Category: 60 Before 60

Van Insurance

Insuring a van is really not easy (unless you’re self-employed that is).

It was such a lovely day today and I’ve wasted most of it sitting indoors at my desk in my study which doesn’t get any sun during the day. Why? Because I had to insure my van. I’ve got a week’s free insurance with it but that’ll only last till Wednesday. I thought it would be easy to switch my insurance from my car to the van, but no. Endsleigh doesn’t insure vans. So they’ve cancelled my policy and are sending me a refund for the remainder. This meant I had to find another insurance company. I’ve rang so many and done lots of searches online.

Specialist van insurance companies don’t want to insure me because I don’t have my own business. Campervan insurance companies don’t want to insure me because it’s not a proper campervan. Car insurance companies don’t want to insure me because it’s not a car. The few quotes I did manage to get were astronomical. Finally after hours of searching I found a broker who has insured me through Aviva. Whilst I was on the phone I ran my details through the quote section of Aviva’s website but the quote was several hundred pounds higher than the price the broker was getting for me. So I’ve gone with the broker.

I’m a bit miffed though that so many companies seem to think you should only own a van if you have your own business. Have these people no imagination?!

Van Owner

I’ve brought my van home.

Well I have my van. I picked it up last night after school and took it for a short drive. It’s very different to driving my car. The brakes are so keen I ricochet forwards even when I barely touch them – thank goodness for seat belts! On the other hand, I have to use a lot more gas to get going and pick speed up. This is probably due to me not being used to driving with diesel. I don’t have to go very far though for me to start getting used to it so I’m sure I’ll be feeling at home driving it in no time.

The interior sides and floor have been hardboarded over and there’s also a piece of board completely blocking off the cab. This makes the cab feel a bit claustrophobic and shortens the length of the available space in the back. So my first job this weekend is to take that piece out. I want to be able to climb into the back from the front when it’s chucking it down so that’s another reason for it to go.

I feel quite excited about my new project but at the same time it was quite a wrench letting my old car go. It’s served me well over the last six or seven years and I have some great memories of trips and holidays made in it. I really hope my van turns out to be as good and I get lots more great memories from it.

Waxing 3

With each waxing session I’m getting braver.

I just got braver. I had my third waxing appointment this evening and this time I went for a bikini wax as well as a full-leg wax. I didn’t do anything too dramatic with the bikini wax and just got a basic one. It hurt a bit, but nothing like I thought it might have done. Next time I go I’ll get my under-arms done as well and then this challenge can be successfully ticked off. I had thought that once I’d finished the challenge I probably wouldn’t bother continuing with waxing as the first time it didn’t last too long and so seemed easier (and cheaper) just to shave. But the second time lasted much longer and presumably this time should last longer still. So I think this could become a regular thing for me.

Just call me Mma Ramotswe …

I’m now the owner of a little white van.

… because I have got a little white van.

My mechanic checked it out yesterday and I took it for a test drive today. All went well and I’m due to collect it on Wednesday. I’m already getting excited thinking about what I’m going to do to convert it. It’ll get its first camping outing at half term in June. I’m planning to use my tent but I’ll try to sleep in the van at least one night to get a feel for it.

Not sure if I’ll keep it white though – I might respray it orange.

Oh, and if you don’t know who Mma Ramotswe is read this.

Photography blogs

A few blog discoveries that are inspiring me to improve my photography.

I was reading one of the blogs I follow (a blog about Iceland) and noticed a comment on the bottom. The comment seemed interesting so I followed it up and discovered two bloggers who have three photography blogs between them. One of them is basically a record of photographs taken every day for a year. As this is something I’ve been trying to do this year (and failing miserably) this interested me straight away. The other two blogs include one in which the two bloggers set themselves a photography project once a fortnight and one which seems to have lots of opportunistic photographs. I’m looking forward to having time to look through them properly and hopefully pick up some good tips. At the very least they might help motivate me!

White Van (Wo)Man

I’ve almost bought a van.

Today I went to look at vans/cars. I either want a car that has a bit of extra height and that has easily removable seats so it can be used for sleeping in, or a van that I can do a semi-conversion on and turn it into a campervan. My other criteria are that it should be orange and have cup holders, but I realise that might be expecting a bit much.

