In Defence of Drone Operators

This is for the drone operators and future operators in Canada.

Couple weeks ago, I came across an article about the drone operator who flew over the Toronto Raptors championship parade.

In short the facts: Drone operator fined just under $3000 CAD for flying a drone in a crowded public space. Transport Canada, the authority in charge of airspace for planes, helicopters and now RC quadcopters, is enforcing new laws in place as of July 1, 2019.

I personally own a drone, flew it a few times in my room and in an empty parking lot and limited to 10 metres. I have handled it dangerously physically and legally. With these new laws, it’s understandable for the concern especially with larger drones which have more mass which can hurt someone if it was in free fall. At the same time the laws can be a bit unreasonable in terms of bookkeeping for hobbyists as well as having certain conditions met before flight. Going through a small course is a good idea to understand what it takes to keep Canadian airspace safe, but making it mandatory as a hobby is a bit too much. Though the law is a bit flexible in terms which certification who need to fly. You can do almost anything for a basic certificate. Advanced seems ideal since you can do a lot more but geared for professionals. And of course anyone can apply for special permission.

The drone community has grown a lot since these flying machines are getting cheaper. Mine was about $129 while the most average around $500. The surge of people taking these things to weird places have yielded some spectacular aerial photos you can and cannot get in a plane. Though breathtaking, it has caused some grief and worry from interest groups. They’ve been shamed as voyeurs since drones can be used to spy on people. Though most place now have some drone laws this hobby stood up when traditional laws didn’t foresee technology to advance beyond what is governed. Almost like they operated in a grey zone, which is why I can relate to another community of enthusiasts.

Remember awhile back I was a bit gaga over airsoft. In Canada, airsoft has received less notoriety but still show up on the rare occasion. To fill you in airsoft is a sport where people shoot small plastic BB’s at low velocity at each other (Think paintball but less mess and smaller projectiles). Because the guns look real, they have been used for nefarious purposes and end up on the news. For a time people were angry that kids can acquire these things for cheap and even the government stepped in to amend the gun laws to include paintball and airsoft. Seeing the parallels? Not only the law is involved but I’ve seen the community grow a bit to where it was a self-policing body. For a sport about honour and integrity, it was noble of them to take care of each other in terms of campaigning their own on safety. Of course there are the outliers who don’t conform and stay on the fringe to enjoy airsoft in their own way but very rare.

Perhaps that’s the next step for the drone community. As much you want drones to be popular, having passionate folks spearhead the hobby in a safe and legal direction. I don’t think it has to go as far as carding member or restricting to an 18+ affair. But having people who put the best foot forward to teach newcomers about proper etiquette and safety. As laws are being made the grey zones where new technology and fringe hobbies, there will be a proper line of where everything should be. As much as politicians establish that line, it’s really up the people to figure out where they want that line.

Drone can be fun if everyone have a basic understanding of what is expected as an owner and operator. So my contribution for anyone who is starting out in Canada, here’s the link to the new laws and how it affects you.

The best I can say is what I know as an amateur photographer:

• Be considerate of others.
• Respect people’s wishes, regardless how they convey it.
• Have empathy. If a stranger did that to you, how would you feel?
• Be aware around you and take no unnecessary risks.

Advertisement

Easy September

The past week has been filled with some ongoing things happening. Aside from the sleep and the much relaxation, I’ve been trying to get back into recording more Stardew Valley on my channel. I’ve recently upgraded my 8 year old PC. Nothing too in depth, installed a new GeForce 950 GTX to replace the 430 I had and a 2 TB hard drive. After a week running the new GPU through her paces, I’m starting to think my entire PC is under powered for the new GPU. Power is running great but I think the CPU might be having a tough time catching up with processing some games. I don’t know exactly is the problem, let me know in the comments what you think stuttering and “lag” might be. The new hard drive is working fine, I’ve managed to transfer my game files from Steam to the new drive without hiccups. All save files are functional thankfully so I don’t have to restart a new Stardew playthrough.

