I was thinking of taking a break from Whatsapp for three weeks. I have this desire, and need because I am tired of how people use Whatsapp. They create groups, where strangers are added. People with no deep knowledge of online communities delete posts that are sometimes not spam. Other people complain when people try to have conversations. The result is that WhatsApp is emotionally draining because it doesn’t feel like a healthy, tight knit community.
Yesterday morning I woke and looked out of a window and saw fog. For some, the reaction is “oh zut alors” as we think that we’re in for several weeks of being under the clouds, with the mountains as a weekend escape from a sun deprived time spent in fog.
An Indirect Walk I took it as an opportunity. I could have walked from A to B last night. Instead I walked my usual walk.
When it is rainy and overcast going for a walk at sunset is not rational. On a sparsely cloudy day this makes a lot of sense. On a day where the sun is shining, to go for a walk at sunset, is an opportunity to see golden hour colours. Last night that’s what I did.
It is unusual for me to take so many pictures but the light was great. It’s just a shame that I was in an urban landscape rather than a natural one.
Yesterday I was asked why I went to an ice rink, to stand around while people skated. The reason is that I wanted to go for my daily walk while the sun, or at least daylight, was still around. If I had set off later, then I would have been caught by the night, and I would have missed walking in daylight.
At this time of year, if you don’t go for a walk before 17:00 you’re likely to walk in the dark.
In the physical/real world it can be quite fun, but noisy to play with a kärscher cleaning device. It also wastes a lot of water. It is for this reason that PowerWash Simulator, availble in the iOS arcade store for “free” is interesting.
A few seasons, or even years ago I watched someone play this game on YouTube because YouTube recommended this type of content, which is part of my reason for dumping premium, and losing interest in videos recommended by YouTube.
Yesterday I went for two walks. The first walk was after lunch because I had something to drop off at the post office. Usually I would have printed the label at home, rather than doing this walk. I desired to go for a bike ride but the chore was more important. In the process I learned something.
If you need to print something, you can go to the post office, and via an app you can print the label for a package there and then.
In Australia, and England, and Ireland, and Switzerland there are talks, in some cases that are being implemented that seak to block children and teens from using the Social Media Giants.
“As of December 2025, the Australian social media ban specifically targets major commercial platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Threads, TikTok, Twitch, X, YouTube, Kick, and Reddit. The ban requires these platforms to prevent Australians under 16 from creating or maintaining accounts.
The Garmin Connect End of year summary is currently available, and updating daily. The stats are quite interesting,
Despite cycling as much as I did Garmin says that I took 3.8 million steps this year and that in March I took 486,000 steps. That’s when I was hiking a lot.
Activities I logged 457 activities, of which 233 walking, 154 cycling and 36 running. I logged 741h and 58 minutes of sports.
When you plan road works that are meant to improve journeys for people cycling, and on foot, it is essential to remember that people who are on foot, or on bikes, need proper infrastructure to get from A to B, because if they don’t, then they go from being on foot or on bikes, to being in a car. If we take this to the extreme, if you don’t plan for pedestrians, or cyclists, or cars, then people just stop visiting.
Within the last week I tried to wear shoes that I bought two or three years ago. I tried them on because although I love the Trail Glove 7 shoes I don’t like their durability. I find that they last from four to six months before being worn enough for my heel to hit the ground hard enough to become painful.
In theory I should work on my stride, to change how the foot strikes the ground, and ensure that I have a softer, more gentle foot fall.