Month: June 2017

There is a new place in town and no, it’s not named after Barbara Windsor…

From the people behind the glorious meat emporium Bread Meats Bread comes a new kebab shop … STOP RIGHT THERE, I know what you are thinking – the drunken stumblings, strips of greasy lamb, dubious salad, thin runny sauce, the cold sodden lump you can’t stomach to even touch the next day – ‘Babs is NONE of these things!!

Self-billed as “Kebabs. Done right” what we were sampling was “Charcoal-fired Gourmet Kebabs Made Using Ethical & Local Scottish Seasonal Produce” and I’ll cut to the chase; the short version of this review need only require me to say that ‘Babs has taken the humble kebab to a new level of deliciousness, thrown in a slew of other tasty middle eastern inspired dishes (and added my favourite new burger in town!) and you should definitely check it out when it opens … which is TODAY! NOW! GO GO GO!!

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As soon as you walk through the door into the wonderful space that beckons you inside you are whisked you away to the sultry warmth of an autumn evening on the Bosphorus. Cosy without feeling cramped, I loved the decor and modern middle eastern vibe – think BMB West End, rather than the bustling city centre venue – and was eager to see how well the food fared.

We were there for a preview prior to their opening night and were treated to samples from their menu, and I’ll happily concede that I think they are on to a winner. Taste wise everything I tried, and I tried everything more than once if I could, was superb. The meats were smokey without being overwhelming, rich meats were succulent and well flavoured, the salads were fresh and full of flavour, and of the 10 or so dishes I tried I only rated one as ‘ok’ everything else was good to ‘oh my god this is delicious’.

We also got to see the menu which is even more extensive and it’s clear that ‘Babs will become a reliably good place to take people be it for lunch or dinner. A great selection on offer and some desserts to die for, backed by some great cooking, what else do you need? Plus it’s handily placed on West Nile Street in the heart of the city.

One thing is clear from talking to the owners, this is very much a labour of love. You could tell by the way they talked us through what was in each dish, how excited and passionate they were and how clearly, and rightly, proud of the ingredients and dishes they were sharing with us. Given how successful their sister venture – Bread Meats Bread – has been I can only presume that ‘Babs will soon by featuring on Top 10 lists of places to eat, I know it’s already in mine.

Find them online at their website, or follow them on Twitter or Facebook. 

Bootcamp is over.

10 weeks of twice weekly HIIT sessions.

I’ve farmer carried, tyre flipped, pushed up, planked, burpee’d, kettlebell’d, squatted, crunched, bear crawled, lunged in various ways, slammed balls, punched bags, pulled up, rowed, and more. I’ve eaten my body weight in sweet potato and chicken. Cursed, sweated, and pushed myself until I can hardly breathe. I’ve dealt with the two days of muscles aches after each session.

I’ve also laughed, a lot, met some exceptional people who have helped keep me motivated and challenged, and happily admit I have enjoyed the entire experience, even when I’m calling one of the trainers a motherfucker. Pain is temporary though, and I will remember the laughs and giggles, the matching outfits, the jazz hands and cool down dances, and that time Juan broke the TRX bands (or rather, that time he didn’t do them up properly) far longer than any of the aches.

As part of the Bootcamp experience there was a nutrition session, and I finally understand those Macro things I’ve heard about for so long! It means I’m eating better and properly equipping myself prior to each Bootcamp session. We were also asked to write up short term and long term goals, for me the short term was to complete the 10 weeks of Bootcamp but I decide to be more specific and wrote that my goal was to do 10 pushups. That’s full pushups. My previous record was almost 1 – and that was a struggle – and 10 weeks later … 10 pushups. Slowly, steadily, and with a few pauses, but 10 pushups. Holy Frick.

My longer term goal was to get my weight down below 95kg. I started at 113.3kg and post-Bootcamp I’m now 107.2kg, which for the imperialists amongst you means I’ve almost a stone. On the way to 95!!

