Here I am in February 2018 with another 15 months or so to complete my list so how have I done?I guess the "tasks" could be divided into travel, experiences and a few personal accomplishments. As I was at the tail end of by 5 year sojourn into being a paid photographer at the time a couple were around my photography. A few I`ve covered in blogs over the years for which Ill give a link if you`re interested rather than repeating here. Actual aims are in bold as you read
So - travel wise what did I aim to do / have I achieved in the last 3 years?
Having loved India and Cambodia / Vietnam I set myself to visit another Asian country and Sri Lanka it was. A great land tour undertaken with Chris and Peter which we loved. Thrown together with a small group of lovely French people who we often acted as interpreters for it was a fantastic, at times hard slog of a tour with lots of surprises like not actually staying in most of the hotels supposedly booked in what is a chaotic country still struggling to re-establish itself after their massive tsunami.If you`ve not been - go there! 3 blogs on that one - it was so good!
Sri Lanka 1
Sri Lanka 2
Sri Lanka 3
That trip also allowed me to meet 3 other aims of taking at least 10 photographs of strangers having asked permission on a tour, doing a cookery class which was with local villagers rather than something like Betty`s or Swinton Park as I had in mind and getting up close to elephants or animals on an experience type set up which came on a safari and a visit to an elephant orphanage in Sri Lanka which was superb.
Another trip managed to bring together a few dreams when we made a trip to the United States with Anne and Art in 2016. For some reason I didn`t do blogs for that trip - having fallen out of the habit of bothering with blogs. Flying to San Francisco and then heading down to Los Angeles before going over to Las Vegas / Grand Canyon and on to Yosemite meant that I achieved my aims of:
Flying in a helicopter into Grand Canyon no less! Yes we were on a Papillon flight and that recent crash makes you think!
Also Driving the Big Sur
Get in shot with the Golden Gate Bridge
Go to the Ansel Adams Gallery in Yosemite and even have the audacity to
try an Ansel Adams type shot
More travel next and number 12 on my list as well as number 44. These were to "See more of Dubai than the airport" and number 44 to "Go somewhere I`ve never planned to go almost on a whim". Now I`ve had to add an extra example here. It`s true that having written the first after experiencing a very long stay in Dubai airport on the way to South Africa (yeah go figure!) Given the first aim I cannot claim in going to Dubai that I`d never really wanted to go there. I therefore have to add that when the bargain cruise to Dubai, the UAE and Muscat fell into my inbox I truly had never even thought about doing such a trip so can argue it did meet the criteria! The trip really was booked on a whim with Chris and Peter this time accompanying us and in hindsight I wish I had included as aims in my list to be stranded axle high in the desert, visiting the Burj Khalifa and the other unexpected treats we had there. No pictures here just a blog link if interested in our story:
Musings on Cruising
I can add another example of going somewhere on a whim when me and Sue watched a Gino D`Acampo programme about Liguria and the Cinque Terre and decided "that will do for us" - not having known anything about it previously. Planned/booked/done with hilarious rides up steep winding mountains in a Toyota Aygo hired and clearly not suitable for task! Fantastci holiday. Blog link here:
Cinque Terre
A few more travel related aims I set and achieved:
I`d been very moved by a Holocaust exhibition at London Imperial war Museum a few years previously and a dark wish I had was to visit Auschwitz myself which I set in my 64 things to do. This I "achieved" with a few days spent in the wonderful city of Krakow which has so much to see apart from nearby Auschwitz.The visit itself was as gruelling as I had expected though the combined trip to the Salt Mines again filled a gap in my ignorance. I`d assumed it had been a place of hard labour for internees rather than the commercial mining venture it was so it came as a light relief from the harrowing Auschwitz visit.
