Over the course of a month (which speaks to how slow moving and bureaucratic my life is) I have purchased, picked up, figured out and attached roof bars and a bike rack to my car. I love active breaks: biking, trekking, kayaking (note: I have owned my own kayak for 2 years and have not used it yet because I’ve been been conservative in making investments, including in the racking discussed). Now properly equipped, good times of bike rides and boat trips around Britain and Europe will begin in summer ’23. This plan has been coming together for two years, with the other barrier to progress being time poverty.
Said plan is both a big and small step towards ensuring that the life I’m living aligns with the life I want. Keeping up with the Kardashians only applies to the braindead. I have my own vision of the good life and getting lost in manufactured fantasies only makes you miserable and broke. My friendly advise: get real, figure out what happiness means to you and get on with it. Sure, paddling down the Amazon sounds glamorous to us but do remember that people in Brazil may well romanticise a paddle down the Grand Union Canal connecting Peaky Blinders Birmingham with Paddington’s London. For us Brits this latter visions of happiness comes cheap and easy, which is exactly why we don’t see it’s true value. It becomes clear if you think about it for just a second. On that, I should add that the tranquility of our waterways makes for great thinking time!
Dr Martin James 