The original intent was to buy a new PC, but an old buddy of mine convinced me to upgrade the GPU and save the $600 of new PC parts. But the cheap guy I am, I decided to upgrade this PC; hopefully one last time. When I started up Insurgency to play, I had a few problems with servers that were located out west. Then I realized I was lagging from local servers too. Of course I had to pull off something stupid to expend the $600 I saved. Luckily at the time, a local airsoft store had a P90 in stock. I’ve been looking into buying a P90 since I started playing airsoft and now here it is with only an hour ride out and a few days of waiting for the shop to open. Of course the day came and I bought it under budget, still pricey for a airsoft replica. Nonetheless, it was less than 600 with a spare magazine. Along with the Cyclone impact BB grenade and spring shotgun, I have a few things to try out. Of course I’m giving my pistol another go even though I’m shearing the feeding lips every time I’m using it. If I get a chance at the end of the month to play, I’ll definitely give it a go.

Other than that, happy with my new purchases for fall. Maybe enjoy it as much as I can until I can find something to complain about or something to talk about.

Airsoft – On Ethics And Values

Here I am again, reading and watching news footage of kids and teen getting in trouble with airsoft replicas and anti-gun folks up in arms about criminalizing guns and everything guns. Around the same time, I finally returned to play a day of airsoft and realizing the game sits between its values. I witnessed this first hand. Some people  I might put as those players who take it up as a game and some groups of people take it as a hobby; however there is some consensus on the rules of the game.

Honesty is a heavy value in airsoft. In games I’ve played, there have been instances where players don’t call their hits. As much as the players endorse people to call your hits when shot, I’ve seen some people who don’t receive this message properly. My local arena always says during their safety briefing, “Airsoft is a game of honour. Call your hits.” Which brings me to my next point, integrity.

Integrity is self reflection after the situation and able to act the same wherever they go. Meaning you are the same person with the same view at work as you would be at home. Airsofters I’ve played with have a range of integrity, which is interesting. Some people like to talk honestly and play like a foul player while some do play an honest game. When calling hits, whether you raise your hand up or not, you did indeed were shot. You are admitting a fault, you were shot! If you take hundreds of BB’s to the face and complain about another player not calling hits, you might want to check your values. Airsoft is still a game, you can always respawn and try again.

Along with receiving, sending someone BB’s is much more a demonstration of personal values in terms of respect, responsibility and fairness. Respect to the respect and obedience to field rules, I admit I may have a few times came to breaking rules. At my local field, they have a strict no vaulting rule. Vaulting meaning jumping up, over and through obstacles. I may have in my own 6 month stint have jumped over a few low windows. Respect can also be seen from player to player in terms of being fair to other players the opportunity to show mercy. The field I got to don’t have range rules, in theory you can shoot someone point blank. However I’ve seen a varying degree in restraints. As many players have shot me point blank, there have been players who asked to surrender or just swapped to melee. Respect for personal equipment; leave it where it lays or return it to the front desk. Which leads into responsibility for yourself and fellow players. Helping other ensure all equipment is still on them and helping the game marshal recover lost equipment. I poorly displayed my values of responsibility for losing a pistol magazine which I have to now replace. As well as breaking a feed lip from my spare magazine, I am not a prime example of responsibility; however I do admit my faults as a player, that’s self respect and integrity. Lastly most players I’ve seen is fairness when it comes with over shooting. Most players I’ve seen have restraint and good trigger discipline to not shoot a downed player walking away to respawn. It’s a value heavily for me since I’m usually the one being shot first.

