The Boreham Woodpusher

The term UFO, coined in 1952,  tends to conjure up images of little green men in flying saucers saying "take me to your leader'. These days, UAP (Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena) is used as it is more descriptive and doesn't carry unwelcome baggage. D uring July 2023, a U.S. House of Representatives hearing on UAPs included 3 witnesses giving testimony under oath. Two Navy pilots testified  to Congress  about how UAPs pose a potential national security and safety of  flight. One of them, Ryan Graves is founder of  Americans for Safe Aerospace, He subsequently wrote: "Today, these same UAP are still being seen; we still don't know what they are; and our government has no idea of the scope of the problem. That's because pilots, both commercial and military, are encountering UAP, and the majority of these cases are going unreported."   David Grusch, a United States Air Force (USAF) officer and former intelligence official, said that he "was informed...

Pre lockdown,  I used to commute most workdays to and from the office. Quite astonishing really, looking back. Train from Borehamwood to West Hampstead, walk a few minutes past Starbucks etc. to catch the London Overground to South Acton. Then down the road, cross a level crossing and enter Chiswick Business Park. On a good day, maybe catch the 8.22am from Borehamwood, and alight at the destination around 9.01am. By default, clock up a few thousand daily steps. Over the years, I subconsciously recognize a lot of track-side graffiti, rust patterns on bridges and buddleia bushes which bizarrely dominate overground railway lines, plus one in my front garden. And people watching: Still have no idea who the person with a beard and floral skirts is, and 'bookman' now mostly uses a kindle. My company office hosts a nice empty desk with 3 screens for my use, plus a bijou view of the artificial lake and deckchairs. But nostalgia does not get a free pass. In truth, b...

Borehamwood and Elstree enjoyed at least 7 different pop-up garden services during summer 2020. Here is the story of one of them.....   Lockdown - pasta shortages and soughdough proving. The maximum 6 people per garden rule came into force on June 1st, 2020.  At last, a chance to socialise with a few friends, and partake in tea and cucumber sandwiches on the patio. Admission strictly via the side gate. For those looking to start an outside minyan, it was simple: 6+6=12. Within hours, garden minyanim sprang up. Fence panels were removed and privit bushes pruned to create a neighbourly link. Back garden owners and renters, armed with WhatsApp (and a weather app), began to juggle who would attend the services. Late additions, pleas for Bosman transfers and last minute drop outs needed to be managed. 13th (or even 14th) men sometimes hovered outside the gatepost to stay within the letter of the law.  No permissions were asked. "Don't ask, don't tell"...

I read a lot or articles about climate change, but make no claim to be an expert. I dislike the polarization of sources and lack of sensible debate. The BBC and Guardian believe there is a catastrophe, and will not, as a matter of policy, allow any debate about this. Some mainstream more right of centre publications (the Telegraph and The Times) are firewall protected, which also stifles debate in the UK. If you don't agree with the 'consensus', you are a denier, a skeptic. If you are a so-called denier or skeptic, you are no-platformed from conferences. Only having one public narrative leads to group-think which is dangerous.    A recent study by researchers at Brown University found a quarter of posts about climate change on Twitter were written by bots. The finding showed 25% of tweets on climate change were likely posted by bots, mostly tweets centred on denials of global warming. There is a lot of fake news around. Sometimes, I see Facebook friends unwittingly shar...

Sar-el Volunteering in the Israeli Army was founded in 1982 and attracts an eclectic mix of around 4,000 people every year from over 30 countries. Despite being a regular visitor to Israel, I only heard about this scheme 2 years ago. I enjoy doing meaningful volunteering, but dislike committees, so it sounded ideal. Volunteers range in age - 16 to 80+! - including both Jews and non-Jews. There are heath and personal forms to fill in before you go, including agreeing not to discuss religion or politics on base (yippee). You pay your own way, and hand over a 200 shekel fee for the privilege. I volunteered over the winter bank holiday period for the last 2 years, being sent both times to the medical logistics base. Tasks like maintenance, painting and even putting away sukkahs can wait for another trip to a different base. Arriving on base, a pile of army uniforms greeted us from which to pick our work apparel. Personally, trouser length was OK, but waist size was appropriate for someon...

I have no ambitions to be a Mental Health blogger - that does not define me. This one-off blog looks at my recent journey to address Costochondritis, and its ugly sibling, Anxiety. Costochondritis  is an inflammation of the cartilage in the rib cage. It affects females more than males (70% vs 30%), and bloggers and vloggers on this condition are predominantly  younger women. When it is severe, it causes unpleasant discomfort in the chest, and lifting objects causes pain.  This blog by Welshmummy   sums it up the very well. She has gone down the CBD oil route to alleviate it. Very best of luck to her, but CBD Oil only addresses the symptoms, not the underlying cause. I first had Costo in the Summer of 2007 and needed 6 weeks off work, acupuncture  and medication (antidepressants, propralonol) to get back to work. I had  generally  been OKish for the next 12 years, but October 2019 saw an nasty flare up in the centre and side of my ribs, that moved a...

