Hedgehogs in our Garden

Having a German Shepherd Dog (GSD), I honestly didn’t think we would ever get hedgehogs in our garden. However, we were woken at 1:30am this morning by Hela barking in the back garden.

When I went downstairs to investigate, she was barking at a group of flower pots on the patio. I was worried we might have rats, but after securing her in the kitchen, a hedgehog emerged from its hiding place and wandered over to Hela’s outdoor water bowl.

So, my task for tonight is to secure the gate at the side of the house, preventing any hedgehogs from getting through to the back garden. I’ll then set up a secure feeding station at the side of the house, where it’ll be safer for the hedgehog and easier for us to look after.

Breast Cancer in Men

Today, we launched a new phase of our campaign with our charity partner, Breast Cancer Now. It’s an incredibly worthwhile charity and cause, and the figures are stark: in the UK, around 85 men die from breast cancer each year, alongside approximately 11,500 women.

I love what we’re doing at work. Those numbers are a stark reminder of just how many people we lose to the disease each year but, as we work in the construction industry, it’s particularly valuable to get the message out there that men need to check themselves too.

If you’re able to, please donate through our Breast Cancer Now JustGiving page.

A Stress-Free Final

As an England fan, I would obviously have loved us to be in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, but I have to say, it is lovely watching it without any skin in the game.

It goes without saying that I want Spain to win, but I am not worried about the result. There is no biting of nails and no sitting on the edge of my seat. I can just enjoy the football.

Virgin until Iron Maiden!

I was listening to some 80s music with Debs, which always takes us back to our younger days. We were both born in the late 60s, so it doesn’t take much for a song to bring back a particular time, place or memory.

Anyway, Debs casually mentioned that she saw Adam and the Ants when she was just 13.

Ruddy Nora! I was 18 before I went to my 1st concert, although I didn’t choose too badly. It was the mighty Iron Maiden at the old Town and Country Club in Leeds.

They were chuffing amazing.

So It's Not Coming Home!

So there we have it. It’s not coming home.

England have exited the 2026 FIFA World Cup at the semi-final stage, losing to Argentina after going 1–0 up. We obviously weren’t quite good enough, although we played well until Argentina fell behind and then had to withstand a constant onslaught on our goal.

It’s strange how much it hurts, and it probably will for a couple of days, perhaps until after the final on Sunday. Still, at least we’ve got Spain to cheer on now.

A Two-Week Reset

Some people reading this may know that I also have a little corner of the internet where I do beer reviews. It’s been a lovely summer so far, with warm evenings, very hot days and plenty of football. I know football doesn’t necessarily mean drinking more alcohol, but I do enjoy a beer while watching a match.

The original plan was with the 2026 FIFA World Cup final taking place on Sunday 19th July, was to abstain from alcohol for two weeks from that date, now that England aren't in the finals I might have a couple of beer tonight (Friday 17th) the last for a few weeks. Hopefully, it’ll help me regain a little health and fitness, while giving my body and brain a bit of a reset.

This will just about coincide with my Mexican lager finishing conditioning in my Pinter, so happy news. 

I suppose this could be me being sober curious again!

Let’s see how I do.

24th July 2026 – I know I’m not an alcoholic, far from it; I just enjoy a drink. Even so, I’ve found going without one surprisingly difficult, despite it only being six days.

I think this 1st full weekend will be the real challenge, especially after a long week, but I’m sure I’ll get through it without having a beer.

27th July 2026 – Well, that surprised me. A weekend without alcohol was much easier than I expected, and I didn’t seem to miss it at all!

The Hunted (The Hunt Sequel)

I remembered the movie The Hunt this weekend so I thought I'd watch it again, then I started wondering why there was never a sequel! The Hunt 2, or a The Hunt sequel would be great.

At the end of the first film, Crystal takes Athena’s clothes, money, and jet. In my sequel pitch, she takes Athena's massive financial resources and elite connections to track down other secret elite hunting cabins around the globe. I figure that others like Athena's group would take these online rumours about hunting humans and create their own hunts.

Because she was mistakenly chosen for the first hunt (confused with the real "Justice4Yall"), she becomes a ghost in the system, dynamic and totally unpredictable. Instead of being the prey, she infiltrates these global networks to bust them open and liberate the next batch of targets.

My Fave National Anthems

Another top list I was thinking of putting together was a list of my favourite National Anthems, I thought about this while watching coverage of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, there are some dreadful ones!

I might have to do two lists, one just music and one with lyrics, I think it might make a difference!

Some early contenders are:

• Italy
• Uruguay
• South Africa
• Mexico