Blog ≫ 2025They did not even win that quiz

Imagine, going to a quiz in Folkestone and not evening winning it. They came fourth. I have disowned them.

I watched The Tick on TV last night while they were out, a couple of episodes. I thought I had seen it before, but it is really good. I must have seen a cartoon version of it, this is the live action version with Peter Serafinowicz.

Busy day again but quite achievious, and the sun is out again so the weather has improved. It is really windy now though, and the wind was noisy in the night.

Energy usage

Energy usage graph, electricity and gas 0 - 50 - Axes of graph Apr 10 11 12 13 14 15 Graph line from 2.02 to 96.43p last week p last week Graph line from 2.29 to 78.04p p Wed £5.14 Thu £7.66 Fri £5.26 Sat £5.33 Sun £5.60 Mon £7.63 Graph line from 0 to 64.43 Graph line from 0 to 0

This week 20 years ago

25 years ago

Blog ≫ 2025Health stats 16/4/25

🚶 43 steps

Scattered clouds. 7 - 12℃

Blog ≫ 2025Latest Glastonbury packing list then

I have actually booked the time off now, and booked return coach travel! I have not checked if I have a tent yet. I had a quick look in the loft for something else and thought "that's the tent in that bag over there". Now I'm wondering if it was actually Clare's wedding dress in that bag, and then I started thinking how funny it would be if I'd just taken it to Glastonbury and had no tent but a wedding dress. I mean it's not very likely but there is the seed of a funny story in there.

Glastonbury checklist, in order. Latest Glastonbury packing check-list version will always be here, but I will paste updates over time.

  1. For 2025 I have booked a return coach from Stratford.
  2. Yeah went without this one year...
  3. Pleased with this, stop losing my stuff, but also find my way back to the tent! I have bought four more Chipolo tags, which can be tracked with Google Find My Device.
  4. Tote bag? Small backpack? Bum bag? To carry round the site in the day.
  5. This is something I found on an old reminder list! Keep stuff dry! Weather dependent.
  6. For stuffing clothes in and using as a pillow.
  7. There is a Glastonbury parkrun! I can do it.
  8. Not a lot of washing going on, but already this is not looking that minimal.
  9. Titanium fork / spoon. OK spork if you prefer.
  10. My favourite Patagonia travelling socks, assuming I'll be in them for the whole event!
  11. This is new, could be important, otherwise this is a lot of days on one charge.
  12. Hmm, head torch maybe? Is three torches excessive? Two is one, and one is none, they say.
  13. ARGH I HAVE LOST IT! I have to get a new one!
  14. Don't want to take all my own food and drink with me, but just light stuff to see me through between burger vans.
  15. Only really in case the originals get wet.
  16. Got a new one with built in USBC lead now.
  17. Going to need to take two to be safe I think.
  18. Good for the long journey there.

Blog ≫ 2025That was a weird Glastonbury dream I just remembered

Last night didn't sleep that well, I think I just wasn't tired enough. Went to bed quite early, kept waking up. I did dream about having to go to Glastonbury in a panic, packing stuff last minute in a small bag and then realised I had forgotten all about my Glastonbury packing list. There was a lot more to it than that, but isn't it weird with dreams how you know all the details when you first wake up and then it disappears?

I was also thinking I don't write as much here as I should. I have just been busy again. I was thinking "I should write more about how I feel about events, and what I'm thinking about", but it turns out I don't feel very much about events, and I don't think of very much.

Work has been busy again, even though we're in a code freeze and can't change any of the systems. Still, it's a nice short week, I have a day off on Thursday, then everyone has a day off on Friday.

I have heard we will get a bonus pay day in May. This is not an extra pay day, it is the pay day when they pay the annual bonus. This will go towards the holiday, and this means we can book more of it after next week's pay dayusing the buffer of the credit card. Which I will of course pay off in full.

Clare and the boys have just gone out to the pub, without me! They made plans at the weekend to go to a quiz at a pub Clare's niece is working at. I thought I'd give this one a miss, hear from them how it is first. I don't want to drink in the week and I don't want to go to a pub I don't like and sit nursing a soft drink either.

Someone has done something to the keyboard on this and I can't type the hash key any more and I need to...

I don't recognise this description of the weather at all, but then I've not been outside today.

40Kph winds and partly cloudy, 9 - 13℃.

