James Leighton

James Leighton

@jamesleighton.com

Hi, I'm James, a techie who likes taking photos, birdwatching, reading, contributing to OpenBenches, and playing video games (with varying success). This is my little corner of the web. Get comfy.

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James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comA New Day for My BlogI have switched my blog to a new platform. If you subscribe by RSS you probably didn't even notice! I've moved away from Bearblog despite it being an amazing platform because I found it constricting. Adding things like my '100DaysToOffload' counter meant adding code to every single post body. Changing that code becomes an annoying nightmare. This pattern repeats itself across Bear as it strives for simplicity (not a bad goal) but I finally decided I wanted change. I will miss the free traffic from Bear's discover feature though! Moving to a static site generator means I can focus on my content again. I am writing this in a text editor, and I will deploy using a script. Eleventy has other benefits too: I can create my own tags which drastically reduce the time taken to embed videos, lists of recent posts, as well as an "On This Day Archive". My photo gallery code which previously required filling in HTML manually is now literally just a markdown code block. So easy, so simple. An added benefit is that the Fediverse bridging should now work properly. You can natively follow the blog now in Bluesky or via Mastodon (ActivityPub) by searching for @[email protected] in your client.
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-30### 🍿 Films & TV We went and saw The Odyssey midweek. Absolutely fantastic film. Shame we couldn't see it at a proper IMAX though. I also watched Napoleon Dynamite for the first time. How have I never seen this? I knew all the memes! Vote for Pedro. Great movie. On the TV front, I've started rewatching Rick and Morty as it's been some time since I first watch it! ### 🎮 Gaming I didn't really play much this week, just Raccoin and a little bit of Titan Quest. I've been thinking about making a list of short low commitment games to get stuck into soon. ### 📚 Reading I finished The Wyvern's Spur. The pace and conclusion were both great, it didn't overstay its welcome, and the twist genuinely surprised me! Moving on I started and finished the next Murderbot Diaries novella as I wanted a read. I am currently decided whether I read the new Dungeon Crawler Carl book or head back to Discworld next. ## New Posts Last Week * _ 21 Jul, 2026 _ Tredegar House, Newport ### Time Tracking Summary 🎮️ 3h14m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 5h26m reading 🚗 1h32m driving 💤 45h25m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 1h50m being active I listened to 137 songs, my most listened to artist was Calvin Harris. I walked 25112 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 📖 The Wyvern's Spur - Jeff Grubb and Kate Novak - 3h34m 🎮️ RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike - 2h49m 📖 Artificial Condition - Martha Wells - 1h50m 🎮️ Titan Quest Anniversary Edition - 0h25m ## Song of the week ## Things to Watch * * * This is post 56 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comTredegar House, NewportThis was the first stop on a road trip south to visit my wife's family. We've driven past Newport countless times over the last decade, but somehow never realised that one of the finest brick houses in Britain was sitting right there, barely a minute off the M4. We headed down in the morning and arrived at Tredegar House just before lunch. Access here was easy, with no single-track lanes to negotiate! The junction getting back onto the M4 west afterwards is a slightly odd one though. We started with a wander around the gardens. They are lovely, with formal walled gardens sitting beside the old stable block. We found a bench, ate our packed lunch and took our time before heading in. Tredegar House is a magnificent red-brick mansion and was home to the Morgan family for over five hundred years. From the front it is perfect symmetry, the state rooms upstairs are suitably grand and the below-stairs rooms give you a completely different and rather more atmospheric view of the house. What really made the visit though was the volunteers. They were the best we have ever experienced at a National Trust property. Every single one of them stopped us to tell the story of their room. The family who lived there turn out to be a wonderfully colourful bunch, full of eccentrics and adventurers. The lady on the entrance even caught us again as we made for the stairs (probably half an hour after we'd first spoken!) to tell us one more thing she'd forgotten to mention the first time. It was ace and it's exactly the kind of local knowledge that makes a visit memorable. After the house we grabbed a coffee and explored the wider grounds. The lake walk was the highlight (flat, accessible) and home to some very friendly wildlife who clearly aren't shy. It made for a gentle stroll rather than a big garden day out. We arrived expecting a fairly standard stately home and came away thoroughly charmed. A family history full of great characters, and genuinely the best volunteers we've come across. The fact that we'd driven past it for over ten years without a clue only is absolutely wild. If you're ever heading down the M4 near Newport, do yourself a favour and make a stop! * A walled garden at Tredegar House. A wildflower border with poppies runs along a brick wall, and gravel paths cross clipped lawns towards the brick buildings beyond. * A bumblebee on a pink cornflower, with other wildflowers out of focus behind. * A painted lady butterfly resting on purple verbena flowers, wings closed, against a dark background. * The red-brick front of Tredegar House, with stone-edged corners, decorative stonework, and an arched entrance porch below a slate roof. * A wooden boathouse with a shingled roof over a lake, a "No Fishing" sign on its side and the house behind through the trees. * A grey squirrel sitting upright on mossy ground, front paws to its chest, surrounded by ferns. * * * This is post 55 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * * × ❮ ❯
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-29I finished Mythos (by Stephen Fry) last week, and came away with a new found fascination for ancient gods. I started the next book from the Forgotten Realms humble bundle: The Wyvern's Spur. So far, so good. Gaming wise I had a mixed week. I can tell my attention span is shot once again since I played a little bit of no less than 5 games. I think Ni No Kuni is officially on the backlog again... I'm not really sure why I keep thinking now is a good time for such in-depth games. :( I am however still absolutely in love with Raccoin - it's a boat load of fun and has precisely zero story. Perhaps I should try playing Age of Mythology soon! Heading outside, we visited two National Trust properties over the weekend: Croome Court and Hanbury Hall. Blog post incoming for those at some point as they both have fascinating stories. But the short version is that the weather chilled off slightly, and we had a lovely day walking around the grounds at both sites. A large dead-looking tree with bare, silvery, bleached branches standing in a field of yellowed grass, with green living trees behind it, at Hanbury Hall. The Druid statue at Croome Park, Worcestershire. A weathered stone statue of a seated bearded druid in robes, holding a staff and resting his chin on his hand in a pensive pose. ## New Posts Last Week * _ 15 Jul, 2026 _ My Gaming Diary ## Time Tracking Summary 🎮️ 4h34m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 3h3m reading 🚗 4h59m driving 💤 44h24m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 1h18m being active I listened to 93 songs, my most listened to artist was Taylor Swift. I walked 26374 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 📖 Mythos - Stephen Fry - 1h56m 🎮️ RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike - 1h39m 🎮️ Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch - 1h28m 📖 The Wyvern's Spur - Jeff Grubb and Kate Novak - 1h6m 🎮️ Burnout Paradise: The Ultimate Box - 0h47m 🎮️ Farming Simulator 25 - 0h31m 🎮️ Slots & Daggers - 0h9m ## Things to Watch * * * This is post 55 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comMy Gaming DiaryI read Joel's post today about how he keeps track of his gaming. I love reading about how other people go about time tracking, and his methods are completely different to mine. It inspired me to think about how I use and visualise the data that I collect every day. I use it for my week notes, it gets loaded in Exist and correlations are drawn. I never really 'look' at it though. So I created a calendar for 2026! The game shown on the each date is the most played game for that day, with a leaderboard for January to June 2026 underneath. I find it fascinating to look back on the data like this: I can see the week that I got Tavern Keeper! I can see the few weeks that my wife and I played basically nothing but Stardew Valley. I can see the week that I fell in love with Raccoin. # January 2026 Most-played game per day for January 2026, based on Toggl time tracking Mon| Tue| Wed| Thu| Fri| Sat| Sun ---|---|---|---|---|---|--- | | | 1Planet Zoo| 2| 3FINAL FANTASY TACTICS - The Ivalice Chronicles| 4 5| 6| 7| 8| 9DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 10DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 11 12| 13DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 14| 15| 16| 17| 18piczle cross: story of seasons 19| 2051 Worldwide Games| 2151 Worldwide Games| 22| 23| 24| 25DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake 26Legend of the River King| 27| 28| 29| 30| 31Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins| * 1 Planet Zoo * 2 * 3 FINAL FANTASY TACTICS - The Ivalice Chronicles * 4 * 5 * 6 * 7 * 8 * 9 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 10 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 11 * 12 * 13 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 14 * 15 * 16 * 17 * 18 piczle cross: story of seasons * 19 * 20 51 Worldwide Games * 21 51 Worldwide Games * 22 * 23 * 24 * 25 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 26 Legend of the River King * 27 * 28 * 29 * 30 * 31 Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins # February 2026 Most-played game per day for February 2026, based on Toggl time tracking Mon| Tue| Wed| Thu| Fri| Sat| Sun ---|---|---|---|---|---|--- | | | | | | 1Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins 2| 3| 4| 5Legend of the River King| 6| 7DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 8DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake 9| 10| 11| 12DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 13| 14| 15 16| 17| 18DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 19Katamari Damacy REROLL| 20| 21| 22DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake 23Pokémon Polished Crystal| 24| 25| 26| 27Siralim Ultimate| 28| * 1 Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins * 2 * 3 * 4 * 5 Legend of the River King * 6 * 7 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 8 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 9 * 10 * 11 * 12 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 13 * 14 * 15 * 16 * 17 * 18 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 19 Katamari Damacy REROLL * 20 * 21 * 22 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 23 Pokémon Polished Crystal * 24 * 25 * 26 * 27 Siralim Ultimate * 28 # March 2026 Most-played game per day for March 2026, based on Toggl time tracking Mon| Tue| Wed| Thu| Fri| Sat| Sun ---|---|---|---|---|---|--- | | | | | | 1 2| 3| 4Cast n Chill| 5Cast n Chill| 6Cast n Chill| 7Cast n Chill| 8 9| 10| 11DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 12Timberborn| 13| 14| 15 16| 17| 18| 19| 20Vampire Survivors| 21DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 22Vampire Survivors 23DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 24| 25| 26| 27DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 28DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 29DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake 30| 31DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| | | | | * 1 * 2 * 3 * 4 Cast n Chill * 5 Cast n Chill * 6 Cast n Chill * 7 Cast n Chill * 8 * 9 * 10 * 11 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 12 Timberborn * 13 * 14 * 15 * 16 * 17 * 18 * 19 * 20 Vampire Survivors * 21 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 22 Vampire Survivors * 23 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 24 * 25 * 26 * 27 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 28 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 29 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 30 * 31 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake # April 2026 Most-played game per day for April 2026, based on Toggl time tracking Mon| Tue| Wed| Thu| Fri| Sat| Sun ---|---|---|---|---|---|--- | | 1DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 