Benjamin David Brooks: Recent Episodes
None
My sincerest of apologies to one and all, I’m afraid there won’t be a “Christmas Podcast” this year, primarily because Mel and I are in the middle of quite the protracted process of moving house, and some of my recording equipment is necessarily boxed up for the time being.
That being said, We’ve passed through another successful orbit of Sol, and so the festive season has returned, with all the usual accoutrements, from festive music and good food, to gifting rituals, to getting some time off work and spending time with family and friends. Here’s hoping that you all have a wonderful Christmas, wherever you happen to be spending your holidays, and that the next orbit of Sol will be a good one.
For those of my colleagues who drew the short straw this year and have been working the Christmas period, I hope that once your shift runs are over you get some time to yourselves and a nice break before you have to be back for your next run!
Ben Brooks
26 December 2024
Register | Postal Votes | Proxy Votes | Voter ID | Who’re My Candidates? | Major Party Manifestos
IMPORTANT DISCLAIMERAs a UK Civil Servant, I can’t comment on current Government Policy, nor can I tell you who I think you should vote for in the upcoming elections. As such the below is a-political information provided with no personal recommendations nor further comment.
Register to Vote!First things first, make sure you are on the electoral roll? The Deadline for registering to vote in the UK General Election is 23:59 (11:59pm) on TUESDAY 18th JUNE…
1718751540 days
hours minutes seconds
until
The Deadline for Registering to Vote in the General Election (in England and Wales)
You can check you are on the electoral roll by contacting your local election office (this can be done through the GOV.UK website here).
If you know you need to register to vote, this can be done on the GOV.UK website here: https://www.gov.uk/register-to-vote
Not going to be around on Election Day?You’ve got two options…
Option 1: Apply for a Postal Vote by 5pm on WEDNESDAY 19th JUNE, this can be done on the GOV.UK Website here: https://www.gov.uk/apply-postal-vote
1718815260 days
hours minutes seconds
until
The Deadline to apply for a Postal Vote (in England and Wales)
Option 2: If you miss the deadline for a Postal Vote and/or, if you have someone you trust to vote on your behalf, you can apply for a proxy vote by 5pm on WEDNESDAY 26th JUNE. This can be done on the GOV.UK website here: https://www.gov.uk/apply-proxy-vote
1719420060 days
hours minutes seconds
until
The Deadline to apply for a Proxy Vote (in England and Wales)
Voter IDWhatever your thoughts about needing to do so, you now need to make sure you take recognised photographic ID with you to your polling place when you vote, you can find out all about this at the Electoral Commission’s website.
Who can I vote for?Want to know more about your specific constituency candidates? https://whocanivotefor.co.uk/ provides a great service to enable you to search them out using your postal code.
Remember, in a representative parliamentary democracy, you’re voting for your local MP as much (if not more) than you are a national political party.
Speaking of Parties – What are they Promising?Here are the links, provided in no particular order, to the manifestos of the major parties (where I could find them!) running for election in Great Britain (England, Wales, Scotland), Northern Ireland has different, local parties and I don’t know enough about NI Politics to know who to put here. Smaller parties and independent candidates are also available, so I would refer you to the “Who can I vote for?” section above to find out more from them.
UK Wide Party Manifestos
Conservative and Unionist Party
https://public.conservatives.com/static/documents/GE2024/Conservative-Manifesto-GE2024.pdf
Labour Party
https://labour.org.uk/change/
Liberal Democrats
https://www.libdems.org.uk/manifesto
Green Party
https://greenparty.org.uk/about/our-manifesto/2024-manifesto-downloads/
Reform UK
https://www.reformparty.uk/our-contract-contents – Only a draft document available
Regional-only Party Manifestos
Paid Cymru (Wales)
https://www.partyof.wales/manifesto
Scottish National Party (Scotland)
https://www.snp.org/policies/ – No full Manifesto document available at time of writing
Don’t worry, I’m not starting a tradition of New Years’ podcasts to go along with the monstrosities I publish for you at Christmastime.
New Years’ Eve is my least favourite night of the year. In the past I’ve managed to ensure that I’m working the night shift so that I don’t have to participate. This also has the added benefit of allowing one of my colleagues an opportunity to not be working; enjoying the new year however they so wish. Unfortunately this year it wasn’t to be, and Mel has taken our two dogs to her mum’s for the night to keep them away from all the inevitable trauma of fireworks, which seem to be more disturbing to the older of the two with every passing year.
So tonight, I’m sat at home by myself. Well, the family cat is here, but she got bored of sitting on my lap in about twenty minutes, and has disappeared off elsewhere, so I’m going to crack open a bottle of mulled wine and enjoy the end of the Christmas season alone.
In his excellent (and at this point traditional) re-upload of his review of Auld Lang Syne for The Anthropocene Reviewed, John Green talks about the history of the song, before going on to recount stories of his friend and fellow author Amy Krouse Rosenthal, circling back to the Christmas Truce of 1914, wrapping up in the final couple of paragraphs talking about hope:
“We live in hope–that life will get better, and more importantly that it will go on, that love will survive even though we will not. As Emily Dickinson put it, hope is the thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the tune without the words and never stops at all.
