Month: December 2024

Weeknotes #101: it’s Christmas

Relaxing Christmas week filled with family, friends, and festive fun.

Week commencing Monday, 23 December 2024

This image captures the festive atmosphere in Edinburgh on Christmas Eve. The scene features the Scott Monument illuminated against the evening sky, with its Gothic architecture beautifully lit. In the foreground, a vibrant fairground attraction, Star Flyer, stands out with colourful lights and intricate design, adding energy to the scene. A Ferris wheel is visible on the left, glowing against the soft hues of a wintry sunset.
Star Flyer at Edinburgh Winterfest

Quantified Self

  • This week: Stand 7/7; Exercise 3/7 and Move 6/7. (76%). Total steps: 57,603

Life

  • Christmas break all week. Monday, flying to Edinburgh via London City Airport. It was remarkably quick to get to LCY.
  • Driven through Edinburgh to my brother’s house. The city looked lovely after dark.
  • Three relaxing days with family. The Christmas dinner was fantastic. There was a lot of food.
  • On Christmas Eve I wouldn’t go on the Star Flyer with my niece. Spinning 85m above the city does not appeal. She loved it.
  • A couple of good walks along the waterfront at Portobello didn’t keep my monitored exercise streak going. I don’t mind; it’s the holidays.
  • Low cloud over the south of England meant over an hour sat on the runway in Edinburgh waiting for a slot to get home. The staff were lovely.
  • At Heathrow, we bumped into friends who were returning from Madrid. Catching up on the tube ride home made up for the lack of speedier trains.
  • Saturday night Mexican in Wimbledon with more friends was a lovely way to spend the Twixtmas.
  • A walk to Cannizaro Park on Sunday ended the week well.

Media

Weeknotes #100: Christmas is coming

A festive week full of celebrations

Week commencing Monday, 16 December 2024

This is an image of Battersea Power Station in London at night, featuring a vibrant projection of Wallace and Gromit, iconic characters from the beloved British animated series. The projection is cast onto the station's façade, with the tall chimneys visible above, illuminated in soft light.
Wallace and Gromit on a chimney

Quantified Self

  • This week: Stand 7/7; Exercise 7/7 and Move 7/7. (100%). Morning walks: 0/5. Office days 0/5. Total steps: 68,697

Life

  • It seems appropriate that the 100th weeknote is the week before Christmas. I can’t believe I’ve completed 100 of these, although this run only began with weeknote 22 back in June 2023.
  • Related, it’s the first year I have written something here every month of the year since 2005. That feels like something to celebrate.
  • I saw the Wallace and Gromit projection on Battersea Power Station and thought it was great. The £9 mulled wine wasn’t worth it.
  • Gave blood. Interesting chatting to the staff; they will be making up the Christmas holidays with extra Sundays because two days less blood in the system isn’t great. Give blood. Don’t miss your appointment.
  • Walked to ‘the big Tesco’. It’s full of different Christmassy things.
  • I made a shepherd’s pie using parsnips as the mash. It was delicious.
  • Friends’ Christmas dinner in Wimbledon Village was saved when E persuaded the staff to move us out of the middle of somebody else’s Christmas party. The food was excellent.
  • Christmas shopping in Kingston. It was busy (good for the shops) but not manic (so, good for me).

Media

Weeknotes #99: entertainment every night

Enjoyable week of festive activities, concerts, and media moments.

Week commencing Monday, 9 December 2024

This image depicts a lively musical performance on a stage with dramatic lighting effects. The background features a large banner with bold red text that says, "WELCOME TO HEATONGRAD." Yellow and green beams of light pierce through haze or stage smoke, creating a dynamic atmosphere. On stage, multiple musicians are performing.
Heatongrad

Quantified Self

  • This week: Stand 7/7; Exercise 7/7 and Move 7/7. (100%). Morning walks: 0/3 (days in the office don’t count). Office days 2/5. Total steps: 69,501

Life

  • Some of the Christmas lights went up. The tree was out of the box, undecorated by week’s end.
  • Monday evening, to the cinema for Wicked. Concluding in three hours, you’re only at the interval (if you were at the stage show). It is, visually, very impressive and seems like a faithful adaptation of the musical. The chemistry between Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande sparkles. Special shoutout to Jonathan Bailey who makes Fiyero stand out.
  • Tuesday, Paul Heaton in concert. £35 tickets; a bargain. I kept my coat on in honour of the performance. 25 songs. The new ones, like Fish ‘N’ Chip Supper, are just as good as the classics, Rotterdam (Or Anywhere). Rianne Downey, a new voice that works perfectly. Perfection.
  • A pension meeting. I don’t know what else can be said. Necessary admin.
  • Wednesday, The Truth About Harry Beck, a drama about the creation of the London Underground map, (oops, diagram). Staged in the London Transport Museum, it’s the story of Beck’s life from draftsman to designer, with his wife Nora as his biggest supporter. It’s nicely done, playing off the audience a little, with a clever scene trying to visualise the map on stage. But, yes, a play about the tube map.
  • Christmas party two. I stayed longer than I should have done but it was good fun. Tried to find a bus home that wasn’t due for 30 minutes and ended up missing a tube by a minute and having to wait ten.
  • The Lightning Seeds at O2 Forum Kentish Town needed a walk from Camden. Twenty songs: a great set. The encore The Life of Riley was partly played by Riley (now a guitar-playing adult).
  • We played oven-glove pass-the-parcel at the annual Stokey Christmas. As much laughter as the first time I played it. Nice to see everybody again.
  • Delicious dinner in New Malden with friends. Perfect way to end the hectic week.

Media

Weeknotes #98: party time

Reflections on Advent, train delays, and engaging media choices.

