Thing 3: Paris

Paris means a lot to me - my uncle used to live there so we'd often trot off to Victoria, catch the boat train to Dover or Folkestone, ferry across to Calais or Boulogne then clamber on board an SNCF train to Paris. Eight hours or so.  Now, of course, Eurostar can get you there from St Pancras in just over two hours, making an easy day trip.

My friend Alison and I had planned this trip for a while - she hadn't been for ages and I never need an excuse to go to Paris or, indeed, to get on a train.  Tiny trauma just as I scanned my ticket and passed through the barrier when Alison asked "so do I need my passport?"  The world slowed and conflicting thoughts swirled in my brain - among them "NO!!" and "hell, I'm through now - I'm on my way!"  Luckily, it turned out to be a rhetorical question (nice timing) and all was well.

A wonderfully uneventful journey later and we arrived at the Gare du Nord.  Quick purchase of a carnet of tickets then on to the metro to the first sight - the Eiffel Tower.  Stunning as ever and I wheeled out my usual "fact" - that all the gold discovered in the world so far could be melted down into a block that would fit under the tower - does anyone know if that's true?

Slight moment occurred when I noticed a pigeon had managed to poop on Alison's new jacket.  My laughing was choked off when I realised I had suffered collateral damage - that must have been one sick bird.

Trauma over, on to the metro to the Arc de Triomphe then a walk down the Champs Elysees.  Feeling hungry we struck off down a side street to look for a restaurant.  In a slightly dodgy example of restaurant choosing I saw a beautiful Art Deco sign and in we went. It's called Le Boeuf sur le Toit and we made a good choice.  Had some brilliant oysters, a beautiful sole and a chocolate souffle I will remember for a while.  (Not as good as my mother's, clearly).

On with our walk down to the place de la Concorde and straight across through the Tuileries gardens, the Louvre and out across the pont des Arts to the Left Bank.  Nipped into Notre Dame for a gawp at the stained glass windows, a wander round the islands then across to the metro for the trip up to Montmartre.  By that time we were getting close to the time we had to get back to the station so to my secret relief we decided not to climb the stairs up to the Sacre Coeur.  Walked back to the Gare du Nord and bizarrely bumped into an ex-colleague in the passport queue.  Having said only a couple of hours previously that I felt as if we were going to bump into someone, this was an odd coincidence.

Train home and a perfect day was had.  Alison's the best possible companion, the weather held steady apart from a couple of showers and apart from the bird shit nothing went wrong.

Next weekend - another major travel event as my friend Alex and I tackle the Metropolitan line.

Thing 2: Barnes Wetland Centre

This is the perfect example of why I'm doing this this year.  It's on the way to/from work, it's been open for years, it's full of wildfowl (long term member of the RSPB) and yet, somehow, I've never been.  So at 9.30 this morning I turned up with my binoculars ready for bitterns, cranes, bustards and all manner of rare stuff to greet me with open wings.

What a great place!  If you don't know what it is, it's the site of some old concrete reservoirs that's been returned to nature, featuring lagoons, islands, reedbeds and all sorts of great wildlife habitats.  It's a large area surrounded by city and gives birds some much needed space and feeding opportunities.

Didn't see a bittern, natch, but things I was particularly pleased to see were gadwall, shoveler, teal, shelduck, lapwing and (can't quite believe this in SW London, a buzzard).  Am doubting myself on the buzzard, tbh, as no-one else appears to have noted it.  They also have various themed areas featuring wildfowl from across the world - had a pleasant chat with a pair of blue-winged geese who were either welcoming me or telling me to fuck off and had a stand-off with a black-necked swan who was most definitely not keen on me talking to his missis.

Despite, like the rest of poor old West London, being on the Heathrow flypath, the peace and quiet is palpable - definitely worth a visit to recharge the batteries.  Have now joined the WWT - Slimbridge next!

Thing 1: Scales

OK, so not ALL of the things are going to be special or cool, but investing in my first pair of bathroom scales is key to my goal of lifting myself out of Lumpy Old Pongo status.  (The fact that I'm typing this eating a massive piece of Christmas cake is neither here nor there - I don't like wasting food and it was a present.)

Have bought myself a good traditional set of scales without any electronic gizmos.  There was a nasty moment in a shop when I had a go on a fancy set of talking scales - I stepped on and it said "Are you twins?"   I'm not ready for such regular humiliation - the visual evidence is bad enough.

Not much else to say, really - I'm going to keep a record of my weight and at the end of the year will post the results.  Full disclosure, I promise!