Latest Posts
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Believing in Nothing
No one believes in a God who does nothing,” G. K. Chesterton Something rather than nothing It seems obvious to me that something, rather than nothing, created the universe. Proving it, however, is extremely difficult, if not impossible. It is… Continue reading
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If everything that exists has a cause, who or what is the cause of God?
Preface: Some people associate God with that described in religious texts, others like me simply say that God is an unknown higher power. The cosmological argument for the existence of God says that nothing exists without a cause. The universe… Continue reading
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The Ouroboros
How are you feeling right now? “The sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being.” Carl Jung For me, one of the hardest aspects of having ADHD is emotional dysregulation. I’ve struggled… Continue reading
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An Atheist Rebuttal
A rebuttal of a New Scientist article by atheist Victor J. Stenger In his 2012 New Scientist article, the God Hypothesis, Victor J. Stenger focusses on the Judaic-Christian-Islamic version of God, and then looks for empirical evidence for it. Here… Continue reading
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Melding our Minds
A mind meld is a fictional, telepathic link that the character Spock was able to perform on other organisms to connect their minds. But could it possibly be a real ability? Might we be able to connect our thoughts with… Continue reading
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The will to live
Throughout recorded history, thinkers and natural philosophers have commented on the innate, energetic spark that is imbued within all living things. Eastern and Western civilisations have simultaneously described a will to live, an internal life force, a spirit, or soul,… Continue reading
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What should life be like?
What should life be like? What can we reasonably expect from our existence? I’m not referring to those ultra people, with extreme lifestyles, who live as monastic monks or who have blue blood and live in palaces. I’m also not… Continue reading
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Draw Like a Boss
In this interview, author Ashley Edge and Paul Carney explore the purpose of drawing and learning to draw, including explicit instruction. Ashley Edge is a Lake District based artist and the author of the Draw Like a Boss series of… Continue reading
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It’s Life Jim!
Some scientists now believe the chances of life emerging on Earth by itself are too remote. In a very honest, refreshing, (but complex), scientific paper, Robert Endres of the Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College, London in December 2025, explored… Continue reading
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Finding God in an age of reason
What evidence is there that God exists? In my opinion, the likelihood of the universe springing into existence by itself, for no reason, is so remote as to be non-existent. The mathematics of this universe forming event are mind-bogglingly extreme.… Continue reading
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The Blob
A short story. The blob floated mindlessly in the darkness. It had no eyes, or senses, save the ability to touch. To feel. It had no explicit conscious thoughts as such. But, driven by impulse, it knew what it wanted.… Continue reading
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One in a billion
In the Big Bang, when the universe was formulated, there should have been a blinding flash of radiation as these opposing forces cancelled each other out. But that is not what happened. By the order of one particle in a… Continue reading
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Welcome to the spirit world.
A short story. It had been another excellent meeting, Wendy thought, as she tidied her props away into her handbag and picked up her phone. Her back was killing her from sitting on a hard seat all night, but she… Continue reading
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Stephen Hawking: Is there a God?
“One could define God as the embodiment of the laws of nature. However, this is not what most people would think of as God. They mean a human-like being, with whom one can have a personal relationship.” Hawking refers to… Continue reading
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Beyond Words
All of our thinking is through words, all of our actions, all of our science, all of our literature, all of our history, all our technology, all our kingdoms and empires. All of it stems from language and communication. And… Continue reading
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Pure awareness is heaven
What are your thoughts on life after death? Where do you think we go when we die? Perhaps you think you’ll live eternally in a heavenly paradise surrounded by your loved ones. Maybe you don’t believe any of that stuff… Continue reading
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Movie Night
‘Where the hell am I?’ she muttered to herself, as the vortex gave way to a dimly lit room, complete with brightly-coloured, patterned furnishings and the kind of Jamaican, cultural furnishings she was familiar with from her childhood. ‘Oh wow,… Continue reading
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Roads to Happiness
Two eastern mystics with profound insights into the nature of existence and how to lead happier lives are Sri Ramana Maharshi and Thich Nhat Hanh. Maharshi was a Hindu sage who lived around eighty years ago in India, while Hanh… Continue reading
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How can an inanimate force become a God?
