I think being an identical twin is a good thing. Many identical twins seem to make it their whole identity, whereas we go perhaps the other way and never mention it to people who have only met one of us. It seems a weird thing to randomly announce, after all. "What film shall we go... Continue Reading →
Love does not hurt when you’re married
My Garmin tells me I'm really stressed at the moment. I didn't need a Garmin to know that. On Thursday, my entire working day is meetings, continuously, from 9 am to 5 pm. I guess maybe my secretary might take pity on me and bring me some food. Or maybe some meetings will get cancelled.... Continue Reading →
Dangerous daily lives
This morning, I should have been taking my daughter to her swimming lesson. Instead, she is currently having a Minecraft lesson from her older brother, which is rather cute: She has broken her arm in two places, unfortunately one near the elbow, so hopefully it won't be too painful when the cast comes off. She... Continue Reading →
Climbing in Fontainebleau – with a punch
I was going to finish writing up all my tips for climbing with children, before we took our children on a weekend bouldering trip to Fontainebleau in France. As usual, I didn't quite get around to it, so I'll give anyone who's interested an account of a) just how great Font is with kids, and... Continue Reading →
Vulnerability
I was reading about the St Petersburg metro bombings, and the woman that died shielding her daughter from the blast, and it made me so sad. It's what absolutely every parent would do, and I don't have any doubt in my mind at all that I would gladly die to save my children. Most people... Continue Reading →
Our weekend
We are sitting on the 6.53 train, slightly later than planned, on a Monday morning. It is forecast to rain all week. The world is hurtling towards mutual destruction. We don't spend enough time with the kids. We never have enough time to feel on top of our chores. My job is too hard. Boo... Continue Reading →
Friends that are no more
We drove to see our 101 year old grandmother yesterday. It was quite a sad visit, as she is no longer as able to move around her house, and seems as if she suffers. She can't hear anything, so it isn't really possible to tell her all the things she wants to know, like how... Continue Reading →
Giving up
It is hard to believe in anything, particularly oneself, at the best of times. The more life progresses, the more it seems a succession of minor disappointments, which are a natural part of growing up and realising that I won't get to go on a bouncy castle every afternoon. Sometimes, it seems as if that... Continue Reading →
Unexpected reactions to reasonably nice things happening
I started this blog some time ago now. At the time, it was a way of filling time on long winter evenings, when I didn't want to go outside, or socialise, or do anything else terribly useful. I wanted it to be all about the things that intrigue me about life, the things I read in... Continue Reading →
Til kids do us part
There has been a lot of conversation in the press recently about sperm donors. First, there was the story about the designer sperm clinic that allows women to select from a list of donor's personal characteristics. I have to say I found the idea of this quite entertaining. There was another article (also in The... Continue Reading →
The resting writer 