It’s a long time since I practiced law, but there are certain cases I will never forget. I’m always wary of referring to them as career highlights, because behind the buzz of the legal arguments and a ‘big day in court’ there were always human lives and stories. It was undoubtedly exciting for me as… Read more »
Posts Categorized: HNM Column
Welcome home, Grace and Edwyn.
There’s a function on Facebook which allows you to look back on what you were up to ‘On This Day’ in previous years, and I can never resist a peek. It serves as a reminder both of good times (because frankly, that’s all that most of us ever post on Facebook) and of how quickly… Read more »
How do you eat an elephant? Ask Matt Bendoris!
How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time. Don’t panic. In the wake of the outcry about Cecil the lion I’m not advocating firing up the barbecue to polish off another of Africa’s ‘big five’; I’m merely quoting a phrase which is designed to help us get through seemingly insurmountable tasks. Break… Read more »
Driverless cars? I’m starting to see the attraction!
Contrary to my assertion last week that I would be leaving the passenger seat to Mr Marr as Daughter #2 learns to drive, she and I did indeed ‘hit the road’ to get in some practice between lessons. We swerved and bunny-hopped our way in first gear around otherwise quiet residential areas. While she was… Read more »
Mental illness. Speaking out to stop the stigma
Daytime TV comes in for a lot of stick, and quite rightly so. The repetitive cycle of programmes about tracing heirs, flogging antiques and moving to the sun is enough to send anyone who is off sick back to the office before their doctor’s line expires. But a prompt from Alastair Campbell on Twitter drove… Read more »
First childless holiday for 20 years – thank goodness for ‘holiday friends’!
After a fortnight’s holiday on a beach club in Turkey, it feels strangely disconcerting to be back at work and not watching the clock in case I miss a tennis lesson, sailing session or Pilates class. After two weeks indulging in an average of six hours of sport a day I returned home feeling strong… Read more »
Holiday packing. It’s easier than the magazines suggest…
As I rule I don’t buy ‘women’s’ magazines. Before I open them, they feel like a frivolous treat, but within half an hour I am left feeling inadequate, or acquisitive, or both. Headlines that scream of the ’17 best red lipsticks ever’ make me wonder who has either the lifestyle or the budget to need… Read more »
She’s coming home. But who will she be?
In just over a month’s time our little family will be complete again as Daughter #1 returns home after a year in Central America. She won’t be here for long – just six weeks after her plane touches down on UK soil we’ll be installing her into student accommodation in Glasgow. But she’ll be back… Read more »
Sixth Year Holidays. Rite of passage? Or disaster?
Sixth Year holidays. I’ve already had a stern word with myself about the subject matter of this week’s column, not because it doesn’t merit being discussed, but because I am in danger of coming across either as supremely po-faced, or mightily hypocritical, or both. Mindful of my own experiences on a Club 18-30 holiday in… Read more »
Hands off our Highland Trains!
I love travelling by train; I always have. Maybe it comes from growing up with a garden that backed onto a railway embankment and waving at the trains as they passed. Maybe I’ve watched Brief Encounter too often – there’s a certain romance associated with travelling alone; a real ‘what if’ to every chance meeting…. Read more »