My Hobbies

I’m quite a quizzical person so many of my hobbies tend to set me challenges.
I love clocks – mechanical (not battery) and preferably skeletonised so you can see the moving parts. It’s the visual concept of the passage of time. I have renovated a few clocks over time but have not yet taking the scary plunge of a full dismantle. I know that would probably end badly.

Around our area are many old Bath stone quarry mines. Exploring these incredible man-made caverns is quite stunning and many people don’t realise how many miles of passageways exist under their feet. It’s not unusual to crawl along a 1 metre passageway which opens up to a 20 metre or more cavern. I’ve got all the kit: overalls, caving lamp, maps etc. but lately haven’t been going as often. I have to change that.

Photography is another major interest. I’m fortunate to own a digital SLR camera which can give me some lovely shots. I particularly like night shots – long exposures to produce some interesting effects, and also heavy B&W shots with a strong contrast.
I have combined the caving and photography hobbies to produce some interesting photos of the caves around west Wiltshire. But it's hard going... The total darkness underground is insane so along with all my protective equipment and camera, I have to haul a variety of lights to illuminate the passageways.
I have included a few of my images in a Caving Gallery if you'd like to take a look.

Many years ago my in-law introduced me to HTML, the basic programming language for web pages. From there it grew into a hobby which takes up my time often in small but intensive clumps. I’m not a complete whiz-kid – I still struggle with PHP and JavaScript but I’m ok with the HTML and CSS. I create in code (as opposed to visual design like Frontpage or Wordpress) and over the years have produced many sites for friends and clubs. My larger projects have been for a primary school and my old Scout group. I’ve really enjoyed creating this small profile page.

There are a few other interests: home mechanics (car and motorbikes), PC repair and building, DIY jobs and even though it’s a little obvious, I do love science. But not the boring writing stuff. The dangerous bangs and fizzle stuff.