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| No49 Visit Auschwitz |
I`ve no photographic proof of it but in researching Krakow it unexpectedly offered me the chance of fulfilling no 53 of my list "To do a walk through escape room experience" which had started to appear in Leeds and elsewhere at that time. I thought I`d end up doing one in Leeds on the multiple Groupon deals that come up but Lost Souls Alley in Krakow is so much more dangerous / non health and safety conscious than any UK offerings I would guess and I was amazed to persuade Chris, Peter and Sue to do it with me - though Sue lasted less than 5 minutes ! Blog link:
Krakow
No 48 Speak German in Berlin. Always wanted to see the remnants of the wall and the Reichstag building but I couched this one in terms of using a language I in theory have at O level but generally mock myself for. I always joke that having learned it as an American language lab experience I can say prescribed taught lines such as " He`s broken his leg and on my skis too" as well as " get off you goose there is a bus coming around the corner" ( I can prove this when asked!) I have little useful German. I spoke only a few sentences in Berlin asking for drinks or basics but i did it. No recording to prove it but I know!
Something that strikes me looking back at the list of things I aim to do now is that I have done far more of the foreign target aspirations than the UK based ones. I guess it`s feeling the need to do some of those whilst my knees etc still hold up but a few of the local ones that I have done follow.
No 19 Visit Stonehenge - we did this as part of a trip to visit Kat and Neil in Farnham when we then took a detour to take in
1. A free tour of a Princess cruise ship in Southampton with lunch and meals which I`d won in a competition
2. A free stay in a lovely Hampshire hotel which we`d been given as compensation by Travelbird for the mess ups on our Sri Lankan trip which enabled Sue to meet up with an old school friend as well as see Stonehenge.
Another local trip I`d envisaged as doing myself was no 56" To visit and shoot at Donna Nook Nature Reserve" in Lincolnshire. I`d been jealous of other local photographers who`d set off early morning to go and take photos of the huge seal colony of cows, bulls and pups that beach here late every year. Fantastic place to go - do get there if you like seals and photography. No long lenses needed as they nestle right up to the viewing fences - just don`t approach them on the beaches as some have over the years and caused distress. Don`t know why I`ve never done a blog on them but we`ve actually been twice now and stayed in the area as Sue and others loved it so much too.
The next UK travel set meant a trip to allow me to cover a few aims at once and meant a visit to Northern Ireland. We`ve been lucky enough to drive some beautiful holiday routes in our travels - through the Rockies from Jaspar to Calgary, from Toronto up to Quebec via Ottawa, Montreal and Algonquin National Park, The Big Sur and through Death Valley / Yosemite and Los Angeles to Las Vegas but I wanted to cover some local UK based drives which are up there with the best drives in the world. A trip to Ireland with Chris and Peter enabled me to cover a few targets:
No 29 Drive the Causeway Coastal Route
No 13 Visit and shoot the Dark Hedges (trees road on Game of Thrones) and the Giant`s Causeway
No 28 Visit the Titanic Museum
No 35 See the Derry and Belfast Murals from the Troubles
It might make more sense to Chris, Peter and Sue now as to why I was so keen to hair around the country looking for the dark hedges when we were due at a restaurant only an hour and a half later given that failure to do it that night might have meant me missing one of my aims.
All of these are covered in my blog :
Causeway Coastal Drive and Giant`s Causeway
No 58 Take a Special Train Trip Now I don`t mind admitting that when I wrote this on my list I had in mind something across Australia, Switzerland or the Orient Express. Researching the cost of those ideas later meant it would be a hard one to deliver. Then suddenly something popped up on my Facebook feed about the re-opening of the settle Carlisle railway line after storms had closed part of it and I saw my chance. Now it wasn`t all we had hoped for - rain and a very odd couple of railway buffs opposite who were quite the most boring peole we`d ever met but I could cross it off my list and it was one of those magical routes I`d often thought of doing. See here:
Steam railway - Settle to Carlisle
No 54 Go Glamping - Now to be perfectly honest me and Sue are not campers. Give us a nice , comfortable hotel with all the trimmings any time! However when I added another aim which was to go to a music festival for the first time in maybe 35 years I felt camping would be the way and so we might as well star off with a bit of glamping to get Sue agreeable and it made my list. As often is the case for me Groupon/Facebook brought up an option of a couple of nights in a Gypsy caravan for a ridiculous price on a Hobbit shire in Yorkshire no less! What could be better. Of course the romance of the idea did not meet the reality. On a bit of a slope we struggled to even stay in bed on the first night and had to request we be physically move to flat land or be upgraded, which we were - to a shepherds hut. It was a lot better but going out to the camp toilets in the dead of night showed us that camping / glamping was finished for us. Full story on my blog here:
A Glamping we Will Go
No 55 Go to my first 2 day ( at least) music festival
Great fun this one and it followed on from another no 64 Go to a traditional folk club session.
