With my
working hours this week, powering through writing football related junk,
writing music and planning / booking events – it’s been a very busy week – most
of which has been spent staring at a computer (there is also a small
possibility that a couple of days did not see me progress any further in
getting up than putting on lounge pants). So because of that - I’m not going to
take you through what I’ve been up to – because the simple answer would be not
a lot (that would be worth writing about). Instead though – I thought I’d try
and tackle some of the questions that have been steadily building up since 10 resolutions began two months ago. In my answers – there will definitely be
spoilers for a couple of resolutions though….so pay attention……
What does a typical day off look like?
I’ll normally
wake up quite early (no alarm) and check the football news to see if there is
anything worth writing about. I’ll then probably catch up with a few programmes
in bed before putting on some lounge pants and heading downstairs to let Milo the destroyer into the garden. The next stage is the
“T” junction in my routine and normally decides the fate of the rest of the
day……Should I sit for 10 minutes and play on the Playstation (knowing full well
that it wont just be for 10 minutes)? Or should I go back upstairs to work on
some more articles and to write some music? I’ve now probably switched to being
about 75% towards the latter option – a complete reversal on what I was doing
before….
After a few
hours of catching up with emails, being constantly amazed at how much I enjoy writing
music, writing other various things, doing housework (don’t be shocked – I
learnt how to use the washing machine the other day!) and catching up with my
Bible plan (I like to read the Bible every day so I follow a Bible plan –
pretty self explanatory really….) – I might well revisit the Playstation /
sitting on the sofa option…but I need to make sure that I’ve done everything
that actually needs doing first because I find it really hard to switch to
anything else once I’ve switched to the Playstation option. I’ll probably then
start cooking for the wife for when she’s home from work (which explains the
obvious question of “where is Wifey in all this”? – and the answer is that we
rarely have full days off together). Obviously each day off is different and
one might well involve heading out and catching up with friends – but as this
blog is a day late – and as I had a day off yesterday - I’ll let you work out
how I spent my day off yesterday. In my defence though – the man flu that has
been brewing in my body for months has now started to take hold of me. And yes– man flu is real.
What is your favourite animated
programme?
Even from a
young age I loved cartoons. Thundercats, Ghostbusters, He-Man, MASK, Jace and
the wheeled warriors, TMHT (or TMNT living in the US
Archer is the
tale of a womanising American secret agent called Sterling Archer and the fictional
security agency that he works for called ISIS .
Think of a character that mixes the stupidity of Johnny English, the suaveness
and skill set of James Bond with a bit of American obnoxiousness and arrogance
thrown in for good measure. Archer constantly has me in fits of laughter – and
whilst it isn’t for everyone- it’s well worth checking out – even if it is just
for some of the completely ridiculous scenarios Archer finds himself in.
If something changed and you had to
become deaf, dumb or blind – which would you choose?
An odd
question (thanks Kate) - but one that has actually been quite challenging to
answer. I even had this answer nailed – until I asked Bex in the office today
the same question and she completely changed my opinion…..
Originally – my
answer was going to be that I’d prefur to be blind – but then Bex really threw
me a curveball by saying that she would really struggle not seeing the sun
coming up in the morning, not being able to see her nieces grow up and not
being able to see the beauty of the world. I completely agree. I don’t know how
I would cope being blind – but I can only imagine that it wouldn’t be very
well. (Bex then went on to completely dilute her beautiful answer by saying
that she would also struggle to paint her nails…….)
Bex also
really challenged me about the prospect of being dumb. She was brutally honest
about how she would struggle with not being able to communicate in the same way
that she had been used to. My reaction was a struck open wide mouth. I was
amazed by the thought and honesty that went into her answer and thanks to her
reasoning – I completely agree. Bex however went on to “jokingly” suggest that
she would miss shouting at her husband James – something which left me
pondering which option he would choose if given the option…..
Process of
elimination therefore led us both to the conclusion that we would prefur to be
deaf. We could learn to lip–read and understand sign language, we could still
communicate (although we’d need to adapt as to how), we could still enjoy
seeing the world and because we would have already experienced the sounds – we
would already have a soundtrack to go with everything we saw and experienced.
It’s
certainly not a question that I had thought about before – but it has
challenged me beyond belief. Whereas before I just had sympathy (probably
through a lack of understanding) for people that are deaf, dumb and blind – I’m
now hit with a new found respect for these people – a lot of whom live the most
out of every single moment. That in itself sets an example for all of us
(including me). We need to make the most of and be thankful for whatever we’ve got – not get hung up on what we don’t have.
If you could change into anyone for a
day – who would it be?
Ok – so to
move away from the typical “I’d be James Bond” answer I’ve amended the question
slightly (because obviously I would be James Bond). So the question now is “If you could change into anyone for a day
AND gain an understanding of their knowledge – who would it be?”
I’ve decided
that I’m allowed 3 answers here….so option 1:
Simon Cowell
No I don’t
want to have trousers up to my armpits, the smuggest face on the tellybox or
any understanding whatsoever of his social life. But being Simon Cowell for a
day would enable me to bring down (or at least cause serious damage) to X
Factor and 
Arsene Wenger
In the first chapter of 10 resolutions I promised that I wouldn’t rant about Arsenal.
Therefore I won’t. But I’m desperate to know what on Earth is currently going
on in Arsene Wenger’s head and if he really is as delusional as he comes
across. Or does he have a master plan?
