A Visit With the Uber Geek

Last week my academic travels took me south of the border to Baltimore, and the lair of the Uber Geek Miles Ready.  I always enjoy my trips south of the 49th parallel safety line, America would be a fine country if it wasn't for all of the Republicans (maybe the administration can build a wall of something to keep them out).

Highlights of my trip included

• Meeting Miles and his lovely wife Marybeth (no pictures, they move to fast to be recorded on camera)
• Eating Marybeth's wonderful food (including the crab above and others that Miles didn't want to eat) 
• Meeting Mile's friend Ed from York and his wife Theresa, and eating the crab that Ed didn't want to eat
• Staying at their Bond Villain lair in St Michael's MD

  

  Miles Fig tree.  I'll be interested in the AAR reports of Miles vs the local rodents and Raccoons

  
  
• A visit to the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum.  A great museum complex with charming gate staff, blow hard tour guides and a fine collection of traditional wooden boats.  The young lady at the ticket booth won Miles heart over by asking "perhaps you could check the board to see if you qualify for any of our discounts"  instead of "are you old enough to be a senior?". No pictures because it was raining.
• A game in Miles game room in his "closer to town" house, AAR with lots of pictures in a post to follow.
• A visit to the Radio control yacht racing shop close to Annapolis MD where Miles' banker friend Bob tempted him with a new form of crack.  It looked great fun, but I am already at full capacity on geek projects with my budget fully allocated.  Besides I couldn't fit a ten foot replica J class sloop in my luggage.
• Watching high finance unfold as Miles and his friend took conference calls in the front seat of Miles Tesla.  I quite enjoyed watching them as they essentially played buzzword bingo put the with the on mute.

Apparently this was a test weekend as Ed and I were the first gamers to stay overnight while MaryBeth was on site - always a stressful event.  We seemed to have passed the test, being judged as "not nearly as creepy as I expected".  I guess I'll have to try to be more creepy next time.  Of course, if Miles gamer friends are so sketchy that I was considered a safe bet, that's his look out.

Travel Reading Pt 2

I picked this up in Waterstone's in Chichester.  It's a mark of how busy our trip was that we were in the UK for 18 days before setting foot in a bookshop!  Excellent stuff and tons of source material for gaming.  Grab your cup of mead and get ready for an adventure.

The cast of characters is truly epic.  Saints galore - Columba, Wilfrid, Cuthbert and plus Oswald himself.  Panda of Mercia and Sutton Hoo man himself also appear on the pages, and the Venerable Bede is a key source.  We're talking wild and wooly stories in the gray area between history and myth, the ear that inspired Tolkien.

There's source material for a fantasy series, an epic RPG campaign,  or wargaming on multiple scale -  Dux Brittarium, SAGA, Hail Caesar or old school WRG.  Speaking of WRG, if your recall Phil Barker's throw away comments in many of the dark age army lists - many of these occur in this story.

Travel Reading Pt 1

I picked this up at the Canterbury Cathedral shop.  Excellent read and food for thought with lots of gaming possibilities.  Ok knights hacking down un armed clergy doesn't make a great war-game, but the back story sure has possibilities!

The cast of characters is larger than life St Thomas, Henry II, Eleanor of Aquitaine.  It really calls out for Hollywood epics staring Richard Burton, Peter O'Toole and Katherine Hepburn (oh wait, they did that).  The author gives really good coverage of the 12th century - the reign of Henry I, the tragedy of the White Ship, the civil wars of Stephen and Matilda and then the Angevin empire.  The Cliff Notes histories focus on Becket the Archbishop and Martyr but he was much more before that.  Plus there's lots of potential for medieval warfare on both small and large scales.

Back From the UK and Back on The Blog

Gallo The Chicken Headed Man mosaic from Brading Villa

I hadn't realized until this morning but I'd been silent on the blogosphere since the end of April.  It's been a busy summer but in a good way.  Ive been traveling a lot - Halifax NS, Portland OR, Toronto and then the UK- and am looking forward to a few weeks at home before the start of the fall semester.

Our most recent travels were to the UK for three weeks.  We joke about this trip being the world's most expensive cheap beach vacation.  Every year my dad, step mother and step siblings plus kids and hangers on spend a week in caravans at the Isle of Wight in August - an inexpensive week away for a Briton.  But throw in three transatlantic flights at high season, a stay in London (because if we're going to the UK...), meals out and a rental car - ouch!  My wife, daughter and I used to go every second year but it had been 8 years since the last trip - looking at the credit card statements and I know why!

The trip was family centred so little of gaming note to report.  I think about trying to link up with British blogging/gaming contacts but didn't get my act in gear this year.  Highlights of the trip include.

