I have a year off work. I am pursuing just a lot of things I enjoy. It's interesting because I feel like I'm on a practice retirement, in a way. It's been an interesting time to be off, what with everything going on in the States, Syria and other places. So in a lot of ways, I really miss my job, but it's interesting to consume the news more than just produce it. Because I've spent a bit of the last six months in London, I’ve gained some global perspective , how other people approach things, and what's going on elsewhere.

London is very diverse, ethnically, a lot of new immigration, so there's a real mix of people and a mix of cultures. There's large Muslim and Eastern European populations. You hear a lot of different languages being spoken just on the street every day. It’s an interesting time because a lot of those people are there for economic opportunity, but now because of Brexit, they don't know their future, if they'll be allowed to stay in the country, or what's going to happen to them. So there's a lot of uncertainty and fear among those people. I think, people there are wrestling with that a lot and how it's changing British culture.

Someone said, "Do a list at 50, things to do at 50." I think I got to about 25. But someone said, "Oh, you're making them all too big." But one of the things was learn to swim. So I've been taking swimming lessons, me and a whole bunch of new Brits. They’re from all over the world. Except one woman, when she joined, I asked "Where are you from?" She was from Regina!

I tend the garden. I've been doing that and doing a lot of touristy things, lots of art galleries and plays. There's tons to do, going on hikes, doing a bit of traveling which has been nice seeing different parts of the world. You're so close to everything. I'm a bit of a procrastinator, so now I've got four months left, and I've got to get all these things in. I've started a list of things in London I haven't done yet, these inns I haven't been to and various things and hikes that I want to do, just outside the city It feels like there's a bit of pressure because you get kind of lazy and just enjoying a walk through the daffodils that are blooming, which is nice, too. It's pretty good, but I realize, I do need an occupation. I could do a life of leisure for while here and there, but I need to work.

It took a while to come down from the fast pace of my job. I'm sure there'll be a big adjustment when I return. I have taken vacations of a few weeks' duration in the past so I know when I go back, some days just keeping up with the conversation will be tricky. Things in the newsroom change at such a fast pace now because you're not just doing radio. You've got to work on content for the web, and social media. It will be interesting to see how much of that changed in a year because change is constant.

February 5th, 2017

Part of the new Main St.

Downtown Winnipeg's best kept secret

February 5^th, 2017