The road to better vision…

The road to better vision… As a full-time athlete within the British Para-Cycling Team, Karen Darke, MBE FRSGS, has devoted her life to training, competing and pushing herself to her limits. Embarking on adventures from covering the 372-mile ice cap in Greenland whilst sitting on skis and using her poles traverse the ground, to climbing Mont Blanc, Matterhorn and El Capitan, she doesn’t let anything stop her. In 2012, she became a silver-medallist in the London Paralympics, and in 2016…

Here’s to the readers, the adventurers, the young-at-hearters

Here’s to the readers, the adventurers, the young-at-hearters If Dylan Thomas’s 1947 poem, “Do not go gentle into that good night”, could be summed up in one line, it would be: “Old age should burn and rave at close of day”. But it can’t be. Although short and concise as it is, Thomas crafted every single word to try and convey the full power of his feelings on a very personal matter, his father’s imminent death, and get across exactly why…

How to age gracefully (with Phil)

How to age gracefully (with Phil) There comes a point in everyone’s life when they find themselves faced with the inevitable truth of ageing. Even though it’s happening from the very moment you’re born, it can be decades until you have to face the fact — not least because most of us are pushing it away for as long as possible. For Phillip Schofield, that time came at just sixteen years of age, when his hair started to turn grey….

Looking after your eyes on the London tube

Looking after your eyes on the London tube Take a ride on the London underground and you’re destined to see sights you won’t have seen anywhere else. Strange characters dressed up as mythical creatures and dominatrix on their way to work. Longtime commuters sprawled out with shoes off and feet up. Even couples celebrating the best day of their lives by getting married on their favourite line. The problem is, as an enclosed, poorly ventilated environment that’s also full of…

How to avoid eye strain

How to avoid eye strain Like migraines, weak glutes, and depression, eye strain seems like just another part of modern day life we have to accept. I can’t remember a time when I didn’t end the work day by rubbing my eyes and blinking like a maniac. There was, however, a time when it was much worse — when I wore contact lenses. My eyes would be instantly as dry as Ghandi’s flipflops if I simply made a sandwich or…

How Denise Van Outen stays looking young

How Denise Van Outen stays looking young Denise Van Outen certainly isn’t one to shy away from the spotlight. The actor come presenter, singer, dancer, has hosted hit breakfast TV shows, played leading roles in West End and Broadway musicals, and long been a familiar face in homes all around the country, appearing regularly on shows like Strictly, Sunday Brunch, and Loose Women. And why would she shy away? Ever since her first TV performance as a teenager in the children’s sci-fi comedy…

Why should the young have all the fun?

Why should the young have all the fun? Every year we celebrate our chronological age, i.e how many years we’ve lived since our mothers performed the gracious act of bringing us into the world. But once you get beyond thirty or forty you begin to realise this isn’t a true representation of how old you are. Somehow the numbers keep going up but you don’t feel like you’re ageing with them. In some senses, you feel younger than ever. Your…

See more. Clearly.

See more. Clearly. Sure, you’ve visited the Grand Canyon, the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, or the Pyramids of Egypt, but did you really see them? I mean, you have the photos and everything to prove it, right? But when you were actually there, beyond your phone and camera lens, your partner complaining about their feet, and the thoughts about what you were going to do for dinner, did you truly see them in all their magnificent glory? We know the trivialities above can…

Visit us on Facebook

Visit us on Facebook You wouldn’t think it, but working as a freelancer there are many times I miss being in a big office and working under the iron thumb of a boss. For one, I wouldn’t suddenly decide to take an extended lunch break when I have a deadline to meet the next morning; they also probably wouldn’t stand for my clothes rack/kitchen counter/desk either. But the main impact having a stern face looming over me would be in cutting down the endless hours I spend…

Where do you keep your reading glasses?

Where do you keep your reading glasses? At around a million times faster than NASA’s 1960’s computer, a smartphone is an incredibly sophisticated piece of tech. With it, you can do things like pay for groceries, translate text, and stay in touch with your loved ones. Without it, well, we would barely achieve anything. And as such an indispensable part of our life that brings us endless pleasure (thank you Candy Crush), we have no trouble carting it around with us everywhere…