I realised that I`d not done either in more than 35 years and a revisit was long overdue. I`ve no pictures but no64 was accomplished with a trip to the Grove in Leeds where folk music , usually locals but sometimes better known guests, still perform as they did when I last went in the `70s. It was a little odd - almost like walking into a wild west saloon when everyone looks at you as no-one knows who you are and to be honest nobody made any effort to find out who we were to encourage future attendance but we did it and it was fun. No photos to prove it but Sue can confirm it was ticked off and might understand now why I suddenly said "Fancy going to the Grove this Friday".
On the back of that I decided it had to be Fairport Convention`s Cropredy Festival . Sue was fine for that but on condition hotel only - no camping. We had such a great time we went again the following year and are thinking of going again this year depending upon the line up. 2.5 days of superb music featuring not only old folk acts by such as Fairport, Steeleye Span, Ralph McTell but new young acts as well as such as Marillon, Divine Comedy etc and all in the most friendly of atmospheres with clean portaloos! Great fun - check it out on my blog
Cropredy
Now little was I to know that Croprdey would also provide me with an opportunity to accomplish no 59 in my list To meet / talk to a personal hero in the flash. Now when I set that I thought of maybe attending a Newcastle United organised talk by an NUFC football legend that often happens in the No ( Bat at St James`s Park but this hero was to be Ralph McTell. To be honest I had spoken to him at the City varieties many years before when in reply to a joke by me he kindly signed a ticket as "Kenny the Kangaroo aka Ralph Mctell" when I had mocked his Alphabet Zoo years and deserved a slap.Great place for meeting old heroes if they play there as they always meet you at the bar / door for chats if wanted - even got a plectrum off Janis Ian some years back there! But for this one I had to do it anew. At Cropredy I had just my compact but had got a shot of Ralph McTell backed by the most glorious sunset which he thanked the lighting crew for at the time as being his best lighting ever. I took this amongst other shots:
We later decided to go and see Ralph McTell again a few months later at the City Varieties. Going with friend Jeanne and Sue I even requested Grand Affair by him to be played for us and I`d dropped off the request along with a few prints of the Cropredy sunset shots. He did indeed do the request but referred to Susie and Paul rather than Sue prompting Sue and Jeanne to laugh and say was it my request. They refused to believe it was. The only way to prove it was to take Sue up to Ralph at the end of the show in the foyer and prove my case. Not only did he thank me for the pictures, asking if he could use them on his website but e confirmed to Sue that it was indeed my request. I call it my Annie hall moment - do you remember? When Woody Allen was arguing about the meaning of a film with his girlfriend and other movie goers and was then able to identify the film director in the queue ahead who was able to confirm there and then that his perception was correct!
No 27 To visit a TV set / studio for a show
Done this twice over with visits to the Coronation Street set as well as Emmerdale experience. Both more fun than I thought they would be.
21 Walk the whole Meanwood Valley Trail in one go. I`d often walked parts and always meant to do the whole thing but never got around to it so this was my chance. Duly achieved and blogged here:
Walking the Meanwood Valley Trail
OK - nearly done with what I`ve done so far with around 15 months to go in my quest. The next few are the few personal goals I set myself that were within my control. In effect I set myself two new skill challenges - one of which was to take up bowls. Yes I know it`s an old man`s game and I have been mocked a plenty but over the years I`d had a few park games and it seemed like an idea at the time. It was not enough to merely play though I needed targets and set myself targets ny 2019:
5. To play in a team in a proper league match
6. To make a first team
7. To make the last 4 in a club bowls competition
I was fairly sure I`d make the first as there was talk of setting up a new B team for new members. What has amazed me is that after just 1.5 seasons I have managed all 3 at Meanwood - having played 6 times for the Monday night A team (my default admittedly when they were short) and making the final of the main club competition with handicaps.