The first place I looked didn’t have anything to suit.  The second place didn’t have anything either, but one of their partner showrooms did. They actually found a couple of options for me and I’ve decided to go with the second which is a white Berlingo van. It’s only five years old and has really low mileage. At the moment it’s in Doncaster so I haven’t seen it myself yet, but they’re going to get it driven down here this week and then I can test drive it and get my mechanic to check it over. All being well, by next weekend I’ll have my van. So quite a productive Sunday really. And we were finished in time to go for a nice pub lunch.

2012 Twelve February Review

2nd monthly review of my 2012 Twelve challenges.

Hm, a bit of a rubbish month really as far as achievements go. I’ll blame it on the fact that February is a short month (even with the extra day this year) and I was away for a week of it.

1. Floating in a floatation tank.  I did achieve the #1 challenge on my 2012 twelve list as I went floating over half term whilst I was in London.

3. Taking at least one photo every day of the year. Apart from taking lots of photos whilst I was in London, I haven’t been keeping to my photo a day challenge. I felt quite inspired by the Hungry Cyclist’s project of taking a photo of something he eats every day for a year, and this might be something I’ll do in future years. However, I first need to get in the habit of taking a daily photo of anything, before I can start thinking about making it specific!

7. Learning to use at least 3 new pieces of technology or computer programmes. The ‘Apple in an Hour’ course was postponed at the last minute. It will still happen, but I have no idea when. So I haven’t learnt how to use any new bits of technology yet.

8. Doing a writing course. I haven’t started my writing course yet, though I should have more time this month.

9. Getting at least one piece of writing published. I’ve achieved #9 as I got a book review published (unpaid) in Wanderlust. This is quite a prestigious travel magazine, so I felt quite proud of myself when I saw the review in print alongside a photo of me. As I actually wrote it and got it accepted last month, this is more an achievement from last month but I didn’t want to count it until I actually saw it in print.

So, although I’ve got two challenges ticked off and I’m only two months in and so technically I’m on schedule, I still feel like I haven’t made much headway. March should be better, as I’ll get on with the writing course and I need to make a serious effort to go over my finances to plan for the rest of the year. Once I’ve done this I can start making plans to change my car and for my next house. As the MOT is due on my car in mid April and I’ll be away for the first half of April, I really need to get my car changed by the end of March. So this is the major project for this month.

Floating

I spent an hour in a floatation tank and ticked another challenge off my list.

Last Wednesday I went to Floatworks near London Bridge for my floatation tank experience. I’d been at the Hockney Exhibition at the Royal Academy beforehand and had a bit of rush across London to get there in time so wasn’t feeling particularly relaxed when I arrived. The building looks like a warehouse and I wasn’t sure how to get in. The door, when I found it, looked like a tradesmen’s entrance on the side of the building and I had to ring the bell to get buzzed in.

I went down the not particularly enticing stairs to the dimly lit reception area. It had a fish tank and there was new age relaxation type music playing. Very cliched. As I sat waiting I thought about how depressing it would be to work down here in nice weather. I had to fill in a form and was given a pair of flip flops to wear.

After a few minutes I was called through. The rooms are private and each have a shower, a chair and a big egg shaped floatation tank in them. I was given instructions on how to use it – pretty simple really: button on right is emergency button; first button on left is for the light inside the tank; second button on left is to control the lid. There was also a spray bottle of fresh water on the inside of the tank in case I got salt water in my eyes. Luckily I didn’t need it.

I was told to have a quick shower and in five minutes music would start playing and the lights in the room would go out. The shower had gel, shampoo and conditioner and I was provided with a towel. There was also vaseline in case I had any cuts (it’s recommended to put vaseline over them to prevent stinging) and earplugs. These aren’t for noise prevention, but to prevent too much salty water getting in your ears.

I got undressed and showered pretty quickly so I was in the tank before the lights went out. I got myself stretched out in the water and put the neck pillow under my neck. I checked out that I knew where the buttons were and that I knew how to control the lights and lid of the tank itself.

