Sunday, 27 September 2026

Awoke with quite a bit of muscle pain this morning after all that carpet lifting yesterday. Mainly in by lower back and legs. It’s to be expected.#

Me and Abigail are due to watch LOTR today potentially. I’m currently waiting for a haircut in the barbers and on the drive here it started to look a bit autumnal – leaves falling in roaring orange.#

Log – 12:56: Just back from the Turkish barber after my haircut. Well, I say cut, it's more of a shave — I haven't had scissors near my head for many a year.#

It was done by a kid of no more than fourteen. Because of his youth I got to bump the queue as the guy in front didn't want his hair cut by the young man. But he did an okay job. He required quite a bit of reassuring and me confirming that I was liking his work, but that's fine. He was a very affable kid and cracked a few jokes. It felt almost charitable letting him do my hair (and beard, I must add). It was good seeing a kid working, oddly, I think because you see it so rarely these days. It's largely a good thing as it means they're in school or playing and doing hobbies. But this fella obviously wanted to make a few quid on the weekend. I gave him a six pound tip, handing over forty quid for the cut, which is a crazy amount of money. Makes me glad to be bald as I can usually shave my own head at home.#

Now I'm going to have some alone time and read in bed.#

Tonight we're due to watch the first Lord of the Rings film, which means it's going to be a good day.#

#

#

Log — 13.17: I got a lovely little twenty twenty-seven weekly planner from Hatchards the booksellers the other [day]. A delicate, vintage looking thing, it has gilded edges, rip-away corners, and plenty of different sections. Made of vegan leather, it's a delightful little thing. Aside from one issue: the "dates of note" are all US dates of note! Hatchards is an English institution and its stores and brand reek of Englishness. So for its branded planner to have US dates of note is an outrage. Offer it as an option, sure, but to make it the default is tantamount to treason. Boo!#

#

#

#

Log – 17:58: Had my fairly common weekend naps. And I continue to be worried by it. As if it's indicative of a more serious underlying health problem.#

I've only lived in this house for a year, so maybe this happens every year, but Canadian geese fly overhead most evenings as the sun starts to set. It's a pleasant addition to the day. They wail a little loudly, but they fly low and it's a somewhat magical sight. They remind me of that film "Fly Away Home" each time I see them. Hopefully I get to see them every start of autumn.#

I don't know why, but I just had a sudden jolt of excitement about the work week starting and taking Ritalin again. I haven't taken it many days this week. Firstly because I never take it on the weekends. And secondly because I skipped it on the day I saw Van Morrison and then didn't take it on the day after due to being fairly hungover.#

I've been fretting about how I'm going to include this notebook (an A5 Bullet Journal one) into my "productivity system," worried it might replace my beloved Field Notes. As BuJo is largely for getting tasks done I of course tried to use this notebook for my to-do's, whilst demoting the Field Notes to my log entries. But it was tough to do. An important part of any to-do system is easy capturing into the "inbox." That's tough with a notebook this big and thick. So I've suddenly realised that despite the grid system and handy stickers that this notebook provides I don't have to use it for to-do's at all. At the end of the day it's just a notebook. And it makes sense to use this for just my logs — with its high quality paper and comfortable writing space and hard back — and the Field Notes more for to-dos — with its carryability, general smallness, and ability to bend. I mean hell, I could probably cut down a lot of the BuJo stickers to fit inside it (BuJo also offers its own "pocket" version I could look into). So who knows, maybe I'll try it. The big issue I have with logs + to-dos combined is as someone with ADHD I need my to-do's not only visible, but front and centre — that list needs to almost be sacred. So when I intermix it between my long log entries the to-do's get lost, and forgotten.#

I would love to not have to deal with two notebooks and have just the one. But if I want to go the paper route (and not just use the all digital Todoist) then I think two makes the most sense.#

#

#

#

#

In bed, reading.#

Started a new book: "Everyday Life in Medieval London - From the Anglo-Saxons to the Tudors" by Toni Mount.#