When we think of a force such as the quantum field, we don’t think of an omnipotent, personified being, we think of an abstract mass of crackling energy; a bubbling froth of excitable forces, where a myriad of particles might… Continue reading
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The axis of evil
Aristotle’s geocentric model of the universe, with earth in the centre, fitted with western Biblical ideologies and so stood for two thousand years until Copernicus upset the apple cart and proclaimed the sun was at the centre of things. Despite… Continue reading
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True Survivor (the pom-poms)
Harry woke up before the alarm and instinctively woke his wife, Jacinda, too. ‘Hey Jac, come on, you’ve got a long day today, you’re on lates.’ ‘What? Huh, oh God, my head hurts.’ ‘I’ll let you go in the shower… Continue reading
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The grand coder
A computer coder creates a virtual world which replicates our ‘real’ world, and the characters have a form of artificial intelligence. Characters in this world have the ability to sense their environment, and assume what they experience is real. In… Continue reading
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An odd thing to find
‘Tonight, we bring you a special report on the mysterious phenomena known as sea pyramids – the strange, glowing triangular prisms that have washed up on the beaches of Japan and the Philippines in recent months. ‘Professor Richard Binks, a… Continue reading
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The True Self
The true Self is the spiritual self. The true Self is the single self; it is not scattered, disorganised or divided. The true Self has no ego. The true Self does not crave attention, fame, status, wealth, or ambition. The… Continue reading
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The Secret of Life
There is a secret to life that is so simple, yet so elusive, and it is this: all the life that has ever existed, in every corner of the universe, has one primary purpose – to find happiness. What is… Continue reading
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An Origin Story
A young girl was seated alone in a plush café, talking into her friend through her smartphone. The friend was on speakerphone, and the girl, although clearly distressed, made no attempt to hide her conversations. The girl sobbed and wailed… Continue reading
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Last Night in Middlesbrough
The old man winced in pain as he leant forward to pull the flimsy blanket over his calloused, gnarled feet. Even thick, thermal socks weren’t enough to keep out the icy cold depths of winter. It wouldn’t be long now,… Continue reading
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Dragged kicking and screaming
Do you trust your instincts? Everybody talks about the good old days, the good old days, right? Well, let’s talk about the good old days. As bad as we think they are, These will become the good old days for our children. Gladys Knight… Continue reading
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The Fundamental Spirit
Reality has a fundamental layer that pervades and connects all things. The Hindus call it Brahman; the invisible essence that permeates the whole universe. The Chinese call it the Tao. Buddhists call it the Dharma. Scientists might call it the… Continue reading
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An Almighty state of being
God for me, isn’t a being in the sky, but a creative life force all around me, present in all things. As my regular readers will know, I’ve been on a journey of self-discovery over the last year and an… Continue reading
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Finding Patterns
Pattern Is religion just the brain seeing patterns in things? Human beings have a tendency to attach supernatural meanings to everyday phenomena. Seeing faces in clouds (pareidolia), believing there is a pattern in random events (like in gambling), or confirmation… Continue reading
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Part of something greater
If the Earth were a hydrogen atom, and I looked out from my window at the electron whizzing past in the air above, I might be tempted to think that this was all there was. After all, I wouldn’t know… Continue reading
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What is the purpose of our existence?
Reading time 10 minutes For the majority of the world’s population, God is the purpose of their existence. According to the 13th-century Italian scholar Thomas Aquinas, the ultimate goal of human existence is to attain a supernatural union with God,… Continue reading
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A universal SATs exam
What are you curious about? I’m curious about God. I’m pretty sure God exists, but I’m also pretty sure there is no Divine Intervention. This is because I have enough evidence to say that the universe creating itself is highly… Continue reading
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A Spiritual Journey
What are your future travel plans? Life is taking me on a journey at present and it’s one I didn’t seek. Of course, all life is a journey, but this is something completely different. These last few years, I’ve felt… Continue reading
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Near Death Experiences
I’ve been reading an old book about Near Death Experiences called Life After Life by Dr Raymond Moody. It very much relates to a topic I wrote about a while ago Where Do We Go When We Die? in which… Continue reading
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The effects of infinity on finite systems
“Imagine you had a perfectly sealed box. Nothing can come in, and nothing can escape. Into this box you placed an apple and sealed it shut. If you waited long enough, the apple would go through various states of decomposition.… Continue reading
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Life and time
Which activities make you lose track of time? Einstein showed that, rather than there being a single unified time, time is relative, and so every phenomena has its own time. There isn’t a single entity of time, there are numerous… Continue reading
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Why Isn’t Life Easy?