As a Risk Manger at a large Insurance Company (AXA), my work covers a broad range of areas. I recently attended a Mental Health Forum organised by Cover Magazine, as it was sponsored by 5 insurers, and was of professional interest (OK, and Continuous Professional Development credits were available). Mental health is perhaps a lesser known area within the overall gamut of insurance coverage. However, to the applicants and policy holders in the Income Protection (IP) space, it can be vital part of any package. Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) and Travel insurance are 2 other important areas of coverage. It was noted that Physical Health and Mental Health tend to invite different conversations. People ge nerally to talk positively about their excercise regime and successes in dieting. But mental health in conversations usually often to be have negative association: schizophrenia, depression, anxiety etc. In truth, people participate in activities like jogging and badminton...

We live in an anti-clockwise universe. It is the direction of: Electrons of an atom revolving around the nucleus. The moon revolving around the earth. The earth rotating on its axis. The earth and all other planets revolving around the sun. The Milky way and all galaxies. Islam is anticlockwise. On the first day of the Hajj, pilgrims walk around the Ka'bah seven times in an anti-clockwise direction while repeating prayers. From a brief search, Christian and Pagan ceremony also seem to be largely anti-clockwise. It seems to dominate religious circumparambulation. It prevails on running tracks and chariot racing, which probably reflects domination by right-handed and right-footed people.   So why am I writing about this? One recent Friday evening, I was at a local synagogue where alcoholic lubrication is positively encouraged. The man-dancing was anti-clockwise as it always is (same true for Jewish festival of Sukkot and Bride circling the groo...

9.00am on a late October morning. Scene: Waiting room for the overground train at Willesden Junction station. Almost everyone seems to be scrolling on their phones, or listening to something (myself included). Nothing unusual,except one woman is playing music loudly on her phone, disturbing everyone. After a respectable nod to British reserve, people inform her that her music is disturbing everyone, and ask her to stop. She responds that her music isn't loud. Impasse. But after a few seconds, and man starts filming her on his iphone. She goes up to him, and says that he is infringing her human rights. Everybody laughs. After a brief pause, she picks up her belongings and leaves. She didn't seem to care about other people's basic rights, but the threat of an appearance in the court of social media is too much to bear.   

Diversity is a champions league buzzword. But what does it mean as a chess player in the London area? How does it score on race/religion/age/sex? Women and chess seems to be the hottest potato, so I will start with the cold Jersey Royals and work my way up. Please Note: This blog has not been submitted to the Inclusion Council, and I beseech you to accept a virtual sin offering for any mansplaining. Chess scores highly on age diversity. Possibly better than any other pastime (I could write sport, but that's another debate). Personally, nothing scarier than playing a young, cherubic opponent who's head only just peers over the board, yet bangs out opening moves like a veteran. Last summer, I played an 8 year-old in a tournament. Major fright for the first 10 moves - till he made a faux pas. Superannuated players regularly feature in the same teams as juniors. Ability is what counts. It is also worth recognizing the many dedicated people, particularly parents, who help with ...

NASA's Hubble Space Telescope was launched from the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida on April 24, 1990. Expensive Cargo onboard the space shuttle Discovery. Hubble marked the most significant advance in astronomy since Galileo's telescope 400 years ago. Our view of the universe has never been the same since then. But, shortly after the Hubble Space Telescope was switched on, the pictures were coming back fuzzy. 2.5 billion US Dollars had been spent developing and launching Hubble - a public relations disaster! Following much checking and searching, it was found that a part of the mirror had been overpolished. This caused the telescope's primary mirror to have an aberration, affecting clarity of the telescope's early images. A committee was tasked with fixing and defuzzing Hubble.  Around 30 proposed solutions were submitted to for study: “Move the focal point back”,  “put in another mirror” etc.. Interestingly, the approach they accepted was to exactly replicate the ci...

Unless the bride or groom is a card carrying tree hugging vegan, a Jewish wedding will almost certainly involve meat being served for the main course. This is a long standing tradition based going all the way back to the Talmud declaring that there is no simcha (joy) without meat and wine. People choose to see this as an excuse for a good boozy meal, rather than a reference to the temple service (which preceded the advent of tofu burgers and a pint of old peculiar). Personally, I haven't eaten meat since kindergarten, and the thought of gefilte fish or wild alaskan pollock goujons doesn't greatly appeal. Milk is verboten at a meat meal, and a Spanish omelette feels more roadside café brunch than a nuptial repast. As a result, opting for something veggie or vegan is the default choice. One cannot begrudge carnivores their Angus steak or chicken thighs. After all, one should respect the will of the majority (no brexit jokes here). I do, however, think that some caterers lack ima...

The classic British soap opera is a unique specimen. Working-class neighborhood with rows of small houses, a thriving communal pub, and local shops including a chippie. This is supposed to mirror the lives of their viewers, who hang their washing in the garden and often struggle with important real-life issues like childcare, unemployment and rent arrears. Any character who is vaguely 'middle class' has clearly been teleported from planet Zog and struggles to fit in. There is often a tangible resentment of success and betterment. People should know their place. Hopefully this is now a diminishing trend in British society. The strange thing is, the Brits like their American soaps too, and the expectations are a polar opposite. Good looking actors, conspicuous consumption, a few idle rich, and hair that stays in place during a force 9 gale. No small terraced houses in sight, mostly palatial houses and plush apartments. There is a tangible whiff of success. ...