That said, I’m a lot less focused on my weight now but it’s a reasonable way to measure progress, as is the fact I’m gonna need to buy some smaller shirts and trousers for work soon!

And finally a word for our wonderful trainers. I cannot praise Andy and Juan highly enjoy for keeping things interesting and challenging, for caring about each person, for encouraging us when we needed it and for pushing us when we were slacking. The name ‘bootcamp’ suggests military drills, a screaming Sargeant Major in your face. Sure, we had drills, but in keeping with their ethos, the atmosphere was always friendly and fun, welcoming and positive. It’s up to you to push yourself as everyone has their strengths and weaknesses, but knowing that they were always around for guidance, or to gently cajole you into working harder, meant I never felt pressured but I still worked my ass off!

Having said all that, I’ve not signed up for the next Bootcamp, instead I’m going to try some different classes (which has the added benefit of giving me the option of a Saturday lie-in again!) and I’ll also be getting my bike out as I’ve signed up for Pedal for Scotland in September. But once that’s done, I’ll definitely be back to give BootCamp another shot later in the year, it’s oddly addictive!

Are there still spaces?

If none are available for the next BootCamp then check out their other classes, or book a PT session. You won’t regret it!

Special Election Free edition (one week only).

• Aleppo After the Fall
  As the Syrian civil war turns in favor of the regime, a nation adjusts to a new reality — and a complicated new picture of the conflict emerges.
  The forgotten conflict, 4 years of war and it barely makes the front pages anymore.

• The Mackinac Island Stone Skipping Competition
  Late one afternoon last summer, our family arrived at a campsite on the western shore of Lake Michigan. We had been driving all day, across Wisconsin on our way further east. The four of us—my wife and two daughters, ages 7 and 10—set up our tent, made dinner, then went down to the water.
  My record is 12, set many years ago. I need to practice. A LOT.

• Urchins and alleyways: a rare glimpse of 19th-century Glasgow – in pictures
  Photographer Thomas Annan captured Glasgow in the 1860s and 70s, at a time when the city had transformed and grown rapidly after the industrial revolution
  Always interesting seeing your home city, picking out landmarks that still exist today.

• Climber Completes the Most Dangerous Rope-Free Ascent Ever

  The more I read about this feat, and this man, the more bamboozled I am. It’s utterly mindblowing.

• Open-minded people have a different visual perception of reality
  Psychologists have only begun to unravel the concept of “personality,” that all-important but nebulous feature of individual identity. Recent studies suggest that personality traits don’t simply affect your outlook on life, but the way you perceive reality.
  So this half-full glass is actually… a porcupine? Am I doing it right?

• Who needs a perfect language? It’s already perfectly imperfect
  Poets, historians, scientists, philosophers – we all seek to capture the world in a net of language. Yet it is the nature of nets to capture some things while letting others slip away.
  English is such a rich language, and evolves faster than we realise.

• The Bondage-Bound, Feminist Origins of Wonder Woman
  Orgies, a sex cult, polyamory, lie detectors, and bondage. While that sounds like the makings of a fascinating word association game, those words do have one very particular thing in common – well, besides the obvious.
  The movie is packed with wonderful feminist, enlightened ideas, so this is a strange bedfellow of an article.

• Why ‘Checking Your Privilege’ Doesn’t Work
  “Dear White People: no one is saying your life can’t be hard if you’re white but it’s not hard because you’re white.” This perhaps overly earnest profundity comes from an August 2015 tweet by user Austin (@kvxll), that somehow made its way to my own Twitter feed.
  The problem with privilege is you don’t see it, this opened my eyes to my mistakes and assumptions (and I am the most privileged type of person possible).

• Taking Muhammad Ali home
  A week before her husband dies, Lonnie Ali changes the plans for his funeral. The funeral she had envisioned is too big, she thinks. It is too complicated.
  Articles I will always read: anything about The Greatest.

