2026-01-02 06:24:37
I have been tracking a few easy goals over the year to see how I fare. All in all, I think I've done well. Unsure if I'll do a 2026 version but this has been an interesting experiment.
I have a ton of books I have already bought that I haven't yet read. Even though I only really buy 99p books, it still adds up over the year. Maximum monthly spend of £5.
I have a small handful of film cameras and I don't need more. If I can manage to make it to Christmas without buying more, I might treat myself to a Canon AE-1P Minolta SRT101 Minolta SRT Super/303/202. This sales embargo includes lenses and accessories but not, obviously, film and development.
Film and development to not exceed £27 per month. This should roughly equate to two rolls of cheap film and two developments. Realistically, I should only be using one roll (£13.50) but it's so bloody addictive 🙃 Film costs are averaged over months because I buy 5 rolls at a time and store them in the fridge which means, for example, August is £20 on film but September to December is £0
| Month | 📚 | 📷 | 🖼️ |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| February | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ |
| March | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| April | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| May | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ |
| June | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| July | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| August | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ |
| September | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| October | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
| November | ✅ | ❌ | ✅ |
| December | ✅ | ✅ | ✅ |
This was much easier than expected! A couple of things helped; my Kobo breaking forcing me to resurrect an old Kindle kept me from buying bargains directly from Ratuken, and making a reading goal list kept me from wandering aimlessly into buying new books because shiny shiny but also decision paralysis. I didn't always stick to the list — some titles were bumped because I didn't have them on me at the time or because I wasn't feeling it, some got dropped entirely. It was never the goal to slavishly adhere to the list but to be guided by it.
I have never been an impulsive buyer so I was quite surprised at failing on this one! Looking at the reasons for failure though and I'm not too disappointed — having to buy my dream camera twice in one year is a sadness few will experience and one I hope to never repeat 😂
February fail - bought a Zenit E on a whim which was a total lack of self-control thing
May fail - bought a case for the Zenit E because I couldn't attach a strap to the body without one
August fail - bought my Minolta SR-T 303b which was basically my dream camera 😊
November fail - bought a Minolta SR-T303 to replace the 303b the dog broke 😭
Another "easy win". Having found Photo Hippo, Burnley, my development costs are well within budget and I rarely make it through more than two rolls in one month.
2026-01-01 19:41:12
Happy New Year!
Here are a few photos from my phone from the last month with neither rhyme nor reason to the theme.
2025-12-31 03:30:55
It's time to put on every winter coat you've owned since '98 and tot up The Quantified Self™ — Buckle in!
You can see each month's top artist, album, and song in my article My Year in Music.
Last year I set myself the goal of reading twelve books in twelve months which I actually doubled by the end of the year! This year, I set a target of 24 which I surpassed in October. A return to commuting has helped there; a good two hours a day of solo time to immerse in a book like a warm bath.
July was my most prolific month, devouring four books, whereas I spent the whole of August nibbling demurely at Garden of Delights. I have read three trilogies and three-fifths of a series.
Another year where my tastes haven't wildly changed. Total number of shows is low (32 over the year) but Reality TV, Drama, and Animation all rank highly. Looking at my velocity, I watch much more television in autumn than any other time of year.
Of the 42 films I watched this year, basically half of them were animated, spurred by a desire to rewatch a load of Ghibli films. Again, screen time ramps up in the colder months; peaking in December when the Christmas films get hammered.
2025-12-29 02:32:06
There are definitely two Tawny Owls in the village as I heard a distinct and prolonged call-and-response over some distance; one faint over the fields but the other in a tree right over my head — loud and terrifying.
Getting a head start on some work (actually tying up some loose ends I cba'd in the week before close down) –I know, working in the Betwixtmas, tut-tut!– and three things to note;
Slightly concerned I'm turning into my dad when I put on a 1972 episode of Ian Nairn travelling around Lancashire on a canal boat and found it fascinating.
2025-12-24 17:13:20
"I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" by Wizzard
I own two Roy Wood singles; this and "Music to Commit Suicide By". This is the more festive.
2025-12-24 05:50:01
Caveat
This is, naturally, not exhaustive. I use last.fm on my phone and my laptop to scrobble music I listen to while I'm on my own. As other people have pointed out, this doesn't capture music listened to with friends and family, nor does it log public music from the radio, bars, or shopping centres, for example.
A Social Media™-friendly shareable Wrapped image showing the slightly unhinged top 5 artists and tracks of 2025.
(Never have I felt this meme so acutely.)