2| 3| 4| 5 6| 7| 8| 9| 10| 11| 1251 Worldwide Games 13| 14Stardew Valley| 15Stardew Valley| 16Stardew Valley| 17| 18Under Par Golf Architect| 19Under Par Golf Architect 20Tavern Keeper 🍻| 21Tavern Keeper 🍻| 22| 23Tavern Keeper 🍻| 24Tavern Keeper 🍻| 25Tavern Keeper 🍻| 26 27| 28| 29DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 30DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| | | * 1 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 2 * 3 * 4 * 5 * 6 * 7 * 8 * 9 * 10 * 11 * 12 51 Worldwide Games * 13 * 14 Stardew Valley * 15 Stardew Valley * 16 Stardew Valley * 17 * 18 Under Par Golf Architect * 19 Under Par Golf Architect * 20 Tavern Keeper 🍻 * 21 Tavern Keeper 🍻 * 22 * 23 Tavern Keeper 🍻 * 24 Tavern Keeper 🍻 * 25 Tavern Keeper 🍻 * 26 * 27 * 28 * 29 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 30 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake # May 2026 Most-played game per day for May 2026, based on Toggl time tracking Mon| Tue| Wed| Thu| Fri| Sat| Sun ---|---|---|---|---|---|--- | | | | 1| 2DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 3 4| 5| 6Stardew Valley| 7Stardew Valley| 8Stardew Valley| 9Stardew Valley| 10 11Mario Kart 7| 12Stardew Valley| 13Stardew Valley| 14Stardew Valley| 15| 16Stardew Valley| 17DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake 18DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 19Train Sim World 6| 20| 21DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake| 22| 23Cast n Chill| 24 25Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Trilogy| 26| 27Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Trilogy| 28Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Trilogy| 29The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt| 30Golf With Your Friends| 31 * 1 * 2 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 3 * 4 * 5 * 6 Stardew Valley * 7 Stardew Valley * 8 Stardew Valley * 9 Stardew Valley * 10 * 11 Mario Kart 7 * 12 Stardew Valley * 13 Stardew Valley * 14 Stardew Valley * 15 * 16 Stardew Valley * 17 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 18 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 19 Train Sim World 6 * 20 * 21 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake * 22 * 23 Cast n Chill * 24 * 25 Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Trilogy * 26 * 27 Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Trilogy * 28 Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Trilogy * 29 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt * 30 Golf With Your Friends * 31 # June 2026 Most-played game per day for June 2026, based on Toggl time tracking Mon| Tue| Wed| Thu| Fri| Sat| Sun ---|---|---|---|---|---|--- 1OpenRCT2| 2| 3Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition| 4Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition| 5| 6| 7 8| 9Golf With Your Friends| 10| 11| 12OpenRCT2| 13Cast n Chill| 14OpenRCT2 15Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition| 16| 17| 18The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales Demo| 19The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales Demo| 20Cast n Chill| 21 22| 23| 24Siralim Ultimate| 25| 26| 27RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike| 28RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike 29RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike| 30Siralim Ultimate| | | | | * 1 OpenRCT2 * 2 * 3 Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition * 4 Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition * 5 * 6 * 7 * 8 * 9 Golf With Your Friends * 10 * 11 * 12 OpenRCT2 * 13 Cast n Chill * 14 OpenRCT2 * 15 Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition * 16 * 17 * 18 The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales Demo * 19 The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales Demo * 20 Cast n Chill * 21 * 22 * 23 * 24 Siralim Ultimate * 25 * 26 * 27 RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike * 28 RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike * 29 RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike * 30 Siralim Ultimate ## Games played January–June 2026 * Stardew Valley28:38 hours played * DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake24:13 hours played * Cast n Chill10:54 hours played * Tavern Keeper 🍻05:04 hours played * Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition04:27 hours played * Golf With Your Friends04:24 hours played * RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike04:14 hours played * Timberborn03:59 hours played * Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Trilogy02:33 hours played * FINAL FANTASY TACTICS - The Ivalice Chronicles02:00 hours played * Under Par Golf Architect02:00 hours played * Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins02:00 hours played * Pokémon Polished Crystal01:48 hours played * OpenRCT201:41 hours played * Vampire Survivors01:29 hours played * The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales Demo01:28 hours played * The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt01:17 hours played * 51 Worldwide Games01:07 hours played * Euro Truck Simulator 201:01 hours played * Train Sim World 600:54 hours played * Planet Zoo00:44 hours played * Balatro00:41 hours played * Siralim Ultimate00:38 hours played * Mario Kart 700:35 hours played * Katamari Damacy REROLL00:33 hours played * piczle cross: story of seasons00:33 hours played * Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition00:32 hours played * Legend of the River King00:28 hours played * Forza Horizon 400:27 hours played * Golf It!00:27 hours played * Slots & Daggers00:20 hours played * BALL x PIT00:16 hours played * Wingspan00:12 hours played * EVERYBODY'S GOLF HOT SHOTS00:11 hours played * * * This is post 54 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * * *[Mon]: Monday *[Tue]: Tuesday *[Wed]: Wednesday *[Thu]: Thursday *[Fri]: Friday *[Sat]: Saturday *[Sun]: Sunday
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-28Another week, another heatwave. Not much activity this week as we've been too busy hiding from the Sun. Having said that, I've continued my trend of losing weight! It may have something to do with the heat suppressing my appetite, but I'll take it as a win. I'm now down to where I was about 18 months ago, and I am starting to feel the difference in clothes which is rather motivational. ### 🎮 Gaming On the gaming front this week, it was once again too hot for me to want to sit in my study in the evenings. Instead I played the start of Ni No Kuni on Switch. I remember playing this back at in 2013 on PS3, but apparently I didn't play that much as I'd completely forgotten the battle system is a action-turn based system... which I don't really enjoy. I'm going to persevere and see if it grows on me because other than the battle the system the charm is full of charm. I mean it sent me off to find a red herring in the first thirty minutes. How can you not like that? Ni No Kuni sending me off to find red herrings… ### 📚 Reading I've been cracking on with Mythos by Stephen Fry. I am really enjoying it, and love learning all the connections between the Greek pantheon and the modern world. Their influence is widespread. I actually need to visit my local library to renew my card this week so they don't cut off my access to eBooks! ### Movies and TV This week we started season 2 of Avatar the Legend of Ang on Netflix. It's decent, but I feel the episodes are a bit on the long side. We also watched "The Drama" starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson. I was mostly expecting a rom-com. My expectation was highly incorrect. Great film! I want to try and start watching at least one film a week, where we put our phones in a completely different room. ### 🏡 Blog I spruced up my blog this week. A new coat of paint, and a new homepage. I am really happy with it. I also worked on a generator for my /bookshelf page. I kept breaking it when manually adding items to the javascript. Now I have a python script that creates the entire element from a CSV file ready for me to copy and paste. The photo blog 2.0 was finished week too. This was a vibe coded effort to construct a photo-based static site generator. I undertook the project as I wanted to create something I would genuinely use with Claude Code. I learnt lots about effectively prompting, how Claude and Git work together, and also about web accessibility. The photo blog generator is a Python script that takes an input of images, and spits out a fancy responsive, accessible photo gallery that I am very proud of. It's going to be the home for my photography and video game screenshots. Feel free to subscribe to the feed if you're so inclined. I'll work on releasing the generator code when I get a spare moment. ### Things to Watch ### Time Tracking Summary 🎮 2h48m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 2h23m reading 🚗 2h24m driving 💤 54h26m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 1h18m being active I listened to 73 songs, my most listened to artist was Metric. I walked 20203 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 📖 Mythos - Stephen Fry - 2h23m 🎮 Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch - 2h14m 🎮 piczle cross: story of seasons - 0h32m * * * This is post 52 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comHow to Set Up Windows 11 Without a Microsoft Account in 2026If you've tried installing Windows 11 recently, you'll know Microsoft really wants you to sign in with a Microsoft account. Unfortunately, the old method to bypass adding a Microsoft account stopped working. However, there's another trick to skip that and set up a local account instead. When you reach the "Let's sign in" screen (or any network/account screen during setup), press **Shift + F10**. This opens a Command Prompt window. Type the following and press Enter: start ms-cxh:localonly The Microsoft account prompt will disappear, and a window will open straight away letting you create a local username and password. Fill in your details and continue setup as normal. ## References 1. Tom's Hardware — How to Install Windows 11 Without a Microsoft Account 2. Reddit (r/sysadmin) — An alternative to bypass Microsoft account * * * This is post 51 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comA Whirlwind Weekend in LondonA few weeks ago we packed an awful lot into a single weekend in London. We travelled down on Friday morning and headed straight to the British Museum. We wanted something inexpensive and central to do with my mum- the British Museum ticks both of these. Our entry was around 1.30pm, and it wasn't too busy as we entered. We made our way around to the Egyptian exhibits and meandered around to the Elgin Marbles. Much can be said about the British Museum and whether it should return what it 'acquired' over the centuries but the uncomfortable truth is that many of the objects you see today likely wouldn't have survived if they'd stayed where they were found. We saw some real mummies (kind of weird, honestly... imagine someone looking at your preserved corpse several thousand years after you died.), and took in the Japanese art exhibit at the back of the building. After spending a few hours at the museum, we made our way to Covent Garden for dinner. After dinner and saying goodbye to my mum, my wife and I headed to the Gillian Lynne Theatre to see My Neighbour Totoro. We are long-time Studio Ghibli fans and were beyond excited for this show. The reviews will tell you that Totoro is big. They do not prepare you for just how BIG he is on stage. An absolutely magical evening that did complete justice to the source material. I kind of want to see Death Note the Musical now before its run ends! We spent a fair bit of time deciding what to do on Saturday morning. We were split between Hampton Court Palace, nearby National Trust properties, or Kew Gardens. We settled on Kew Gardens. Kew was high on our bucket list of places to go and it was also easy enough to get to via the tube. The weather brightened up as we got off the tube, and we started walking around the gardens. Kew was just perfect for a quiet Saturday morning. We continued our slow walk, pausing for photos of planes on their approach to Heathrow Airport until we stumbled across the Tree Top Walk. Easily the best part of Kew, though the lift that takes you up deserves an honourable mention. It started to rain while we were at the top, but the views were stunning. We managed to do some last minute birthday shopping in the gift shop... Hugo, I hope you enjoyed the Kew biscuits and beer! Saturday night was the reason for the trip: a family 50th birthday party. Not much to say here publicly, but we had a great night after heading straight there from Kew Gardens earlier in the day. On Sunday we set off home via Hughenden Manor in High Wycombe, the former home of Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli. We've started breaking up long drives with National Trust visits and it's a habit we'd thoroughly recommend. It forces you to pack a lunch and spares you the misery of motorway services. You get to stretch your legs and experience heritage at the same time. Hughenden was a lovely surprise. What looks like a handsome Victorian country house turns out to have served as a secret WWII intelligence base, used for creating maps for bombing missions over Europe. The gardens were small but pretty, and we briefly entertained the idea of walking up to the monument before the hill made the decision for us. The weekend had taken its toll. All in all, a weekend that had absolutely no right to fit everything it did. Great food, great company, a genuinely magical night at the theatre, and another National Trust property in the bag. Knackered, but already quietly planning the next one. * The Grand Facade of the British Museum * Marble Horse Head from the Elgin Marbles Collection * My Neighbour Totoro West End Show Poster at the Gillian Lynne Theatre * The Palm House Glasshouse and a Sculpture at Kew Gardens * A Goose Kew Gardens * The Great Broad Walk Borders * British Airways Boeing on Approach to Heathrow * The Treetop Walkway Stretching Through the Forest Canopy * Gold Balloon Numbers Marking a 50th Birthday Celebration * Hughenden Manor viewed from the garden * * * * This is post 50 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * * × ❮ ❯