• Surviving the Trump protests in London.  We didn't see the Baby Blimp 😂but crossed Regent Street just in front of the crowds.  This was a particularly hot day in the City and the crowds plus Trump 'copter made it hotter.  Fortunately we found a friendly pub for lunch and a very nice Italian place before the theatre that night.
• The Monet exhibit at the National Gallery - plus other cool stuff like Canalettos and the like.
• Really, really good theatre.  The Book of Mormon in the West End - very funny, very off colour, done by the Southwark creators.  A play about English Quakers in the Georgian age at the Chichester Festival.  
• Best theatre of all - Sir Ian (Gandalf) McKellan in King Lear in the West End.  Amazing stuff!  This was our last night in the UK before flying out - really nice dinner, great play then back to the restaurant for desert.  Best way to end off a trip.
• A trip to Margate to visit my sister in law.  The train trip was really interesting taking us past the Medway, Chatham and Rochester Castle (which fell to the French in King John's day - stuff you don't often read in British history books).  Plus an ex-Soviet submarine in the Medway - yes I googled it it's ex-Soviet!  WTF?
• Really really good food (yes in the UK!).  Best of all was the allergy knowledge and labelling.  I am coeliac and my wife has a dairy allergy so this was key.  We went three weeks without a food reaction and ate damn well the whole time.  Well done to the EU for proper food awareness.
• Swimming in the ocean.  Three swims in the North Sea in Margate's retro tidal pool and three on the beaches on the Isle of Wight.  I did think about swimming in the Serpentine in Hyde Park - the facilities looked really good, but it opened late and there were too may waterfowl sharing the waters for my tastes.
• A visit to Canterbury Cathedral - a first for both Lynne and I.  We didn't get to see the alter where Beckett was hacked down because they were using it for Convocations that week.  But the sound of the brass quartet and choir echoing through the Cathedral was wonderful.  Plus Dad had warned us not to be too disappointed that Beckett's blood had been washed up since the 12th century!
• Driving on the wrong side of the road!  This was the first time I'd rented a car east of the pond in nearly 30 years and the last time was to drive around Ireland.  No damage done to vehicle of family mental states!
• A visit to Brading Roman Villa on the Isle.  Out of the way unless your on the Isle but well worth a visit.  Had me think about Dux Brittanarium, the Barbarian Conspiracy and ogling the MDF Roman villas available via Sarissa, War Wases etc.

I Have Been to the British Museum

During my trip to the UK last month I spent a day in London and as usual hit the British Museum.  I have visited the BM many, many times and have had my family drag me out into daylight on occasion.   Once I nearly got locked into a room featuring early Italian artifacts by a security guard on autopilot (there was a really cool looking Attic-Thracian helmet on the far side of the room).  Fortunately his co-worker spotted me in time.

Anyway this year they have a Vikings exhibit featuring lots of cool stuff.   Cool stuff in this case includes weapons, armour, house hold articles and A VIKING SHIP (or what's left of it).  I especially liked the hands on exhibits that allowed you to touch Viking era artifacts like coins, a sword and an axe head.  Now where's a Irish monk so that I can try this out?   Well worth the visit if you're in London this summer.

While the Vikings were the main attraction, I also visited some old friends along the way.

The Isle of Lewes Chessmen

Assyrian Lion Hunt

The Nereid Monument

The Sutton Hoo King

The really cool thing about the BM is that where ever you go you see something that catches your eye, often something that appears as a picture in a book on ancient or medieval warfare.  It's like the world's largest and most active squirrel.  Look it's the Rosetta stone!  Cool it's the Standard of Ur!  Squirrell!

On the way out I of course hit the gift shop.  Both my credit card limit and KLM's baggage rules  limited what I could take home - but I really want the replica stone carvings from the Parthenon and a Franck's Casket.  I had to make do with smaller stuff including

This great book

Oh yes and I brought my wife back a set of earrings and necklace featuring the Lewes Chessmen.  I have Lewes Chessmen cuff links and she has long since coveted them.  I described them as being among the geekiest things I had ever got for her and she loved them.  I guess I married the right gal.

England's Naval Glory Pt. 3

The last few shots from our Cruise on May 2-5th.

This Victorian era steam launch was tied up in the same Marina in West Cowes.  Lovely craft with white canvas funnel and bright shiny bronze engine bits (I am not an engineer) exposed.  Useful in the iron clad or colonial era for picket duties, landings or as a torpedo launch.  Dad tells me she still runs well and is often out and about in the Cowes area.

Two shots of Calshot Castle one of Henry VIII's shore forts.  It has the classic round shape which is not visible in the this shot.  What is visible is the main sail which shows that we did sail back from Cowes to the Hamble.  The jib halyard proved completed mucked up on inspection in Cowes - with the sail falling at our feet and the halyard at the mast head.  However, the wind was favourable to allow us to sail back under main alone.  The boat was due into the shop any way and dad tells me that the rigging is now mostly fixed.

In my youth Calshot Spit was much more interesting.  There was a light ship moored off the spit, very useful for telling the tidal flows and pretty cool looking too.  She now lies at a marina/condo complex in Southampton.  Better yet there was a flying boat attached to the local sports and rec centre, but sadly long since passed.  Anyone know where she went?

Isle of Wight with yachts and fast Cat.

Returning to the Hamble.  Try counting masts!

Skipper gets us home safely.

England's Naval Glory Pt 2.

A few more shots from my cruise with my dad earlier this month.  