Blog ≫ 2025Exercise stats 15/4/25

🚶 6856 steps

🚶 19:59 Shepway Walking 38'20

Passing clouds. 8 - 13℃

Blog ≫ 2025Exercise stats 14/4/25

🚶 6067 steps

🚶 18:04 Shepway Walking 30'11

Clear. 10 - 12℃

Blog ≫ 2025Artists of the week, commencing Sunday 13th April

The Darkness, Fontaines D.C., Murray Gold

Doughnut of ROCK - the types of music I listened to this week 32% ROCK 🤘
  •    15% Indie
  •    11% Alternative
  •    5% Britpop
  •    2% Pop
  •    2% New wave
  •    2% Electronic
  •    2% Post-punk
  •    1% Heavy metal
  •    1% Singer-songwriter
  •    1% Metal

Blog ≫ 2025Nick Helm on tour again

We saw him in Folkestone exactly a year ago today, and he's on tour again this autumn. He's not coming back here, nor Fareham which was also on the last tour. He's doing Canterbury and Southampton and I wouldn't mind seeing him in London. No tickets on sale yet.

Blog ≫ 2025New Suede straight into my most valuable records chart

I've listened to it now, a lot of the tracks actually are familiar. I must have got more later Suede singles than I thought. It's nice to have a double album on clear vinyl, though it's oddly only in a single sleeve, not a gatefold. Still, it's in with a bullet at number nine in "recommended selling price right now" for my full list of vinyl:

  1. Suede - Suede - 1993 (Vinyl) Near Mint (NM or M-), Framed and on the wall. £345.45
  2. David Devant And His Spirit Wife - Work, Lovelife, Miscellaneous - 1997 (Vinyl, Vinyl, All Media) Mint (M), Got two copies of this, this one is still sealed. Framed and on the wall. £169.83
  3. David Devant And His Spirit Wife - Work, Lovelife, Miscellaneous - 1997 (Vinyl, Vinyl, All Media) Near Mint (NM or M-), Got two copies of this, this one is open and has been played. £151.96
  4. Pulp - His 'N' Hers - 1994 (Vinyl) Near Mint (NM or M-), Framed and on the wall, our favourite albums all are. £132.14
  5. The Cramps - All Women Are Bad - 1990 (Vinyl) Mint (M), I only bought this because it was a clear vinyl. Putting this one up for sale at the recommended price, fingers crossed! See discogs.com if you want it. £127.41
  6. Queen - A Day At The Races - 1976 (Vinyl) £120.00
  7. The Darkness - Permission To Land - 2003 (Vinyl) Near Mint (NM or M-), Framed and on the wall. £116.27
  8. The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses - 1989 (Vinyl) Very Good Plus (VG+), Framed and on the wall. £114.71
  9. Suede - Sci-Fi Lullabies Vol.2 - 2025 (Vinyl) Near Mint (NM or M-), Record Store Day purchase from Vintage and Vinyl, Folkestone £101.30
  10. Queen - News Of The World - 1977 (Vinyl) £98.29

That Cramps single has been up for sale for ages, no-one biting though. I have sold only one record. I might list some more of them for sale.

Met up with Clare's cousin yesterday, he was also heading to Vintage and Vinyl looking for a Dead Or Alive Record Store Day special. And he got it. He has quite the collection, it takes up a wing of his house (yes I know). He has a copy of Guinness Book Of Hit Singles from 1992 or so and he's been ticking off every one, I think he has nearly everything.

Sunny and a fresh breeze, 6 - 16℃.

Blog ≫ 2025Health stats 13/4/25

🚶 6577 steps

Sunny. 9 - 10℃

Blog ≫ 2025I bought all the new music on Record Store Day

First pub updates; went to The Fountain after work with the family to play darts. Beer was awful. First one was all gassy they couldn't pour it. Second one was disgusting vinegar, sent back. Third attempt slightly better than the disgusting vinegar so I kept it, but it wasn't good so I drank about 1/3 of it, made my excuses, and left. Shame, as we'd like to go back and play darts again. Everyone else's drinks were fine, well they would be. To the Potting Shed!

Playing darts in The Fountain, Seabrook

I only left because my friend arrived who I had made plans to go to the Potting Shed with, he would have enjoyed the lack of drinkable real ale in the Fountain as much as me, so we went straight to the Potting Shed. Beer there obviously much better and a fine evening was had. We left about nine and got a small Chinese takeaway on the way back. Clare and the boys were watching Karate Kid when I got in, inspired to by the recent trailer we had seen for the new Karate Kid film.

