The Big City

Saw a fantastic production of "All's Well That Ends Well" last night at the National Theatre. I woke up this morning contemplating my time so far in London and I'm starting to come to the realisation that I really am a Big City boy at heart. Liverpool, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Glasgow and now the biggest of all: London. This is not particularly good news at all.

I love my time at home in Bristol but Bristol seems such a 'sleepy' town compared to the rest. I've always had this thought at the back of my mind but I feel like I've been in denial because I'd finally chosen to live and settle in a place and put down some roots with the purchase of my first house. I've also got some good friends in that part of the country and one in particular. I know how valuable it is to have good friends and how easy it is to lose touch with people when moving around. Now I feel unsettled again and I don't know what to do.

If I followed my heart, I'd move myself and anyone who wanted to join me back to Scotland as that is the place I most felt at home in. I feel a draw to Scotland that I can't explain. My head tells me that the South of England is the place I should be for the rest of my working life. I have a mortgage that won't be paid off until I'm 60 years old with my current repayment plan.

That could mean another 15 years in Big Cities, and as I have said, I am a Big City kind of person just like my Dad. He always wanted to move back into the centre of Liverpool but hasn't done so, so far.

Great comedy site

Just been introduced to this new comedy site featuring this clip amongst many others.

Obama Sexyback - watch more funny videos

Pictures of dying marine bring war home to America

I read this article this morning in the Guardian about a photograph of a young soldier fatally wounded in Afghanistan. It made me think about the role that Photographers have in reporting military conflicts and how important it is for the rest of us to see these images. At the same time it must be incredibly difficult for the family of this poor man. I can't imagine what they are going through.

The photographs of the late Philip Jones Griffiths (one of my heros), that great Welsh Photographer who reported on Vietnam, were credited by many experts as having a major influence on the American people and the movement to end the war. This illustrates how important it is for these images to be shown however difficult it is for the poor people directly impacted by these photographs.

The South West Coast Path

The South West Coast Path starts in Minehead in Somerset. It follows over 600 wonderful miles of the English coast line across 4 counties: Somerset, Devon, Cornwall and Dorset. You can walk the whole way if you have the time. Some people chunk it up and spend years of their holiday life 'bagging' parts of the path.

At the beginning of the path in Minehead, there's a fabulous sculpture designed by Sarah Ward depicting a pair of hands holding a map.

12 happiness-enhancing activities

These 12 activities were published in the Guardian this weekend. I thought I would jot these down for us all to remember and work towards together.
1. Express gratitude.
2. Cultivate optimism: visualise a future in which everything has turned out the way you want it, then write it down.
3. Avoid obsessing over things or paying too much attention to what others are doing.
4. Practise acts of kindness - more than you're used to.
5. Make time for friends; be supportive and loyal.
6. Develop coping strategies: write down your feelings when you're feeling upset and try to see that traumatic events often make us stronger.
7. Learn to forgive.
8. Immerse yourself in activities and be open to new ones.
9. Savour life's joys - linger over a pastry rather than mindlessly consuming it.
10. Work towards meaningful goals.
11. Practise religion and spirituality.
12. Exercise.

All words courtesy of Sonja Lyubomirsky (Professor of Pyschology, University of California)

Walk on the Wild Side by the BBC

This is so bleeding funny, it had me crying with laughter. Can't wait till I next speak to my Brother. Me and my Dad have a plan to bombard him with this when we speak to him on return from his holiday. Alan! Al! Al! Alan!

Not the Balloon festival

There's been quite a lot of festivals in Bristol over the summer as usual. This photograph was taken at the Harbour festival which happened the weekend before the internationally acclaimed Balloon festival. Although you could be mistaken for thinking otherwise.