Why isn’t life easy? If a God created life, why make it so difficult? I mean, if you were omnipotent, and you were designing life, surely you’d make it so that things ticked over nicely, you’d want them to purr… Continue reading
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Splashing in Puddles
So many of us are finding the world overwhelming these days. The constant hostility on social media, the lack of empathy and tolerance for other people’s’ views, not to mention the depressing news stories, climate change and soaring crime, it’s… Continue reading
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Was the world made for us?
Imagine there was a safari park, complete with big cats, monkeys, zebras, giraffes etc. Now, imagine that the human keepers became extinct and the park was left to its own devices, with all the cage doors left open. There would… Continue reading
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Explore Paul Carney’s Two Unique Albums
Paul Carney has released two albums, “Dying Days,” produced by Mike Franklin in 2008, featuring a tribute track for his late mother, and “Suspicion,” recorded in his home studio in 2010. He also performed covers with the band Red Book.… Continue reading
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Hand of God?
Many years ago I had a marine fish tank which took a lot of hard work to keep. I had to make sure it was always at the right temperature. I had to check the pH levels and ensure the… Continue reading
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The Spirit Within Me
How important is spirituality in your life? I define the spirit as the living essence of a person, which includes consciousness, and the bioelectrical life force within all living things. In this way, the spirit is my mind and my… Continue reading
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Beyond Words
All of our thinking is through words, all of our actions, all of our science, all of our literature, all of our history, all our technology, all our kingdoms and empires. All of it stems from language and communication. And… Continue reading
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Valuing our Values
Your beliefs become your thoughts, your thoughts become your words, your words become your actions, your actions become your habits, your habits become your values, your values become your destiny. Mahatma Gandhi We all have values that mould and shape our… Continue reading
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How to lead a good life
What are the most important things needed to live a good life? Dear Margot Here are five life lessons I’ve accumulated over the years. I hope they will help you become happy and healthy when you grow up. There are… Continue reading
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I Believe…
Beliefs are the foundations upon which we build our sense of self. They are pivotal to our well being and happiness. But our beliefs are also personal, insecure and subjective. That’s partly because of the nature of knowledge itself, but… Continue reading
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Get away from it all
It’s hard to be happy if you’re constantly looking inward. When we focus on ourselves too much, when we live inside our own heads, or even when our ailments occupy more of our time than they should, we suffer. It’s… Continue reading
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A heart full of hate
When I see people being racist, I am reminded that racial hatred has a long history in Britain: In Celtic Britain, the Iceni hated the Coritani, who hated the Parisi, Then the Romans came and everyone hated them. The Scoti,… Continue reading
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My Greatest Creation
When was the first time you really felt like a grown up (if ever)? Blimey, today’s prompt is asking a lot of me. To think back that long ago requires a superhuman feat of memory, but I’ll give it a… Continue reading
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How to find truth in the chaos of modern life
A belief is an energy-saving shortcut the brain uses to predict its environment. A fact is a thing that can be externally verified as being proven or true. Three chords and the truth When songwriter Harlan Howard coined the phrase:… Continue reading
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Has feminism destroyed the traditional family unit?
I heard a young US woman talking recently about how Feminism has destroyed the traditional family unit. She called herself a Trad wife, which is another new term to me, and she said that it was a women’s role to… Continue reading
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Poisonous Thoughts
We face some frightening dilemmas in our society today. People are expressing alarmingly conflicting ideas, arguments, hostilities, and opposing views, and it is only getting worse. They spew their hateful bile onto their social media platforms, full of self-righteous, angry… Continue reading
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Yummy Yummy
What are your favorite types of foods? Scrambled eggs on toast A Sunday roast Fish and chips Hummus dips Curry and rice Jalfrezi is nice Bangers and mash Guacamole smashed Gravy on pie Goujons fried Hot pot Omelettes a lot… Continue reading
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Beware Angry Polar Bears!
