There goes another year. Not really sure where time is going, but inspired by Ben Werdmuller here’s some things I loved.

Books

I’ve not read as many books this year, for reasons I can’t quite put my finger on. I have many many to read and learn from and (ideally) enjoy, so I’ll aim to carve out more time to read those in 2025 (and write summaries here). That said, here are my favourites from this year:

The Art of Explanation: BBC’s Ros Atkins, famed for his explainer videos, explains his process. As clearly written as you might expect, I’ll revisit this one again in 2025 to keep learning.

Redshirts: I’m a latecomer to John Scalzi, and especially to this one from 2013, which is even more meta than you think it’s going to be. A fantastic read, and thoroughly recommended.

Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow: A latecomer to this one from Gabrielle Zevin too. As someone who was at uni in the 90s, aiming of working in the games industry, lots of this resonated and was nostalgic, but is also a great piece of storytelling beyond that.

Salt Slow: A collection of short stories by Julia Armfield (from 2020) - very gothic, very magical realism, reminding me of Kelly Link’s work (in a good way). Will definitely check out her novels.

TV

Shrinking: I love many Bill Lawrence shows, and this is full of fantastic performances and especially from Harrison Ford. While the premise might seem bleak (a grieving therapist who decides to become drastically more involved in his patients’ lives) it’s worth taking a subscription to Apple+ TV (or is it Apple TV+?) to watch this and Ted Lasso.

Only Murders in the Building: I love Steve Martin and Martin Short together, but this wouldn’t work nearly so well without Selena Gomez. So many great moments in among the performances too.

Live Music

Best gigs this year were all in Glasgow: Hamish Hawk (Barrowlands), We Are Scientists (Òran Mor) and Paul Heaton at the Hydro (supported by The Zutons!).

Other

Big Green Egg - we purchased in this barbecue in the summer and it is fantastic. Haven’t used it too much in the winter months as yet, but looking forward to using it more in 2025!

Remembering this blog exists - I may even write in it a bit more in 2025 (and in this decade, really).