News, Views and a Promise

In danger of slipping into the abyss that is known as ‘non-updated blog content’, I thought I’d write a short and concise account of just what’s been keeping me away from my keyboard and broken the weekly habit which I’ve so long maintained.

I should first of all congratulate myself on ‘short and concise’. Afterall, those who have read any of my previous blog posts will know that I don’t do short and concise very well! Waffle yes, overthought and over complicated, yes to that as well!

Anyhow, before I get too far into beating myself up, what’s been happening?

The biggest thing? That would be the three websites I’ve been working on with my Uncle Matthew and his colleague Austin. We aim to soft launch next weekend with a formal live announcement a week later.

I’ve actually been invited to stand up and talk about the whole process to the church congregation at the formal launch service. To say that I’m nervous is an understatement! I don’t think I’ve ever stood up and spoken to an audience, let alone nearly two hundred baying Christians! I say that in jest, it should be okay, as long as I can talk as passionately about the subject as I write about it, the message should hopefully come across.

With a sprint race now to the end, it hasn't been a case for me of being away from my keyboard unable to blog. It has been the other way around, chained to the blasted thing instead! I can't complain though, It has been a great experience and I am really happy with how things are progressing. I will of course add a full and comprehensive review of the project as a conclusion to the series of case studies I've written previously so that I can measure what I’ve done and have something that both parties can use to look back and learn from.

At the beginning of May, shortly after my last post, Phoebe turned six months old. Another milestone that measures just how quickly time flies and just how impossible it is to stop, enjoy and appreciate the discovery of life and all of the new things that Pheobe does everyday. Just as Oliver does too, constantly learning, constantly finding new ways to put across his point of view, or tell us something he has done - as well as of course, new excuses for his cheekiness!

It's for those reasons why I’ve loved doing the “Year in the Life” projects, which in Phoebe’s case is now over half-way complete. There was an interesting article last week in the BBC which I share with you here discussing the trend and why this experiment is becoming more and more popular. In the main, it was a load of bullshit looking at the wider social aspect and how people’s perspective has changed and blah blah blah.

The simple reason why people are doing it now is because they can. My parents wouldn’t have been able to do it of me and Jessica because it would have cost them an arm and a leg getting the photographs developed and when they did, they were never sure whether the photograph would come out alright in the first place. I can take 100 photos of Phoebe each day, one is used and the other ninety-nine are disposable. It might be too simple an explanation for the BBC, but it good enough for me.

Whilst all of this has been going on, life, work and the general day-to-day existence I’ve been acutely aware of something nagging in the back of my mind. Finishing the book that I started writing last year has become something of an obsession recently and as soon as the paint has dried on the three websites I’ve been working on, the manuscript will be back out and the mysterious tale of the Bicycle Man will be finally told once and for all!

I promise...