How often do you walk or run? I made a lifelong promise to myself that I would only run if an angry polar bear was attacking me. I think it’s really important that I keep this vow so that my… Continue reading
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Leading Myself
Do you see yourself as a leader? Hell no. I think of leadership as having the strength, courage and vision to lead a team and importantly, to get the best out of them. I get on well enough with people,… Continue reading
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Philosophy
What’s your favorite word? My favourite word, is philosophy. Philosophy is a huge domain covering all of human history. Every civilisation has wondered why are we here? How did we get here? What does life mean? There are three major… Continue reading
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Cubism: was there any point in it?
Cubism was borne out of artists’ desire to subvert traditional perspective and interpret objects in new ways. Essentially, it was a new way of seeing. But when all was said and done, was there any point in it?A new way… Continue reading
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Home Bird 🐦
What are you doing this evening? I will relax on my sofa tonight with my missus and our two cats. I do this most evenings after I’ve eaten, watered the garden and done a little bit in my art studio.… Continue reading
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Impressionism
Misinformation about the Impressionist movement on the internet is rife. Even art education resource providers are guilty, lumping Van Gogh and Seurat into the Impressionist movement when they were nothing of the kind. Four young men Impressionism was developed by… Continue reading
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Red Flag People
What personality trait in people raises a red flag with you? Aggressive people who use fear, intimidation, or coercion to get what they want. They appear ultra-confident, speak with authority, use words very cleverly to put you on the back… Continue reading
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Who invented abstract art?
Up until recently, it was believed that Wassily Kandinsky ‘invented’ abstract art. These days, many popular social media posts claim that Hilma Af Klint got there before him. Neither of these beliefs are correct. The truth is, abstraction has always… Continue reading
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Togetherness
Describe your ideal week. My ideal week begins with a cup of tea and sit in my garden, followed by a bit of exercise in my home gym. I’ll do a bit of shopping, then I’ll bake something for my… Continue reading
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Hokusai: the great wave & the secret of immortality
The Great Wave off Kanagawa, 1831 by Hokusai is one of the most iconic images in the world. But it’s important to understand that this Japanese print was not simply a picture of a wave, but a highly symbolic work… Continue reading
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Smokin’ Joe
Name the professional athletes you respect the most and why. I watched a brilliant documentary recently, about 70s boxer Smokin Joe Frazier that confirmed everything I thought I knew about him. Not only was he a world champion boxer, and… Continue reading
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Is Starry Night a religious painting?
Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh is a hugely symbolic painting which represented his feelings about the afterlife. He wrote to his brother Theo that he had a “tremendous need for, shall I say the word—for religion—so I go outside… Continue reading
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Hyperactive Haven
How do you relax? Hmmn, how does someone with ADHD relax? With great difficulty, is the answer. My body is only happy when it’s moving. If I’m sitting on the sofa, I’m tapping my feet or using a fidget device.… Continue reading
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A mind full of itty bitty scorpions
If you had to give up one word that you use regularly, what would it be? I’d like to give up guilt please. It’s not a word I use regularly, but I certainly feel it often enough. Guilt is like… Continue reading
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Where are your missing years?
I was dismayed when listening to a podcast: The Guardian Science Weekly: where do our early childhood memories go? with Nick Turk-Browne, a professor of psychology at Yale University, to learn that in his professional opinion, we are not able… Continue reading
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Grudge Match
Are you holding a grudge? About? The only grudge I’m holding is one with myself. Lots of days I don’t like me. Due to my sleep conditions, I wake up like a bear with a sore head and need a… Continue reading
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Galloping Good yeah
Share a story about the furthest you’ve ever traveled from home. I remember as a 40-year-old, travelling on my first airplane to Cairo in Egypt. As part of my trip, I booked onto a desert horse ride with a local… Continue reading
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10 years sober
It’s my tenth anniversary of being sober. I didn’t think for one minute I’d be able to give up booze when I set out on this journey as I was very alcohol dependent. My doctor told me I needed to… Continue reading
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My Ideal Home
What does your ideal home look like? “If you fill your home with things you love, it will never go out of fashion. You’ll never get bored of it because it’s built on love.” Keith Brymer-Jones My ideal home is… Continue reading
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The Varieties of Simple Experience 🙏❤️
What brings a tear of joy to your eye? “Joy is the state of being that allows one to experience feelings of intense, long-lasting happiness and contentment with life.” Wikipedia We tend to think of joy as a short-lived, intense… Continue reading
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My Constant Companion
Why do you blog? My mind is always active and constantly curious, so my daily blog is my way of framing and forming my thoughts. It helps me set them down, moulding and shaping them into persuasive prose that I… Continue reading
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Interview with my deceased mother & father
Interview someone — a friend, another blogger, your mother, the mailman — and write a post based on their responses. I want to start off by thanking you for everything you gave me. I cannot put into words how grateful… Continue reading
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Surfing, Sinking, Swimming
What daily habit do you do that improves your quality of life? The habit I do that improves the quality of my life is to employ the strategy of surfing, sinking, swimming. It is a technique I used to use… Continue reading
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Library culture vulture
What was the last thing you searched for online? Why were you looking for it? Can consciousness exist outside of the brain? Yoga as a philosophy and practice of life A child’s history of Fluxus (an art and design movement).… Continue reading
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A golden age of British comedy?