Week commencing Monday, 2 December 2024

People at a bar enjoying a Christmas party.
Christmas Party

Quantified Self

  • This week: Stand 7/7; Exercise 7/7 and Move 7/7. (100%). Morning walks: 0/4 (days in the office don’t count). Office days 1/5. Total steps: 63,405

Life

  • How is it already Advent? Our advent calendar is coffee-based (thanks J&M!).
  • I learned that the Holderness coast of East Yorkshire is the fastest-eroding coastline in Europe at 2m a year. Scary.
  • Delay repay update 2: TfW agreed and were ”sorry that you experienced a delay to your journey”. My faith in the process is restored.
  • More train delays on the day the government announced that South Western Railway would be the first train service to return to public ownership. But what will that do? It’s so frustrating. See below.
  • Unexpected discovery of the week: my driving licence has expired. Renewal was easy, but not as easy as not noticing. The new one is issued without the EU flag on it. It saddened me.
  • Christmas party 1: I don’t enjoy attending parties where I’m unsure how many people I know, as I’m not good at making small talk with strangers. I was very restrained, still really enjoyed it, and was grateful the next day.
  • Related, I didn’t make my own cocktail but got one of the staff to make me an espresso martini. My drink did not look as lurid as some of them.
  • Last week I listened to a lot of discussions about energy use. This week I read that the UK has likely reached “peak petrol”.

Delay (should repay)

  • I’ve mentioned a lot of train delays recently; here’s this week’s adventures. I write this so that in a year I can look to see if taking trains back into government control has made any difference.
  • Tuesday: Cancelled trains into Waterloo, OK homewards.
  • Wednesday: Cancelled trains into Waterloo. The next train arrived with packed 4 carriages. I abandoned.
  • Thursday: Morning, another packed train short-formed. Delayed homeward (train skipped all stations before Raynes Park).
  • Friday: More cancelled Waterloo-bound trains. I noticed with sufficient time not to miss my on-time Portsmouth connection.

Media

Weeknotes #97: Christmas and my leg

A lively week with food, fun, and festive adventures!

Week commencing Monday, 25 November 2024

A gigantic illuminated Christmas Bauble in the grounds of Waddesdon Manor as part of the light show
A nighttime photograph of trees in the Waddesdon Grounds illuminated by red, blue and green lighting
Outside Waddesdon Manor, the house is bathed in projection telling the Sleeping Beauty story
The snooker table at Waddesdon Manor, decorated to tell part of the sleeping Beauty Story

Quantified Self

  • This week: Stand 7/7; Exercise 6/7 and Move 7/7. (95%). Morning walks: 0/4 (days in the office don’t count). Office days 1/5. Total steps: 63,828

Life

  • Observant readers will note this is the first week in a while where my exercise streak has been broken. It’s frustrating, but there’s a reason.
  • Related, at the start of the week I renewed my gym membership, even though I have hardly visited this year because of my shoulder. I vowed to do better next year.
  • Relatedly related, I injured my leg on Wednesday (ironically on the way home from my Tai Chi class). Somehow my leg disappeared from under me on some stairs (did I slip, miss a step?), and I was suspended above ground by holding onto the railing. I have been unable to walk without pain for the rest of the week.
  • Before I fell, I’d been stuck on a train that didn’t move for about an hour due to delays. Waterloo was in chaos. People were angry. I always feel sorry for the platform staff on nights like this.
  • There are Christmas songs on the radio.
  • Delay repay update: Transport for Wales did receive my delay repay request forwarded from Avanti, but won’t process it until they know how to pay me. Even though they may conclude not to pay me.
  • I hobbled around the office on Thursday before heading to Carnaby Street for Thirsty Thursday drinks. I was early, so enjoyed my first Five Guys burger.
  • Related, the Carnaby Street lights are a bit disappointing when compared to last year’s colourful extravaganza. Apparently, they are energy-efficient and will be reused for years.
  • Friday, dinner at the new branch of Scott’s in Richmond was delicious. Their festive lunch menu is served until 5:30 pm, and the fillet of pollock with cauliflower and woodland mushrooms is lovely.
  • Related, the fried Brussels sprouts with kimchi dressing are even better.
  • Relatedly related, the off-festive-menu oysters were better again.
  • I was taken to a comedy show at Richmond Theatre. I’d never seen, or heard of, Henry Rowley before. Described by Sky News as “The British ‘posh boy’ who became one of the year’s breakout TikTok stars”. I really enjoyed it.
  • Related, didn’t feel old. So, that was a win.
  • In spite of my inability to walk well, Christmas at Waddesdon is fantastic. The interior has been decorated for Christmas, inspired by the Sleeping Beauty story. There are more Christmas trees than I have ever seen in a single house. An outdoor light trail, projection, and Christmas market are great.
  • First mulled wine of the year has been ticked off.

Media

  • Listened and watched quite a bit about green energy, starting with Zero Bills homes: Getting rid of energy bills for good, a podcast by Octopus Energy. The basic idea is that modern, well-insulated houses, with the right set-up, can offset their entire electricity bill by providing power to the grid at times of peak demand.
  • Which led me to an episode of the Everything Electric Show about a B&B that runs with very low running costs thanks to a low-energy set-up: Low Energy Bills! This B&B Makes It Possible!
  • Related, Just Have a Think: Global Energy Market Disruption. This man has THE PLAN!! discusses Octopus Energy’s CEO Greg Jackson and how the company plans to revolutionise the UK energy sector.
  • On a train, I finished listening to Toto Wolff (Team Principal & CEO of the Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 Team) on High Performance – a fascinating insight into how to be better.
  • My new favourite podcast is Dish! I am working my way through the back catalogue. This week Sara Cox was cooked mackerel with a watermelon rojack, but you know she’d have been just as happy with chips and gravy.