A LITTLE PERSPECTIVE..

It`s getting on for 38 years ago since the Voyager Space probes were launched.  The mission of the two spacecraft was to explore the outer planets of the solar system, which was achieved with spectacular results, sending back to Earth stunning images of Jupiter, Saturn`s rings and much more . And then they just kept going and going, and they continue to send their messages back home and will continue to do so until about 2020 when their transmitting power finally runs out.

Trouble is, the distances are now so great that it takes 18 hours or so for the messages to be received.  Important though that may be, the astonishing thing is that, after all that time and distance, the messages are able to be sent and received at all.  And what distances are we talking about here?   Well, discounting the fact that the spacecraft are travelling at something like 38,000 mph, meaning that the distance is forever increasing, Voyager 1 is about 12 billion miles away, Voyager 2 about 10 billion miles away and counting.

The picture above was taken by the space probe as long ago as 1990 - 25 years ago, when Voyager was a mere 6 billion miles from Earth - and when it was just about possible to make out the Earth showing up as  a blue dot in the red circle.   By now, it must be virtually impossible to make out the Earth in the vastness of space and whilst that might be `impressive` in itself, even that pales into insignificance when one realises that it will be some 40,000 years before Voyager gets even `close` to another, relatively nearby star.

  
Gliese 445 is in the constellation of Camelopardialis, `close` to the pole star Polaris and in about 40,000 years time, Voyager 1 will  pass within 1.6 light years of that star - merely the distance that light, travelling at 186,000 miles a second, will cover in a little over a year and a half.   You do the maths. 


So why am I boring you will all of this?   Well, the `blue dot` picture gives a clue.   Bearing in mind that eventually Voyager will forever be orbiting our Milky Way galaxy; that Planet Earth resides on an unremarkable spiral arm of an unremarkable galaxy; that our galaxy contains billions of other stars and planets and that there are countless billions of other galaxies......and a little perspective of our place in the great scheme of space and time begins to emerge.

Here on our blue dot we have developed to the point whereby spectacular pursuits like the Voyager mission have become possible and we speculate whether we are alone in the Universe.   But surely if another `civilisation` more advanced than our own were to observe life on Planet Earth today, we would doubtless be dismissed as primitive, unsophisticated and not worthy of attention.

Truly, Mrs. Brown`s Boys, Graham Norton, Russell Brand, Harry Redknapp and their ilk have much to answer for.    

I expect you wish I had stayed away now........

 A QUIET CONFESSION..

There has been much - arguably too much - media interest in Tom Daley`s announcement that he is in a relationship with `a guy.`  Shock, horror, whatever next?  But it strikes me as odd that he felt the need to do it at all and particularly to appear on a toe curling YouTube video.   Anyway, to each his own, but it has given fuel to the gossipy, ultra-modern, ribbon-wearing, right on, trendy, twitter and f***book obsessed, sad `celebs` who feel it their duty to show their support, however superficial and self-serving it may be, by citing Mr. Daley as being `brave` and a beacon of hope for the less assertive.

Now as one who was brought up in a world where certain `preferences` were actually illegal, I have not found it easy to adjust to the times that are a-changing, but I have reached the point whereby I genuinely don`t care and would prefer not to hear about the private life that anyone might have.  It just doesn`t matter to me and I`m not interested. And I`m especially not interested in all the media coverage, the YouTube stuff, the pages and pages written by people with nothing more relevant with which to concern themselves.

And so, being of a different persuasion to that of Mr. Daley and his chum, I have no occasion to `come out,` as such, to appear on YouTube or to hope that my own perhaps more `traditional status` will attract any sort of publicity, approval or even admiration.   Although maybe it`s time there were a few charities - even Government-funded ones - devoted to the cause of helping people like me, dishing out ribbons for us to wear to announce pride in our own `status` and arranging annual parades as a kind of `So there` bit of nose-thumbing to the rest of the world.   But then, people wouldn`t want to hear about all that, would they?

ANOTHER BALANCING ACT..

One of the nonsenses I`ve come back to in my re-entry into the `real world` is the invitation issued to footballers in England and Scotland (why not Wales too?) to support a campaign addressing homophobia in football by wearing rainbow laces in their boots this coming weekend.

These fetching laces have been sent to all 92 clubs in England and 42 in Scotland by gay rights charity Stonewall.   The Right Behind Gay Footballers campaign is focussing on changing attitudes rather than urging players to come out.   Stonewall`s Deputy Chief Executive, Laura Doughty, has declared, "It`s time for football clubs and players to step up and make a visible stand against homophobia in our national game and by wearing rainbow laces players will be sending a message of support to gay players and can begin to drag football into the 21st century."

Now I suspect that Stonewall`s focus on the apparent problem of homophobia in football may stem from the chants by fans of opposing teams of Brighton and Hove Albion and I suppose it is understandable that some Brighton fans may claim offence at such chants as `Does you boyfriend know you`re here?`   But football is a strange environment.  Football fans are passionate people, they go to stadia to support their clubs, but also to experience the tribal culture which is unique to competitive sporting occasions - `Come on, Andy` at Wimbledon;  `Swing low sweet chariot` at Twickers and the particular form of `banter` between rival football supporters.

