Month: August 2022

Weeknote 33/2022

Posted on August 20, 2022August 20, 2022 by Doug Belshaw

We’re in Reims, France. It’s been a great week. Today is a milestone birthday for my sister, so happy birthday, Christa!

Tomorrow, we head home through the Eurotunnel. Hopefully it won’t break down this time! So far this week, we’ve been swimming, running, kayaking, and visiting various places — including an underground ‘troglodyte’ farm in the Loire valley.

On Thursday, I went out for a 10km run that turned into an accidental half-marathon. I didn’t bother taking my phone, as I was running a circular route and was measuring the distance on my watch. The trouble, however, was that I took the wrong road out of the nearest town to our Airbnb and ended up going in completely the wrong direction.

I compounded the error by thinking I was north when I was a really south, and so began a series of interactions to try and course-correct back to where Team Belshaw were staying. I had a conversation in broken French with an old woman who I made jump out of her skin when I said ‘Bonjour!’ She and I pored over an old map, and I set off in the correct direction.

I then flagged down a white van and again asked for directions in French. After the guy in the passenger seat gave me very involved directions in French, the younger man in the driver’s seat leaned over and said (in perfect English) “not from round here, then?” 🙄

Eventually, when I was not far from ‘home’ and absolutely knackered after running 21km, I came across a property with two cars outside that had UK numberplates. I knocked on the door, explained the situation, and was given a bottle of water and a lift back to meet up with my family. They were ~~very happy to see me and expressed joy at my return~~ really annoyed that I hadn’t taken my phone.

That afternoon, we went kayaking along the Loire. The river was really low and has been buoyed to ensure that paddles don’t hit the bottom and you don’t get beached! Much to Hannah’s bemusement, the three of us (kids in one kayak, she and I in another) not only were racing, but playing a form of pirates. I’ve hurt my arm, trapping it between my son’s paddle blade and our kayak. No pull-ups for me for a while!

The rest of the time we’ve been playing badminton, table tennis, swimming in the pool, and lounging around reading. Oh, and we all went for a cycle ride on Wednesday where we got caught in a thunderstorm and got absolutely drenched! Fun, though.

I finished How To Do Nothing by Jenny Odell which I’d highly recommend for anyone looking to resist the attention economy. I also read Because Internet by Gretchen McCulloch which makes me want to revisit a book I wrote eight years ago entitled The Essential Elements of Digital Literacies.

Next week, I’m not returning to work until Thursday. Hannah’s back in Monday, and the kids are at athletics camp for three days, so maybe I’ll be able to get started with a new project (or more likely, so DIY/painting!)

Photo of field of sunflowers taken during cycle ride on Wednesday. They grow them everywhere in Anjou, apparently for animal feed.

Weeknote 32/2022

Posted on August 14, 2022August 20, 2022 by Doug Belshaw

Team Belshaw is currently in Rouen, France. As I seem to have said quite often this year on this blog, it’s been quite the week.

Last Sunday, we got the car packed and ready to drive south after a football tournament that involved my daughter’s new team. Not only did she score a volley direct from a corner and a penalty in the quarter-final shootout, but her team finished runners-up after losing narrowly in the final.

After the celebrations, photos, and receiving of medals, we returned to our car and were… stuck. The electronic handbrake was literally locked on. As this has happened before, I knew that this was going to be neither quick nor cheap to fix.

My dad picked up my wife and kids along with the luggage, while I dealt with the recovery service sent by Volvo Assist. The rest of the story is too long to recount here, especially as I’m typing this on an e-ink touchscreen. Suffice to say it involved boy racers, fire, bald tyres, our car being towed to the wrong garage, an even larger bill than last time, and driving down to Devon in one go on Wednesday!

Monday and Tuesday were weird liminal days where we weren’t sure when we’d be able to set off. I took the opportunity to literally just sit and wait in the local EE shop while the manager endeavoured to sort out the issue with the lack of refund for the 5GEE router I bought several months ago. It’s amazing how things get resolved when you’ve got nowhere particularly to go and can just stare at the person who you need to get a thing done.

The travel down to Devon wasn’t as bad as I’d thought it would be, and it certainly helped stopping off at a National Trust property (Hardwick Hall) instead of a crowded service station. Once in Devon, we stayed at a house owned by a friend of a friend, sort of a free Airbnb they keep. It’s an extremely kind thing to do and we’re very grateful.

After seeing Hannah’s sister and family on Thursday, and going for a walk down to Sidmouth, we spent Friday preparing for and attending a family wedding. It was good to see people we hadn’t seen for a while.