Here is a shot of me and Ian, the eventual winner of the club trophy . Ian`s the top player in the club and I came within a whisker of beating him losing 21-19 in the final , albeit with healthy handicap in my favour. maybe next year!I may be bragging but someone said that no-one with my handicap had ever made the final before and I beat 2 first team players on my way. It also meant Sue didn`t speak to me for 2 days as Kat and Neil invited us for a BBQ just an hour after I`d gone down and signed into the competition. I kept saying "I`ll go out next round so will be there soon" and my success led to much disharmony in the house. Next time I block off the whole day , just in case!
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| What I could have won! |
51. Go to an opera / classical music concert - achieved just this week when we went to a Leeds List / Opera north Pop Up Opera and meal at East 59th in the Victorian Quarter. This 30 minute taster proved only that I don`t want to go to a full opera!
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| Pop Up Opera over a meal- Don Giovanni |
Other personal challenges I set myself are still to achieve and I need to focus on them. One is a bit odd as I cannot remember the example. I`d read something about setting oneself the directive to No: 10 "Walk away from a conversation you are not enjoying without saying a word". Now in an NVQ type evidence way I have none for this but have ticked it off 3 times on one of my printed lists. Maybe I have done it to you - in any case even if I could recall when it`s not really on to list you publicly but it is done!
One odd one I included was 18 "Have a lie in at least until midday like I could when I was young". Now I`ve crossed this one off and can only think it`s been one of my drug assisted (night nurse) slumbers when suffering dizzy spells or flu but it`s done. Quite why I listed it at the time I know not other than to get me out of the many early mornings I still seem to be prone to.
Another odd one was 31 "Fast for a day - nothing but water / drinks". I assume this was borne out of my admiration for old colleagues / friends getting through Ramadan and seeking to try it for myself or as a detox. In any event I`ve previously marked this as "done" so worry no more. I suspect I had a tummy bug and an enforced fast took place.
A few photography related ones I did achieve. These included:
16: Do a photoshoot for a charity before I pack up my paid photography work - did this a few times shooting for St Gemma`s Hospice Light a Life and for youth charity Envision. I had hoped to cover weddings for cancer sufferers but found that when I approached them as my photography work ceased that I could not do so without being fully insured. As I had dropped the professional cover this wasn`t practical- shame as I`d have liked to help.
14. Get a photograph published in a magazine - again managed a few ways ranging from wedding shots featuring in Yorkshire Life to onboard airline magazine winning competition shots as well as website features.
41. Shoot at least one of my daughter`s weddings
At the time people, especially other photographers, thought I was crazy. It`s just not done - too stressful.In some ways they were right but shooting Kat and Neil`s wedding was great for me. yes I`d have liked to have shot things differently and daughter`s don`t listen to dad the photographer like they would for an external paid shooter but I could not have been involved all day in the wedding like I was without shooting it and it was a joy. Would have been impossible without a local photographer I knew , Marcin Musiol , covering the groomsmen shoot as per my instructions and doing those on the day shots that featured me a s a participant but to say that I edited all the images of my daughter`s wedding and to be there from first thing to close of the day was a great joy for me.
50 Shoot a destination wedding before packing up my photography work. I`d determined that I wanted a big venue, who knows even abroad , and that then I would pack it in as I`d grown tired of the hours and physical toll of the full day weddings and wanted to retire, again.In effect I then planned Katie`s wedding to be my last when friends Anne and Peter asked me if I would be willing to cover their daughter`s wedding in Ronda. I was delighted to help and thus achieve an aim I thought I`d missed out on and we had a lovely holiday out there tacked on to the coverage as part of our package with Sue acting as willing assistant.
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| Ronda Town Hall |
So that`s it so far. By my reckoning I`ve done 41 of my 64 things to do before I`m 64. Plans for the next few months should take care of 4 of them but the others I have to plan for and I have to accept one or two look unlikely. We`ll see!