The local field does have one value they highly enforce, safety. Personal safety on the field since plastic BB’s fly at 380 feet per second. They endorse full seal eye protection at the minimum, but full face protection is recommended. Last weekend, I was humble to my mesh mask since the games got into a team on team with 40 players on each side. I did get shot in the face a good dozen times, my face would look like pepperoni pizza without the face mask. Then their “no duff” calls, used when safety has been violated where the game must stop to assess the situation. As recommended if the googles fog up, get off the field and deal with it in the safe zone and if it’s serious, call a “no duff” to let everyone know some happened. Recently with news of someone getting shot in the eye with a replica gun, they were cracking down on safety much harder with checking fire selectors, barrel covers and heavily enforcing their “no dry fire” rules within the safe zone.

Airsoft as a game does have a lot to teach in values in ethics for those who choose to learn them. Airsoft as a political stance robs a generation of risk and pushing them closer to playing indoors, not learning anything but to play the game in front of them.

 

 

Day 27 – What’s in…

From https://hugaslittlehouse.wordpress.com

Simply put, I have no closet. I keep my clothes in drawers if they are not laying around my room or in my backpack. Sometimes I carry clothing in case it gets colder than I would think. With that fact, thanks for reading everyone!

…Oh, still here? Well…I guess I can share what I did recently.

Recently I went to my local airsoft store to make a small purchase. Just some decorative and protective equipment when I noticed they have a mystery box rolling around. For those new wondering what is a mystery box, it’s a package of miscellaneous items with the opportunity to gain something hard to get or worth more than the value of the box. In the spirit of being my first mystery box I have ever purchased in my life, I thought I would snap a few photos for posterity.

When I bought the box, I was surprised it was in a non-descriptive envelope. Not much more than a cushioned letter sized package. Rest assured I would get the following items:

• Shemagh
• Rubber ninja star
• Len protector for a reflex sight
• A velcro Canadian flag
• Airsoft gun barrel cover
• 3 premoistened lens wipe

On top of this, I would assume I would get a receipt for one of the following (note all these are airsoft guns):

• 1 in 25 chances for a 1911 pistol
• 1 in 50 for a Desert Eagle in Black
• 1 in 50 fir the same but in Silver
• 3 in 500 for a FNX 45 pistol
• 3 in 500 for either a G18 pistol
• 3 in 500 for G17 pistol
• 1 in 500 grand prize of an MP7 in black

Out of the list of hopefuls, it looks like I could get a pistol out of this deal. I’ll sell myself short on the MP7 since I’m in no rush for a submachine gun. However I am looking for something more compact for indoor play. I’m not a fan of the Desert Eagle as lovely a pistol it may look. The FNX looks a bit big to me. The two Glocks may be difficult to obtain so the logical and most likely extra is the 1911.

Time to open this sucker up.

As promised, I have all the guaranteed swag. The flag to me is a bit disappointing because the proportions is a bit off and the velcro is protruding out. I already own a barrel cover for my M4. The anti-fog wipes are a nice thing to have, they’re about $2 a pouch. The ninja star is a neat item but I doubt I will ever use it on the field. With the face mask I bought in the same place, the shemagh might be very helpful inside and outside of airsoft.

The box was cheap and had some interesting goodies, I might someday buy another at the same price and unbox it.

Tenacity.

Recently, I had the opportunity to use my “once a month” airsoft budget to play again. This time rather than the shy timid person I was, I opened up to myself as the personality that I am towards my fellow players. Though I must admit I was a bit physically rough with myself with some sustained injuries, it wasn’t that painful compared to my last experience. Definitely lessons learned and points to sustain for every outing. However this time as I readied for the first round of the night (2 v. 2 team deathmatch), I felt less of the hesitation and nervousness that I feel when I try something new. Second time at the facility, I really felt ready to play. My rifle recalibrated and optics finally sighted, any fears faded and began to live here and now. As the referee counted down – “THREE”, my mind racing and thinking. Will I draw blood this time around? I am getting older, why am I living like this? “TWO”, how will this round will turn out? how will other think if my injuries was caused by these actions? Hundreds of questions until the call. “ONE”, silence. It was me, my breath and heartbeat as I drew my rifle up for the go.