On Saturday, we got up early and travelled along possibly the most boring road in the UK across from Devon, round London, and to a place in Kent around 45 minutes from the Eurotunnel. Stonehenge was the only, fleeting, thing of interest during the journey.

Thankfully, at the end of it, was a wonderful lunch from Hannah’s auntie, and some family members who came around with whom we get on well. It was the perfect send off before heading to France.

Unfortunately, we were really early for our train as Eurotunnel was delayed. By the time we drove our car on and waited almost an hour they announced that the train had broken down. We were absolutely sweltering, stuck in a hot metal box without air conditioning.

Once we changed trains, everything was fine. We drove to Rouen, arriving at around 23:00 local time. We took turns in the shower at the Novotel Suites, and went to bed.

This morning, we explored Rouen’s old town which is… OK, I guess? The cathedral is impressive, but not unlike cathedrals in which I have been before. The old marketplace contains what can only be described as a crazy-looking church which marks the spot where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake.

After a bit more walking, we ended up going back to the hotel room, playing some games, and sleeping for a bit. Dinner courtesy of McDonald’s, the French version od which has a lot fewer options for vegetarians than the UK.

Tomorrow we head to our Airbnb just south of the Loire valley. It’ll be nice to chill out with the swimming pool and table tennis for a few days before moving on to Reims, and from there back home!

Photo taken in Sidmouth, Devon

Weeknote 31/2022

Posted on August 6, 2022December 31, 2022 by Doug Belshaw

Colorado scenery, including The Rockies, and a speed limit sign saying that it's enforced by aircraft!

I spent most of this week in the beautiful environs of Boulder, Colorado. Travelling there last Saturday, I was in town for The Badge Summit, an event that this time around was held at CSU Boulder and had around 200 attendees. WAO‘s client Participate enabled this to happen, and we (Laura, Anne, and I) stayed in an amazing Airbnb with them (Mark, Julie, and Don).

On Sunday, I went for a hike into the Rockies with Julie and one of her friend’s daughters, who happened to be pet sitting in a $4m dollar house in Boulder. The views were incredible, and I got back to watch England women beat Germany in the Euro final football match. It was a shame I couldn’t be at home to celebrate with my family, but the massive screen I watched it on almost made up for that.

I had a great time in Boulder, going for a couple of 10k runs in amazing scenery, helping run two sessions, one of which you can find out much more about in this post on the WAO blog. I was reacquainted with some awesome people who have been part of the badge community for a while (the OG’s!) as well as meeting new people. I’d forgotten how much I miss going to events.

On Wednesday, everyone headed off before me, so I went to a zero-waste shop that my sister recommended, travelling there on an electric scooter. I then got an Uber to the incredible Meow Wolf immersive art experience that Julie had recommended. I really have no words other than to say that if you’re ever near Denver (or Las Vegas, or Santa Fe) you really need to go. What an experience!

My trip back home went more smoothly than the trip going out, as my wife Hannah tested positive for Covid last Friday. My parents were amazing and looked after the kids at their house while I was away, meaning she could recover without having to worry about parenting while feeling rough. I think the current strain is more virulent than the one I had back in January of this year.

British Airways rearranged my connecting flights between Newcastle and London so I had a long layover in both directions. Thankfully, on the way back I got the entire back row of seats to myself on the flight from Denver, so could stretch out and slept for seven hours straight. I then got on a train instead of waiting 9.5 hours for my next flight, meaning I was back home in time to take my son to training!

Thankfully, I don’t seem to have suffered from any of the jet lag I usually get going forwards through timezones. I think that might have had something to do with the quality of sleep I got on the way back, and the fact that I exercised every day while I was out there. In addition to running, there was a decent gym in the Airbnb where I could do free weights, pull-ups, etc.

On Friday, I spent most of the day with the family, running errands for Hannah, and sorting out my expenses. There were some things I needed to order from Amazon to either arrive before we go, or to be sent to the in-laws’ while we’re in Devon next week. One of these things includes a new battery for my son’s phone which he (despite my many warnings) plugged into a charger much too powerful for it to handle. So part of our holiday will include performing some open heart surgery on his device. Every day is a learning experience, etc.

I’m composing this on Saturday morning, and am about to go for a run before going to the gym with my son. We’ve pretty much just got today to get things sorted for our trip to Devon for a family wedding and our holiday in France. That’s because my daughter has a football tournament tomorrow night for her new team — so we’ll be hitting the road straight from there.

Photo taken during one of my runs in Boulder, CO