Posts

What's The Point of Christmas?

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  I'm trying to get this out of my head whilst the sensation is still fresh. Genuinely - what was the point of all that? What was the point of Christmas? I have no doubt that folks reading this have their own interpretations of what Christmas is - be it a religious observation; a familial event; a cultural bonanza; a shopping spree; an excuse to spend time with people you love. The latter absolutely used to be the case for me; and certainly on some levels was still the case for me for Christmas 2023. But I still find myself questioning what was the point; and why did I feel obliged to participate in a cultural juggernaut, when it's origins are so muddled in recent times? - It strikes me that the most prevalent version of Christmas ( in the UK at least ) is the commercialised one. Maybe not even figure-headed by Santa now - it's a pure economy-driving emblem, especially since Covid began - and without joining the choir of purists, I can't recall the last mention of Jesus

I've Fallen In Love With A Hippopotamus

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  I actually can't find a record of holiday I took on my own that wasn't a Magic extended weekend (Copenhagen and Stockholm) or a drive down to Nantes in 2019. And whilst I have done a multi-country trip in Europe (thank you 2017), that was in the excellent company of one Areckahn; so I am not sure that I have ever strictly done a holiday on my own? Even America in 2007 was mainly spent with my cousin Alex. So allow me to recant you the tale of September 2022, and my travels to France and Beyond (with pictures!).

This is *Exhausting*

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  I have started writing this blog a few times. It's had a few titles/angles - the most recent of which was 'reasons to be miserable' - and listing everything that seems to be confronting me about everything going on in the world. But I realised I'd have to research into Ian Dury's lyrics of the same title, and either re-mould to fit that style; or at least acknowledge that song - and deliberately work outside of that framework, to maintain the piece's own identity. I'm a paragraph in, and I've already worn myself out.

Properly Selfish

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  Today I took some time out to just get a hold of a few things that were rolling around my head. I don't know about you, but since all things pandemic happened, the absence of 'normal' for so long has meant that things have been happening on a day-to-day basis, and as changeable as circumstances would allow. Of course this was necessary and key to how I initially coped with this most unprecedented of scenarios, and taking things one day (or week) at a time [planning supermarket trips, carrying on working, staying sane] was eminently suitable. But now that things are 'opening up', that restriction on movements and limitation of options, have all but been removed; and I think apart from the initial rush to go see the most important people in my life in person again; I've been handling things on a ad-hoc basis still, with very much an attitude of 'this sounds like a fun and good idea, let's go with that'. Which has brought me to a June holiday in Norfo

Farthest From Home

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Today is the first day I have lived in Leeds more days than I have lived in my home town. As with most statistics, this milestone is arbitrary; but it seemed appropriate to mark this with a little post.

Take A Moment

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  Did you hear...? (Image source: Josh Bowell ) I'm writing this on the morning after Joe Biden was finally confirmed as the 46th President-elect of the United States. It is also the first time in over five months that I have had the mental buoyancy to write a blog. This will be a fairly short post though - but I wanted it to sit as a reminder of where my head is this morning, over and above the last four years: - Right now, I'm happy. This morning I have learnt both the definition and practice of ' joyscrolling ' - if you are anywhere near a device, I can only heartily recommend it. Sure, there will be caveats to come - they've already started - I don't think Biden is going to be the best president; but he will as sure as shit be better than Trump. Coronavirus has not gone away - and it could well get worse over the winter. The Conservative government is still a slippery snake, burying the admittedly positive outcome of yet another BoJo U-turn, right in the mi

Selective Dissonance

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I am thinking about and posting this blog as I watch the live stream of Dragon capsule 'Endeavour' carrying it's human crew (and Tremor the dinosaur! First dino in space! Take that extinction meteor!) towards the International Space Station. What was particularly exciting was seeing the capsule fly overhead from just outside my house . As I've posted before, I love space stuff like this ! - What I haven't been thinking too much about, or posting about has been the situation on the ground in the USA - arising from the killing of George Floyd. And I am far from qualified to comment on the nuances of the whole situation; but clearly there are all kinds of wrong things occurring now (as they have done for years and years; this is just the latest in a seemingly never-ending list of race-based injustices), which is as unsettling as ever. - It has been interesting to see how there is obviously a coordinated effort across Nasa/SpaceX to avoid mentioning anything about the