What are your top 10 travel destinations?
I have a number of ideas for holidays, mostly in colder climes, but my Top 10 are a combination of first visits and revisiting places we have been to previously.
Northern Lights – wherever gives me the best chance of seeing them.
Sweden and Denmark – a trip that might extend to other Scandinavian countries.
Faroe Islands – off the beaten track but a place I have wanted to visit for 40 years.
World Cup Ski Races – as a huge fan until Discovery and TNT put it behind a pay wall I always wanted to see a competition live.
German Christmas Market – not sure which one but it’s pencilled in for 2028.
Pompeii – never been to Italy but I have always wanted to visit the archaeological centre of the world.
Japan – revisiting the place where we lived for 3 years in the 1990s.
Singapore – where I lived as a small child and a place I have always wanted to see as an adult.
Port Douglas, Australia – a place that we visited a couple of years back that is one of my favourites. I want to see the prehistoric rain forest up close.
Antarctica – a place that has been a dream of mine since childhood and which would require a lottery win or similar, but I can dream!
If you had to give one life-changing tip, what would it be?
OK, this isn’t profound or indeed important in the greater scheme of things, but for the last two months or so, I have kept to a strict policy of just one weekend trip to the supermarket. For ages we had found ourselves shopping on Saturday and then going again on a Sunday. Why? Well, because it was open. I was talking about how much simpler Sundays were in the 70s and 80s when suddenly I realised that I could recreate them as long as I only went to the shop on Saturday. It was so simple and so obvious when I thought about it. Modern Capitalist society has not just said that shops are open on a Sunday now, it has persuaded us that we need them. The truth is that as long as we plan effectively, we don’t. Now, if you have shifts that mean a rolling two day weekend, you can still apply this policy by making one of those days a day you don’t go to the shops.
So, what has been the impact? Well, first of all, it’s really focused me on planning meals, something I promised myself I would do. It’s made me buy what’s really needed rather than being led astray by shopping on a whim. Yes, that still happens from time to time but less than it used to. Much the most important effect though has been the much more relaxed Sundays when we can now look at the day and plan to do something or not do something with freedom. I know it sounds unlikely in a sense, but I have actually relaxed far more as a result of this approach. Knowing that the day has no requirement to shop has given me a sense of calm and ease. I know that many of you probably already do it or that it may not always be possible for many others, but if you can make it a regular thing I promise you will find it makes a real difference.
What’s a skill you consider basic, that most people don’t actually know how to do?
When I say that cooking is a basic skill, I am talking about simple meals prepared from scratch using a range of ingredients. I was taught to cook by my Dad when I was 9 years old. According to him, if you could read you could cook, and in that he was absolutely right. He also said that if I could cook I could choose for myself whether to move in with a woman rather than having to! At 9 years old that particular observation confused me and went right over my head 🤣. Anyway, over the period of a few weeks he taught me to cook a range of straightforward meals, even leaving me in charge of the deep fat fryer, a health and safety nightmare these days! By the age of 14 I was able to cook a Sunday lunch from scratch and passed one element of my Advanced Scout Standard by doing so. At Scout camps we also learnt to cook over open fires and if you can do that the cooker is the easiest thing in the world to control by comparison.
Over the years I have added countless meals to my repertoire first through following recipes then through adapting recipes and finally through seeing what’s in the cupboard, fridge and freezer and going from there. We hardly ever eat out and when we do I very rarely eat something I couldn’t do better myself. I love cooking as a practical pursuit but I love it even more as an art and a way of putting something on the table for my family. So, get the cooker on, switch on the air fryer or even learn how to use a microwave to cook – yes it’s possible – and enjoy the freedom from take away or eating out it gives you. You may not decide to go beyond basic meals, but you don’t have to once you master this basic skill.
Who is the fictional character you relate to the most?
I have often read A Christmas Carol and thought of Bob as my Victorian counterpart. Work wise he is the everyman of the time. Overworked, dispensable and older than his years. In his day you were dependent on your boss for a good or bad experience and it was overwhelmingly the latter. Things improved for a while when personnel departments were set up to look after the employees in mind, body and spirit. Then the name was changed to human resources and business began moving back to Bob Cratchit’s days as we once more became resources for the firm to use up and wear out for the benefit of shareholders. (End of Rant!)
However, Bob and I share more than that as people. Like Bob, my money is only valuable to keep a roof over my family’s head, food on the table and extra treats for birthdays and especially Christmas! I do spend money on myself but like Bob it is far more rewarding for me to spend money on my family and to see them succeed and be happy. We may not have a hearth and we may not mix up Christmas punch these days but, bar these superficial differences, my family gather round us like his did and give me the same joy and pride.
David Pearce - Popular Culture and Personal Passions 