ReTyrement

Oops - 7 years! Since last post. In Website tech world, HTTP Became HTTPS and so have had to update settings here. Further before40 tasks have been completed, so will now start the process of updating...... AI (Artificial Intelligence) now quite popular so will be using this to help write the new posts. Now Retired aged 52 ("ReTyred - Think of retirement as re-tyrement, having new tyres fitted to life and going off in a new direction”), so more time to do this, and also create a Bucket List. So current thinking is to combine the before40 site into a "Retyrement" branded blog/website type thing. Watch this space......

One in Ten

Happy Blog Birthday to me!

Been a while (again) eh! - The blog & former www.before40.co.uk website now 10 years old! Who'd have believed it. However, the main website in it's old format is no more! The domain name remains, and that's it here. this blog. THIS IS IT!
I will somehow try & retrieve the old pages of the completed tasks in due course, and post them here, the most permanent of homes.

No more tasks completed since the last update here some 2 (ahem) years ago. So 10 years on, the list is still only 50% complete!
I recently got to thinking though - what would the 'To Do' list look like now if I were to turn back time, compile a list for the first time, yet with 10 years more knowledge, experiences & hindsight?
So, here is a new, more upto date 'To Do' list (with the completed tasks left in).
Maybe this should be the list to aim for? I'll have a think......

Completed:
1. - Grow A Beard - DONE
2. - Give Colonic Irrigation A Go - DONE
3. - Go On The London To Brighton Annual Bike Ride - DONE
4. - Shave My Head - DONE
5. - Eat In A Jamie Oliver Fifteen Restuarant - DONE
6. - Bet £100 On One Colour At Roulette In A Casino - DONE
7. - Make a Vegetarian Lasagne From Scratch - DONE
8. - Meet My Hero Francis Dunnery For A Chat - DONE
9. - Have a Complete Back Wax - DONE
10. - Be Able to Watch Saints F.C. From A Hospitality Suite - DONE
11. - Lose Some Weight (sorry, A Lot Of Weight!) - DONE
12. - Get Myself an Eye Test - DONE
13. - Go To The Summer Solstace At Stonehenge - DONE
14. - Join A Yoga Class - DONE
15. - Run the London Marathon - DONE
16. - Put All My C.D.'s Onto My PC & iPod - DONE
17. - Buy Some Shares, Or Part Of A Company - DONE
18. - Make A Will - DONE
19. - Invite 40 People I Know to Brewfest 2010 (My 40th B/Day) - DONE

New:
20. - LeJog (Cycle from Lands End to John 'o Groats)
21. - Retire Early
22. - Get Married (again)
23. - Move to Brighton/Hove
24. - Write a Book
25. - Visit The Far East
26. - Obtain a copy of 'The Lost Weekend' (Book)
27. - Learn a new skill
28. - Do something different on Christmas Day
29. - Break at least one bad habit 
30. - Compile a list of 40 (qty) 'Forty before 40' blogs (Am certain mine was 1st!)
31. - Volunteer for Charity Work
32. - Goto Holi, The Festival of colours (in India)
33. - See the Northern Lights
34. - Climb a Mountain (Kilimanjaro)

Would/will still like to do these:-
35. - Go On A SkyDive
36. - Fly In A Hot Air Balloon 
37. - A Weekend Away In New York
38. - Drive A Porsche 911 Sportscar (Modern, Not Vintage!)
39. - Join The Revellers At Glastonbury Festival
40. - Visit Amsterdam & Eat A 'Cake

So, these therefore would/will be no more:
Spend A Weekend In A Health Club - (1 day is enough!)
Skinny Dip In The Sea Or A Lake Somewhere (Just Boring now really)
Be Hypnotised To Cure A Phobia (Don't actually have any, except spiders)
Watch TV For A Whole 24hrs Without Leaving The Room (I like sleep too much!)
Ski On Real Snow In The Alps (dunno, just can't see it happening)
Watch An Opera In London Town (Actually can't believe i had this on here)
Be In A 'Live' T.V. Audience (Is there any good live tv shows anymore?)
Have A Real Tattoo Done Somewhere On My Body (Look gross on older people)
Watch England Play Football At A Tournament Final (Can't deal with the heartbreak!)
Visit the Lake District & Cumbria (It'll happen, but so many places to visit)
Complete A Pub Crawl Of All Winchester's 32 Pubs (I drink responsibly now)
Queue Up And Watch A Match At Wimbledon (Not so into tennis these days)
Track Down My Old Friend Laurence Stone (Have tried, and failed)
Go & See A Real Life Formula One Grand Prix (Has become uber boring)
Learn A Language (Just haven't got the brainpower for this anymore)

Whilst researching & 're-compiling' the list, I viewed many other 'To-Do's' & bucket lists and realised just how lucky I am to have completed so many great tasks & challenges in my time thus far, many of those not even listed here.
So here's to continuing in the same vein!