A couple of things occur to me here.   One is that this particular rainbow laces initiative has simply had the effect of highlighting a perceived problem and therefore perhaps making the issue worse, even if there was an issue to begin with, which I seriously doubt. The second is that, as in all things it`s important to have a balance and so whenever Southampton may be likely to play Brighton again, I will not be offended in the slightest if the Brighton fans shout `Does your girlfriend know you`re here?`   

STATUS AND PERSONA..

A couple of days ago, quite by chance, I came across an obituary notice in a local newspaper which does not circulate in the area I live.   In fact, I was searching the internet for something else when this notice popped up telling me that a dear lady had passed away earlier this year at the age of 85.  It`s odd how even random things can trigger memories.   I knew her before she and her husband moved away from this area but it was her husband who I knew much better.   He had at one time been a work colleague but he sadly passed away some years ago.   He was an intriguing character with a life that yet again reminded me of the essential conflict between status and persona.  Let me explain.

He was a soldier, an officer and a gentleman, a proud member of the family that is the Gloucestershire Regiment, the Glorious Glosters, so called after their epic part in the battle of the Imjin River during the Korean War in 1951.  He was a Major in the regiment that carries more battle honours on its regimental flag than any other line regiment in the British Army.   And, as you might expect, he possessed a military bearing and a quiet stoicism that comes only from the kind of experience he had during that conflict.   

Following his retirement from the army, he became Personal Assistant to the head of a rural local authority.....and it`s here that the conflict between status and persona becomes interesting.   His new boss had not experienced the military life, had no concept of the qualities needed to survive in that environment at all, never mind during hostilities.   But, quietly observing from a discreet distance, it became obvious to me that having a battle hardened Glorious Gloster Major as Personal Assistant provided a cache not only designed to impress but also to enhance any inner delusions of adequacy that seemed to exist.   It therefore became clear, if unspoken or even unrecognised, that the one with the status, the rank, perhaps saw in his Personal Assistant a persona that he might have admired and wished for himself.

It`s not unusual, of course.   When I attended a Guidon Ceremony for my own old regiment some years ago, I shared a lunch table with a couple of other former national servicemen.    After they had done their 730 days, one of them went back to work on the family farm, leading a simple but hard and fairly unrewarding life.   The other had gone on to become the Personnel Director of a big national company.    But although their relative status seemed worlds apart, it was the farmer who was clearly in charge of the relationship.   His persona, you see, was perhaps the more admirable which I suspected that the Personnel Director recognised and acknowledged.

And the moral of these tales?   Well, if nothing else it might give a note of caution to those for whom status is everything, for in the end it may not matter what position you reach, what label you may have, if you lack the persona to go with it.   It happens too often, I suspect, but I`m left with the memory of my now sadly departed Gloster friend sighing wistfully to me, "Little did I think when I was fighting my way up Hill 357, that I would be doing this for a living."

NOT WORTH WORRYING ABOUT..

Well, I guess the picture tells the story.   It shows a forlorn group of Charlton fans worrying about their team`s loss of form, as they have now suffered five defeats on the bounce under new manager Chrissy "The Legend" Powell.   One of the reasons I haven`t gone on about Snopper Street`s footy lately is because of the plight our local pacy flanker and his chums now find themselves in.   A few weeks ago, they were riding high in second place in League One.   Now they have slipped right out of contention for automatic promotion and sit a daunting 10 points outside even the play-off spots.

In the meantime, both my beloved Saints and Mr. Slightly`s inspired Gills press on with a series of decent results that bode well for the end of season fol-de-rols of the play-offs.   But I won`t go on about that as I am not one of life`s gloaters.....unless, of course, Manchester United hit a sudden decline or Portsmuff implode, when gloating will become irresistible.

On what might at first glance seem an altogether distant subject from the fortunes of our football teams, I have started to watch the new BBC series `Wonders of the Universe.` presented by Brian Cox, he once of D-ream, `Things can only get Better,` an annoyingly youthful countenance despite being in his `40s, but for all that an impressive knowledge not just of particle physics but also its place in the great scheme of things.

Now, one or two things that he has made clearer already in his first programme are, firstly, the incalculable vastness of the universe and, therefore, the insignificance of the tiny blue dot on which we live.   And secondly, the vastness of the arrow of time from the beginning of it all to the end - if there ever is one.   The numbers are just silly, but they do accentuate the smallness of our planet and the blink of an eye during which we, as human beings, are here.

Set against all of that, I have already stopped being over concerned about tomorrow`s events  when the Saints visit Dean Court in Bournemouth for a `must win six pointer.` It really doesn`t seem to matter quite so much when viewed within the context of time and space and I would suggest the Charlton fans might indeed look on the bright side and just shrug their shoulders at the fortunes of their transient team and their transient selves. It really is not worth worrying about. 

 Live for the moment or it will be gone, never to return.  To be fair.