Up for parkrun, wasn't quite feeling energised and my legs did feel heavy while running. It was lovely and sunny and warm and that was my quickest time for two months. I was going to do another post covering this but might as well drop it here:

Folkestone parkrun results for event #483. Your time was 00:24:07.

Congratulations on completing your 188th parkrun and your 170th at Folkestone parkrun today. You finished in 94th place out of a field of 401 parkrunners. You were the 82nd male and came 9th in your age category VM50-54. Take a look at this week's full set of results on our website. Your PB at Folkestone parkrun remains 00:20:50. Your best time this year remains 00:23:54.

My 170th Folkestone parkrun and also my 1700th day in this streak of Duolingo.

After parkrun to Vintage and Vinyl in Folkestone to see if any of the Record Store Day goodies were left. Only the real hot items had gone, they still had the one I'd gone in for, Sci-Fi Lullabies Volume 2, the new Suede b-sides collection. Not expecting too much from it, but glad I got it. Also picked up a Blur zoetrope vinyl, that is a picturedisc with zoetrope images on it which turn into an animation if viewed with a strobe light at the right frequency. I just tried it with a strobe app and the effect is so-so. I might have to tweak the frequency a bit but I'm trying the 30hz they say and the animation is very blurry. Maybe when it's dark it will be better.

I also got a picture disc of The Head On The Door by The Cure, it has a big War Child sticker on it so that counts as my charity contribution. Not sure exactly what the deal is there.

I was lying about buying music by new bands, of course.

After that (man this is a long post I should have broken it up) to Barham Crematorium for scattering of Clare's uncle Jeff's ashes, and then briefly to The Radnor Arms and then for a family meal in Sotirio's. That was OK, quite nice, but I think it's more of an evening place. I'm not drinking today, not sure why, partly I did yesterday and thinking of going to the pub again tomorrow, so that would be my two days a week allowance. This meant I could drive Clare to the new Docker brewery and tap house that opened today in Folkestone, where she had more beer and I had no beer. We did play cards though. The boys liked it well enough, we will probably go back again to have pizza there.

After that, I brought the boys home but we left Clare and her brother there and I'll go and pick her up in a bit when I go out to pick up another Chinese takeaway! This one will not be as small as yesterdays single portion tofu and noodles though I think, I'm going all out.

The not drinking five days a week plan is likely to slip next week, but I'll maintain the standard today.

Blog ≫ 2025Run stats 12/4/25 - 4'49/K

🚶 12824 steps

🏃 09:00 Folkestone parkrun - lovely sunny and warm! 5.0K, 4'49/K

your daily target Best ever daily steps: 38155 on Sat, Sep 14, 19 Fri was the best since Sat, Mar 29's 20636 10ᵏ - 20ᵏ - 30ᵏ - 15771 Thu, Apr 3 17112 Fri, Apr 4 14499 Sat, Apr 5 11448 Sun, Apr 6 13846 Mon, Apr 7 5915 Tue, Apr 8 2801 days of data 5798 Wednesday 13532 Thursday 8972 Friday 12824 Saturday

Some things missing from the graph since September 2023, working on getting them back just kind of hoping someone else will fix it and they'll come back.

Best time this week! Only time for a 12/04. I ran TWO times this week.

date '24 2025
06/04 4'57 5'30
12/04 4'49 🆕

Clear. 14 - 18℃

Blog ≫ 2025Health stats 11/4/25

🚶 8972 steps

Clear. 11 - 19℃

Blog ≫ 2025Health stats 10/4/25

🚶 13532 steps

Clear. 8 - 13℃

Blog ≫ 2025Much colder today

Weather has gone off the boil again. Heating came on earlier, we must be at the lower end of this temperature forecast.

Sunny intervals and a moderate breeze, 5 - 11℃.

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Paul Clarkeʼs weblog - I live in Hythe near Folkestone, Kent. Wed to Clare + father to two, I'm a full-stack web developr, and I do javascript / nodejs, some ruby, python, php etc. I like pubbing, parkrun, restaurants, home-automation and other diy stuff, history, genealogy, TV, squirrels, pirates, lego, + time travel.

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Yep, deliberately unstyled.