Dennis Daugaard (or any
senior member of the NRA)
The name Dennis
Daugaard may not mean that much to many of you. But Dennis Daugaard is the South Dakota
I also
mention the NRA – because the National Rifle Association throughout all of
these shootings hasn’t taken enough of a stand against those who look to use
“their right to defend themselves” as a right to attack others. I can
understand the owning a gun part to protect your family - but having small arsenals
in their homes? What are they expecting? What do they expect to happen when
something switches in someone’s mental state and they are surrounded by
weaponry? The only way to stop gun crime in America is to kill it at the source
and to have much more control over people owning guns. Parts of America are
cottoning on to this – New York and Colorado for instance. But it took violent
act after violent act to get to the place where it was finally accepted that
change needed to happen. Some of the country has now accepted that this needs
to happen. But I’m now terrified about what it would take for the rest of the
country to follow suit. Change is coming – but far too slowly. Fair play to
Obama for getting a move on with it – but on a personal level – I struggle to
look at the US as a world leader because in a lot of ways they haven’t even got
their own house in order. Don’t get me wrong – Blighty is far from perfect –
but when you look at some of the issues that the US is encountering you quickly
realise that in truth – we don’t have it that bad at all.
*Political rant over*
What would you like to do in your next
job?
This is
actually really simple – I’d love to be paid to write (and not something that
someone has asked me to write about). I want to write about stuff that I’m
passionate about and I’m extremely lucky to have been given a number of
opportunities like this along the way already – so it seems like the natural
progression. I’d also love to do more with music and the Church as well as
writing a novel – so I guess what I’d be looking for is to be paid enough to
write so I could spend a day a week NOT playing Playstation but spending time on
the other things that I’m passionate about. Leaving my current company in the
first place though would be really hard because I adore the people that I work
with at the moment. I’m not that fussed about the actual job (don’t get me
wrong – it’s not bad - but in context it is the people that keep me alive in
the office on a day to day basis.)
So I guess as
a little side note – If you are reading this and I work with you – or have done
in the past - let me just say thanks for making me chuckle on a daily basis –
and for helping me not to wake up with a feeling of dread each morning. It’s an
honour and a pleasure. Thank you.
What was your most recent purchase?
In small
terms....a multipack of Weetabix. Now I’m very fond of Weetabix – but I don’t agree
with paying 83p for 2 in the office canteen – so today I went to the garage
across from the office and picked up 12 for the comparative bargain of £1.55.
In larger
terms – last week I bought a new pair of running / gym trainers which are a
rather swanky blue colour. I saw them in a shop priced at £80 and then went
home to find them on EBay Daily Deals for £30. I like to think of that as me
beating the shop...and before anyone else goes on at me about shopping on the
internet when shops are shutting on the high street....my response is very
simple. Are you going to pay me the difference?
What do you do to stay fit?
In complete
honesty - nowhere near enough (hence the new trainers). I walk a fair bit, drum
and play football occasionally – but unfortunately that’s about it. I’d love to
play more football and to play some badminton (maybe even handball after
watching it at the Olympics) but until recently I was lacking the motivation to
actually push on with making something happen. I’m not any more – I just need
to find some partners in crime to play with. (So if you are up for it – let me
know). And before anyone suggests the gym...I’d get really bored on my own.....
Tell me about a TV show that you are
watching at the moment
Because I’m kind, caring and sharing -
I’m going to tell you about 2 programmes that I love.
First up is the Last Leg. Originally
running alongside the Paralympics providing an alternative take on the day’s
events – the show returned for a special at New Year (cleverly titled “the Last
Leg of the Year”) before being commissioned for a full (live) series by Channel
4. The name of the show also has special meaning as two of the hosts (Adam
Hills and Alex Brooker) have Prosthetic legs and because of that the show
manages really well to break down some of the stigma attached to disabilities -
regularly fielding questions of “is it ok to ask” along the way. It’s genuinely
funny and different to other panel shows – especially as it actually has a fair
amount of integrity contained within (the episode after all of the stuff about
Oscar Pistorious came out highlights this really well).
Next up is a show about a lesser-known
comic book character from the DC (Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman etc) Universe –
Arrow.
Now the truth about Arrow is that I am
completely and utterly aware that it is absolute rubbish – but it doesn’t take
itself too seriously. And whilst the scripts are created from cheese encrusted
cardboard –the storyline is completely engaging and draws you in leaving you
desperate for the next episode (something that previous DC show Smallville failed
to do over its first few seasons). The acting from the leads isn’t great (or
perhaps “not exactly taxing” is a better way to phrase it) - but it has been
noticeably well cast because if needed – all of the cast are capable of acting
to deliver an emotional punch (spoiler alert – one is coming). Something else that
I find interesting about Arrow is that (for the time being at least) Arrow is
based in the human world. There are no superheroes. They haven’t been ruled
out.....but the only powers present at the moment are human powers - making it
much more filmable (something else that Smallville struggled with and one
reason why pilots for Wonder Woman and Aqua Man didn’t get pushed to series). The
character Arrow is also is a long way away from being a boy scout (and he has a
harrowing past) meaning that the story can shy away from real predictability. At
the moment Arrow has little competition in terms of similar shows. It’s been renewed for a second season with
weeks to spare – but expect the competition and storylines to rapidly heat up
should Joss Whedon’s fast tracked S.H.I.E.L.D pilot go (as expected) to series.
For a geek like me though – I’m excited....
Arrow is very much a guilty pleasure
show (that when lined up against Smallville looks strong). But I don’t mind –
because if girls are allowed their own guilty pleasure shows – why can’t I have
mine?
10 Resolutions will return as normal
next week – but in the mean time if you have any questions you want to ask
please email 10resolutionsblog@gmail.com or visit the 10 resolutions facebook page. Right – I’m off to make dinner for the wife and prepare for Arsenal going out
of Big Cup.
I'll leave you with this video. It completely ripped me apart - and then inspired me.
Until next week. God Bless
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