And we are here because we’re here because we’re here because we’re here.”
– John Green, Auld Lang Syne, The Anthropocene Reviewed, 2019 (2021, 2022, 2023 &c.)
Here’s this year’s re-upload if you want to see the whole thing, I thoroughly recommend it, but you may need some tissues to hand:
I listen back to this review every year, through hook (by looking for it) or by crook (by getting a YouTube alert that the re-upload has come). It never fails to bring me to the brink of tears, while at the same time lifting my spirits and helping me through New Year’s Eve.
However you’re spending your new year, I hope that the next orbit of the sun is a good one for you and all those for whom you care.
We’re here, because we’re here because, we’re here, because we’re here…
Ben
Another year passes us by, so here’s the obligatory Christmas podcast here on my blog.
Here’s some of the photos I took this year, mainly on my trip to Norway. I didn’t mention it in the podcast, because I felt it would be a little bit crass to do so, but I’ve started to make my better photos available over on Etsy, so if you want to take a look, you can find them here.
Whether you’re working this year, or are lucky enough to be enjoying some time off over the festive season, here’s wishing you all a very merry Christmas (or Saturnalia/Chanukah etc.) and a Happy New Year for 2024.
Season’s Greetings,
Ben
I was introduced to role playing games when I was studying my first degree back in 2009/10, and have been playing on and off ever since.
I recently started acting in the capacity of a GM – or Games Master – and while I’m not the world’s most experienced gamer, GMing is still a great laugh; albeit a lot of work. This adventure sets out to find and collate all the useful tips and tricks for GM’s to use when building their masterpieces. but there’s also a gander vision I have; which if you’ll indulge me, I’ll tell you a little about.
I’m going to create a world. For the most part GM’s stick to the “Creator God” method of universe building, which essentially says; “I’m the universe, whatever I say goes”. It doesn’t matter if they put a lush jungle next door to a desert, or a tundra at the equator.
But I’m not going to do that, I’m going to try to create a world using science, sort of. Starting with the accretionary disc that would be the start of any solar system and applying scientific principles to ‘evolve’ the world from scratch. To create a world from first principles… meanwhile exploring some of the more interesting parts of the sciences involved, from Astrophysics to Biology, and Geology to Meteorology.
If this sounds like the most dull and uninteresting thing in the world, that’s fine… I enjoy worlds with magic and supernatural elements as much as the next gamer (the first campaign I played in was a 1990’s Call of Cthulhu adventure). But if you’re interested in the journey, I’ll be glad to have you along for the ride.
We’re approaching the final days of 2022, so here’s the Christmas Podcast.
After missing the opportunity to post one for 2021, this is beginning to look more like an oft neglected afterthought than an annual Christmas Blog. However, it would appear ‘that’s the way the cookie crumbles’, and so to those of you who are here to witness the rare event, I bid you welcome!
Merry Christmas and Season’s Greetings
Ben
This year’s been – to put it mildly – a mixed bag. Here to put the cherry on top, or perhaps the final nail in the coffin depending on your outlook, is the return of my Christmas Podcast. Merry Christmas!Ben
One should be very careful about giving up ones dreams... the most worthwhile of goals are the ones which pose the greatest of challenges.
Sadly no pre-recorded Christmas message this here, but here are my best wishes none-the-less!
I came back to twitter this week after avoiding it for a while, and I think it may have been a poorly timed return given events in the UK to do with that thing which shall not be named. But… Read More Twitter is a strange place these days.
Another year, another Christmas message… in which I say little of any interest or import beyond apologising for not getting my American Adventure posts uploaded yet. Enjoy 🙂 Ben
“I’m going on an adventure!” said the young man to the drinks machine while it dispensed his necessary morning bottle of caffienated sugar syrup. “Whirrr….Bzzzzzt…..Clatter… Clank” said the drinks machine, spitting out the beverage in question and wondering, in the non-plussed… Read More I’m Spreadin’ the News… I’m Leavin’ Today…
It’s that time of year again… Where I subject you all to my Christmas Podcast (as it seems to have become!) I promise this one’s less depressing than last year, although I also didn’t have much to say, especially as… Read More Another orbit comes to a close
Hey Folks; I’ve finally got to the point where it’s become clear that my existing gaming group in East Devon are never going to be able to maintain an ongoing RPG campaign of any kind. So I’m looking to find… Read More A Gamer’s Call to Arms!
Hello Everyone, I hope you’re all well. Today I recorded my christmas message for the year, I will also be sending cards this year so don’t worry if you haven’t received one yet! I recorded something like ten versions of… Read More All Humans are Islands… A slightly sober Christmas message from me
[SPOILER ALERT – YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED] When I was four years old a film was released that has since been a wonder for millions all over the globe, it had some of the most innovative special effects in film… Read More On Dreams Made Real