Two shots of Portchester Castle in the gloom on May 3rd, a Norman Castle based on a Roman Saxon Shore fort.  And still looking damn good for her age! And well worth a poke around - again I didn't get there this time but have been twice in the past.  The first time led to one of those great questions from 5 year olds.  "Dad who were the pirates that the Romans built the castle to keep out?"  "Uh, that would be us."

Portchester served as an departure point for many medieval English campaigns in France, most notably Henry V left for Agincourt from Portchester.   Please note that the photographer was not drunk, but was working on a moving platform.  You try taking photos from a 33 ft boat underway.

On Satruday May 3rd, we had bright sunshine and motored from Port Solent to Cowes.  We would have sailed but when we tried to set the Jib on Friday it all went pear shaped and it looked like we had some serious rigging woes to sort out.  FYI in case you hadn't figured it out this was BlogCon day.  While the others were off in York gaming away I was on the briny blue (or grey in this case) spending time with my dad.

Lock at Port Solent

No naval history at all here, but I thought this might be of interest.  Given the range of tides at Port Solent, the marina has a lock at the entrance so that the marina can be a constant depth.  This shows six boats ahead of us waiting for the water level to go down so that we can leave the marina.  There was another boat to our starboard and two more astern of us.

HMS Warrior from another angle and in bright sunshine this time.  The Mary Rose is nearby.

Bank Holiday Saturday traffic, Solent edition.  A one of yachts leaves Portsmouth for points unknown

  

The skipper takes the helm leaving Portsmouth harbour (Ft Monkton in the background).  FYI I took the helm for most of our trip but yielded to the man in charge in tight places.

      

England's Naval Glory Pt2

Some more shots from our motor into Portsmouth Harbour earlier in May.

The entrance to Portsmouth Harbour.  Ft Monkton on the port bow, Southsea Castle almost dead ahead.  The actual entrance in directly in front of the Spinnaker Tower.

Gosport, the former RN submarine base.  Dad spent many days here in his navy service.  There are two tall ships, a Swedish barkentine in the foreground and the TS Royalist beyond.

HM Dockyard from the water.  HMS Warrior and HMS Illustrious are most obvious in this view.  The weather was cold and grey that day.

HMS Warrior (1860) the early ironclad frigates were certainly beautiful ships.  I didn't make it on board Warrior this time around, but I've been on her at least twice and she is well worth the visit.

HMS Illustrious due to be retired later in 2014.  A "D" class destroyer is ahead of the Lusty.

The stern of the Lusty.  You can see the masts of Nelson's Victory and a bit of her starboard gun ports behind.  Victory's topmasts have been struck else she would be more prominent.

From left to right, Duke class, D class, Illustrious

More RN ships in port.  It was the May bank holiday weekend so all ships were in port to give the crews shore leave.

England's Naval Glory Pt 1

IMHO, the best way to see sites of interest for naval history is on the water.  On May 2nd Dad and I sailed from the Hamble River to Port Solent Marina in Portsmouth Harbour passing about 1600 years (or more) of naval history along the way.

Let's set the geography first.  Dad keeps his boat on the Hamble River in Hampshire, probably the most crowded yacht anchorage in the world as seen below.  It has a long naval history and on its upper reaches lies the wreck of the Grace Dieu (Henry V's flagship) from 1418.

We sailed on May 2nd from the Hamble to Port Solent (blue line), on May 3rd from Port Solent to Cowes on the Isle of Wight (green line) and on the 5th from Cowes back to the Hamble (yellow line).

If you are into your naval history this is essentially ground zero.  Celts, Romans, Saxons, Vikings, Normans, French, Spanish, Dutchmen and Germans have all made their presence felt and their advances mostly rejected.  We sailed through the Spithead anchorage where a young Hornblower got sea sick etc, etc.

Fort Gilkicker with Spitsand in distance

Fort Gilkicker dates from the 1860s and was originally armed with RML artillery, updated to breech-loaders prior to WW1.

Fort Monkton

Fort Monkton (spellings vary on this one) dates from the American War of Independence and was updated in the Victorian age with MLRs and breechloaders.

Spitsand and HorsSand Forts

These forts  date from the 1860s and were built as stationary ironclads!  They were armed with MLRs, then BLs and even used as AA platforms in WW2.  This is quite close to where the Mary Rose sank in 1545!

Spitsand Fort

Here's how the defences look in 1914.

From the 1914 Jane's Fighting Ships.

Visiting a Green and Pleasant Land

II just came back from a 10 day trip to the UK to visit my dad (who I had not seen for 4 years).  More details to follow as I sort my brain and photos out but highlights include

• four days on my dad's yacht (a Bavaria 33, Bavaria being a noted centre of ocean cruising) with stops in Portsmouth harbour (under the walls of Portchester Castle) and Cowes.
• live theatre at the Chichester Festival with Zoe Wannamaker in "Stevie" with my dad managing to get a mention in the Telegraph review.
• a trip to the British Museum to see the Vikings exhibit and other wonders
• a game with Tim Gow of Megablitz (and obscure vehicle and plane) fame for a test game of Funny Cold Wars

I had originally hoped to get together with more gaming contacts but it was a short trip and dad wanted to get as much time on the boat as possible.  Sorry lads, but he's family, has a boat and I don't get much time on the briny blue.  Hopefully next time around.