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News
2009
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Sad day – Sir Bobby Robson dies.
Today is a very
sad day for football. Sir Bobby Robson, one of the most respected men
in the world of soccer, passed away today. No one seems to
be more respected. He had am amazing career – taking England closer to
the World Cup than anyone else since the famous 1966 win over Germany.
His career resulting in
9 years in the (then) Division 1 (UK) where his beloved
Ipswich
Town finished more
frequently in the top 10
of top tier of English league soccer, than any other team, other than
one (Manchester United). Twice they finished second. He
won the FA Cup, UEFA Cup, and European Cup.
I was 12, with my little
hand-held radio under the covers (my mum and dad thought I was asleep),
listening to Ipswich playing Barcelona in the UEFA (a European
competition) Cup 3rd round second leg game. After the two
legs the game was 3-3 and Ipswich lost 1-3 on penalties. I
cried. The following year Ipswich won the F.A. Cup, Britain’s top
nock-out competition; and 2 years after that, the UEFA Cup too. To
be a boy, a young boy at that, in love with a soccer team, that
challenged the worlds best as a soccer team should (little money, hard
work, graft, and love of the game) was just magic.
I had the good fortune
to meet Sir Bobby once – in 1978 – the year Ipswich on the ‘Cup. My
mother, God bless her, was able to arrange for me to attend the club’s
home ground for a “home day” where the entire team was to present the
F.A. Cup to the fans. I was a wet-eyed 13 year old fan. I
sat next to Sir Bobby for 5 minutes and chatted to him and the team. I
collected his autograph and lot of others, including Mick Mills and Paul
Mariner. I even had my picture taken of me with the F.A.
Cup and Paul Mariner (Ipswich, and England striker). My feet did not
touch the ground for months. I will never forget how I
felt as, one by one, the team entered the room – led by Sir Bobby, and
they just sat around the room, next to me (and 20 or so other lucky
kids). What a day. I still smile now, when I think of it.
A couple of good books I
read on Sir Bobby Robson include
Bobby Robson: Farewell, but not forgotten
(my biography), by Bobby Robson, 2005, and
Sir Bobby Robson – Living the Game,
by Bob Harris, 2003. Both books were given to me by my mum and
dad – Christmas 2005 and Christmas 2003 respectively. The
best presents a fan could ask for – thanks mum, dad.
Ipswich
Town FC web site has some good things to say
today, and the Daily Telegraph online published a very nice
obituary.
Bye Bobby.
2005
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Mar 24: Nothing else I can really say about Jacques
Chirac other than, "what a twat" and I mean that! Telegraph online
article summarizing the end of the European Union summit and how
Chirac abuses France's position to ride rough shod over his peers.
Why the French people put up with his stupidity is credulous.
Worse, I just hope they understand how France is seen by the wider
community because of it.
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Mar 18:
Letter to the
Boys gets started
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Mar 18: Lady Thatcher
turns out despite her years
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Mar 10: Economist Feb 26-Mar 4, page 54: Are NATO and
the European Union partners or rivals: "As a senior Czech diplomat
once put it: "One lesson we learnt from the 1930s, no more security
guarantees from France.'" Quite revealing its simplicity.
Certain French politicians still think of empire!
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Mar 7: Well, what can I say? Most of the crew came
over to celebrate my 40th! I honestly can't believe they were
silly enough to fly 4,000 miles to see me - for Cheryl and Simone it was
for a long weekend only! You are all crazy and I love you!
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Mar 7: Bad luck Gazzer. The Doomfest became a
snack as I did not find much meat on dem bones. Scores across a
narrow range of levels (we did not get more than an hour) were: 20-3,
20-8, 1-1, 20-9, and 20-12. And if you think you were getting
better as the games wore on, think again.
Last year's
news and comments and all my 2002 news here.
Old news
from 1998 and really old news from 1997 (old format).
My Favorite website
Hey Gaz and Rob, remember Blake 7?
Here is the largest site on
the web dedicated to Blake and the team.
Orac - one of the Seven
(before One of Seven was even conceived!)
PC Game Review
Diggles: the myth of Fenris
You have to play this game to believe it. Heralded in the early
promotion as a cross between Creatures 3 and The Sims, this is awesome.