See you soon!

Oh When The Saints (Go Marching In)

Task No. 19 Complete!

So just hours after after my Final Ever House Concert, I find myself heading to the Home of South Coast Football, Southampton FC to watch the Saints Vs Leicester game. 

......Via the Very plush President's Suite.

Unlimited Wine & beer from 12:30PM - 6PM.
A 3 course Buffet.
Live Footy on the TV screens.
Great friends,
Win Win Win!

At The time of writing this Blog, Saint's are under a very good run of form, Second in England's Premier League, with the best defensive record in Europe.

There was only gonna be one winner right?

Read all about it here

Right. On a roll now. What task next......

House Of Fun

It might not come as a surprise to hear that since I Posted the Francis Dunnery task back in 2006 I moved house. In doing so I created this amazing open plan space that meant I too could host a house concert. So I did! Many Times! and with other bands playing too!

Francis first played in my own home! back in June 2011. 

& again in 2012 With Backing singer

Miss Dorie Jackson

Then again in 2013 when I invited none other than Mr Peter Cox of Go West along to catch up with his old buddy :-

So my last ever house concert is next week (at time of writing this). It's only fitting that Francis will be the last act to play at my house.

Inbetween the Dunnery House Concerts I've also hosted some great shows for the following:-

These guys? - 'Twats in Hats' AKA John Mitchell (Lead singer of It Bites) & Songwriter Jem Godfrey playing a very rare and one off house concert. Hat's off to them (Literally!) for a thrilling performance. Very funny & very special, unlikely to be repeated anywhere again. Ever.


& these two? :-

None other than Gary Chandler & Martin Orford from Local Southampton based Prog Rock band Jadis. 

They played twice in June & September '14 with a full electric set up. Very loud indeed. Very bloomin' amazing too. Martin had given up live performances but was pursuaded to dig out the keyboards (& various other unique instruments) again for these gigs.
So there we have it - what was originally a task to meet my hero Francis Dunnery turned into me being influenced to host a House Concert, which in turn has led me to host most of my favoutire musicians in my own damn living room. Most crazy & bizarre, & would've sounded utterly ridiculous had I mentioned such a thing here as a 'To Do' task some years prior.
Along the amazing house concert journey I've met & made some very amazing friends too - fans willing to travel the length of the country to attend these very special & intimate gigs. To all of those I thank-you immensely.
Come November 8th 2014 there will be no further House Concerts. An end of an era.
“It is always important to know when something has reached its end. Closing circles, shutting doors, finishing chapters, it doesn’t matter what we call it; what matters is to leave in the past those moments in life that are over”.
– Paulo Coelho, The Zahir
(Unless of course Adam Ant can be pursuaded to play. But that's totally out of the question. Right......?)

Back To Life

Hello!

I'm back. Been a while huh? - There's loads to catch up on, more tasks completed & stories to tell.
the before40.co.uk site is back & about to have a facelift.
Technology has moved on. There's now an app to make blogging here easier (& therefore I suppose more frequent...?).

Social Media. Pah! Blogging is old school & still the best.

So get ready. Check back soon. Real damn soon.

Will you?

6 (six) years on from the start of the 'to do' list things are still happening & tasks are being completed. Two (2) this year alone!! Alas, I thought it only right to share these with you now.
There is a chance therefore that all 40 tasks could be done before i'm fifty. '40 before Fifty' if you like.

So, first up was No.39 'Make a Will'.....
This happened back in March. On the advice of the bank manager bizarrely. Anyone who's made a will knows how daunting & thought provoking this can be. 'Who would look after the kids', 'Who gets what', where to be buried/cremated.
So after a good little think I went along to my local solicitors and met up with the friendly chap there who specialises in this as a living.
Various forms filled out, questions asked and approx half an hour later I leave his office minus £125 for his trouble. 1 week later I return to mull over the draft, sign it & that's it - the will is complete.
So should anything nasty happen a solicitor somewhere in Chandlers Ford has a copy of my Will.
Easy & not so difficult as feared TBH.

Done yours yet?

5 Years time

Hello! - It's abeen a while. How are you all?

The www.before40.co.uk is no longer mine, & i'm currently thinking of re-launching the "To-Do" list, most commonly called a 'bucket list' these days.
I feel there's no need to change the actual "To-Do"'s, but more have no limit on the timescale involved in completeing them.
So I need a name for it:
'DearLiza' (There's a hole in my Bucketlist) ?
'TDBID'
'Before40mk2"
"Before40 or 100"

Any suggestions most welcome!

I'll update this blog as there's some others to add on that have been completed.