Typecast

Recently I've been digging into my podcast library and recommendations and always seem to switch between humour, running and true crime. The latter theme - true crime - has become a bit of an obsession because I'm fascinated by the amount of information that's had to be sourced to create the podcast, and there's always a 'final outcome' rather than it being an continuing series.  Here are my five favourites at the moment. All are available on iTunes, in your regular podcast app and maybe on Spotify but I've included main-page links below. Also, let me know what you're listening to right now.  S-Town ( subscribe ) Brian Reed is a journalist. He was contacted by John Mclemore who wanted help investigating claims that the son from a wealthy local family was bragging that he got away with murder. The investigation goes much deeper, uncovers a treasure hunt and the whole story is absolutely gripping. Don't search for spoilers do get o...

The whole world is currently in uncertain times. Many people are in isolation to help combat the spread of Covid-19 (aka Coronavirus), employers have been forced to request that their staff work from home where possible and schools have closed their doors so parents are having to teach and keep their children occupied during normal school hours. All this can become very stressful so I asked my wonderful friends (some teachers, some home-educators and some who have young children but also work from home) for tips, advice and activities.  I promised to bring it all together into a comprehensive list of resources and here it is!  (Keep reading until the end for some bonus "working from home" top tips and advice to stay sane) Firstly, one popular suggestion was to make sure your day has structure.  Have a regular getting-up time, get washed and dressed as usual and set aside time for learning and play.  When the children are in school they don't spen...

Photo credit:  Carl Heyerdahl I'm guilty of trying to create *ALL* the content.  Social media and blogging fell into line with each other about ten or twelve years ago.  I was already a heavy user of Twitter and met most of my blogging peers on there. We were considered geeks at the time but basic social media was a great way to have conversations and find links to interesting articles.  Now social media has become mainstream and really is the main stream of everyone's lives. It feels like every single person is sharing every single moment, or has an opinion that has to be shared RIGHT NOW.  Where does it all stop?  I'm a busy person and I like it that way. I work full time, I run three or four times a week , I have a radio show at weekends and I still write this blog occasionally. I'm a social media scroller and guilty of occasionally being a social media over-sharer.  But I feel like I'm becoming too invested in other people's lives e...

At the top of my list of things to do on a recent trip to Krakow was to visit Auschwitz.  I didn't realise at the time but at this year marks the 75th anniversary of the liberation of prisoners from this concentration camp and I'm struggling to find the words to write about my visit but, just as the journey through the gates of the concentration camp felt like something I needed to do, so is this.  One of the blocks at Auschwitz surrounded by an electric fence The camps are are unique in the sense that the remaining buildings are individual museums dedicated to detailing the history of the Holocaust at Auschwitz and Birkenau. Even before you enter, there is a new memorial display next to the car park telling the story of 18 survivors with a short summary of their life beyond their experience and a photograph of them now (the interviews took place in 2017 and 2018). The camp was divided into three parts and the main tours cover Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II - Birkenau...

I remember the time that Jake brought a letter home from school explaining that he'd been given the "opportunity" to learn to play a musical instrument at school.  He was convinced he was going to learn to play the drums so I told him that he could on the one condition... that he teaches me too as learning to play the drums is on my bucket list.  He wasn't convinced but thought it might help with his college application  https://allsaintsuniversity.org/ There’s a decent chance that at some point your child will ask to learn a musical instrument like guitar lessons online, or it might be something that you as a parent would like your kids to do. Playing music can be one of the most rewarding ways to spend time, and it is a great way to make friends and develop self-confidence too – so if your child shows an interest in music it’s a great hobby to encourage.   You may also have experience of a child starting an instrument and then losing interes...

I'm determined to save money this year so I've been going back over my own money saving tips to ensure that I'm following my own advice. I'll also be trying to use cashback websites more often these days too and save up my amounts so it feels like I have a little bit of a windfall just before Christmas.  Occasionally I use Easyfundraising too because the donations go to a chosen charity or fundraiser (ours is my running club but you can choose any charity). Another 'hot tip' from me at the moment is to have a search for online competitions. I love finding giveaways on blogs (and they are usually have low entry levels too which means more chances for me to win Ssshhh!). Bloggers usually request that you follow their blog or their twitter account as part of the qualifying conditions and sometimes they use a special entry application like Rafflecopter (this is the one I use too). You can log in using your Facebook account which mean that you don't ...

How do you making working from home a success? It is all about making your home work for you, and here’s how… Make sure you have a separate place to work – A lot of people think that the main benefit of working from home is that they can work from their bed or the sofa. While this may be the case, it is not advised. If you work from bed, you are more likely to fall asleep than complete your tasks. If you work from the sofa, you will end up watching television. Although your home is now your place of work, you need to do everything in your power to make sure the lines between home life and work life do not get blurred. This is why having a separate work area, i.e. an office, is a necessity. If you don’t have a spare room in your house, why not look into a garden office? Get rid of clutter – Clutter is bad news because it stops you from thinking clearly, and it causes irritation and stress. Keeping your house in good condition is important because it enables you to focus on ...