You control a bunch of dwarves who each have unique settings for each
trait - giving them personality. Some are cuddly, and some are not
so! This is the AI side of the game and its hilarious. Then
unlike The Sims, they have children and in time, die. This is more
like it! You can nurture them (feed, sleep, drink, play) and create
a family that has an end date - just like the real thing. Its
not quite the same "god-like as in Black and White, but its as innovative.
When it loads, you can still see some
German file names - giving away the developers nationality. And you
gotta see the sword fight "slow motion" that takes a leaf out of The
Matrix! But the strange thing is that the defeated (dead) enemy
dwarf simply gets up and walks away - well it is the tutorial. This
might be the next Black and White - that is until the new Black and White
gets going with the new version with hundreds of warring town folk yapping
at the Creature's heels (we will have to wait for this though!) This
IS the game to get. Gorgeous graphics and hilarious interaction
between the dwarves. Even more hilarious - spot the "stick up"
dwarves planted all over the place!
 And here is a screen shot of
the family gathering.
Top 20 Games - My
current favorite games as at December 2005 along with my ranked
favorites in each category I track:
Most innovative game formats:
- "Real Life" games: Majestic,
EA Games: like playing "The
Game" for real; highly interactive game with email, phone, fax
and Internet
- God Games: Black and White (EA Games),
preceded by Sacrifice,
and followed up by Warrior Kings:
massive 3D worlds with complete freedom of movement often with "god"
like control; Creatures 3, and then Sea Monkeys,
and now Diggles: AI enhanced god-like population management
- Simulation/Business: Tropico, and now Cultures: RTS games
typically where you mine goods and build cities, towns, etc., but where
each "person" in the game has their own personality...like little bots
with cute AI
- Massively Multiplayer/avatar focused
online: Mankind: massively multiplayer
format with longevity, promotion, persistent universe, followed up
with Anarchy Online
- www.Lineagethebloodpledge.com
- The Sims Online (massively
multiplayer, persistent, Sims for real)
Most Promising Games on the Horizon
(as June 2006)
Previous TOP 20 Games
Games worth the demo maybe, but not the $20 (as June 2006)
Future of game
technology...
Game Sites worth following:
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Galleries
Cyberlia and Cyberternity
See what's up in the
on-line world, Cyberlia. Sign up and
"get your second chance today!"
Our Loss
Too many of my favorite
people died and got "there" before I did.
Here is a sample.
Personal
Remembering John Vidler, May
31st, 2001. After a long illness, we wish him fraternal
rest. And thinking of Ken Crellin. And Uncle Gordon
White. And Jeanie Jones. Ted. Measles.
Sandy. Long way Nanny. Little way Nanny and Grandad.
What is Delboy really about?
See here the Truth behind Delboy.
Access his Record List of Jazz, Funk and Soul from the
1970's-80's. Find out what the "Bog Roll Top 20"
was...
Poems: Kingdom's
Hall update 8/2002
"As in
the sea of life, so many waves travel in the same direction. And
yet, They all break in two." Delboy, "Kingdoms
Hall", 14th
November 1987. Try these for size:
One by One,
Token, or this
Click-Send.
Labour get real chance to damage
My favourite Press
Line: "It has been suggested that Mr Blair, like his
grandfather Jimmy Lynton, is essentially an actor. Every actor needs
a script, and yesterday, Mr Blair lost his favourite
scriptwriter."
So how far would you go? If you chart Tony Blair's speeches to
notable meetings in the UK in the year before his child's
birth, you would have noticed a change in the message.
Film: Forbidden Planet
and Tatti
See some great pics and hear some sounds from
the greatest sci-fi of all time; and see a review of Jacques
Tatti's
movies.
PC Games (with
GEJ)
See what
PC games we have been playing. Also, check out our plans for Barbarossa
(that never happened) nut here is the latest
3-day reports from War in the
Pacific. We started this in 2004 (Xmas) and are still
going July 2008 (to Dec 1943).
Lest
we forget, at Remembrance and beyond... WWII Poem
"Wait".
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"Doomfest"
Results
Want to see how Gaz and Arche
spend their joint vacation time? Check out the results for:
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Reminiscing...
Old TV, movies, and anything
that defines me. This is the
BBC
and then there was "On the Buses"
and here is the
Glynis Johns Fan Club!
Whatever
happened to Billy Blastoff?
and here is the Billy set I
actually had as a 6 or 7 year old! And here is a
web site that is Billy. |
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My
Favorite Links
Help yourself to my
most favored links
Old news
from 1999 and really old news from 1998 (old format).
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