What TV shows did you watch as a kid? I may just be getting nostalgic in my old age, but comedy these days isn’t ‘arf as good as it was when I was a kid. Peter Sellers, Spike Milligan, Tommy… Continue reading
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How to be a creative genius
There are so many misconceptions about creativity it’s hard to know where to begin. The general trope is that creativity is some kind of arty feeling of free expression. Make a chaotic mess and you’re being ‘creative’. The problem with… Continue reading
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Because the night
What’s your favorite time of day? My favourite time of day isn’t day at all, it’s nighttime. Some are early birds, up at dawn, meditating, listening to the dawn chorus, or partaking in their ritual first coffee. That’s not me.… Continue reading
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Recipe for a good life
What’s your favorite recipe? Ingredients: Continue reading
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A two-year old’s life lessons
Tell us about the last thing you got excited about. As a retired bloke, I live a quiet, contented life with my missus and our two cats. But my real pleasure and excitement comes from spending time with our granddaughter.… Continue reading
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Cities of the Future
How would you design the city of the future? There are many superb architects considering how cities of the future will look. Bjarke Ingels group is one of my favourites. I’ve been a fan of B.I.G for many years. Not… Continue reading
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How do I feel about being called Paul? I Feel Fine
Where does your name come from? The name Paul actually means small, humble, least or little. Penis jokes aside, it is a name that originated in Roman times to distinguish between the younger of two people of the same family… Continue reading
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Motivations on a theme
What motivates you? For the longest time, art & design was my sole motivation. From the practical standpoint of my own practice to the theoretical practice of how to teach it to my students. Art and design is an enormously… Continue reading
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🎥 I got my sights on movie nights 🎬
What are your top ten favourite movies? My choice of movies, like most of the books I read, are selected purely on their entertainment value, or the way they link to important memories in my life. I’m not one of… Continue reading
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For the love of writing ❤️
What do you enjoy most about writing? I’ve written four books. Two non-fiction books were academic books published by Loughborough Design Press. These were relatively easy to write because I was writing about a subject I had enormous knowledge of:… Continue reading
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From Geordie land with love ❤️
What do you love about where you live? I was born in Middlesbrough, and grew up in Stockton-on-Tees. I am a proud Teessider, but when I was around 40 years old I moved to Newcastle, fell in love with the… Continue reading
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Happy with my lot
What positive emotion do you feel most often? The positive emotion I feel most is contentment. I have a loving wife, two brilliant children, a lovely son-in-law, and a gorgeous granddaughter. I’m lucky enough to live in a fantastic home,… Continue reading
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All I have to do is dream
How do you plan your goals? I’m not very good at planning goals. I must have been off school that day. My big strategy in life was to dream my way to them. Looking back, I think I thought that… Continue reading
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A biased old football dog
“I hate Man City. Yeah, they’re a good team, but that’s what happens when you buy success.” “I’ll support Boro ‘till the day I die.” “I knew I shouldn’t have worn that scarf to watch the game, it’s unlucky.” “These… Continue reading
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Emergency Preparedness Plan
Create an emergency preparedness plan Thankfully, real emergencies are rare in the UK. Where I live, we haven’t experienced power cuts, flooding, or a crisis serious enough to warrant the need for an emergency preparedness plan. However, I do believe… Continue reading
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