BullJet Blogs

We're fast approaching the end of 2017, when we see the endless run of people saying new year new me or people moaning about those saying new year new me! Either way, the new year is essentially just another number, life goes on as it has done for years before, it's just another set of dates to tick off of your calendar.
Of course, with the end of the year being nigh, it's easy to look back over the year that has passed by and reflect on what's happened, what you've experienced, and what you've learned. Whilst this year has been one of ups and downs, mainly it has been ups thankfully.
Before I rejoice in the highs though, I want to spare a thought for those that we've lost over the last 12 months. Whether it's loved ones, acquaintances or even those we idolise in the media, it's not easy handling loss. For me, my Aunt June passed away early in the year and I was a coffin bearer at her funeral. She was loved by many, is missed by many more, and …

Its funny really how much can change in a short space of time. Think back to just over a month ago and the last blog I wrote, there was plenty of optimism and positivity when it came to life, love and work. Fast forward to the start of December and there's a few changes in mindset and direction that mean that things aren't as they once were. Things can change quite quickly when you think about it.
Don't get me wrong, my optimism and positivity hasn't totally left me, there's still plenty to look forward to over the next few months, especially the first couple of months of 2018. I mean there's Tokyo, and in turn Wrestle Kingdom 12 in the Tokyo Dome on January 4th, then there's Snooker at the Ally Pally with the old man, the day after that I'll be heading into London to see The Rat Pack Live from Las Vegas, and then in February I'll be heading back to Italy for another trip......
Italy is a country I have plenty of love for, from the bloodline ties t…

The last time I sat down and actually typed something out that wasn't for the Concord programme, it was back at the start of July and things were still shifting around at work, the reorg was still in its early stages and I didn't have much confidence in what lay ahead for us there.
Well as October is just over a week away from ending for another year, I thought it would be good to sit back down and type out a load of old tosh once more. I've continued with the “blogcasts”, which tend to be 15/20 minutes of me waffling on about what's going on in life, and I stick them out on soundcloud (just search for BullJet, same online handle I have everywhere). They tend to now take the place of these posts, but I have to keep this going for my own sanity!
There's plenty to talk about, but concerning one of the key things, the NFL and more specifically the Jets, I have a separate blog planned, as that will be one that will go on......
I'm a happy guy right now, I think …

So here we are at last, the football season begins in earnest tomorrow and the first kick of a ball in anger of the 2017/18 season will take place. For us at Concord Rangers we'll be opening the year against Wealdstone, a team that we've had a fair few run-ins with over the last 5 or 6 years.
Most memorable for me are the two fixtures at the Vale during our promotion season, the league game seeing our hosts essentially steal a victory after the Beachboys had played their backsides off having had a player sent off early on in the game. It was frustrating for sure, and the reaction of some of the locals left a lot to be desired at the time. But the gaffer at the time, some nobody named Danny Cowley (whatever happened to him?) said we'd be back in the playoffs and we'd turn them over. DC believed it, and when the playoffs came, so did everyone else.
It was a total reverse this time around, Concord were not at their best, the hosts were the better side for the majority of…

This past weekend the yearly Railsport Games took place, and this time they were held in Loughborough for the first time, having previously been held in Blackpool almost since their inception over 15 years ago. New sponsors Rail Media organised a quite spectacular weekend of sport which brought together entrants from a number of TOCs, FOCs, and railway stakeholders and sponsors.

As has been the case over the past few years under LOROL, Arriva Rail London sent athletes to take part in some of the events, having had extensive success in previous years for both the 5 a side football and darts competitions (singles and doubles). A change in venue and some questionably shaky dartboards (of which complaints were made with the organisers) were just a couple of factors that may have hindered the ARL athletes progress this time around though.

Former singles & doubles runner-up Alan Jessup-Peacock (Control Shift Manager) was drawn against ARL driver Paul Spreckley, Wayne Jones (Network Rai…

So nearly 4 months ago I wrote a blog about work, about the reorg that was going on and what may lay ahead for myself and all those I work with. Since then my blogs have been consigned to verbalised ones, I've found it a hell of a lot easier (surprising myself) to waffle on for 15-20 minutes at a time rather than sit down and type out a page of words.
Anyway, time has passed and some of the changes have kicked in at work, but there's still a lot to do, more people to put into jobs and a hell of a lot more training to do, and I'm still in the job I was in at the start of all this. My mind hasn't changed, I'm not moving up the ladder, I'm still stepping down, but this won't be for another couple of months given how slow some things seem to be moving!
Morale at work is understandably low right now in places, there are a few high moments don't get me wrong, but there's plenty dragging people down, especially in the control room. Changes to teams and …

A little over 2 years ago at work, myself, my boss, and our operational colleagues worked on and then implemented a reorganisation of the control room. Merging the two controls together, adapting the tasks and setting a new structure up which (we thought) would be ideal for when the company changed ownership at the end of 2017.
At the time, during the process of the reorg, my mind was all over the shop. Admittedly there was personal issues with the person I was seeing for two months of the time, but that aside, I was ready to step down from managing people and move into a job that was just a job. I thought long and hard about it and was very close to doing it, but a couple of conversations with my boss at the time led me to give this new managerial role that we'd created in the restructure a go.
During one of those conversations it was said that if after 6 months I wasn't happy, didn't like the job, he'd back me and let me drop back into the role I was originally plannin…

So the last time I sat down to do any writing for myself it was mid december, and I was going on about taking life by the balls so to speak, questioning why people wait for the year to change or a date to arrive before making changes or taking chances. But don't worry, it won't be more of the self-righteous waffle this time round, I promise!
It's been a busy few months, plenty going on both family and work wise, and I'll be honest, it's been a lot easier over that time to talk into a microphone and podcast personally than take the time to write. But I need to keep going at it, I enjoy it and should make sure it continues, even if it is a load of waffle.
So for those that don't know, probably the biggest family thing for me over the past couple of months has been to do with my little sister, well maybe not so little now. She got married back in November, and on her birthday just before Christmas her & her husband dropped the bombshell that me and my two b…