Friend's mum: "Chat, chat, chat … do they live near your mum?" Me: "Mum passed away in early 2016 …" Friend's mum looks both appalled and embarrassed, and reaches for my hand. The Boy Child: "It's okay, we're not as sad as we used to be."
After visiting Carlyle's House, we had lunch at the Royal Hospital and then popped into the National Army Museum. We focused our attention on the temporary exhibition Special Forces: In the Shadows, which presents ideas of security and secrecy through the lens of the UK's Special Forces. It's a fascinating exhibition and one that makes me … Continue reading National Army Museum
February 2018 marked my Blogoversary – ten years of blogging. I recognise that I wasn’t very good in early days, but it still might be fun to look back over the years … In 2016: I wrote about it being six months. In 2013: I wrote about right now. In 2010: I posted a recipe. … Continue reading On This Day
The Jersey War Tunnels were built by slave labour during the German occupation of the Channel Islands in the Second World War. Originally built as fortifications for Hitler's plan to turn the Islands into an 'impregnable fortress', orders came in 1943 to turn the tunnels into an underground hospital (at this point in the war, … Continue reading Jersey | The Jersey War Tunnels
February 2018 marked my Blogoversary – ten years of blogging. I recognise that I wasn’t very good in early days, but it still might be fun to look back over the years … In 2014: The Boy Child had something to say. In 2012: I had 10 Things to say about surviving a solo city … Continue reading On This Day
I was late reading any novels this month. The first 10 days or so of April were spent reading a guide book to Washington, DC and a map. One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins: I saw this reviewed in a post called Top 12 Beach Reads, and I loved it. Imagine you married the love … Continue reading For the Love of Books | Currently Reading April 2018
I've always thought that Lord Trenchard had a warped sense of humour when he founded the Royal Air Force on 1st April, 1918. The centenary has been on my radar for a while, obviously, and throughout March I attempted to gather up any photos of me in my uniform. Of course, because I served in … Continue reading The RAF at 100
This week, 26 March- 2 April, is Autism Awareness Week. Did you know that there are 700,000 people in the UK with autism and 2.8 million with a family member on the spectrum? With that many families, you'd think it would be impossible to feel isolated and lonely, yet that is exactly how living with … Continue reading Autism Awareness Week
I had a rough plan for my time in New York City and it consisted of all the things I’d wanted to see on previous visits, but hadn’t got around to. Only a few things on the list were what might you call a classic New York attraction.Grand Central Terminal in Midtown is surely one … Continue reading New York City | Grand Central Terminal
The two year anniversaries for both Mum and Grandad Paddy have passed in the last few weeks, so it's not surprising that I've been reading about death this month. Not in a morbid kind of way, but in a realistic and occasionally humorous kind of way. With the End in Mind | Dying, Death and … Continue reading For the Love of Books | Reading about Death
