, or Harrier Attack.

During the late eighties, early nineties I even went and saw the amazing Thunderbirds stage play. I think I saw it two or three times.

Even now I have all the original tv series and movies on dvd. I’m tempted to get the Big Finish audio plays. They have done a good job with Doctor Who. So I trust them.

But for me the live action movie (which was dire) and modern cartoons are just not worth the time and effort. I’m sticking with the superior original.

Back to the board game.

It’s brutal.

More so than Pandemic.

Due to the perfect storm that was drawn on the disaster track we barely had two turns each before it was obvious we were doomed and unable to beat the game.

So we reset and tried again.

Our second attempt we did better, even upgrading our characters (not me). But still eventually we got into an impossible situation that saw us being defeated.

Dave called in the big guns to help, Clack.

Our third game we lasted a lot longer. All of us at least getting our second upgrade if not to our third. The disaster track was under control. But still it was a war of attrition and the inevitable once again happened with the game beating us.

I loved the game. It captured the theme of Thunderbirds really well. The changes made to the core Pandemic mechanics really worked for me. The having to avert disasters by manipulating the board by getting certain characters, craft, equipment to specific locations to meet the disasters criteria. Much more fun and puzzle like than spawning cubes.

I think the production is better with the character pegs, model Thunderbirds craft, etc They really are needed to help with the theme.

With the events track when triggered making the game harder by switching off some ability or mechanic. The game gets even more brutal.

You don’t hear people talking much about Thunderbirds, especially those that enjoy Pandemic. It possibly is the most forgotten member of that family of games. Which is a shame because I think along with the Star Wars Clone Wars Pandemic it is one of my favourite Pandemic games.

Which is a big call considering this was the first time I have played the game, and was not even close to beating it.

But I like it. I am finding that I do prefer the spin offs to Pandemic more than I enjoy the original game (including expansions). I like the extras or twists that the spin offs bring to the table.

This is a brutal, but fun game. I can’t wait to play it again. And I haven’t said that about a Pandemic game for a long time.

Bgstats for December and 2024

annual awards, bgstat, by the numbers, stats

It’s a struggle to write this post or any really because most of my time is taken up with Dolly and helping her settle in at the moment.

However she is so well behaved, except when it comes to food. Dolly is such a fast eater. To give Nico and Loki a chance I have to take Dolly out for a little walk.

But she is such an amazing character. I’m really lucky to have her share her life with me.

This morning Dolly slept on my shoulder!

Let’s start off this summary post of gaming with December.

Like previous years this December was no different with few gaming opportunities due to all that seasonal stuff going on. Add on top of that the chest infection. What you end up with is very little gaming happening.

The surprise game of the month was getting an opportunity to play Thunderbirds the board game. But I’ll write that up as a separate post.

2024

I’m not going to compare the figures with 2023, but I played more games this year, and a lot more new games to me were played. Which did surprise me.

I think one gaming highlight of the year for me was getting back into Dice Masters. It’s still as much fun as I had remembered. Plus creating new ways to play with others such as building a cube and drafting helped find others to play the game with me.

Ok here is the full list of the 93 games I played in 2024.

My game of 2024

I played 72 new to me games this year. That’s the majority of the games I played in 2024.

Obviously I haven’t bought 72 new games this year.

Using the filters within the Bgstats app I was able to find out that 35 of those games were mine. Or I bought my own copy after playing someone else’s copy. Cubed is one such example.

The full list of new to me games is shown below.

So out of these games which is my game of 2024?

It was close. I nearly went with my most played game of the year Star Wars Unlimited. However I think that there has been one more deserving of the honour for me. That game is …

Strike.

Strike is such a blast to play. It’s been a hit with those I’ve played it with.

It’s quick to play, so much fun. There are great random dice roll moments. We’ve laughed a lot.

And it’s those reasons that Strike is my game of 2024.

I’ll just end this boring round up by wishing everyone a

Happy New Year

Well hello…

life, the universe, and everything, still alive

Dolly!

Yes I went there with the obvious.

Yesterday I got up early, drove down south to literally meet a lady about a dog.

The dog in question was a seven year old pug named, you guessed it, Dolly.

Naturally the owner needed to meet me and make sure I was going to give Dolly a loving home.

I think it’s stating the obvious to say Dolly’s owner was very upset having to find Dolly a new home. I’d be the same.

In the run up to this day I’d not said much about it. I was trying to manage my expectations and hopes. If it fell through I knew I’d be heart broken. I wanted to try and limit the amount of hurt.

But I passed the test both by the owner and Dolly.

Dolly did amazing on the way back. The M25 was horrendous as was the bit of the M1 that I take. I think the M25 from basically the M3 junction where I got on to the M40 junction took nearly two hours.

So when I got a chance to stop at a services on the M1 I did so. Dolly really needed a moment to answer the call of nature and stretch her legs.

When we eventually got home the boys were following Dolly around as she explored her new surroundings.

Considering how stressful the day was for Dolly she had a pretty good night. Only a couple of “accidents” downstairs to clean up. I woke up with Dolly cuddled up to me on the bed.

I know one thing Nico and Loki need to up their meal time game. Dolly is a food hover. And blindingly fast. They won’t be able to just eat when they want now. If it’s left Dolly will have it.

We are now learning how to live together as a pack, learn each others routines, get used to being comfortable together. It’s a good start so far. But it’s a long journey.

Welcome to the family Dolly.

The Big Day

life, the universe, and everything, still alive

I survived the last four days at work.

I think that’s the best way to describe them.

Obviously the days got busier as it got closer to the big day. They also got more challenging as my chest infection has not started to clear up. But my energy levels have gradually improved thankfully.

Instead of finishing at midday Christmas Eve, I took a two hour break and then did a four hour shift at a local express store. So I finished actual work at 6pm last night.

Having started at 5am that morning as I had my other shifts since returning from illness (except Sunday store opens at 7am then). Yesterday was a bloody long day and this may be stating the obvious but I was to say the least very knackered when I got home.

But now I’m looking at a nice break from work and not back until the 8th January. Which if the next bit of this post comes off is great timing.

My planned gaming session for this Friday might not being going ahead, and need rescheduling. Instead I may have to be making a journey to take a step closer to a possible major big news announcement.

Yes I know that’s a big tease. But I’m trying to manage my own expectations and hopes so if it doesn’t happen I’m not too heart broken over it.

Anyway it’s that big day every kid, big and small has been waiting for. Which leaves me just to say to every reader of this blog from myself, Nathan, my Mum, and the two attack chihuahuas Nico and Loki.

Merry Christmas