Many things in my life, the best things happened in my life this far, have occurred when I’m nervous and scared. Unsure of the future, unsure of the consequences; risk and risk alone was the award for me. Yet risk and risk alone was what ended those great ventures. When I was young, I feared risk. Risk of injury, risk of loss, risk of failure. Much of the best years of my life is avoiding risk. I realize risk is what I need the most.

Life is indeed about trying new things, growing outside a shell. Though it’s not permission to go wild, it’s the steadfast determination when facing impending consequences. Being into the very moment to think and react and to not be ready what will have days and weeks beyond.

This moment in time is what we have left of ourselves. The next moment might not be the same. It could be but there is nothing to gain in a moment if it is the same. In the very moment, nothing beyond should really matter but right now. In my life, it has only happened once. The moment when my mind clears and I am in that moment. The moment when everything is nothing but what I hear, smell, touch and see. Itself in words only can quantify an infinite feeling. It’s almost exhilarating and yet I dare find it.

Lesser are my fears even if they exists. Facing them and challenging them is one thing I alone must achieve. Perhaps in it all fear is our greatest enemy but tenacity is humanities greatest weapon.

Weekends/Weekdays

This September has been an interesting one. Along with receiving my work schedule and starting a new hobby, time seems against me for the time being. I am unsure where to start or how I would finish this blog post, but I can try to break it down.

After Labour Day, I returned to my part time job. My employer has given me the schedule and it seems most of the time, I’ll be pulling weekends. Not surprising my 2nd job likes to occupy the same timetable as well. I can already know this year I will have scheduling conflicts unless I adapt to having a weekend in the middle of the weekday. Welcome Tuesday through Thursday, you are my new Friday through Sunday! At least it’s an equal trade, so at least during the week, I can edit my gameplay for YouTube and play airsoft at premium. For now, the weekends for me are fairly packed and this weekend may be the last for awhile. Maybe get some time in playing games and spending last week’s pay on a day of airsoft? I think I’m getting more addicted to playing airsoft then video games; hehe.

On the YouTube front, I’ve finally bought a new headset after my old headset finally gave out. The headphones a long time back gave out and nothing came out beside static. The mic however survived to this day until this week. The mic has provided me with thousands of hours of screaming and planning in games and recorded over 450 videos for my channel. When I bought the new headset, I spent an entire day trying to get the mic working. At the start, the drivers worked out well but I had a conflict with the speakers. I still want to keep my speakers while keeping my headset resting on my shoulders. I guess these are the troubles I get for buying a USB headset than a 3.5mm audio headset. So with the USB drivers, I spent a good day trying to determine which input driver is my microphone. Once I found the input, I had to look for it in OBS and test it out. At the time, I thought it would be a good idea to test it while playing a new game. With the spare cash in my Steam account, I bought Party Hard to put her through. At the time of this blog post, I’ve received some criticism on it and I’ve made some tweaks. Beyond OBS, I don’t know what else I can do to enhance the audio in my recording since I can’t split the audio from the video.

I’m halfway through Party Hard and I think I will take recording a bit slower while I dial my settings in. If I don’t I still have my new weekends to work on it. See you guys next time!

Long Awaited Airsoft

This past Saturday after much planning and preparation, I finally played my first airsoft game. For most of the summer, I wanted to go out and see what it is like and now getting closer to fall; I feel I have only touched a shallow waters of a deep ocean.

In my city, this would be considered the edge of where sport and legality meet. Reading and seeing it with open eyes has made me appreciate it in a deep sense I can’t describe on my blog for it would reveal a bit too much about my past.

Tonight I traveled a long way to a quiet industrial complex to play a game of hobby and sport. A game where getting shot at is normal and pain demands to be felt. I purchase my tool in April in hopes of playing it in mid-summer. Everything was set; eye protection, batteries, bag, gun. Almost at a moments notice, I could trek the hour to the nearest field for a day long excursion.  Which today I did at Siege Airsoft.