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comRe: Taylor Swift ChallengeI spotted this challenge on James' Coffee Blog and couldn't resist. I am perhaps not an obvious Swiftie but my Last.FM account will tell you exactly what I am: Screenshot of Last.fm profile showing 771 listens to Taylor Swift in the last year ### What is the first Taylor Swift song you can remember listening to? I was on a bus heading home from college and I can distinctly remember listening to Love Story on my iPod Touch for the first time. I'm 99% sure it was the first time I'd ever actively listened to a Taylor Swift song rather than just hearing it somewhere in the background. ### What is/are your favourite Taylor Swift song(s)? Tough to pick between "I Knew You Were Trouble" from Red and "Out of the Woods" from 1989 ### What is/are your favourite Taylor Swift album(s)? 1989, without much competition. It came out just before a pretty significant period of change in our lives and I will forever associate it with that time. Both the good parts and the less good parts. I always think of this album when things remind me of 2014-16. ### What lyric stays with you more than any other? _I got a long list of Starbucks lovers_ /s ### If you went to the Eras Tour, what night did you go? We tried, and failed to get tickets. ### What other musicians do you like and hope people check out? Metric, Chvrches, and Ninajirachi. Three very different artists but all worth your time. * * * This is post 49 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-27Last week was nice. I only had to work for two days before we headed off to spend some time with my wife's family. Along the way we visited some National Trust properties and gardens, had a lovely BBQ, and even got in some birdwatcher. I also created a new static photo gallery generator (yes, I used Claude Code. No, I don't really care what you think. You can check it out out https://photos.jamesleighton.com. It is a python application that runs locally and generates the HTML/JS/Images ready to host anywhere you'd like. It's fully responsive, supports keyboard shortcuts, and is super snappy. I am planning to release the source code at some point, but do let me know if you'd be interested in testing it out yourself. ## 📚 Reading I finished Startup Hell during our trip. It was excellent, and I highly recommend it. Funny, and smart from start to finish. Next on my list to read is Mythos by Stephen Fry. I'm about a third of the way through and it's a tough one to put down. I'm learning a ton about the ancient gods... I knew of the gods by name, but this is all about their origins. Fascinating stuff. ## 🎮 Gaming Before we went way, I played more Raccoin. Game is honestly hard to put down. I think I even unlocked an achievement for having a single coin score over 1,000,000 points. It's a shame I didn't get to duplicate that coin. I took my Switch away with us, and settled on starting Ni No Kuni. I think I am ready for my next long game finally! I remember playing it on PS3 a long time ago, but I never got very far. Hopefully this time I stick with it. A screenshot of my static photo gallery displayed on a tablet device ## Time Tracking Summary Last week I spent... 🎮️ 3h8m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 4h6m reading 🚗 13h5m driving 💤 50h41m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 3h11m being active I listened to 232 songs, my most listened to artist was Taylor Swift. I walked 48977 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 📖 Startup Hell - Caitlin Rozakis - 2h21m 🎮️ RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike - 1h46m 📖 Mythos - Stephen Fry - 1h43m 🎮️ Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch - 1h0m 🎮️ piczle cross: story of seasons - 0h14m 🎮️ Siralim Ultimate - 0h9m ## New Posts Last Week * _ 03 Jul, 2026 _ 2026 So Far - Life Tracking Update * _ 01 Jul, 2026 _ 100DaysToOffload - Looking back at the first six months ### Top song My most listened to song last week was "The Fate of Ophelia" (again) ## Worth a watch * * * This is post 48 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.com2026 So Far - Life Tracking UpdateHere are my stats for January to June 2026. This was generated using my data from Exist, and I found it highlights some key facts I hadn't considered as much as I should. ### Key Themes * I should make sure I hit at least 5,500 steps in a day before I retire to play games or watch TV in the evening. * I should keep up my reading habit, and try and read at least every other day. * I should continue with my diet plan (Huel!), as it seems to be working! * I really need to think about what makes the difference between a 5/9 day and one that is 7+ Overview Steps Mood Sleep Weight Activity Leisure Insights Avg daily steps 5,260 Avg mood 5.8 / 10 Avg sleep 7h 26m Weight change −7.4 kg Avg active min 26m Avg gaming (when played) 1h 20m Avg reading (when read) 39m Avg board game (when played) 1h 34m Monthly snapshot __Steps (÷1000) __Mood __Sleep (hours) Best month Feb 6,971 avg/day Lowest month Jan 3,618 avg/day Peak single day 17,770 6 Jun Days over 10k 17 Average daily steps by month Daily steps — full timeline Highs and lows Top 3 step days 1. 6 Jun17,770 2. 14 Apr15,877 3. 16 Apr13,854 Bottom 3 step days 1. 18 Jun1,441 2. 13 May1,513 3. 14 Jan1,519 National Trust & date nights Both tags strongly associated with high step days. National Trust visits averaged 9,642 steps; date nights averaged 9,715 — nearly double the overall daily average of 5,260. National Trust visits — steps (avg 9,642) 1. 16 Mar11,728 2. 15 Feb11,491 3. 14 Feb10,098 4. 26 Apr10,822 5. 12 Apr9,001 Date nights — steps (avg 9,715) 1. 6 Jun17,770 2. 5 Jun13,655 3. 21 Jun10,046 4. 26 Apr10,822 5. 21 Mar7,565 Best month Apr 6.3 avg Toughest month Jun 5.1 avg Days rated 9+ 22 Days rated ≤3 18 Average mood by month (1–10 scale) Mood score distribution Highs and lows 15 days scored a 9; 4 days scored ≤ 2. Listed below are the standout examples. Best mood days (9 / 10) 1. 14 Apr9 · 15,877 steps 2. 15 Feb9 · 11,491 steps 3. 11 Apr9 · 11,447 steps Worst mood days 1. 24 Jun1 · 2,694 steps 2. 31 Jan2 · 1,784 steps 3. 9 Jun2 · 2,222 steps Best month Feb 7h 36m avg Lowest month May 7h 21m avg Nights ≥8 hours 31 Nights under 6h 2 Average daily sleep by month Daily sleep — full timeline Highs and lows Longest nights 1. 17 Mar8h 51m 2. 20 Feb8h 48m 3. 7 Mar8h 45m Shortest nights 1. 28 Jun5h 26m 2. 4 Apr5h 30m 3. 4 Feb5h 41m Start (1 Jan) Baseline 0 kg change Latest (28 Jun) −7.4 kg Total change −7.4 kg Avg per month −1.2 kg Cumulative weight change since 1 Jan Net weight change per month Highs and lows Largest day-over-day changes — likely a mix of real change and weigh-in noise (clothes, hydration, time of day). Biggest single-day drops 1. 14 Jun−2.14 kg 2. 4 Feb−2.01 kg 3. 20 May−1.33 kg Biggest single-day gains 1. 18 May+1.77 kg 2. 16 Mar+1.68 kg 3. 8 Jun+1.32 kg Best month Feb 44m avg Lowest month May 15m avg Peak day 2h 09m 26 Apr Days under 10 min 66 Avg on NT visits 52m 10 visits Avg on date nights 34m 9 dates Avg on sick days 11m 6 sick days Average active minutes by month Steps vs active minutes __Avg steps ÷100 __Avg active minutes Highs and lows Most active days 1. 26 Apr2h 09m 2. 14 Apr2h 07m 3. 1 Mar1h 48m Least active days 1. 21 Jan2m 2. 20 Jun2m 3. 14 Jan3m National Trust visits 10 visits — every single one scored mood 8 or 9. Average active time was 52m, nearly double the first-half daily average. Steps & activity on NT days 1. 13–16 Feb9, 9, 9, 9 mood · 38–75m active 2. 16 Mar8 mood · 11,728 steps · 53m active 3. 26 Apr9 mood · 10,822 steps · 2h 09m active 4. 2 May8 mood · 9,852 steps · 16m active 5. 24 May8 mood · 8,015 steps · 20m active Date nights — steps & mood 1. 5–6 Jun9, 8 mood · 13,655 / 17,770 steps 2. 26 Apr9 mood · 10,822 steps 3. 21 Jun9 mood · 10,046 steps 4. 21 Mar7 mood · 7,565 steps 5. 4 Jan9 mood · 4,359 steps Gaming — days played 85 of 180 (47%) Gaming — total time 113h 52m Reading — days read 96 of 180 (53%) Reading — total time 62h 29m Board games — sessions 5 Board games — total time 7h 51m Average gaming time by month (when played) Average across days when gaming actually happened — not diluted by zero days. Average reading time by month (when read) Total monthly leisure time __Gaming __Reading __Board games Highs and lows Longest gaming sessions 1. 15 Apr6h 22m 2. 13 Jun5h 00m 3. 13 May4h 11m Longest reading sessions 1. 17 Jan1h 51m 2. 24 Feb1h 48m 3. 24 May1h 47m Top 3 correlations Pearson correlation across all 180 days. Values closer to ±1 mean a stronger relationship; 0 means none. Steps × Mood +0.54 Strong positive (n = 161) __ The clearest signal in the dataset. Days with 7,500+ steps averaged mood **7.6 / 10** ; days under 3,000 steps averaged **5.2 / 10** — a +2.4 point swing. Walking more was the single most reliable mood lever in the data. | Gaming × Steps −1,182 Substitution effect __ On days with 60+ minutes of gaming, average steps dropped to **4,668** vs **5,850** on days with no gaming — a ~1,200 step deficit. May, the heaviest gaming month (21 days, 1h 47m avg), had the lowest active minutes of the first half. | Sleep × Mood +0.09 Effectively none (n = 159) __ Counterintuitive but consistent: a longer night didn't predict a better day. Sleep was so stable (7h 21m – 7h 36m every month) that there wasn't enough variation for it to drive mood. A good baseline, but not a useful lever. ---|---|--- Other observations **The weekend effect is huge** Saturday and Sunday averaged mood 7.0 vs 5.4 on weekdays — a +1.6 point gap, bigger than any single correlation. Sunday was the peak day (mood 7.3, ~6,900 steps); Tuesday was the slump (mood 4.8). Weekday mood is likely the biggest opportunity area for the second half of the year. **Steps → mood is dose-dependent** Not just correlated — the relationship climbs in clear steps. Days under 3k steps averaged mood 5.2; days at 5k+ averaged 6.7; 7.5k+ averaged 7.6; 10k+ averaged 8.2. Roughly +1 mood point per 2,500 extra steps. **The "good stack" days** On days that hit 7,500+ steps, included reading, AND had 7+ hours of sleep, mood averaged **7.9** vs **5.7** on every other day — a +2.2 point swing. Only 13 of 180 days hit all three; the compound effect is the strongest single signal in the data. **Steady weight loss** 7.4 kg shed over 6 months — an average of 1.2 kg per month — with March showing the biggest single-month drop (−4.5 kg). The trend held even during quieter movement months, suggesting diet was likely the primary driver. **April had the best week** 10–17 April: 8 consecutive days of 5,000+ steps, including a 5-day run of 7,500+. Every day in that stretch scored mood 7–9. Concrete proof of what a sustained high-movement week can look like. **Reading is the most consistent habit** Read on 96 of 180 days (53%) at a steady ~39 minutes per session. Unlike gaming, the monthly average barely moves — a quiet, dependable habit that survived even the toughest months. **Being ill killed activity more than steps** 6 sick days across the first half of the year (a 5-day cluster in early April, one isolated day in May). On those days active minutes collapsed to just 11m on average — less than half the overall mean — while steps held up surprisingly well at 5,256. Mood averaged 4.67, with the final sick day (7 Apr) hitting a 3. Notably, 3 of the April sick days overlapped with holiday periods — so the Easter mood boost was partly undermined by illness. Goals for the second half of 2026 📌 Three concrete, data-grounded goals I'm setting for the next six months — to revisit in January and see how I did against each baseline from the first half of the year. 01 Move the daily step median up Median daily steps: 4,517 → 5,500+ Half my days in the first half of the year were below 4,500 steps. Pulling the median up to 5,500 means more "good enough" days and fewer slump days. Based on the dose-response gradient, each extra 2,500 steps was worth roughly +1 mood point — moving the median is more impactful than chasing peak days. 02 Walk more on gaming days Avg steps on 60+ min gaming days: 4,668 → 5,500+ Heavy gaming days came with a ~1,200 step deficit vs non-gaming days. Closing that gap removes the substitution effect — a deliberate walk before or after a gaming session is the smallest possible behaviour change with the biggest payoff. 