• Apple’s developer conference was chock full of new hardware
  Apple’s annual developer conference felt especially like a show for consumers this year, with announcements of seven laptop updates, a new iMac Pro desktop computer, a new iPad, and a new home smart speaker called the HomePod.
  Apple is doing some new stuff. Some of it is good. Some of it isn’t everything people wanted. Some of it I don’t quite get why. In other words, Apple is doing what it always does.

• Welcome to Poppy’s World
  It’s hard to explain Poppy to the uninitiated. But I’m going to try. Let’s start with the edge of the Poppy rabbit hole: You see a woman in a YouTube video. She is blond and petite with the kind of Bambi-sized brown eyes you rarely encounter in real life.
  Mentioned as an aside in the Apple Dev Conference… and that’s all I’m gonna say (ok, I will also say… WTF?)

• How to fall to your death and live to tell the tale
  Alcides Moreno and his brother Edgar were window washers in New York City. The two Ecuadorian immigrants worked for City Wide Window Cleaning, suspended high above the congested streets, dragging wet squeegees across the acres of glass that make up the skyline of Manhattan.
  I am not good with heights, and presume if I was falling to my death, my brain probably WON’T recall this article but… you never know.. right?

• When you cross a raven, the bird will hold a grudge
  For over 2,000 years, children have been warned of the dangers of hidden agendas through the “The Fox and the Raven.
  I KNEW IT!! Sorry, had some Raven harassment issues a few years ago and no-one believed me!

• A conversation with Rickie lee Jones
  A video of a conversation that most of you will have heard some of before (earworm activation in 3, 2….)

• What it feels like to get hit by a pitch
  A baseball is a wondrous little thing. It weighs 6 ounces — the same as an apple — and is the perfect size and shape for the hand. It is the ideal home for the proudest autographs, so white and pristine, resting on the mantel or in the trophy case.
  I’ve started watching a little baseball for reasons I’m not yet sure of, the more I learn the more I can see how people get dragged into it (stats fiends, check it out!)… and then there is side of it.

• The Exquisitely English (and Amazingly Lucrative) World of London Clerks
  It’s a Dickensian profession that can still pay upwards of $650,000 per year. At Fountain Court Chambers in central London, the senior clerk is called Alex Taylor. A trim, bald 54-year-old who favors Italian suiting, Taylor isn’t actually named Alex.
  Hey ‘disruptors’ I have a new industry for ya!!

• Turns out open relationships aren’t the most sexually satisfying
  Sex is a big part of most romances, whether a marriage or a more experimental union. A recent survey of Europeans shows that people in the most sexually liberated partnerships aren’t having the best time.
  They missed out the question ‘Are you surprised by this’ to which many poly people would answer, ‘no, not at all’.

LIFX Cloud and BT Broadband Issue – Solved

I’ve had LIFX Wifi bulbs since they first appeared on Kickstarter. They are great when they work, but when they don’t you enter the world of Wifi networking and connection issues which is NOT A FUN PLACE.

Thankfully the good people at LIFX Support know their stuff, but as I don’t see this nugget of info on their website, I thought I’d share it here.

Solution

If you have LIFX bulbs and BT Broadband, with a BT Homehub router, check that BT Web Protect (aka BT Smart Protect) is turned off.

You can check this by logging in to bt.com and looking at the settings there. You don’t need to make any changes on the router settings themselves.

Notes
As far as I can figure out; Sometimes BT push a firmware update to the router which will reset some settings. I’m guessing this happened to me recently and resulted in BT Net Protect being re-enabled on the router which then blocks LIFX bulbs connection to the LIFX Cloud.

Your LIFX bulbs will work fine using the LIFX app but it means IFTTT, Alexa, Yonomi and other services can’t interact with the bulbs (those are the three I use I’m presuming others will be affected too).

Frustrating but, thankfully, an easy and quick fix. Thanks to the LIFX Support team for their help.