The music started low and got slightly louder as the lights dimmed. It plays for the first 10 minutes. Then there are 45 minutes of silence before a final 5 minutes of music to let you know your time is almost up. I turned the light out in the tank and lay in complete darkness listening to the music and trying to get comfy. Although I was floating I wasn’t really letting all my muscles relax, particularly my neck muscles. I moved around a bit too. I’d only realise I’d moved when my head or feet would touch the end of the tank or I’d touch the sides.

I didn’t put the lid down at first as it was completely dark anyway. But then the part of my body that was above the water line started to feel a bit cold, so I lowered the lid and warmed up straight away. It was a bit stuffy, but better than being cold.

I did manage to relax and felt quite drowsy but didn’t actually nod off. When the music started to play again I was surprised that the 45 minutes were already over. I raised the lid and sat up. Then I lay down again, but this time without the neck pillow. It wasn’t any better. If I was to do this again I don’t know what I could do to help my neck feel comfortable.

I got out of the tank (easier said than done with such buoyant water) and back into the shower. As I was in the shower the tank lid closed and gurgling noises emanated from it – no doubt it was being cleaned ready for the next user. It took a while to feel that I’d got all the salt off my body and out of my hair. Once I was dry and dressed I went to another room where there are mirrors, hairdryers and spray deodorants. Then, apart from paying, my experience was over.

So what did I think of it and did it live up to my expectations? I think it was pretty much what I expected it to be. I enjoyed it as a one off experience but don’t think it was any more relaxing than a spa pool, jacuzzi or steam room. For less than the £45 this cost me, I could have spent several hours in one of the spas in Baden Baden in Germany and would have left feeling much more relaxed than I did from here. I’m glad I’ve done it and sated my curiosity and I would recommend it as a chance to experience something a bit different. However, it’s not something I’ll likely do again (not unless it was a lot cheaper!) and even if money wasn’t an issue it doesn’t appeal as something to do on a regular basis.

One plus though, is that for several days afterwards my skin felt really soft. Even after I’d had other showers the effect still lasted.

Altitude training

The thing that worries me most about climbing Kilimanjaro is the altitude. I may have found a solution.

I was just browsing for tents and came across this. Ellis Brigham in Manchester have an altitude training centre. It seems that you pay 30 quid to sit in an egg chair, strap a mask over your face and get a readout on how well you deal with altitude. I’ve always felt as though I slow right down in even relatively low altitudes and so this could be an interesting test for me when I start my preparation for Kilimanjaro. It’s not being able to deal with the altitude that worries me most about the climb and if I don’t complete it, it will probably be due to this.

The site also mentions that you can book a series of training sessions before you embark on a high altitude trip. It doesn’t say how much this would be, but I imagine it will be quite pricey. I do like the idea of working out on the cross trainer with an oxygen depleting mask stuck to my face though. I wonder if this is what they mean?

2012 Twelve January Review

How did I do on my 2012 Twelve challenges in January?

As we’re now into February I thought I should review how I’m doing on my 2012 Twelve. I’ve only mentioned the tasks I’ve actually done something about.

1. Floating in a floatation tank – I’ve got this booked and will be floating a week on Wednesday.

3. Taking at least one photo every day of the year – I’ve done this for about half the month. I’ve started carrying my snappy camera around with me all the time, but most days just forget about it.

4. Coming up with a fitness plan and sticking to it (the start of my training for Kilimanjaro, though I may not actually climb it for several years yet) – I haven’t done anything about the fitness plan yet, but I did attend a talk on Kilimanjaro.  

7. Learning to use at least 3 new pieces of technology or computer programmes (not counting my new camera) – I’m booked to do an ‘Apple in an hour’ course at school just after half term. This will be the start of me learning to use an Apple Mac.  

8. Doing a writing course – I’ve enrolled for an online course with the London School of Journalism and received the first two lessons. I haven’t had time to start them yet though.

9. Getting at least one piece of writing published (paid or unpaid, as long as someone else makes the decision to publish it and it’s not self-published) – I wrote a brief book review for Wanderlust and they’ve accepted it. I’m not getting paid, but will be published in a prestigious travel magazine.  

11. Buying a car/van that I can sleep in (and doing any necessary conversions/adaptations) – I’ve started researching vans and how to convert them.