03 Stack 30 "good days" Days hitting 7.5k+ steps, reading, and 7h+ sleep: 13 → 30 in the second half The single most powerful pattern in the data — these days averaged mood 7.9, more than 2 points above the rest. Roughly one stack day a week, with a few extras around weekends and holidays, gets there. * * * This is post 47 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.com100DaysToOffload - Looking back at the first six monthsI decided to take part in 100DaysToOffload to encourage me to write more, and to be more consistent with my blog. Throughout the first six months of 2026 I have not missed a single Week Note post and I am insanely proud of myself for not getting bored and giving up on those. It has made me spend more time documenting the things we get up to, and I am looking forward to a day in the far future where I can look back and relive these memories. ## Looking Back * Total posts published: 45 * Time span: 174 days (2026-01-04 to 2026-06-30) * Average cadence: 1 post every 3.87 days (~1.7 per week) * On track for 100? At current pace, ~94 posts by 31 Dec. Need roughly 1 post every 3.5 days for the rest of the year to hit the target. Total posts 45 Top day Monday Monday share 44% Zero posts Wednesday Posts by day: Monday 20, Tuesday 3, Wednesday 0, Thursday 3, Friday 1, Saturday 6, Sunday 12. Posts per month Posts by month: January 9, February 5, March 8, April 9, May 6, June 8. ## Highlights My top three posts by the numbers are "I started a photo blog", "Implementing a Random Post button on Bear Blog", and "Week Notes 2026-10". I have absolutely no idea why that specific week post got more attention than the rest but that's part of the fun. My favourite posts though are less well read: "A year of National Trust Visits" & "Dolphin Spotting, Gold Mines, and Coastal Walks: A Week in West Wales 🐬". I really enjoy sitting down after a trip, writing some notes and turning that into a fun travel post. It's a great excuse to actually use all the photos we take too. ## Looking Forward At my current pace, I will just miss my goal of 100 posts by 03-January-2027. To help ensure that doesn't happen I've started working on several draft posts stored away in my Obisidian vault. The goal is to always have 5-10 posts ready to go, and maybe even sneakily post them ahead of time. I have 55 posts to go before the the year which is roughly 9 posts a month. After taking away the remaining 25 week notes, I am left with 30 posts in 6 months which is a much more reasonable sounding 5 posts a month... I've added a schedule to my calendar to help remind me to post! Wish me luck! * * * This is post 46 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-26This week was a bit on the warm side wasn't it? This meant I didn't really have much energy left for things outside of work, and staying cool/alive... I think we got to the upper 30s last week and the UK hit hottest June day records several days running last week. The portable air conditioner we bought back in 2023 is still paying dividends. We 'upgraded' to a longer vent pipe and stuffed that through the loft hatch. This meant we didn't need to leave the window open overnight, and made the whole thing much more efficient. Reddit says I should get a second pipe, but I am quite happy with the bedroom sitting at 22°C allowing us a comfortable night's sleep. ### Reading I finished 'This Inevitable Ruin', and started 'Startup Hell' which is corporate satire crossed with fantasy/romance which isn't my usual stomping grounds. In 'Startup Hell', Morgan is a sales person in a tech company who can't decide what their product is.. She crossed paths with a Demon from another plane and well, I was hooked from the very start. ### Gaming I didn't play much except Raccoin which was a new purchase in the Steam summer sale. Think '2p machine' meets Balatro. Lots of fun, highly addictive. Much cheaper than a trip to an actual arcade. I also played a little bit of Hyrule Warriors whilst I am searching for a new 'long game' to sink my teeth in. I still can't decide what to play which is always a bad place to find yourself and usually means I should step away for a little while. Over the weekend I installed Bazzite and removed Windows from my life except my work laptop. Loving it so far. Being away from Debian/Ubuntu has put me out of my comfort zone but that means I am learning things! I used Claude to help fix my time tracking script, and that is now running in the background starting and stopping time entries automatically. I also got it to help write some helper scripts for Sunshine to turn off my second screen, and set the resolution to 1920x1080 for streaming. I did mess around with trying to create a virtual display, but I've had no luck so far except managing to make the system unbootable, but thanks to the immutability of Bazzite, it was as simple as chosing the other entry on the boot menu to recover, then rolling back the update. I'll document the game tracking setup, as well as my experiences with Bazzite in upcoming posts. ### Top song My most listened to song last week was "The Fate of Ophelia" ### Worth a watch ### Time Tracking Summary 🎮 5h12m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 3h57m reading 🚗 2h34m driving 💤 49h22m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 1h26m being active I listened to 199 songs, my most listened to artist was Metric. I walked 27452 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 🎮 RACCOIN: Coin Pusher Roguelike - 4h21m 📖 Startup Hell - Caitlin Rozakis - 2h43m 📖 This Inevitable Ruin - Matt Dinniman - 1h12m 🎮 Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition - 0h32m * * * This is post 45 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comHow to remap keyboard buttons in LinuxWe have a laptop with a broken arrow key. It's quite annoying! I wondered how easy it would be to remap a different key to be the right arrow key? Turns out it was dead easy on Linux. This can be achieved using an application called Keyd. This was painless to install from source on Pop_OS. It works system wide, and is not limited to your user session. It can also seemingly remap the annoying Copilot key if you happen to have a recent laptop. git clone https://github.com/rvaiya/keyd cd keyd make && sudo make install sudo systemctl enable --now keyd Once installed, you need to edit the config file at /etc/keyd/default.conf. Mine now looks like this as I remapped the Right Ctrl to be the right arrow key. The ids section lets you filter events from specific keyboards or mice. I don't need to do this, so I left it as * which means 'everything'. [ids] * [main] rightcontrol = right Once this has done, reload keyd by running `sudo keyd reload` and you should be set. Per the documentation, if you need to remap different keys you can run `sudo keyd monitor` ### Reading keyd Monitor Output ... keyd virtual keyboard 0fac:0ade:bea394c0 d down keyd virtual keyboard 0fac:0ade:bea394c0 d up keyd virtual keyboard 0fac:0ade:bea394c0 leftshift down keyd virtual keyboard 0fac:0ade:bea394c0 d down keyd virtual keyboard 0fac:0ade:bea394c0 d up keyd virtual keyboard 0fac:0ade:bea394c0 leftshift up Basilisk X HyperSpeed Mouse 1532:0082:86d19e94 leftmouse down Basilisk X HyperSpeed Mouse 1532:0082:86d19e94 leftmouse up ... When you run `sudo keyd monitor`, it shows you all key press events. Using this, I was able to determine I needed to remap 'right' * * * This is post 44 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comA visit to BBC Gardeners World LiveWe went to BBC Gardeners' World Live at the NEC near Birmingham last weekend after meaning to go for several years. My wife loves our garden and has spent a ton of time in ours since we moved here so she was very excited! The outdoor show gardens were a major highlight of the day and the headline Evolution Garden was awe-inspiring. We'd also booked tickets to see Professor Alice Roberts give a talk related to it. She was completely captivating. The talk and the garden complemented each other really well, and together they were easily the best part of the day. My other favourite stand was the Garden Model Railway. They had miniature steam engines running around a beautiful garden. They even have their own show next April which will be going into our 2027 plans. The indoor halls were predictably less relaxing. Packed to the rafters, slow-moving crowds and the persistent ambient noise of a thousand conversations at the same time. The air conditioning was good though! As you'd expect at the NEC food and drink was eye-wateringly expensive. A small iced latte came in at £6, as did a small ice cream. I paid it, because I wanted a coffee and an icecream. We'd told ourselves that we weren't going to buy anything but came home with some lovely new flowers for the garden. This also necessitated picking up a fancy folding trolley. I think they probably made the most out of all the vendors throughout the show. If you're planning a visit, go around outside first, book a talk, and bring a flask! * A model garden railway display with vintage travel posters * Foxgloves and salvia freshly bought at the show * A dinosaur model nestled among ferns in the evolution garden * Heading home with a trolley full of plants * * * This is post 42 of #100DaysToOffload. × ❮ ❯ * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-25The Adventures of Elliot released last week so I downloaded the demo and got stuck in. The game is fun but I don't think it's a 'full price' game for me. I am a sucker for things that resemble 2D Zelda titles, and this game hits all the right notes. Definitely one to put on my Wishlist for the winter sale (or beyond) I did try and play some more Cybersleuth but now I realise now is not the time. After not playing for a week or so, I couldn't figure out where to go without a guide. I don't know if I missed something, or if the game is simply tedious. Perhaps I'll try it again at some point with a fresh mind but for now it's off the backlog. On a more positive note, I spent a chunk of time catching some of the legend fish in Cast n Chill whilst relaxing in our hammock. I went out to simply test if Moonlight streaming would work from the garden on my iPad and I can confirm it definitely worked perfectly. Given the forecast for the upcoming week , I doubt I'll be playing many games in the evenings as I would prefer it didn't die from overheating. I made a massive dent in This Inevitable Ruin but didn't manage to quite finish it. The story is wild, and I honestly didn't see where it was going at all. Very excited to see out the end of the story over the next few nights. I might even jump straight into the next Dungeon Crawler Carl book! Over the weekend, we were quite busy. Saturday saw a trip to the tip which is always great. Another car load of junk has left the building! If it wasn't going to be so hot this week, we'd probably continue to sort the garage out which still has unopened boxes from our move nearly two years ago... I also finally installed a hanging basket bracket for my wife (drilling holes in the outside of our house always terrifies me) and we also connected our new water butt. Therefore, you can blame/thank me for the weather this week. Sunday saw a trip to BBC Gardeners World Live. We'd told ourselves we weren't going to buy any more plants, and well... Me with all the plants we totally weren't going to buy plus our fancy new folding trolley We watched a talk from Professor Alice Roberts and saw the flagship evolution garden on display. A highlight for me was the Garden Railway stand! Turns out they have their own show which is in the diary for 2027. Miniature Train heading through a station surrounded by a garden Last week I spent... 🎮️ 3h42m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 3h43m reading 🚗 5h18m driving 💤 53h44m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 2h28m being active I listened to 158 songs, my most listened to artist was Metric. I walked 35110 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 📖 This Inevitable Ruin - Matt Dinniman - 3h41m 🎮️ The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales Demo - 1h28m 🎮️ Cast n Chill - 1h18m 🎮️ Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition - 0h47m 🎮️ OpenRCT2 - 0h7m * * * This is post x of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-24I know I like to say this, but is it really half way through June already? This week was the calm after the storm that was last weekend. 