Be Excellent To Each Other

Ah, here we are again, a full 365 days since we last met.

Absolutely nothing of note has happened this year (sorry). Bye!

[Audience boos]

Oh, ok then, some things have. The year started off normally enough, without a hangover. I had a lovely hiking weekend on Exmoor in January, and a long weekend in Lisbon in February. I had an excellent hiking holiday in Northumbria and the borders in September, a part of the world I'd only previously seen from the window of an LNER express.

I'm pleased with our now weekly online meet-ups on Tuesdays. For something that was only intended as a one-off to scratch a bored lockdown in ["March"- Ed.], it's great that we've kept them going and it's something I look forward to every week.

Not really much more to say as most days were an endless cycle of sleep, eat, work, walk, read, eat, repeat. Far better than the alternative, however.

Now the listy bits.

Favourite Film: 1917 was a technical triumph and an utter wonder to watch on the big screen. Sadly the story was underwhelming and if on first viewing I'm having more fun enjoying the cinematography and trying to work out how a bit was done rather than care about the characters or threat, something's gone seriously wrong. Jojo Rabbit was a brilliant conceit, brilliantly executed with humour so dark even I felt guilty at times for being the only one in the cinema laughing. But the crowning triumph of the year was Bill and Ted 3. It not only managed to capture the joy and charm of the originals but also avoided the usual by-the-numbers reunion film tropes by introducing great new characters and showing how the original ones have grown. Tapped right into the whole mid-life-crisis thing too in a way I've not felt since the American Pie reunion.

Favourite Book: Thanks to Malc's thread I have a list of everything I've read this year, and it's been quite fun writing a brief note about each one. Entangled Life was a gripping look at a world I'd never really thought much about before despite being literally below my feet and all over my body. Ian Dunt's How to be a liberal was a non-sweary look at political philosophy that would have been extremely helpful as a naive first year undergraduate 20 years ago. But the standout book of the year was One...Two...Three...Four, Craig Brown's alternative history of the Beatles. Funny, deeply fascinating, and utterly unreliable, it not only made me start listening to more of their work, but showed how it can be just as historically useful to look at the people who were affected in some way by your biographical subject as it is to focus on the stars. I also learnt that John Lennon was a total dick.

Favourite TV: Without question, series two of His Dark Materials. All my concerns about the editing in series 1 were swept away, and this series really brought the books alive. Ruth Wilson completely stole the show as Mrs Coulter.

Favourite Radio/podcasts: The single greatest cultural achievement of the year was the production of a two hour lockdown special on the movie career of Zeppo Marx. 'Nuff said.

Favourite App: The OS app. Part of choosing a hiking holiday was to refresh and improve my mapreading skills after letting them fall into abeyance in recent years (ie, let someone else navigate). I achieved that on my trip, but I had to repeatedly force myself to look at the paper map to work out where I was, where I should be, and how to get there rather than flip open the OS app and see it all laid out for me. It's just too dam good.

That's all for now folks. I hope you all have a happy and safe 2021. Thank you for continuing to be the most excellent people on the Internet.

Kern

Happy new year to everyone! 2020 has been for the best part, rubbish but there has been a few shining lights.

Tuesday nights are now most excellent so thanks for organising it Kern and thank you all that take part. It's always a pleasure to see you all.

The rest of the year has been dominated by the family. I've spent loads of time with them this year so that can only be a good thing.

Now, the customary list of things I've enjoyed this year.

Film
An easy one this. Sonic the Hedgehog. The last film we saw at the cinema at it was great. My daughter saw her teacher there too which blew her mind.

TV
AEW Dynamite has been excellent this year and has got me back into wrestling. Apart from that, The Boys was the best thing I've watched this year.

Podcast
I've listened to loads of Podcasts this year and my favourites are This week in Retro, the Retro hour and the Retro Asylum. Can you guess what they're all about?

Favourite game
Tough one this. I've completed more games this year than any year I can think of but off the top of my head, my favourite this year has been Super Mario 64. An honourable mention goes to Animal Crossing which has helped my kids stay sane during lockdown.

Close!

I'm going to go straight to the listy bits as I have and am struggling with everything going on.

Favourite Film: Don't think I've seen any films that were released this year. Actually, sitting here right now I can't even think of a single film I watched for the first time apart from The Grinch (the new animated version) which is great, so I guess I'm going to say The Grinch.

Favourite Book: The Testaments. I wasn't sure if i was going to enjoy this and I worried it would seem like a tacked-on follow-up to The Handmaid's Tale, but actually it went in quite a different direction and I really enjoyed it (the beginning and ending, set at the conference, are rather dry, but if you get past that it sweeps by).

