Chapters

I have had an urge to write my manifesto.  Let me explain: I am 59 next birthday, retired from normal employment after a chequered career, but left with a feeling I have a little more to offer the world.  I think I am good at gathering diverse thoughts and ideas and making sense of them,… Read more: My Manifesto

There has been a series of events which have suddenly produced a dramatic change in our lives. April 16th we went to our favourite campsite in Silverdale.  I expressed my anxiety at driving Oakley, and how this made it difficult to enjoy setting off.  The driving was always hard work and I was always worried… Read more: Cataclysmic events

Its February 2022 and I watched a Dragon’s den episode where someone was pitching an idea called Biscuit Tin.  It was a website which securely contained information about people lives and death wishes and even financial arrangements and other bits and pieces. It seemed a good idea, so there is a new Category called Biscuit… Read more: My Life

Back a while ago, I started writing my own manifesto. I didn’t get far!  Got stuck with God.  May come back to it in the future. I was getting fed up with hearing bad news politically and rather than continue to get upset and with nowhere for my anger to go, I decided I’d better do… Read more: Councillor Lupson

The decline in my kidney function has been tracked by blood tests since I was diagnosed in 2003.  At that time I had 75% of my kidneys left.  This was below normal for a man of my age.  Over the period between then and 2012 there was more or less a straight line decline towards… Read more: Kidney function

Its happened.  The long awaited drop below 15% has arrived this month when I find my kidney function is 14%. For a long time the magic number was 20% and I broke that barrier quite some time ago.  In fact at the time I smashed the 20% mark dialysis was expected within a year.  Since then… Read more: Kidneys in January 2019

We moved to Sheffield (44 Montrose Rd, Eccleshall.  Phone 53098). My sister was new and my mum was quite ill afterwards.  I was sent to stay at my Grandparents (mum’s parents) in Thorne near Doncaster for long periods. My relationship with my grandpa was very important to me.  He let me “help” with jobs he… Read more: Sheffield

We moved to Lincoln in November 1963. I was 8.  We bought a fab house in its own gardens with apple trees, a garage and a shed.  (37, Nettleham Road Phone 22836.) I went to Westgate Junior School which was all boys.  I was put in the alphabetical seat next to Charly Lucas.  Charly was… Read more: Lincoln

Secondary School was Lincoln Boys Grammar School. I, along with 6 others wore shorts for the first year, before I got long trousers!! I was still in the same class as Charly and we also had another friend Richard Thornhill. I enjoyed school and always did my home work in an organised manner and was… Read more: Lincoln School

I started University on October 3rd 1972. My accommodation was in halls on site in West 1 room 13. I struggled. The room was one of 14 on a floor with a shared kitchen and mostly final years. I was so out of depth. I spent a lot of time on level 3 where I… Read more: Uni

I started my job with Rockware Glass in September 1976 with a couple of weeks management training and then projects at their various factories and the finally a proper job, but in St Helens. Not exactly where I’d planned to end up – a grotty northern town, but hey ho! I found a horrid little… Read more: St Helens

The shop was an important part of my life with Sue. As a dietician she was always keen for us to eat healthily and in sourcing foods came across a healthfood shop in Southport. How the conversation arose I don’t know but it turned out that they were planning to go big by franchising their… Read more: Millwheel

I lived in Lancaster from 1984 to 2003. It was the longest I had lived anywhere. As a family we lived in 2 houses, then I got a place of my own. 37 Watery Lane was a stopgap house till we found a nice Victorian terrace which were all over Lancaster. We tried to move… Read more: Lancaster

Sue was my first love. She was the first person I had sex with and I was her first too. I never felt she loved me like I loved her. She was more ambitious than me and had more drive. She wanted nice things and regularly caused financial tension by spending money we didn’t have.… Read more: Sue

Before the end with Sue, there was Julia. my relationship with her lasted 2 years, much of which was conducted over the phone, with her living in Brighton. I felt a moving on, and after the summer camps, I wanted something before Autumn came and at the last minute booked on a weekend in Roeburndale… Read more: Relationships

Just some notes. I don’t want anything religious.  I don’t believe there is a God or god.  There is a divinity in all of us which arrives when we practice sitting quietly and let love in.  Not something I’ve done much of but I have experienced those moments. Music is easy, although difficult too. You… Read more: My Funeral

Time for an update. Things have happened. My last kidney function test was 11%. I’m hoping for a bit of recovery, because I had just recovered from 3 week feeling ill with Covid (probably – no-one tests these days). But I need to roll back a bit. Since 2019 my slightly sloping plateau had continued… Read more: Kidneys Dec 2024

Since 2007 holidays have been determined by the owneship of “motorhomes” for want of better words! In 2007 we bought, unseen off e-Bay, a 1981 Mercedes chassis Oakley wooden horsebox to convert into a mobile home. You can see all this here. Following this, we bought this. Here you can see all travels thoroughly documented.… Read more: Holidays and Travels

I make pots Im getting quite good after 40 years. I think my interest started in Lincoln when I was a boy. My Dad joined the historical society and they were planning to recreate Roman pots. He ended up building his own kick wheel and kiln. He may have gone to night school or may… Read more: Pottery

Expect Nothing My good friend Josh practices Zen Buddhism and has an American teacher. Josh asked the teacher to put all his teachings into one nugget. The teacher replied “expect less, be more grateful”.  Expectation is within us in many situations. We have enjoyed something and expect that enjoyment again whenever we try to repeat… Read more: Philosophy