👾 Golf with your Friends has become our midweek evening activity. I bought some extra courses this week as they're on sale currently on Steam. I also started playing OpenRCT2 because I wanted to see how it looked on my new ultrawide monitor. There is so much room for activities! I decided to slowly work my way through each scenario in order just like I did back in the day. To round off the week I played a bit (read: lot) more Cast n Chill. I unlocked several new maps, and just had a fantastic time doing not very much. I was so hooked (pun intended) that I stayed up considerably passed my normal bed time. On the other hand, I'm struggling to find motivation to get back to Digimon Cybersleuth. I knew deep down I should have avoided another behemoth RPG... * * * 📖 I continued reading This Inevitable Ruin from the Dungeon Crawler Carl series. Carl and Donut continue to delight and I should have it wrapped up this week, I think. * * * 🎶 My most listened to song last week was Avicii - Wake Me Up * * * 👀 Videos I found interesting * * * Last week I spent... 🎮 8h19m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 1h57m reading 🚗 2h34m driving 💤 44h29m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 3h12m being active I listened to 80 songs, my most listened to artist was Metric. I walked 35009 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 🎮 Cast n Chill - 3h19m 🎮 Golf With Your Friends - 2h50m 📖 This Inevitable Ruin - Matt Dinniman - 1h57m 🎮 OpenRCT2 - 1h6m 🎮 Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition - 0h47m * * * This is post 40 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-23This week was a busy one! We headed to London for the weekend and managed to complete the following in just under 48 hours. A more detailed weekend blog post will be coming soon. Here is the 'too long; didn't read' version: * British Museum to see the Rosetta stone and the Elgin Marbles. We also saw some Egyptian mummies! 🧻 * My Neighbour Totoro at Gillian Lynne Theatre * A 50th Birthday Party (which was the actual reason for the entire trip!) * Kew Gardens which is somewhere we've always wanted to go but it's so far out of the way normally * National Trust Hughenden - A Sneaky visit to a NT site just off the M40. * * * I did start a new massive JRPG (after saying just a few weeks ago that I wouldn't).. This time it's Digimon Cyber Sleuth but I did really enjoy the time I spent with it early last week. It is evoking nostalgic memories of when I first played Pokémon nearly 30 years ago. I have absolutely no idea what any of the Digimon are or if they're any good. This is exactly how I remember feeling when I first ventured into Pokémon Red Version as a child, and it's such a delightful feeling. I'll get back to that soon this week. On the reading front, I made solid progress with This Inevitable Ruin. I didn't back my e-reader for our trip though, so that fell off by the weekend. Looking back I probably made the right choice leaving it at home as we had barely any downtime at all. Being out and about for two solid days really boosted our step counts for the week. I **really** need to keep that up this week. 🤷‍♂️ ### Things to Watch ### Some photos of the weekend Marble Horse Head - from the group of horses that pulled the moon goddesses chariot An fancy looking goose at Kew Gardens View from the Tree Top Walk at Kew - Temperate House glasshouse is in the background Find your Spirit - My Neighbour Totoro theatre advert The house at Hughenden, Buckinghamshire A zoomed photo shot of a Turkish Airlines plane overhead Kew Gardens shortly before it landed at London Heathrow ### Time Tracking Summary Last week I spent... 🎮 3h20m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 2h13m reading 🚗 8h57m driving 💤 51h32m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 2h24m being active I listened to 146 songs, my most listened to artist was Taylor Swift. I walked 49089 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 🎮 Digimon Story Cyber Sleuth: Complete Edition - 2h52m 📖 This Inevitable Ruin - Matt Dinniman - 2h12m 🎮 OpenRCT2 - 0h26m How to Comment To leave a comment, head to Mastodon, or sign my Guestbook * * * This is post 39 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-22Another week? Our portable aircon saved us last week. Yes, I saw the Technology Connections video. I don't care. They work well enough for us to take 4-5 degrees off a room before bed. As the saying goes: Don't let perfect be the enemy of good! Amongst all the heat, and sun it turns out I forgot to go outside for the most part. Working from home combined with laziness is a bad combination. This week it'll be much cooler, so perhaps I'll make it outside at least once! I started the second Phoenix Wright game in the Ace Attorney Trilogy on Switch. I really like that they added Story mode to this game as it means I might actually finish it this decade. We also played some Golf with Your Friends on the TV together. Perhaps jumping into the 'Worms' levels as our second course was a bit too much. Tons of fun though. And with the news that Witcher 3 is getting another expansion in 2027, I thought I'd reinstall it and give it another go. I did the first few story missions, and haven't been back. It still didn't really click with me. Maybe I should try a 'god-mode' mod, and "play for the story". 🤫 On the book front, I am well into the seventh Dungeon Crawler Carl book. Not much to say about it except that it's difficult to put down when it's time for sleeping. Last week I spent... 🎮 7h32m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 3h26m reading 🚗 2h19m driving 💤 49h44m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 0h51m being active I listened to 46 songs, my most listened to artist was Metric. I walked 22079 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 🎮 Phoenix Wright Ace Attorney Trilogy - 4h10m 📖 This Inevitable Ruin - Matt Dinniman - 3h24m 🎮 Golf With Your Friends - 1h34m 🎮 The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - 1h17m 🎮 Pokémon Polished Crystal - 0h28m ### Things to Read * Junited 2026 found via James' Coffee Blog. If I want people to link to me, perhaps I should link to them more often... :) My Junited26 page can be found here. ### Videos to Watch * * * This is post 38 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-21I finished a book, and a game this week! Highly unusual for me. In other news this week, it's hot. Apparently the hottest May for a very long time. Therefore I'm hiding out with two large fans writing my week note in my dark study. I started Jingo by Terry Pratchett last weekend and didn't want to put it down. I finished it last night before bed. I hadn't always gotten on with the Watch stories of Discworld, but I feel like this was the best one yet. I finished the main story in Dragon Quest II 2D HD last week as well. As with all JRPGs, the ending felt artificially long but it landed in a good place. Naturally the credits teased me with post-game content that I will not be partaking in. Work has provided me with a 34 inch ultra-wide monitor this week. It was the last perk of going into our actual office, and I am glad to finally have one on my desk at home. I'm definitely more productive on this screen compared to my old 28 inch 4k screen. Not having to flick between windows is brilliant. My gaming PC is mostly up to the task of ultrawide gaming which is handy. I spent a bit of time in Train Simulator World 6 (at 30fps..), Dragon Quest II (with a resolution patch that I'd actually installed for Moonlight streaming 4:3 resolution to my iPad that happily also worked the other way), and Euro Truck Simulator. I haven't really decided what I am going to deep dive into next, but it probably isn't going to be another long RPG for a little while. Out in the real world, we went for a few evening walks after work making good on my plan to actually leave the house voluntarily. I also managed to swap the boot lift struts in my car. The dealers want mega money (we're talking over £1000 for an out of warranty job) but I'd seen YouTube that they are pretty much plug and play and don't require any actual tools - a new set was ordered on eBay for £100 and it took me about 45 minutes to swap them over. The boot closes quietly without stopping half way down now! Success! * * * ### Recent Posts * _ 24 May, 2026 _ A Bank Holiday at Blists Hill Victorian Town * _ 23 May, 2026 _ Shropshire Saturday * _ 18 May, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-20 ### Last week I spent... 🎮 8h24m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 2h49m reading 🚗 3h52m driving 💤 49h57m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 1h59m being active I listened to 160 songs, my most listened to artist was Ava Max. I walked 29836 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 🎮 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake - 4h34m 📖 Jingo - Terry Pratchett - 2h49m 🎮 Cast n Chill - 1h14m 🎮 Euro Truck Simulator 2 - 1h1m 🎮 Train Sim World 6 - 0h54m 🎮 Forza Horizon 4 - 0h27m 🎮 EVERYBODY'S GOLF HOT SHOTS - 0h11m * * * * * * This is post 37 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comA Bank Holiday at Blists Hill Victorian TownBlists Hill Victorian Town reopened last Thursday, so we thought we'd finally go and check it out over the bank holiday weekend. The National Trust recently took over the management of the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust earlier this year. A lot has been said from both camps but for us as paying National Trust members... we think it's great! Just make sure you book a timed entry ticket! Welcome to Blists Hill Blists Hill Victorian Town is an open‑air living history museum in the Ironbridge Gorge that recreates a small Shropshire town around 1900, complete with relocated and reconstructed buildings, costumed demonstrators, and working Victorian‑era shops and industries. I immediately noticed a sign offering a free guided tour at 11.30, and since it was 11.20 we waited in the shade expectantly. The tour did not disappoint, and explained some of the background of the museum site. Once again, always take the tour if you can! The tour guide explained the origin of the name which is apparently a corruption of "Blessed Hill" because the men mining here all those years ago realised they wouldn't be moving on any time soon as there was that much material to mine here. After the tour, we were tempted by the chip shop that smelt amazing however a sign said the chips were cooked in beef fat so that was a no-go for us. Instead we popped into the sweet shop and bought a stick of rock to enjoy. We walked along the old canal (wouldn't it be amazing if the National Trust managed to re-water this stretch!) towards the Hay Inclined Plane. This was how they got boats up to the site when it was operational. It was in use between 1793 to 1894 and helped a team of men to raise boats a height of 63 metres in a matter of minutes using gravity. At this point we were glad we'd walked this way around the loop. The steps down the side of the Inclined Plane were pretty big, and today was the hottest day of 2026 so far. Walking up would have sucked! Walking into the woods was a refreshing break from the sun - the shade was a welcome respite. We emerged from the woods, immediately found the cafe then continued to hide from the Sun whilst eating scones. We continued around the loop back towards the main street, being interrupted by a low flying Douglas DC-3 plane. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera ready so didn't manage to snap any cool photos. It was loud and low! Flightradar said it was a "Battle of Britain Memorial Flight". We managed to explore the bakery, bank, and pharmacy. In each, we got to speak to the demonstrators running the 'shops' and learn something interesting about each. Unfortunately, the pub was absolutely rammed so we had to give it a miss. Overall we had a very nice day out however it's worth noting that quite a few buildings are still not fully open at Blists Hill so perhaps you won't get the full experience for a few months yet. They have nine other museums in the area so we'll be back once a few more of these are operational under the National Trust banner. * Victorian-era buildings and the Blists Hill Goods Station * Historic blast furnaces stand amid stone foundations and greenery, remnants of a once-thriving industrial site. * Hay Inclined Plane climb steeply showing the old tracks * Scones (with blackcurrant jam), clotted cream, jam, and orange juice. * The canal on site bordered by vegetation with the old head frame in the background * Shelves of colourful glass bottles and labeled jars fill the pharmacy * * * ### Other National Trust Posts * _ 24 May, 2026 _ A Bank Holiday at Blists Hill Victorian Town * _ 23 May, 2026 _ Shropshire Saturday * _ 25 Apr, 2026 _ Dolphin Spotting, Gold Mines, and Coastal Walks: A Week in West Wales 🐬 * _ 13 Apr, 2026 _ A year of National Trust Visits * _ 01 Mar, 2026 _ National Trusting in Devon * _ 25 Jan, 2026 _ Unblogged 2025, part 2 * _ 28 May, 2025 _ Unblogged 2025 * _ 09 Mar, 2024 _ Kinver Edge and the Rock Houses * _ 25 Feb, 2024 _ Henrhyd Falls - Visiting the Highest Waterfall in South Wales * * * How to Comment To leave a comment, head to Mastodon, or sign my Guestbook * * * This is post 36 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * * × ❮ ❯
