Michigan was fun but now I needed to drive through Ohio for the last bit of unfinished business. Only three counties out of 88 remained unvisited in Ohio, aligned in a single contiguous row heading…

Years ago, I was watching a feel‑good segment on the local news about a garden centre that had launched a recycling scheme for their used plastic plant pots. Customers were encouraged to bring back…

Last 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…

People tell you bird feeding is a relaxing hobby. They conjure up images of Snow White singing a gentle duet with a polite bluebird. They are lying. Since I set up my feeding station on the balcony…

A wide-screen sky refreshed itself with menacing patterns as a distant gloaming approached. An oblique, low hanging, long dark finger spearing in from the South east. We came to the bridge. Duck! Our…

I want to share with you details of a few more interesting washes found in southwestern Arizona. Coyote Wash – there are no fewer than 10 washes with this name in the state. The one I’ll…

Peace Summer, the Blues, Maple Syrup and Shows. Welcome back, festival fans. It’s a milder Festival Weekend with some Maple Fests (hopefully the warmer weather didn’t ruin the…

I recently spent a week in London, as one does. As I walked through the King’s Cross train station, it struck me: if anything, it should be track 8 3/4 and not 9 3/4. Let me explain. In case…

I decided to pass on attending MODE , Flickr's first photography festival. Though it was tempting, and still is, the more I think about it, the more I would rather just plan a solo photography…

When a vacation in Asia comes to an end, I like that final day to be structured like this: breakfast, airport, flight home, home. The idea of starting an international flight sweaty and dirty from a…

St Patrick's Day Carnage I knew something was afoot on arrival at Lime Street. Gangs of youth marching around the streets, beers in hand and very much a uniform of green. It's Tuesday, 10am and this…

A Scottish gamekeeper has pleaded guilty to killing a Goshawk after he battered it to death after it was caught inside a Crow cage trap on a shooting estate in Perthshire. At Perth Sheriff Court this…

There is something undeniably special about the gritstone edges of the Peak District. They offer that perfect ratio of reward...

In an episode of Tank Talks Asia hosted by Manisha Tank, Dr. Parag Khanna discusses how climate adaptation, geopolitical stability, and artificial intelligence are reshaping global livability. He…

American Kestrel I had just arrived at the lake and saw a bird fly past me that I didn't recognize. I saw some blue so I thought it might've been a Belted Kingfisher , so I followed it around the…

Sometimes following a difficult traverse can be just as scary for the second as it was for the leader. Here are two methods you can use to reduce risk for the second: the lower out and the back rope.…

Paul, Alexandra, Miranda, and M Ljin keep talking about how to get people into growing their own food, lamenting the loss of Alexandra’s local orchards, Ljin’s invading parsnips, food…

March 16th! Where did the time go? Maybe it’s going faster because I’ve been getting busier with school and going on less exploring. Utrecht Less exploring doesn’t mean none. A friend invited me on a…

Awesome! I entirely rate the overall comfort of the off-grid lifestyle, very highly! Starting out off-grid, there are so many freedoms that many grid-tied people don’t expect. For example; like…

Bucolic jam of the highest order. Featuring the tune Butterflies Bees & Other Insects by Vic Mars. The video though mainly features birds. Another prime slice of bucolica from Vic Mars. This video…

I love places that evoke magic sans effort. Places like Mt. Saint Michel and Konstanz. Fortresses on waters. Where nymphs who hand out swords as basis for rulership definitely dwell. My latest…

One good day in Petralona, but mostly laid up with a cold in sunny greece.

They say a 1,000 km walk starts with the first step. They are usually very wise, so it must be true. I go for a walk a few times a week. It is a one-hour walk that loops around the hill and ends back…

<p>It seems like fate that <a href="https://jamesg.blog/">James</a> chose <a href="https://jamesg.blog/2026/03/01/indieweb-carnival-museum-memories">Museum…

I’ve split my summary across three posts, and this roundup details the first five days. Highlights included lots of sumo, a studio session, and getting to know Ryōgoku. This is Part one, days 1–5.…

This raven is picking the meat off a sheep’s jaw. I’m guessing somebody threw their “svið” leftovers out for the ravens to enjoy. Whoops dropped it. If you aren’t familiar with the horror that is the…

On lawn mowers.

JOIN MY Tour to Oymyakon, Siberia FEBRUARY 2027; The COLDEST place on earth Oymyakon is the coldest inhabited place on Earth. Come with me in February 2027, winter in Siberia. . I’ve done some wild…

From May 30 to June 3, we will ride from Paderborn in Germany to Aarhus in Denmark in four days. The route covers 618 kilometers of road cycling with 2,775 meters of elevation gain. Get the track on…

its march in okinawa. it has been five months since birds calling. easy to imagine my good mood as i enter a small park in naha. its tuesday afternoon and i seem to be alone. only a black butterfly…

Ulua beach, Wailea-Makena, Maui, before the storm: and after: 

Doha, Qatar | February 2026 Fujifilm X-T5 Fujifilm XF 16–55 ƒ/2.8 R LM WR II 55mm (83mm) | ƒ/9 | 1/480s | ISO 125 My abstract take on the Museum of Islamic Art building in Doha, Qatar.

We left Boston before the streetlights had gone out. The city was still in its useful hours then: delivery trucks backing into alleys, a man hosing down the sidewalk in front of a diner, the first…

Learn how to use the Gemini Interactions API to build a personalized Japan travel brochure with Nano Banana 2.

Happy Spring! The past few weeks I haven’t had much time to write, as I’ve been working regularly outside to prepare our yard for spring and to plant our vegetable garden. As it heats up and I shift…

I find it hard, sometimes, to see the beauty in winter here — cold, dark days, when all color's been drained for the season. It's a relief, to go outside & see nature springing back to…

The affair at the edge of the lake

You could count on one hand the amount of times I’ve written weeknotes from somewhere that isn’t home. No, two hands, maybe. Trains have hosted writing spaces the most, after the homes of relatives.…

With the evenings starting to draw out and an early finish at work there was time for me to get to the river for a short evening session after Chub. It’s actually the first time I’ve been on the…

passage from Wick to Kirkwall, light to strong breeze, challenging mooring.

Summer crops are still producing in full swing, so thought I'd jot down some thoughts, while they're fresh, on what went well and what didn't so I can tweak some things next year. In the greenhouse…

We were halfway to San Antonio yesterday when I realized I had not looked at a single Yelp review or scrolled through a TripAdvisor list. Usually, planning a spring break trip out of Dallas is a week…

Found in dire need of a trim outside a used car lot in rural Arkansas.

Have you ever found something rather wonderful about a walk in a strong wind? You might appreciate the Dutch concept of Uitwaaien.What does “uitwaaien” mean?Uitwaaien is a Dutch word meaning to go…

Some people spend their holidays at the beach. Some people spend their holidays in the mountains. Some people spend their holidays in the countryside. I spend my holidays in museums.People think of…

Roddy, sniffing the wind In the graveyard where we often take our dog for a walk, there’s a place where the path takes a 90-degree turn, and I noticed that in the cold and damp of winter a fainter…

4th, 6th & 7th March. Three days wandering locally - Botanics and Warriston. Poor health and average weather discouraging anything more ambitious. Taking pleasure in the small things, a wren in the…

QRP, new inefficient antenna, and a solar storm. What could go wrong?