One of my favourite books as a kid was A kid from the city by E.M Watkins. I grew up in a concrete town and this book made me dream of a life in the countryside with nothing but rolling fields, farm animals, and plenty of fresh air.
When I was old enough I would ride my bike out of town to the nearest stretch of countryside and spend many an hour cycling down country lanes and up and down hills stopping for ice-cream or fudge at the country stores sitting by dry stone walls or winding streams.
At the end of the day I’d always have to return home, vowing that one day I would live in the countryside.
I finally achieved my dream and I now enjoy every minute of it. I still go cycling, exploring further afield taking in churches, ruins, and the odd manor house. I bought a copy of A kid from the city for my kids and read it to them but they didn’t seem to appreciate it like I did. I guess they already live in the countryside so maybe they’ll have different dreams of adventure.
A nostalgic mind
I have a nostalgic mind. When it wanders, it likes to explore the past. A style of house I’m passing may trigger memories from my student days: LAN parties and the computer games we played. Old cars will remind me of my first car, working on it with my dad. Something else may trigger memories of loved ones that are no longer with us.
The point I’m making is that my mind seems stuck on nostalgia and although it’s nice to recall memories on occasion, too much looking in the past is not healthy. You need to be looking forward to the future.
I’ve been trying to train my mind to think about the here and now or the future. It is hard though as I go for a lot of walks and practice mindfulness. My mind will wander without direction and inevitably will become nostalgic. Yet I endeavour to keep it on track looking forwards.
The subtle art of finishing
Unfinished jobs, projects, tasks on your to do lists, just sitting there like a virtual weight around your neck. Constantly reminding you that they are still there unfinished. That thing you started with zeal and enjoyment that petered out over time or was paused for some long forgotten reason.
We all have them. Unfinished furniture or classic vehicles in our garages, artwork or manuscripts in the study, or scale models and faulty electronics on the dining room table or windowsill awaiting attention.
We should all practice the subtle art of finishing. Either make time to finish the thing once and all or if we no longer want or need to, to take a leaf out of Marie Kondo’s book and just thank it for the experiences and memories and let it go. Discard it, gift it, donate it, turn it into spare parts, or even burn it.
The aim is to remove the unfinished from our life and move on with one less weight on our shoulders. Go give it a try. Finish it.
Reducing alcohol this summer
I’ve been trying to reduce the amount of alcohol I drink. With the warmer weather it’s getting harder as it’s nice to sit in your garden with a good book and a cold glass of your favourite tipple.
I tried the non-alcoholic versions of popular drinks. Most don’t taste anything like the original and contain too much sugar. You are effectively giving up one vice for another.
In theory we should all just drink water, ensuring that we consume the required three litres a day to remain healthy. But this is boring, taste wise.
My latest tactic is to have cold filtered water with ice with a little something such as a slice of lime or lemon, or even cucumber. It gives the water a little something making it slightly interesting while hydrating.
What are you drinking this summer?
Broken Sword
Occasionally while out walking or passing through high streets I catch brief snippets of conversation. Nothing interesting. Walking by a couple in their 60’s I hear the man say the words “Broken Sword”. I pause, trying to work out if I heard that right and what the context could possibly be.
They continue walking away from me clearly having a conversation about classic point and click graphic adventure games. Cool. Nostalgia triggered from an unlikely source.
As I continue on my walk I thought more on this and realised that we all age and the gamers of yesteryear are now well over 40, like yours truly. I’ve seen people in their 50s sporting Zelda T-shirts, others carrying Atari and SEGA bags. One lady had a Psygnosis T-shirt. Remember them?
So why should I be surprised to hear someone talking about Broken Sword? Anyone can be a gamer in this day and age.
Thinking about Agentic AI
I’ve been thinking about Agentic AI.
Essentially it’s similar to other AI but with a focused knowledge area, capable of making its own decisions based on the knowledge it has and the ability to learn and reason without human intervention. It gathers data, processes it, makes decisions based on that data and its assumptions, then learns from feedback. Try try and try again and mae changes based on your failures.
It is generally tasked towards a specific function such as event planning, task scheduling, predicting something, etc.
It’s used in self-driving cars, supply chain management, cybersecurity, healthcare, financial services, and anything that can be automated.
Concerns range from data handling, privacy, to replacing humans.
Don’t forget the milk
Many moons ago I did a stint at a computer shop building personal computers to customer specifications. Not to show my age but one of the jobs I had to do was to configure the jumpers so that the seven-segment display worked correctly when the turbo button was employed.
Anyway, during this particular period of employment one of the boring jobs that I was tasked with was to take all the cardboard and packaging out to the trash bins down the alley. This alley was shared with one another building, one that was a burned-out shell of a house. It was long abandoned and each day that I had to take the trash out, passing this building, I would wonder what was inside. This was long before urban exploring was a thing or excuse for trespassing.
One day I decided to venture inside. Everything was charred and the upstairs was pretty much gone. But the staircase was intact. On one of the staircase spindles was a note, taped. In neat penmanship was written “Don’t forget the milk”. The building has been uninhabitable for many years and I don’t know what became of its occupants but I often think back to the time I found that note wondering if whomever the note was addressed to remembered the milk.
The dreams you had
Reflection, nostalgia, looking back.
I recall a memory from long ago. I was travelling around New Zealand and I had made some friends, some fellow travellers. We were in a big town somewhere, a park, laying down on the grass staring up at the sky looking at the clouds. We discussed our travels, where we had been and where we were going. We discussed our futures our dreams.
Looking back you remember the dreams you had and compare them to the life you lead. Each decision takes you in a different direction. No matter how small the decision. Your life is what you make it to be.
Regrets are pointless. You can’t change the decisions you’ve already made and how you have lead your life so far. If your dreams didn’t come true then that’s ok. Make new ones. Each new day that you wake up to is full of endless possibilities. When you get older each day where you wake up is a good day. Enjoy it. Make new dreams.
Two people on a date
I’ve been out walking and found a bar that looks inviting. I order a coffee and sit by a window and unpack my gadgets with the intention of getting stuck into some writing. I take a sip of my overpriced beverage knowing what I actually paid for is a place to work for the next thirty or so minutes. The coffee being the price of admission.
I gaze at the other patrons. On the nearest table is a couple clearly out on a date. I’m not sure if it’s going well though as they are both holding their phones in front of them smiling at whatever it is they are reading or typing.
Their food arrives and they eat in silence then resume their phone use. Maybe they are not on a date but are married, or long term partners? Either way I’m bemused by the lack of conversation. They could be saving money by eating at home or in a fast food restaurant. This place isn’t exactly cheap. Yet they are willing to pay to go out somewhere expensive only to sit opposite each other staring into their mobile phones.
I continue with my writing and when I next look up their table is empty. The two possible lovers having moved on. Maybe their phone batteries died and they are now holding hands enjoying the moment as they wander the streets. Or maybe they’ve gone to find their chargers.
Clive the barman
I have this memory from my first holiday abroad. An island off the coast of Spain. On the beach was a tiki bar. A round bar with stools on the outside and Clive the barman on the inside making whatever drink you wanted.
I often think back to that bar thinking if I could just retire to a tropical island I’ll spend all my time at the tiki bar staring out at the cool blue water, over the perfect white sands, feeling the cool breeze while watching customer after customer ordering drinks with all colours of the rainbow, mini umbrellas and fruit being served by Clive the barman.