26 September 2021 (Sunday) - Quiz Night

I had an early night and woke full of energy and raring to go at two o’clock. I then dozed fitfully; finally getting up feeling like death warned up at half past six. I made toast and as I turned on the telly, rather than watching my usual drivel on Netflix I found myself wrapped up in “Ancient Aliens” on the Sky History channel. There was a lot of talk about J Allen Hynek who was involved in all sorts of UFO research in the 1960s including the famous “Project Blue Book”. Apparently the chap started off very sceptical about UFOs but after having investigated twelve thousand reported UFO sightings he had over seven hundred cases he couldn’t explain. To my mind that’s where the “U” in “UFO” comes from (unidentified). Somehow or other though J Allen concluded it was aliens. The crackpots on this morning’s show didn’t think it was all aliens though. They had a theory that it was all stuff from another dimension. However it struck me that the problem with this theory was that no one really knew what the phrase “from another dimension” actually meant. Or even what a “dimension” was.

UFO crackpots annoy me. They take a serious issue and reduce it to stark nonsense. UFOs clearly exist. There are thousands of sightings of things that can’t be explained. But are they “really” flown by aliens from the planet Spodulon?

There was a minor row kicking off on one of the local Facebook pages. Someone was offering a lift to work for any key workers who couldn’t get petrol, claiming to have been preparing for fuel shortages since the Brexit referendum. Had she been stockpiling petrol for five years or was she just talking bollox?

It certainly seemed to be the morning for it.

 

I had a friend request on Facebook from Missy Charlotte this morning. I have no idea who "Missy Charlotte" is, but she was wearing clothes which is a step in the right direction for many who send me friend requests on Facebook. She didn't seem to be overtly peddling filth either which was also a point in her favour. But I have no idea who she is. If any of my loyal readers might know why a rather foxy twenty-something wants to chum up with a fat bald nearly-sixty, do let me know.

I did another (negative) COVID test. Just as I recorded it I got a text reminder to do it.

 

Pausing only briefly to cap a greeting card (it's a Munzee thing) I set off to work. At eight o'clock on a Sunday morning the radio often broadcasts a church service. Sometimes it can be inspiring and uplifting. But today wasn't one of those times. Today was a Harvest Festival service in which the theme was "get your sorry ass down to the church and suck up to God or else it's famine for you sinners".

I've often mentioned that I don't understand religion. As a child in the Boys Brigade I was rather indoctrinated with it and eventually became a Steward in the Methodist Church. But looking back that was pretty much because that was what happened in my social circle. When I moved away from Hastings and all my friends and acquaintances in the Church, I actually thought about what the Church was teaching. And I suddenly realised that I didn't actually believe a word of it; I just went along with it because everyone else in my world did, even though it was all rather nonsensical. The basic premise of the Christian Church is rather bizarre, isn't it? We supposedly have a loving God who allows all sorts of evil things to happen. And it is our fault that this God lets the evil things happen. And this loving God wants nothing more than to be told how marvellous it is.

Christianity would seem to be up there with panic petrol buying and UFO crackpotism... but I'm willing to be proved wrong.

 

Talking of panic petrol buying I drove past two petrol stations today. The one in Brookfield Road had a sign up saying it had no petrol and diesel.  The one I usually go to in Aylesford had a queue of cars a hundred yards down the road. Oh well... I didn't need petrol today. I think my car is good for petrol until Wednesday. We shall see what happens then.

 

I got to work and treated myself to the cooked breakfast, then got on with the morning shift. I had a rather good shift really; it could have been a whole lot worse. And in addition to the cooked brekkie there was also cake too. Bonus!!

 

With work done I came home… I say “home” I didn’t go into the house. “er indoors ^TM” had settled the dogs so I met her outside and she drove us round to see “My Boy ^TM” and we spent the afternoon in his garden in honour of his birthday yesterday. It is possible that I might have had one bottle of ale too many as when we came home I slept like a log. Fortunately I woke in time for the monthly family Zoom bingo and quiz night… which we now do on Microsoft Teams.