Via 
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 Mostly cut & pasted from last year

1. What did you do in 2020 that you'd never done before?
Video called my parents. 2020 was the year everyone discovered Zoom and used it for any and (almost) every form of social interaction. TBH, we didn't do a lot of family Zoom calls, as it's complicated for Pa and really, phonecalls are just as easy. I did ( Read more... )

 The black belt gradings were supposed to be 12 September, then they were postponed to the middle of November. Lockdown v2 put paid to that and we were all expecting they would be put off until the new year. Then last Monday I got a call asking if I was free today.

The black belt gradings finally happened. The first degrees went in at 9am and came ( Read more... )

For the first time in I don't know how many years, I really CBA with the election.  It's not that I don't care deeply about the result, but I can't do anything about it and I can't cope with the weeks of wrangling and legal battles that are bound to happen.  There's no way the Idiot in Chief is going to let go without a HUGE fight and there will be ( Read more... )

Last night was my last in person training session for a while.  From Thursday, we're back on Zoom.  In the real world, on a Thursday I would normally do an hour assisting at the kids' class, an hour of the adults class and an hour of Levels practice while the Black belt class is on (where "an hour" is actually 50 minutes of activity.  On Zoom, I'll ( Read more... )

I don't think I'm likely to say anything that anyone else isn't thinking about the next version of Full English Lockdown.  There are some who are for it, there are some who are against it and there are plenty that think that "They" should have done something differently.

I guess I'm lucky in that I can WFH and pretty much have been for the last 3 ( Read more... )

I've just replaced my scales with a new electronic bluetooth device that can analyse all my body measurements and tell me exactly how old I feel!  The first thing of note is that it measures almost half a stone heavier than my old scales (although it was mid afternoon when they arrived and I set them up. Maybe first thing in the morning, I might be ( Read more... )

Yet another fab evening at the cinema seeing a classic movie from the 80s. I think I know why I'm enjoying them so much - the story is not overshadowed by the director's desire to cram as many FX and brain breaking fast cut fight scenes into every section of the film. And I still believe that shooting on film gives better results than digital. The ( Read more... )

For the first couple of months of lockdown I managed to eat relatively healthily and not consume my body weight in junk food. Then I got bored and started buying biscuits and Pringles and cider and put on half a stone. When I realised my waist had hit 40" and I was over 13 st, I decided I'd better do something about it.

Years ago, I used a calorie ( Read more... )

Still the best of the Nolan Batman movies.

When I arrived in the cinema this evening, there was a couple on the back row. Another chap came in after me, just as the film was starting (shorter advert & previews at the moment).  About 15 - 20 minutes later another couple came in and kept flashing phones around for a couple of minutes. Then another ( Read more... )