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comShropshire SaturdayA few weeks ago we took a trip to Sunnycroft near Telford. This is a small National Trust site open for tours on one weekend every month, followed by a picnic lunch at nearby Attingham Park. Walking up to the house at Sunnycorft along the driveway lined with giant redwoods felt magical and really pulls your attention away from the fact that the house now sits right in the middle of modern housing estates. Sunnycroft's Driveway lined with towering Redwoods We always take a guided tour if there’s one availableas the volunteers are brilliant. They are full of stories and context you’d never pick up just wandering around on your own. Sunnycroft was built by a local Wellington brewer and later sold to Mary Slaney in the 1890s. She made many improvements to the house, and eventually it passed to Joan Lander who installed electricity in 1964 which feels surprisingly late! She gifted the house to the National Trust in 1997, and it opened to the public in 1999. The greenhouse at Sunnycroft is something special. It’s believed to be one of the few surviving Halliday conservatories, and it’s Grade II listed. I could happily spend an afternoon there curled up in a comfortable chair, reading a book, surrounded by the warmth and greenery. * View of Sunny Croft House, Wellington * Grade II Listed Glass Halliday Conservatory at Sunnycroft As Sunnycroft is a relatively short visit, we decided to head to Attingham Park after deciding we didn't fancy walking the Wrekin. A picnic lunch in the ground was top of the agenda, then a walk around the deer park to play some more with our new camera. We skipped the house this time as we’d visited last year. It was a glorious early spring day and I was very glad I’d put on sun cream. The grounds at Attingham are always worth a revisit! How I wish this was our local property! * View of the house at Attingham * Deer in the deer park at Attingham * Rabbits enjoying the sun at Attingham * Blooms in the Walled Garden at Attingham * * * How to Comment To leave a comment, head to Mastodon, or sign my Guestbook * * * This is post 34 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * * × ❮ ❯
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-20Another week spent in the valley. We completed the community centre bundles in Stardew Valley which is usually where I bounce of the game for the next 12-18 months, honestly. However I carried on and we crafted a ton of quality sprinklers and now have far too many fruits and vegetables to process in a sane amount of time. I think we have space for something like 550 crops on our farm. It's a massive chore getting the fields ready on Day 1 when you still have to water. I did manage to catch a Legendary Fish though. That was cool. I've stopped playing mostly but since we were smart enough to host the save file on my wife's Switch she can keep playing without me. Apparently time in Skull Cavern slows down in single player so I not sure if I will ever be welcome back?? The rest of my week was mostly spent reading. I finished Monkey King, and thought it was overall pretty decent. The ending felt rushed, but that could just be a by-product of the translation I read. I started Jingo by Terry Pratchett. I am not a massive fan of the Watch stories, but I am warming to this one so far. I feel a pang of sadness each time I read a Discworld book and inch ever closer to the final one. We watched Good Omens Season 3 on Prime. Whilst it was obviously rushed (being cut down to a single long episode), I don't really get the hate. I'll leave it at that though... One thing I forgot to do last week was go outside. Oops. I should try and be better next week. 🫠 Every day we've been watching Sam Culley hike the South West Coast Path, learnt about crazy Stardew Valley speedruns, and watched Tom Scott explore the worlds first "smart house". Last week I spent... 🎮 11h8m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 4h21m reading 🚗 2h9m driving 💤 52h11m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 0h55m being active I listened to 139 songs, my most listened to artist was Metric. I walked 16214 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 🎮 Stardew Valley - 9h16m 📖 Monkey King: Journey to the West - Julia Lovell - 2h18m 📖 Jingo - Terry Pratchett - 2h2m 🎮 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake - 1h15m 🎮 Mario Kart 7 - 0h35m * * * How to Comment To leave a comment, head to Mastodon, or sign my Guestbook * * * This is post 34 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-19Last week was mostly devoted to Stardew Valley. We've made it to Winter Year 1 on our new farm save; we've just expanded our barns and now have cows, pigs as well as a bunch of chickens in the coop. Unfortunately, someone sold something he wasn't supposed to, which means we won't be able to complete the community centre by the end of the first year. 😅 Next week, I might dust off one of my 3DS consoles and playing something a bit simpler and older. I'm thinking Pilot Wings, or maybe Mario Kart 7. I read a bit more of my current book too but otherwise we didn't really do much. It was a slow kind of week. I am still slowly losing weight which is great however I do really need to pull my socks up and start walking more again. Thoughts continue to swirl in my head about another step challenge for myself but I am nothing if not lazy. 🫠 I think I'd like to get to 50,000 steps next week. ### Things to Watch I watched this last week on Nebula, but now you can watch it for free on YouTube this week. Tom Scott has returned to his rightly place as King of Monday evening: It's puffin season! Enjoy this live stream from the National Trust: Enjoy the surprisingly deep history of Nintendo's Wuhu Island: ### Last week I spent... 🎮 9h52m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 1h6m reading 🚗 4h1m driving 💤 51h12m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 2h39m being active I listened to 141 songs, my most listened to artist was Alan Walker. I walked 32345 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 🎮 Stardew Valley - 9h52m 📖 Monkey King: Journey to the West - Julia Lovell - 1h5m * * * This is post 33 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-18Last week was quite a good one: I was super productive at work, we visited a new National Trust property (and revisited an old favourite), and we've just generally been enjoying things! I started and finished the first season of "Solo Leveling" because I trawled for a new show without too many episodes to commit to and I really enjoyed it! The 'game' aesthetic it has reminded me of Dungeon Crawler Carl. Looking forward to watching season two at some point soon. Dragon Quest II got some play time too because I used early mornings before I started work. This was time I'd otherwise have spent doom scrolling so it was a great use of a few otherwise dead hours considering I am awake anyway! I didn't play anything else this weekl; perhaps I need to go back to having a short (or endless) and a long game in my rotation. I still haven't gotten back into a consistent reading habit yet, but Monkey King has gotten me hooked. I'm hoping to finish it this week or next. Over the weekend we visited National Trust Sunnycroft which is a relatively small house with an interesting story of the families who lived here. I highly recommend booking a guided tour to get the most out of it! Sunnycroft House Afterwards we headed to Attingham Park as it was just 15 minutes down the road. At Attingham, we skipped the house and headed for the grounds to find somewhere to eat lunch and have another play around with our new camera. I learnt that I really must buy a tripod at some point because I am far too shaky for a high powered zoom lens. Attingham House viewed from the Deer Park Fallow Deer at Attingham Park Bunnies at Attingham ### Things to Watch ### Last week I spent... 🎮 1h49m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 1h10m reading 🚗 4h56m driving 💤 54h48m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 2h10m being active I listened to 239 songs, my most listened to artist was Metric. I walked 33790 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 🎮 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake - 1h48m 📖 Monkey King: Journey to the West - Julia Lovell - 1h10m * * * This is post 32 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comHow to subscribe to my blogThis is a post for friends and family who sometimes ask "How can I actually subscribe to your blog?". It's a fair question, as I do not cross post to Facebook or other similar platforms. You can also always just ask me to send you the link to my latest posts on whichever messaging app we are connected on if you prefer! ### Using a feed reader You can subscribe to my RSS feed using apps like NetNewsWire on iOS, and Mac or Feeder on Android. Using a feed reader means your chosen app will automatically receive my latest posts as soon as they are available. It also means you don't need to sign up for any additional services or provide any data to 3rd parties (unless you choose a hosted RSS service) The feed you need to subscribe to is https://www.jamesleighton.com/feed/ ### Email There are also many RSS to Email services available. I'm not going to recommend any in particular because I've not used them, but take a look at some of these services that convert my feed into an email you can receive. Note that you need to provide your email address to their services so make sure to check out their privacy policies if you care about that kind of thing. * BlogTrottr * FeedRabbit * Feedmail * RSS by Email I don't run my own newsletter service because that gets quite complicated quite quickly. * * * This is post 31 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-17Last week felt like a blur. Being back at work after over a week off is never fun, but I was so busy that five days felt more like three. I started playing two new games: Tavern Keeper and Under Par Golf Architect. Tavern Keeper is an absolutely fantastic management game amongst the likes of Two Point Hospital (or Theme Hospital, if you are a little bit older...) I played through the first two scenarios over the weekend, and Tavern Keeper managed to keep me up way past my bedtime for the first time in ages. I really want to like Under Par Golf Architect but honestly it feels a bit underbaked. The core premise is absolutely fantastic: build the best golf course and you can even play your own courses! The implementation fell a bit flat for me though; terraforming felt like a chore so most of my courses were mostly flat affairs, the path finding for your players was also quite comically bad: even if you set waypoints, they would aim straight for the hole regardless of any obstacles you placed in the way. This means you can't currently holes that dogleg around obstacles or even holes that bend back on themselves around a bunch of trees. Hopefully it will get some updates soon. This week I started Monkey King Journey to the West, and I've been enjoying the first few chapters. This Chinese epic is described as the inspiration for works such as Dragon Ball, Enslaved: Odyssey to the West and more recently Black Myth: Wukong. This week I am going to try and consistently read before bed. I've slacked off on this for the last few months, and really want to get back into that habit. I also need to get back into a walking habit. I'll think about starting myself another step challenge, as I've mostly stopped getting out and about on my WFH days. We did buy a camera this week though; perhaps that will get me out more? I've been doing really quite well with my diet that I've lost over 5kg over the last few months. Getting back into my steps will compound those efforts I am sure. Bluebell Valley at Walton Hill, Clent We went on a National Trust guided walk over the weekend at the Clent Hills. I'll probably write a separate post about that, but I will say that about one third of my weekly steps actually occurred yesterday... My music this week mostly consisted of Metric's new album 'Romanticize The Dive'! ### Time Tracking Summary Last week I spent... 