Many would say it’s lunacy to shoot each other with guns loaded with pellets. Is it as crazy as watching two men bare fisticuff in cage without protection? Fringe sport as it is has show me what it really meant to play airsoft. As much the mainstream demonizes airsoft, I saw a lot of good tonight. After a pilgrimage to a store in hopes of calibrating my rifle, I met a few seasoned folks about their take on the game. As my rifle spent the hours in the hands of a technician, I can see the meticulous care and dedication; I saw a store brim with replicas and the few willing to uphold this game as a venture and a hobby. By the end with 4 hours before closing, I met a stranger who took me under his wing and a person I long awaited ever since I joined the community online. As I entered the chaotic nature of the Staging Area at Siege; it is apparent with BB’s dribbling across the floor and chatter in the humid summer air, they are not freaks looking for a a thrill. As normal as you or me, they want to do what a lot of people want to do – play a game. Perhaps with tolerance it could be much in sync with soccer and hockey, less organized  and more fluid. As I sat there and watched people load up and get dressed, I can see the eagerness and discipline in everyone around the room. Loading for me is simple and simply dressed, I sat and joined the sea of people waiting for the game instructions by staff. First game for me: VIP. As lots were drawn for 4 VIP’s a stepped up, how hard is it to be the VIP? As the staff instructed, there was a calm silence in the room as we are briefed about the game rules. As we stepped off into the field, it felt very surreal. partially built structures laid erratically within a warehouse sized room. With three small structures with stairs to a second floor laid front, middle and back of the enclosure. Well lit, I looked over to the predetermined teams. As the VIP, we had to hold tight for the team to take us to an extraction point laid across the map. As the game counted down from the referee tower in the middle. I crouch on the second floor in the second building. Game in three. Two. One. Then footsteps pounding as rounds ricochet off the wood and metal. I managed to fire my gun off. Pop pop. Pop pop pop. Then a sting on my arm, definitely feels like a hit. I crouch down in instinct and cried for a medic. Only 10 seconds in and already down. As I was healed, I over hear our escape plan. Peel back to the friendly side and push hard up the left. As we left under the rules of the VIP being escorted out, we held this guy’s back and ran straight to our side with very little rest we run under a set of arches and out of one of the buildings. As we reached the front, the pops sound violently close. As we neared the middle, we held our ground and began shooting back with vigor. We managed our way into a metal shed and held on. With nothing more than our escort. one of the VIP’s and I sat, shooting our of every opening we had. As the winds down to the last minute, it was time to make a hard move. We push behind out teammate and not stop until one of us reaches the top floor of the last building on the enemy side. As I watched dim blurs fly past the window and BB’s pelting the side, it was down to three of us to make it count. The spring to the stairs was easy but as time dropped to mere seconds, I made a quick dive over the last 6 steps. Belly first into a bed of plastic BB’s and a low groan in pain. It’s over, we won. After the round we left for the staging area and for me, to lick my wounds. In clear light, I saw I was shot about twice in the arm. By now, pain has left me leaving nothing more than exhilaration. I went back in for a few more games playing as a mercenary, then to help my team find and recover an object which is the supposed “bomb”.

After coming home with very little bodily harm, I feel elated and appreciative. In real life, gun fire bullets designed to maim and hurt people. What I experienced was very little to what people experience in their life. The realization of how safe we are to the world doesn’t fathom the pain of witnessing in it. I want to play more after this experience for sheer enjoyment. Not many games out there can induce such an adrenaline rush. But the next time I go, I’ll be sure to carry a long sleeve shirt and a gun that works properly to maximize my time there.

Summer Plans

Though my entire summer has been occupied with work, I still have a month and  half to go before fall. As I am writing this in early June, I think I will be out of contact for the time being when this is published. In any case, I have already planned a few things out for the summer.

