Tales from a down-shifted family
- Making the most of modest means
The figures are in, the numbers have been crunched and… trumpets and fanfares… ta-da! 2025 was our best year of solar energy yield yet. It was a close-run thing, and I genuinely didn’t think we’d beat the 2022 record. However, a few good solar days between Christmas and the New Year tipped the balance. Our...
My upset stomach and headache really made themselves known today. Full-blown diarrhoea, a pounding head, nausea, and the beginnings of flu-like aches and pains all over — great. Just what I needed on the day we were heading off for an overnight, off-grid camp on a remote island with no facilities as part of an...
Today started with breakfast at the Nacpan Beach Resort, just north of El Nido. Or rather, it did for Anna — I wasn’t feeling great, so I managed only half a piece of toast. We did at least take a look at the early morning beach from the restaurant before getting ready for another day...
After a long drive to Port Barton the previous day, we were glad of a decent night’s sleep in a comfortable room at Holiday Suites and were looking forward to spending some time in the water. We’d also be staying for a second night, which meant we could unpack a little and not immediately be...
Happy New Year everyone — let’s hope 2026 is a good one. Anna and I were still a little jet-lagged from our journey home from the Philippines, and our digestive systems hadn’t quite recovered either. However, before going on holiday we’d booked a table at Libanus 1877 in Borth for a New Year’s Eve meal,...
Day two of our island-hopping trip in the Philippines ended up feeling more like another travel day than a proper day of adventure. After breakfast at the Henry Hotel, we piled into minibuses with our luggage and headed once more into Intramuros — literally meaning “within the walls.” This was the same area of the...
Borth to Dubai Often, the journey to a destination is as much of an adventure as the destination itself. Even short trips to places such as the Isle of Man sometimes warrant a full blog post. When the destination is halfway across the world, crossing several time zones and taking a couple of days to...
I’ve been heading out on MTB night rides again lately. It’s something I used to do religiously every week, but it fell by the wayside while I was triathlon training and then dropped off the radar completely after my heart attack. Recently, though, I’ve decided it’s a good way to ease myself back into some...
Yes, I’m getting older, and I’ve been wearing glasses for a while now. I need varifocal lenses as I can’t be bothered to carry more than one pair around or keep swapping between them. My distance vision isn’t too bad but does need a little help, while my near vision needs quite a boost these...
Our robot lawn mowers might be in winter hibernation mode, but the off-season is the perfect time for… upgrades. On a recent trip to Bristol, my Dad deployed his 3D printer (aka the family’s unofficial R&D department) to produce a pair of traction rings for the wheels on our Mammotion Yuka Mini. Now, the stock...
Fitness / Technology / Triathlon
Fixing the Altimeter on my Garmin Forerunner 910XT
Monday, March 17th, 2014
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Surf Ski, Kayaking and Canoeing
Bringing Two Surf Skis Back from the Dead (Maybe)
Tuesday, June 16th, 2026