🎮 5h13m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 0h46m reading 🚗 8h27m driving 💤 50h17m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 3h42m being active I listened to 310 songs, my most listened to artist was Metric. I walked 33221 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 🎮 Tavern Keeper 🍻 - 5h4m 📖 Monkey King: Journey to the West - Julia Lovell - 0h46m 🎮 Cast n Chill - 0h8m #### Other Weeks * _ 27 Apr, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-17 * _ 20 Apr, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-16 * _ 13 Apr, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-15 * _ 06 Apr, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-14 * _ 29 Mar, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-13 * _ 22 Mar, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-12 * _ 17 Mar, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-11 * _ 09 Mar, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-10 * _ 01 Mar, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-09 * _ 22 Feb, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-08 * _ 16 Feb, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-07 * _ 08 Feb, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-06 * _ 02 Feb, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-05 * _ 26 Jan, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-04 * _ 19 Jan, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-03 * _ 11 Jan, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-02 * _ 04 Jan, 2026 _ Week Notes - 2026-01 * _ 05 Oct, 2025 _ Week Notes - 2025-40 * _ 28 Sep, 2025 _ Week Notes - 2025-39 * * * This is post 30 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comDolphin Spotting, Gold Mines, and Coastal Walks: A Week in West Wales 🐬We recently spent a week in Wales - the goal for the week was to see dolphins, but we also visited some National Trust Properties along the way. My wife has wanted to see dolphins for the longest time so the trip ticked multiple boxes. We started off with a tour of the Victorian gold mine at Dolaucothi, Carmathenshire. This National Trust site was so very different from the usual house/garden combination that I think it ranks nearly at the top of my list for "best sites to visit". ### Dolaucothi Gold Mine and Llanerchaeron Dolaucothi has been mined over thousands of years, but not for very long each time. The Romans found gold here, and in fact these are the only known Roman gold mine across Britain. After the Romans left, the site laid dormant until the Victorians came along in the 19th century and a new group in the early 20th century before the site closed in 1938 for good. My wife's great, great, great grandfather obtained a licence to mine gold here in 1871! I didn't take many photos from the mine tour because our group was so small (only 6 people on our tour!), there wasn't much time to stop and take photos. However, a memory that will stick with me is when we turned off our head lamps, and the guide lit a candle. Crazy to think about the working conditions here over the centuries. The candle was blown out, and the resulting darkness was unreal. There was so little light that it was impossible to see your hand if you put it directly in front of your face. To exit the mine, we were given the choice of leaving by the level route we'd entered by or by climbing the "roman stairs". Less stairs, more like a steep ladder! We clambered up the ridiculously uneven steps one by one grasping the very wet rope as we went. It took about a minute to ascend, but it felt much longer - this is another memory that will stick with me for a long time. After completing the guided Victorian Mine tour, you can head to a self guided walk through the Roman mines. We got our kit, and set off through the woods. It was a bit weird walking through the woods with a helmet, but it also felt strange to carry it... After a short while, we made it to the entrance of the mine and entered. It felt like a tunnel I'd build in Minecraft. Dead straight, directly through the hill. Just standing here and absorbing the history felt great. We exited the Roman mine, and it immediately started hailing! Better than rain we thought! The walk through the rest of the site lead through some farm land, passed ruins of the old processing buildings and looped back around to the main site. All in all, a very interesting day out. On the way back to New Quay, we stopped at Llanerchaeron. This was a more typical National Trust affair consisting of a Georgian house, plus a large well maintained garden. No magnet for sale that we could see in the shop though! The house had some curious taxidermy specimens; I don't recall seeing too many fish or snakes before. The garden and lake were spectacular! The weather had cleared off (this would be a reoccurring theme for the week) leaving glorious sunshine. I would include this property along with Dolaucothi on a list of things to do if you find yourself in West Wales at any point. ### Dolphin Spotting We booked an afternoon dolphin spotting cruise but received a phone call a day earlier to let us know that not enough people had booked our timeslot and therefore it likely wouldn't run. We swapped onto an earlier cruise that already had some bookings and this trip thankfully did run. Our tour was with "New Quay Boat Trips" We walked into New Quay from the Haven site (along the coastal path, this takes around 20 minutes) and waited on the harbour wall for our time. The boat Suncatcher pulled in, and away we went. Our trip headed west along the coast in the direction of Cardigan - we get as far as Cwmtydu Cove which apparently has quite a history of smuggling! We saw sea birds, seals, but unfortunately no dolphins on the trip. They are wild animals, and the sea isn't a zoo so sometimes that does happen. The host of the tour was super interesting, and we learnt quite a few new things about the animals we did see so we didn't feel as though we'd wasted our money. At the top of the cliff we saw an observation post which they told us was about a 45 minute walk along the coastal path so we committed to walking out there later in the week. Towards the end of our trip (luckily...) one of the boats engines cut out, and they couldn't make the turn required to get back into dock. They sent out another smaller boat, and we were transferred over. They didn't seem overly concerned, so I suppose this has happened before. Thankfully the sea was pretty calm so all went well. Still, what an interesting thing to happen! ### The Coastal Path A few days later, we packed our lunch and set off west along the coastal path. The start of the path from New Quay is very steep but soon levels out once you reach the top of the cliff around New Quay Head. The walk from that point is pleasant, and you get good views of the cliffs and out to Cardigan Bay. I plotted a route using the Ordnance Survey mapping tools, and it said there is 150m of elevation gain along the walk from the bottom in New Quay to the observation hut. We saw more sea birds (including cormorants, and herring gulls), a seal on the same rock as a few days prior (probably the same one!), and finally we saw a dolphin! We were told to keep an eye out for the tour boats because the dolphins like to play with them. This turned out to be very good advise because we saw both Suncatcher and a small private boat seemingly stop for no reason. After a few moments, a dolphin surfaced behind the boats! Further along the coastal path, we came to the observation post we saw from the boat. This was an ideal spot to stop for lunch. This building was originally built in the 19th century as a look-out point for the coast guard, and it is preserved today to allow us to stop for lunch! After contemplating the views for a while, we headed back into New Quay. * * * We spent the rest of the week recharging our batteries, and generally having a nice time. The swimming pool at Haven Quay West is small but serviceable for a daily dip. We didn't try the main menu food at the on-site pub (Mash and Barrel) because we ordered some chips on Saturday night and they managed to screw those up so we didn't have any confidence in their other offerings. One evening we decided to partake in the entertainment. And won a lovely bottle of Lambrini because we someone won the quiz by one point... Not really sure how everyone else was so bad that meant we won, ha! We sat on the beach for hours the following day, and on another day we went to see some local family which was nice as we rarely do get to see them! The weather was mixed, but honestly it was how we like it. Not too hot, not too cold. A bit rainy, but very changeable. Nothing a good rain coat can't sort, and exactly the weather you should expect if you come to Wales in early spring time. On the way home we dropped into Powis Castle (getting more use out of our National Trust Membership) to break the journey. We will certainly consider doing this in the future as National Trust sites are much nicer rest stops than crappy petrol stations. Throughout the week we managed to visit two National Trust properties, successfully saw a dolphin, and spent tons of quality time together away from the realities of day to day life. * Mine Headframe at Dolaucothi * Victoian Mine Entrance at Dolaucothi * Dolaucothi Roman Mine - dead straight! * Dolaucothi Main Site * Llanerchaeron House * Lake at Llanerchaeron * View over Newquay from the coastal path * Suncatcher Boat heading out from Newquay * a selfie onboard Suncatcher * View of New Quay from the harbour wall * "Craig Yr Adar" national trust Sign along coastal path * A windy selfie on the Coastal path * Observation Station along the coastal path * Milly using her new binoculars to peep on birds * Milly trying not to get blown over on the beach * RNLI Lifeboat being recovered * View from the caravan with a rainbow visible over Cardigan Bay * The fantasic food at Mariner's Cafe * * * This is post 29 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * * × ❮ ❯
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-16We spent 7 nights in a caravan in West Wales last week! The weather was about as good as you'd expect but with the right mindset and clothing, it is absolutely fine! A longer blog post will be coming soon detailing everything we got up to but here's the short version: * Dolphin Spotting Boat Tour * Roman Gold Mine Tour * Coastal Path Walks * Fish and Chips * New Stardew Valley Farm Ceredigion Coastal Path - Craig yr Adar ### Watched 🎥 We paid £10 to upgrade our caravan with a larger TV, which was totally worth it for a 7 night stay. It meant we could actually enjoy some movies and TV shows after spending all day out and about. We finished the new season of Love on the Spectrum which was very good. Perhaps we see a little bit of ourselves in the people on the show? We also watched "The Map of Perfect Tiny Things" which I highly recommend. It made us realise we should slow down sometimes, and just enjoy the things happening around us. Weirdly the next day we spoke to someone about the fact that a Spitfire plane was flying down from North Wales later that day, and without any planning we actually managed to spot it! ### Played 🎲 We played Mists of Carcassonne for the first time, and I don't think we really understood the rules fully. We kept losing because we'd run out of ghosts which seems to be a common complaint when I had a search online. Perhaps we'll give it another go soon after watching some playthroughs on Youtube first. Stardew Valley was our video game of choice this holiday. We started another new farm, and got to work. It's one of the few video games I play with my wife which makes it even more special. She loves it, I love playing it with her. What's not to like? We randomised the Community Centre bundles this time, and we still cannot convince ourselves to go the JoJo Mart route even after all these years! ## Read 📚 I finished Baptism of Fire, and whilst I did enjoy it I thought the end was thoroughly rushed after quite a slow start to the story. Perhaps the action will pick up quickly in the next book? I think I'll read another Discworld book next. ### Time Tracking Summary Last week I spent... 🎮 11h31m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 2h4m reading 🚗 7h11m driving 💤 50h33m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 6h41m being active I listened to 145 songs, my most listened to artist was Taylor Swift. I walked 65829 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 🎮 Stardew Valley - 9h29m 📖 Baptism of Fire - Andrzej Sapkowski - 2h3m 🎮 Under Par Golf Architect - 2h0m * * * This is post 28 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comI started a photo blogI have decided to start a photo blog. This is a place for me to post photos I want to share whilst avoiding all the nasties of the modern internet. Find my photo blog at https://photos.jamesleighton.com and enjoy! You can follow using RSS, Bluesky, or Mastodon (@photos.jamesleighton.com@web.brid.gy) * * * This is post 27 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comA year of National Trust VisitsA year ago my wife received a joint National Trust membership from her grandparents for her birthday. We visited 24 places last year using the membership and found it such good value that we renewed for this year. We discovered that we simply found reasons to get out and about, to use the membership and visited so many places we wouldn't have. You will find my blog posts about some of these visits here. If we'd paid for entry, we would have spent nearly £650; A joint membership is £168 so the savings are real. Over the year we saw and touched real history including the house where Charles II hid (Moseley Old Hall) Isaac Newton's house (Woolsthorpe Manor) and even saw a Neanderthal skull in the Geological Gallery at Biddulph Grange Garden. Apparently NT membership is growing amongst the younger generations and it's easy to see why. Aren't we are looking for ways to unplug from the doom and gloom of modern day life? Nothing is better than walking around a woodland or garden, then finishing the day with a scone. ### Dudmaston Hall, Shropshire 21-Apr-2025 - Our first visit of the year - A 