If you asked someone “Define a life well lived”, how would they respond?

Possible responses may include:

• Having as much fun as possible
• Plenty of good memories
• Comfortable material situation
• Well travelled
• Well read
• Leaving a legacy for family, for all humanity

Taking each in turn.

Having as much fun as possible

Fun is when you feel happy in a sustained way. Fun is about activity. Activity that produces feelings of happiness. Feelings come from inside and can be triggered by external events (or the interpretation of external events). External events don’t appear the same to everyone, e.g. not everyone likes the colour red, some people prefer reading as opposed to clubbing. So fun is based on your personal interpretation being positive. The reaction to your own responses to events. I don’t like the word, but it makes me think of mindfulness, or being aware of one’s thoughts and the kind of responses they trigger. So fun equates to responses to events and having the ability to interpret events in a way that makes you feel happy. The more events you interpret like this the more happy you become. I agree that a life lived in this reflective manner and putting a positive spin on things in a sustained way would contribute to a life well lived. Although my own tendency is to try to see things as they are, in reality we see things as we are. Nevertheless, the world is unpredictable and you don’t want to be putting some events in a ‘positive’ box and some in a ‘negative’ box so its more a case of being able to deal with everything life brings with a sense of peace.

Update Summer 2017

Upgraded the bike with a Brand X Dropper post.

Update October 2016

After riding weekly with local club Wakerley Wheelers, the bike worked great. Upgrades I’ve made have included: a rear mech with a clutch system and a chain device. The chain had a tendency to fall off so these are the modifications I’ve made to fix it.

I like to build bikes. However, after finishing one bike, I always have a few parts left over. Then I think, with these parts, I can make a hack bike for fun, which then turns into another bike project.

• Get up early in the morning to write. 6 am and earlier. I tried writing late at night and got into a counter-productive routine of falling asleep at 10.30 pm, waking up at 2 am and working for a couple of hours. That could be your ideal routine but I’ve found the morning to be best for me.

Give yourself the chance to write the ‘rubbish first draft’.

• I was listening to a podcast by Merlin from 43folders.com talking about productivity and being afraid of not having the ability to succeed he spoke of an author who always gives herself this chance, and then from that she might craft it down and only use a tiny fraction of the original draft, but in order to get it all out she doesn’t restrict herself. No matter what you will write, you’ll have to go back and do plenty of crafting and editing.

Keep a tidy workplace with good lighting and no distractions.

The Initial Set Up

In 2006 I began preparing for a journey to cycle round the world. Cue loads of preparation and research. It was going to be a huge adventure. Video cameras were widely available and it seemed like a no brainer to take one along to record the adventure as it unfolded.

In an attempt to get sponsorship and free kit, a ticket to an outdoors event was blagged and whilst there a chance meeting lead to a couple of young filmmakers who would attempt to make some kind of film from the output. Ben and James had a company called ‘String Films’ and were making corporate films with a couple of passion projects on the side.

Frank Lloyd Wright

Early in life I had to choose between honest arrogance and hypocritical humility. I chose the former and have seen no reason to change.

Frank Lloyd Wright

I believe in God, only I spell it Nature.

Frank Lloyd Wright

Art for art’s sake is a philosophy of the well-fed.

Rene Char

A poet must leave traces of his passage, not proof.

Ralph Waldo Emerson

All life is an experiment. The more experiments you make the better.

The nature of travel is more than simple movement. Unlike the ritual processes of movement that we undergo in our daily lives, the notion of travel encapsulates a rupture and a disruption from the routines of transition within the confines of a fixed, predictable world.

Lasting satisfaction

The familiar trappings of the world that surround us can be defined by its appearance – seemingly stable and unchanging, they belie greater uncertainties beneath the surface. The private flat, the office, business and bar, the familiarity of the coffee shop chain, supermarkets, pre-packaged holidays and experiences. All of them deliver an image of comfort, profitability and stability that meet our desires for a brief period, but offers no true and lasting satisfaction.

More Dirt

This website is basically a directory of mountain bike trails in the UK which can be searched for via a map. It also brings up a list of nearby accommodation. There are reviews, some information, a social network of riders, photos, maps, videos and some bike related additional resources such as classified ads. A good site for finding local trails and venturing further afield.

The Forestry Commission Website

I’ve named a few of my creative outputs. Some of the names I’ve come up with have stuck around and some haven’t. I’m quite good at reeling off a load of name ideas. However, I’ve found that the names that involve a bit more thought are the strongest.

What is in a name?

A memorable name will get associated with a need when people will have it. It signifies an object or action without having to explain it. It is half way between a word and an image.

• You’ll need a license. Members of British Canoeing and Canoe Wales who get Canal and River trust membership included. BCU membership includes a licence to paddle on 5000km of Britain’s navigations and canals and also third party liability insurance of up to £10 million.-

• Talk to your local BCU ‘Access Officer’ about where you can canoe locally. Many rivers and waterways in the UK are private and the BCU works to negotiate access agreements.-

I recently decided to pass the CBT (Compulsory Bike Training). This is the test that everyone needs to take to progress to riding larger bikes. After you’ve completed your CBT, you can ride a moped or a motorbike up to 125cc on the road with L plates (L or D plates in Wales) until you pass your full motorcycle test.

The day involved some theory, introduction to the bike, bike checks, riding round a car park learning basic manoeuvring, signalling, gear changes, emergency stop and then 2 hours out on the road.