With warm weather, I want to continue to be more active. Much like last year, I think I will have a lot of time swimming this year. I find swimming laps to be a bit calming. However, I would like to still go to the gym as usual. I want to definitely take in some sights around the city when I can get it. I’m not the most culturally sound person, but there are probably some events and festivals going around the city I could check out. Anything food related would be kind of cool; I’m not much of a music culture person, I like my own little world of my teenage musical machinations. In April (or what it March?), I bought my first airsoft gun. As of June, I have not used said gun. To remedy, I think I am going to look up local fields or other players who would like to take me under their wing and show my the ropes fo the sport

When I return from my hiatus from the Internet, I am definitely wanting to play more video games. On my YouTube channel, I think I want to buy a Steam card and start a new game. In recent history, I have been playing Cities: Skylines and a bit of Trove before I left in June. Who knows what games I will buy at the moment, I want to play an RPG or an FPS. I have considered replaying Fallout New Vegas and even playing the entirety of Skyrim. At the moment, I’ll decide once I have time to record again.

Until next time, I’m still away and hopefully I get to hear from you all soon.

Inspiring Turn of Events

So yesterday as I was working on my Starbound Hardcore, I had a long winded talk about a subject for a span of 2 or 3 episodes. Listening back to the discussion, it’s a constant reminder of how I operate as a person. When I’m motivated and dedicated, I could talk about the subject; more so compared to off-the-cuff discussions.

I realized also recently, I’ve been watching a lot of airsoft videos again. I’m not quite sure if I should pick it up as a hobby. The reason behind it is the initial cost and availability where I live. I have done the reading and a bit of research in the past, but I think what’s stopping me is where to play and where to buy and store my equipment. Assuming I do have the equipment and based on what I watch on YouTube, I think I would prefer the milsim (military simulation) games which isn’t viable within a large city like mine. For me to transport this equipment, it would cost a lot from home to field since most milsim games seem to occur about a 2 hour drive away from my city. Along with milsim games, I do like the team aspect of these games which also brings us to the next point; meeting people. The question is not just meeting new people but how to meet up with these team organizers and finding the right team for me. Personal preference I would prefer a team closely aligned to my values and ethics to what a team is and a local team for meet ups to work closely with them. From my perspective a team should be able to work together regardless of skill. Skill is what it takes to survive but teamwork keeps the group together. That is a blog post for another time. In the moment and at this time, I am interested in playing airsoft but I feel I need to be under someone’s wing and guide me through it.

For now and until next time, I can just keep dreaming.

Up goes the rollercoaster…

I’m on a really nice winning streak the last few weeks that I’m ecstatic that there are signs for good things to come. Right now, I might be employed within 6 months; maybe more depending on the paperwork that has to be done. I’m working on starting that airsoft hobby I’ve been thinking about since I was like 17 or 18, Also, I’m going to have an anniversary for something.

More largely, I’m rooting for the job and the hobby because it’s a 3 year wait and I’m now pretty excited about it. So I’m starting to rev up my dietary requirements so I can exercise my butt off from now until I’m in and ready to play. Bother require exercise so I’m going to be working double for both. Also I’m kind of stepping out of my comfort zone on airsoft.

It’s more of an unusual hobby from what I normally would call hobbies so I’m pretty excited about getting into it. I’m trying to educate myself as much as possible so I can make informed decisions about what I can to buy in terms of equipment. Though I would like wise advice on it especially any players in and around Toronto. Just reading over all this stuff makes me want to play a bit more and along with my job, it’s going to be more of a training aid as well. When all goes well, I’m going to be stuck in the best rut I’ve ever had in my entire life.

I read a recent message from my old employer on this hiring freeze and I’m pretty stoked that I might have a slot sometime in the near future. I just have to push forward, grab it by the throat and demand for 100% adrenaline of awesomeness. Maybe I’ll puke, maybe not…that’s my body’s decision to make.

Time to start the day with some reading and an armful of push-ups. So if you guys have any advice on airsoft, tips, tricks or locations to play; feel free to leave a comment. Peace out folks!