Happy new year

Greetings all! It is the first day of 2025 and I am the only one awake in our house. Weather permitting, we are to travel to London later today to see my mother for her birthday. We had friends round to see in the new year, Leia having Louie round and they two got on mostly, until I set them off!

My wife had been in Elvedon the night before and I slept badly as a result, which meant that I passed out after midnight. But, I made it till then. My son had friends round and they left in the early hours of the morning, my daughter is probably sleeping off her celebrations last night!

I hope that all goes well this year. While everyone can say that the last one could have been better, I am grateful for the last year for others across the globe have had a worse time than me.

Anyway, happy new year to you all! 

Heretiks

This film is also called The Covenant and it is hard to find reviews due to there being other films with this name.

I liked it. But, I doubt I will ever watch it again. It is slow, it builds up to what is to happen, creating an air of mystery, but when the horror starts, the limits of the budget on special effects is obvious. But those limited do not detract from the enjoyment of the film.

With the film being about a nun, it will be compared to others, an example being Immaculate, and if I had to pick, most days, I would pick the other film. But the reason I say most days is that this is almost as good. 

I am glad I watched it, and it has given me ideas for the role playing games I am in charge of. 

How Brexit brought the EU together

Technically, the title of this post is misleading.  The EU has differences and has had some big problems, notably with Hungary.  BUT, many eurosceptic parties in EU nations have changed their mind on leaving the EU after seeing how the UK imposed economic sanctions on itself by leaving it.  

Basically, Brexit has been such a nightmare, that other nations have decided they are better in the EU rather than going it alone like we have in the UK.  

Christmas is over

Christmas is over.  My mother came up with my brother and his partner.  My wife had been cooking like a demon but sadly, things were not as ready as we would like when they arrived. My mother tried to help, but her mobility is not ideal and I had to get her to rest.  But she spent time speaking to me and also spent time with the children.

It was great seeing my brother again, his partner is amazing and she brought an incredible bottle of wine. In fact, I look forwards to them coming again. Anyway, time to relax now...

Byzantium

This is an interesting take on vampire films.  Much better than the Twilight series, but if you are someone who likes sparkly vampires, do not watch this.  The film is slow, but engaging, filmed well, it is has similarities, but is not close to an arthouse film in the way it is put together.  There is violence and gore, but it is not really a horror film, and if that is what you are seeking, again, do not watch it.  

I am glad I have watched it, but I doubt that I will be called back to this.  If you are interested in a slightly different take on the vampire genre, this is a film to watch. 

M3GAN

I really liked this film.  In fact, I liked it more than Childs Play, which has a lot of similarities.  Yes, the film is predictable, but it is put together well, the story knitting together with few of the plot holes as seen in Childs Play.  

While I am not sure that I would watch this again, I would have loved to have seen this on the big screen (there is no need to watch it there however) and it is a film I would highly recommend to others who like horror.  Childs Play had more laughs, but this was a better film by far.  

Why I think the oldest profession should be legal

Sex work has been in the news again thanks to the exploits of Lily Phillips. Two other Only Fans content creators, Bonnie Blue and Annie Knight have also featured due to similar activities. Essentially, while not being paid by the men they are having sex with, they are having sex for money.  

Which brings up the issue of if prostitution should be legal. Let me get this clear, I do not want any woman (or man) to have no choice but to resort to working as a prostitute, but like it or not, for some women, this is how they survive. What I want is a system to support sex workers, so that they can get the help and support to work in a safe manner, but more importantly, the help and support to get out of the trade if needed. Making sex work legal may also help to reduce sex trafficking as sex workers would be given rights.

Like it or not, there are websites for men to be sugar daddies and many men seek ‘love’ abroad in a way that many consider to be transactional for too many women. 

In a nation where pensioners are having funds for heating taken away, legalisation and regulation of sex work may actually help the economy.