Remember a few weeks back, when I posted about setting goals and succeeding in running a virtual 5k? I’ve become a little bit obsessed about it now. Pretty much when I go to the gym (which I’m trying to do more regularly), that’s what I do, I run (jog, really) my 5k and then do ab crunches and lift a few weights and I’m out. I sweat a lot and feel better about myself. Continue reading “Running Virtually”
Tag: harry potter
Coffee and Rain, Postcards and Plays
March 12 &13, 2019
Tuesday was my last full day and I had only made one plan for the afternoon to meet a friend and Lin had tickets for me to see a show that night, so I figured this was a day on my own. I was up and out of the house before Lin knew I was gone.
I had arranged to meet my friend Ian near the South Kensington station so I headed that way. I found a place just outside the station called Muriel’s and treated myself to a “Little English” breakfast while I wrote out a few postcards and watched the rain fall outside. This is what my vacation was all about. I wasn’t rushing around to see stuff and take in all the sights and wonders of a new place, instead I was just relaxing, watching the world go by. It was wonderful. Continue reading “Coffee and Rain, Postcards and Plays”
Spirits and Giant Squids,Geeks and Shipwrecks
March 11, 2019
Monday morning started off too early for Lin. Naturally, the hazards of living with a small child and having to get up early on a daily basis means no matter what time I go to bed, I get up at what, for some people, is an unreasonable hour. But being the trooper (trouper?) she is, she was up before 9am and ran out to the local bakery to get some fresh bread then fixed us both some eggs (Gordon Ramsey recipe and it was skanu!) and toast for breakfast. Continue reading “Spirits and Giant Squids,Geeks and Shipwrecks”
Cursed Children, EasyBuses, and other adventures
March 10, 2019
A few weeks back, I was getting pretty ragged. I was exhausted, working on various projects, and hadn’t had a real break from anything in about 8 months. It also turned out that due to a scheduling thing at work, I could have a week off from work. It was at this point Rasa, my ever supportive wife, said, in essence, get the hell out! After debating for a bit, and looking at options, I booked a three-day getaway to London, where I could stay with my sister from another mister, Lin. Continue reading “Cursed Children, EasyBuses, and other adventures”
Review: A collection of short book reviews
Over the past few weeks I’ve read a number of books. Below are a few reviews to get caught up a little bit. If you want the full list of what I’ve been reading, feel free to “friend” me on Goodreads or comment down below. Always happy to have some good book discussions. Continue reading “Review: A collection of short book reviews”
Review: Heroes and Legends: The most influential characters of literature
Heroes and Legends: The most influential characters of literature by Thomas A. Shippey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
One of the things I like about The Great Courses series is the lectures are all 30 minutes or so, which makes them easily digestible. I have several of the courses (or others like them) in my library and they're great for picking up bits of knowledge between listening to full books. My latest scholarly endeavor then is Heroes and Legends: The Most Influential Characters of Literature as presented by Professor Thomas A. Shippey Continue reading “Review: Heroes and Legends: The most influential characters of literature”
London 2014: Day Two – Walking the walk, talking the talk…
Thursday started bright and early with breakfast at the hotel, which was kind of weird. Most hotels, if they offer breakfast, it’s usually a continental style, with pastries and coffee. Hostels often offer similar. This place had a kitchen so you could make what you wanted and offered up eggs, bread, cereal and some fruits. So we had scrambled eggs and toast before heading out for our day.
First stop, as planned, was the British Library. There was an exhibition on about British Comic Books until the 19th and since we didn’t know when we’d get another chance, today was our day for it (Monday and Tuesday were already blocked out due to the London Pass – to be explained later). Continue reading “London 2014: Day Two – Walking the walk, talking the talk…”
Monster Hunting – Day five in Scotland
Thursday was our second tour with Heart of Scotland Tours, this time we were going north to see Loch Ness. To say I was excited about this would bean understatement. When Scotland was first proposed as a vacation destination my first thought was “I want to see Loch Ness.” Now, I know this isn’t anything real, but I don’t care. Just the idea of going there and seeing it for myself was intriguing! Continue reading “Monster Hunting – Day five in Scotland”
Hop on – Day one in Scotland
Meeting Jennifer and getting to our hostel wasn’t much of an adventure. It was fairly easy to find the bus to take us into town and then a nice gentleman, who was walking our way anyway, showed us where our hostel was. Where we were staying, the Belford Hostel, is located in an old church (and more on that later). We dropped off our bags and headed back out (It was early, so we couldn’t even check in yet) to explore the city. Jennifer had been here before so she was a font of knowledge as we walked around. Continue reading “Hop on – Day one in Scotland”
Review: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
The filmmakers behind Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix have done something a little risky. Here, in the fifth installment of the wildly popular series, they’ve not only shied away from the light, airy world created by Christopher Columbus in the first film, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, but they’ve also ignored any type of pre-film summary. When the lights go down in the theatre, the film starts. Just like that. There’s no “previously, in Harry Potter…” synopsis of everything that’s gone before. And good on them, I say. By this point in the series, if you’re just joining in, there’s just too much back story to try and deal with. Go rent the other four if you need to catch up… we’ll wait. Continue reading “Review: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”
Getting the Hang of Thursdays 