Day Off Up North

I decided to take advantage of my extra day off this week to head north to Ballycastle, Ballintoy and Port Ballantrae to take a few snaps. I was blessed with some reasonable light and made my first stop in Ballycastle around 11:15. I’ve only ever been there once or twice before. Although it is fairly deserted at this time of year, I was made to feel welcome with numerous greetings from the locals. After coffee and a scone at Boyles, I headed off round the coast towards Ballintoy and crossed the Carrick-A-Rede rope bridge for the first time! The steps back up the hill seemed more daunting than the bridge itself. Stopping for numerous “photo breaks”, I finally reached the car park and drove to Port Ballantrae for lunch at the Bayview Hotel. Scrumptious scampi and chunky chips!

Overall, I was very taken with that part of our shoreline. I’ll be back.

Elemental Fear

I flew home from Birmingham this evening. I fly fairly often and am not nervous when I do but as usual, as the aircraft was turning onto the runway and then began to hurtle down the runway gathering speed, I thought to myself that this is the point of highest risk/least control. As usual also, everything was fine.

Worst landing ever in Belfast however, and I have been in some doozies! The wings were swing as much as six or eight feet coming into land due to crosswinds – first time I’ve ever grabbed for a sick bag which I thankfully didn’t need. Scary shit! I really expected that some part of the plane other than the wheels would touch the ground first.

Collective gasp from all concerned when we actually touched down – time for a Pampers

I Wish…

This is a beautiful photograph taken by Flickr member, Wiggum03.

I find that Tumbler, Flickr and a couple of other sites continually amaze me with the range of excellent pictures and fascinating subjects which inspire me to greater lengths with my photography. I wish I had the skills to take a few like this one. Must try harder!

Lots to Lose

This was my “Oh Shit!” picture a few years ago. By that, I mean I said “OH SHIT!” look at the size of me. These pictures are more motivational for me than most other things. This one had a number of effects. I decided to grow a goatee again to cover some of the chin square footage and I lost around 28lbs. As my lovely brother in law said, I’d more chins than a Chinese telephone directory.

With all the talk of dieting at this time of the year, and every year as far back as I can remember, January is always a pain in the arse. I realised some years ago that Weight Watchers and other calorie counting systems didn’t work for me. Whilst I lost weight initially, the idea of counting calories in meals for the rest of my life to maintain whatever weight loss I achieved turned me off.

I also tried the Atkins Diet, which was also successful, for a while but got very bored with it, and again, it had a number of long term downsides, including potential kidney failure!

Which brings me to my current situation. I know what I should be eating and what I need to avoid. There are no grey areas for me; it is very clear. I also know that if I avoid crisps, biscuits, fried foods and get a modicum of exercise, I will lose weight. I am fully aware of the science. I don’t put salt on my food and I don’t take sugar on/in anything, etc. Why, then, is it so difficult?

It’s because I have all the willpower of a lemming. It is said that the brain is the biggest sex organ. I believe that it is also the biggest food organ!

Confession time! Yesterday for breakfast, I planned to have my usual Sultana Bran with a sliced banana – what I actually had was a Liberty Fry in Springsteen’s on the Lisburn Rd. For lunch I hoped to perhaps have soup and a roll or a sensible sandwich – what I actually had was The Godfather pasta with a portion of garlic bread in Springsteen’s on Botanic Ave. For tea, I had a tuna, sweet corn and cheese potato bake (on a champ base!) in Cafe Brasilia in Bangor. Yesterday evening, a packet of Tayto Cheese & Onion and the last three Roses sweets in the house. WTF?

What hope is there for me? I’m going to keep at it though. I’m hoping that by writing this confessional, I will be shaming myself into persevering, along with my various Twitter friends who are storming ahead. Go Guys!

Hi, my name is Colin and I’m a glutton

Flip Video

This is my first real attempt at taking some video on my new Flip video. It’s very easy to use and simple to upload onto my computer. I love it.

Men Are Happier

It’s true…

Your last name stays put. The garage is all yours. Wedding plans take care of themselves. Chocolate is just another snack. You can be President. You can never be pregnant. You can wear a white T-shirt to a water park. You can wear NO shirt to a water park… Car mechanics tell you the truth. The world is your urinal. You never have to drive to another gas station restroom because this one is just too icky. You don’t have to stop and think of which way to turn a nut on a bolt. Same work, more pay. Wrinkles add character. Wedding dress £3500 Tux rental-£75. People never stare at your chest when you’re talking to them. One mood all the time.
Phone conversations are over in 30 seconds flat.. A five-day holiday requires only one suitcase. You get extra credit for the slightest act of thoughtfulness. If someone forgets to invite you, he or she can still be your friend.
Your underwear is £3.99 for a three-pack.  You are unable to see wrinkles in your clothes. Everything on your face stays its original colour. The same hairstyle lasts for years, maybe decades. You only have to shave your face and neck.
You can play with toys all your life. You can wear shorts no matter how your legs look. You can ‘do’ your nails with a pocketknife. You have freedom of choice concerning growing a moustache.
You can do Christmas shopping for 25 relatives on December 24 in 25 minutes.