17th-century National Trust house in wooded parkland, known for its sweeping gardens and an important private art collection. ### Pont ar Daf car park, Brecon Beacons (South Wales) 9-May-2025 - This car park at the foot of Pen y Fan gives access to National Trust walking routes. We picked the day perfectly and had clear views for miles from the top of Pen-y-Fan. ### Attingham Park Estate: Cronkhill, Shropshire 11-May-2025 - Only open for limited viewing, Cronkhill is an Italianate villa on the Attingham Park Estate, designed by John Nash. ### Attingham Park Estate, Shropshire 11-May-2025 - An 18th-century estate featuring 200 acres of parkland and a Regency mansion—an “estate for all seasons.". One of the highlights of the year. ### Benthall Hall, Shropshire 15-May-2025 - Whilst the house was closed on the day we passed by, we still got to walk around the estate. ### Powis Castle and Garden, Mid Wales 16-May-2025 - An impressive medieval castle on a hill with a Grade I garden. Well worth a visit if you're in mid Wales ### Moseley Old Hall, Staffordshire 31-May-2025 - An atmospheric Elizabethan home famed for hiding King Charles II from Cromwell’s army. ### Calke Abbey, Derbyshire 28-Jun-2025 - Calke Abbey is the National Trust’s “un-stately” home, where peeling paint and abandoned rooms help tell a vivid story of country-house decline. ### Brockhampton, Herefordshire 20-Jul-2025 - A traditionally farmed estate built around a medieval manor house in the Herefordshire countryside. ### Lyme, Cheshire 5-Aug-2025 - A grand house and estate on the edge of the Peak District, with plenty of scenery to pair with a visit indoors. The outdoor scenes of 1995's Pride and Prejudice was filmed here, and we managed to book tickets on a walk around the filming locations on the estate. ### Biddulph Grange Garden, Staffordshire 7-Aug-2025 - A Victorian landscaped garden known for its “garden rooms,” created to showcase a wide range of plants from around the world. ### Westbury Court Garden, Gloucestershire 19-Aug-2025 - A Dutch water garden in Gloucestershire with formal canals, rare trees, and vegetable plots. ### Woolsthorpe Manor, Lincolnshire 5-Sep-2025 - Woolsthorpe Manor is the birthplace and family home of Sir Isaac Newton, tied to his early scientific work. The apple tree was an impressive sight. ### Chirk Castle, Wales 19-Oct-2025 - A 13th-century castle with award-winning gardens and acres of parkland in Chirk. ### Charlecourt Park, Warwickshire 23-Nov-2025 - A country house set within rural parkland near Stratford-upon-Avon. ### Knighthayes, Devon 13-Feb-2026 - The start of a long weekend of National Trust vists - A Devon estate with miles of 19th-century parkland and Gothic Revival architecture designed by William Burges. ### Coleton Fishacre, Devon 14-Feb-2026 - Coleton Fishacre is a coastal estate with an Arts-and-Crafts garden and a historic house overlooking the South West. ### Greenway, Devon 15-Feb-2026 - Agatha Christie’s former holiday home on the River Dart—now a National Trust property with a house-and-garden visit. ### Buckland Abbey, Devon 15-Feb-2026 - A centuries-spanning site blending a medieval abbey history with house highlights such as the Great Barn. ### Tyntesfield, Somerset 16-Feb-2026 - A spectacular Victorian Gothic Revival house with gardens and parkland just outside Bristol. ### Stourhead, Wiltshire 08-Mar-2026 - Stourhead is famous for its neo-classical landscape garden—temples, grottos and water features set within the estate ### Dolaucothi Gold Mines, Carmarthenshire 12-Apr-2026 - The UK’s only known Roman gold mine, set in the Cothi Valley and preserved for visitors. A thoroughly different National Trust experience. ### Llanerchaeron, Ceredigion 12-Apr-2026 - A Georgian villa by John Nash overlooking the Aeron valley with woods, meadows and a working farmyard surrounding the estate. * * * This is post 26 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-15This week we watched TV together and I focused on my reading. I'm not sure why, but I wasn't really feeling video games. On the media front we watched Love on the Spectrum US on Netflix, and the movie "Merv" on Amazon Prime. I have now been managing my diet for 5 weeks, and I am starting to notice some changes. Combining this with more activity as the weather slowly improves is surely a winner! ### Last week I spent... 🎮 0h34m video gaming 🎲 0h46m board gaming 📖 2h4m reading 🚗 7h14m driving 💤 51h24m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 3h24m being active I listened to 156 songs, my most listened to artist was Taylor Swift. I walked 44745 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 📖 Baptism of Fire - Andrzej Sapkowski - 1h49m 🎲 Mists Over Carcassonne - 0h34m 🎮 51 Worldwide Games - 0h18m 🎮 Vampire Survivors - 0h15m 📖 Country Walking Magazine - 0h14m 🎲 Beggar-my-neighbour - 0h11m * * * This is post 24 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comHow to control Govee Scenes in Home AssistantHere is how to use Govee Lightings Scenes within Home Assistant. This guide won't go into the details of how to install and configure Govee2MQTT and assumes you have already done this. ### Prerequisites * Govee Light connected to the Govee App * Home Assistant installation with Govee2MQTT ### How To #### Create the Shortcut in the Govee App * Open the Govee app and navigate to "Shortcuts" (second from the left on the botton row of icons) * Tap the four squares icon in the top-right corner * Tap "Tap to Run", then tap "Create" #### Configure Your Shortcut * Enter a name for your shortcut. This exact name will appear in Home Assistant, so choose something clear and memorable * Tap Add Action * Select your target light, then tap Custom * Choose your desired setting: * **Colour** for solid colours * **Scene** for preset animations (the same ones available in the Govee app) * **DIY** for your saved custom patterns * **Colour Temperature** for warm/cool white adjustment > Tip: If you've saved custom designs in the app, find them under DIY. For evening lighting, Colour Temperature with the warmest setting works well. #### Sync to Home Assistant * Head over to Home Assistant, go to Settings > Devices > MQTT > Govee2MQTT * Click Purge Caches * Wait a few seconds — your new shortcut will appear automatically #### Test and Use * Once the shortcut shows as "Available", click "Activate" to test it * When working correctly, you can add it to: * A script for automation * A button on your dashboard for manual control #### Button YAML Code Add this code to a button to switch the Govee light to "nighttime". You can adapt this easily into scripts and automations. show_name: true show_icon: true type: button entity: scene.govee_to_mqtt_one_click_default_nighttime tap_action: action: toggle * * * This is post 23 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-14This week I spent most of my spare time reading, I also played a little bit of Dragon Quest, and we finished watching the second season of Last One Laughing UK. The weekend was consumed with redecorating my home office, which is now mostly done nearly 18 months after we first moved in! It feels a lot nicer to sit in here now I'm not sat beneath half-stripped wallpaper and bare plasterboard! I also got around to finishing the LEGO set I got for my birthday... the Game Boy model. It's absolutely brilliant, and looks great on the shelf above my desk. I found it ridiculously cool that one of the LEGO cartridges has a battery (the one you put the Link's Awakening sticker on) whilst the other doesn't. Crazy attention to detail! Anyway, my wife said I couldn't buy any more LEGO sets until I built the ones I already had..... Last week I spent... 🎮 1h36m video gaming 🎲 0h0m board gaming 📖 1h57m reading 🚗 4h3m driving 💤 52h0m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 2h26m being active I listened to 320 songs, my most listened to artist was Taylor Swift. I walked 36121 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 📖 Baptism of Fire - Andrzej Sapkowski - 1h57m 🎮 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake - 1h35m * * * This is post 22 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-13A fairly quiet week this week, so I'll write my week note in the style of the '#ThreeGoodThings' hashtag from Mastodon. #### Lighter Evenings Hurray! It's finally bright enough after work to actually go outside and do things. Today I celebrated with a walk after dinner! #### Numbers go down 📉 I've been logging my food intake for three weeks now. That has led to a somber realisation of just how much I was eating. Sticking to between 1500-2000 calories on most days has seen a modest decrease on the scales, which has really focused my mind for the coming months. #### Smart Home Shenanigans I spent some time this week sorting out niggles in our Home Assistant setup. Smarter routines, more sensors. I'll blog about this at some point. My wife tolerates it at this point. 🫠 ### Quarter 2 Since my brain is hardwired to think in quarters, here are my thoughts on what I want to achieve during April, May and June: * Continue tracking my food * Restart my exercise habit. This time, I think I will fill all three rings of my Apple Watch * Finish tidying up our garden, and complete the interior DIY that's been lingering in our new house * Read four books, and complete four video games * * * This is post 21 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-12We are now rapidly approaching 25% of the way through the year, or to put it a different way just 276 days until Christmas! 🎅 The highlight of the week was the news that we're getting new Tom Scott videos starting tomorrow. See more here... New Monday habit incoming! * * * This week I've had some thoughts about cutting my screen time - in particular, time spent mindlessly on my phone. I've started by removing most of the time sinks from my phone. The plan is to access them on my tablet or PC instead. Both of these have higher friction, so I should hopefully read a book, or perhaps play a game instead. * * * I read a post about Old PC Games on Cereal Boxes by JoelChrono, and instantly had flashbacks to the copy of Age of Empires I had as a kid. ### Things I did * Keeping an eye on what I'm eating has made my realise I eat a load of garbage. I need to be harsh with myself. I need to remove temptations! Preparing a Huel shake the night before has really helped me in the mornings, and the ease of preparing a Hot Huel for lunch is great but if there's icecream in the freezer, well, now there's no icecream in the freezer. :( * I'm continuing to read Azure Bonds. I should finish at some point this week! * I also bought a few games in the Steam sale, and I've been playing those. Vampires Survivors, and BALL x PIT are fun! Looking forward to getting stuck into Planet Coaster 2 soon! * I got to spend some time with Dragon Quest II and in fact I just got to the best part of any Dragon Quest game... obtaining the ship! ### Things to Watch * * * This is post 20 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * *
James Leighton
@jamesleighton.com
jamesleighton.comWeek Notes - 2026-11Last week that was a short but busy week culminating in a short break with family, plus a visit to National Trust Stourhead on our travels. We had great weather the entire weekend, except for the 30 minutes that I was in charge of the BBQ. 🌦️ * Pedalo POV Action * BBQ in the Forest * View from the grotto at Stourhead * View of the lake at Stourhead ### Gaming Timberborn 1.0 was released last week, and I spent all of Thursday evening playing it until all my beavers sadly died during a drought. I need to figure out what actually went wrong, and try again soon. I thought it was going great... I had surplus food, I had enough workes, but suddenly my population started dropping until I didn't even have enough workers for the water pump... and that was the end of my little beaver town! We also had our first play of 'The Mind' which was a fun group experience that we'll bring out at future gatherings for sure. ### Reading I'm continuing to read Azure Bonds. Not much else to say... :) ### Health I haven't kept up my average steps like I did previously for the last month, but I did go swimming quite a lot over the weekend as we went away on a short break with extended family. That was counterbalanced by my appalling diet over the last four days, but I know that it truly is a marathon and one weekend doesn't mean a lot in the scheme of things. Over the next week, I do want to get back into my walks, and get stuck into tracking what I eat. ### Things to Watch ## Last week I spent... 🎮 4h33m video gaming 🎲 0h25m board gaming 📖 3h13m reading 🚗 9h41m driving 💤 52h4m sleeping 🚶‍♂️ 2h41m being active I listened to 190 songs, my most listened to artist was Taylor Swift. I walked 37757 steps this week. Time Tracking Summary: 🎮 Timberborn - 3h46m 📖 Azure Bonds - Kate Novak & Jeff Grubb - 3h13m 🎮 DRAGON QUEST I & II HD-2D Remake - 0h46m 🎲 The Mind - 0h25m * * * This is post 19 of #100DaysToOffload. * * * To respond on your own website, write a post which contains a link to this post - then enter the URl of your page here. Learn more about WebMentions. * * * × ❮ ❯