Favourite TV: I feel like we've watched a lot of TV, but I can't think of any that stands out. We're on the last few episodes of Lost (I know this is far from current TV), and a few other series, but the only thing I find myself eagerly awaiting is Only Connect, which they simply do not make enough of.

Favourite podcasts: 99% Invisible continues to be my favourite podcast ever. It's just wonderful, and always interesting. Roman Mars' voice is as smooth as silk, too, so it's easy listening.

Favourite App: Instagram has helped me through bad days. It's got its own problems, but I think has less toxic users than many Social media apps (perhaps because it is less easy to share other people's content?). Big shout out to the Twinkl app for being indispensable when home-schooling. They amazingly gave everyone free access for the first lockdown, and I subscribed after that and it's been brilliant.

Achievement Just getting this far. My self-believe has been on the floor, and my faith in people has dropped low, but we are doing our best every day.

I hope next year brings some kindness among humans. For 2021 I want people to stop treating the elderly and people with medical conditions as if they are dispensable. Keep safe x x x

Edit, wait! How did I forget
Favourite Game
Animal Crossing, New Horizons. Honestly, I think this should be game of the year whether you are interested in it or not, for the role it played in helping SO MANY people through early lockdown. When there weren’t enough therapists to go around, Tom Nook was there, building you a house with a no-interest mortgage. What a guy.

Happy new year to all Beexers. 2020202020 has been an odd year.

I think I have relaxed a lot more, I seem a lot less stressed than I was last year. I think I have accepted, I can't fix everything, and if things are shit and not enjoyable, then to walk away.

I have really enjoyed my biking this year and have done over 5500 KM, it has really helped me unwind.

Tuesday night have been great and I have enjoyed the quiz, chats and learning simple excel features.


They list of things I have liked.

Film
Tenet - one of the few films I was able to see at the cinema, I think I need a few more watches, to get my head fully round it.

TV
The Queens Gambit - it is the first show I have binge watched in a long time. We watched it in one evening. A really enjoyable, program about chess

Podcast
I think Scott Siglers pod cast is one I have listened to a lot this year, I like his Horror / Sci-fi stories. I am finally up to date with Mayo and Kermodes film reviews, I love their witterings.

Favourite game
I have only really played two games this year.
God of War, this is pure class, the scenery, the game play, and the story. Come on boy.
Star Wars Squadrons - what is not to like - pew pew in the star wars universe.

Happy 2021 everybody!

Yep, for those of you that had a substandard year, may this one be better. For anyone who had positives in 2020 then hopefully they will continue.

Mine was a bit of a mixed bag, mostly dominated by work. The TLDR version of that is "got lots of money when the business was sold and could stay for more, but I don't enjoy the job any more".
Still, the money means I can look for something that makes me happier.

Didn't get to go on the nice European holidays I had planned, but did have a few short breaks in the UK and got to spend more time with Helen than I would have done as she was furloughed for a few months. Europe will still be there, even if we have to wait in the shitty passport queue.

Didn't do a lot of the activities that we'd planned, but managed to have some days out, visit museums and do National Trust places, and I've definitely come to appreciate smaller things more.

Nobody I know has been badly affected by the virus which seems quite lucky.

In 2020, I didn't die, or retire.

(Edit)

2020 was very much like 2019, except that I washed my hands much more often and wore a mask when working, kinda making me the Lone Ranger Retail Service Engineer.

TV. Ordinary People was what I enjoyed most by a lonnnnnng way. Watched the whole series twice in the same week (once on my own and then with Mrs.W).

Book. I think I may have only read one book last year, Billy Connolly's "Tall Tales and Wee Stories" which was a pressie, and which I enjoyed very much.

Film. Dunno. I don't think I saw any 2020 releases, but I could be wrong. Mrs. W and I watched a lot of ancient films on Talking Pictures TV, some off which were pretty poor, but amusing to see what was in release in the decades even before I was born.

Radio. I only really listen in my van and it's usually Radio 4 Extra for the old comedy progs.. I still love The Goon Show and Round the Horne, evdfn though I've head them many, many times.

Music. I accidentally discovered Christina Pluhar's L'Arpeggiata recording of Cavalli: L'amore innamorato and although I have little idea what it's about as I still haven't got around to reading all the accompanying notes, I love the sound of the baroque genre and instrumentation.

Game. I haven't really played any, although I have access to a PS3 that my son left behind when he moved out, and there are around 20 games that I've been meaning to have a go at, so maybe I'll do that this year.