Heads & Dovetails

Jamie overslept so was a bit late for recording this week's episode. Hence Gill and Jamie chat about how important sleep is to our minds and bodies. A lack of sleep can lead to other conditions being misdiagnosed which are actually symptoms of being sleep deprived. Gill tells Jamie about the book she was given for her birthday, 'Teaching the World to Sleep' by David Lee, following the webinar she...

Having had an 'advisory' for new brake pads on its service Gill booked their car in to get them replaced only to discover it needed a new caliper as well as the old one fell apart!  The price of parts has rocketed and Jamie and Gill discuss the 'pros and cons' of new cars, buying them on finance and how buyers can be left horrified at costs to replace basic parts like tyres! We discuss the knock o...

Gill explains why she doesn't do new year's resolutions but takes time to reflect on the year gone and focus on what she did achieve rather than what she didn't. Too many people end the year thinking about those things they didn't achieve! Jamie agrees and says it's better to simply let them go and look focus forward.  Jamie asks Gill about how she finds people respond to her when she goes for her...

 Gill starts off the episode relating the story of hwo she very nearly falling for a scam whilst advertising her refurbished furniture on FB Marketplace. As a result of multiple attempts at the same scam she's deleted the adverts and going to research another avenue to sell them that feels much better to her. Flea amrkets and independent stores are on her research list - they take her furniture as...

Jamie has discovered that one of his videos on YouTube has suddenly get a lot of views and he has no idea why. He mentions how a chat with someone made him realise he was earning the equivalent of a mini pension from his channel. We discuss how fast things can change and what we think may earn us money in our old age with social media may well not even exist with the way technology marches on with...

Jamie and Gill both listened to Diary of a CEO's podcast with Tim Spector on ultra processed foods and how this impacts on our lives these days. They chat about how clever marketing from big corporates can havre us fooled into believing things are healthy when they're not.  As they discuss modern life Gill talks about a webinar she attended all about sleep - it was entitled "Sleep in people living...

Jamie jokes about the number of listeners they have and decide they aren't using the right title to create click bait to increase numbers! He explains why click bait is so important and how he has fallen prey to it on YouTube many times only to find the video is terrible - so it does work! Many of the videos are created with great technical knowledge and Gill and Jamie discuss how long it would ta...

Being typically British Jamie and Gill start by chatting about the weather and how it's creating challenges over the last couple of years for us growing veg! Jamie's tomatoes haven't been ripening and he's discovered that he shouldn't be watering them as much so Gill gives him some extra tips to speed up the process. They finally get round to chatting about friends and friendship groups and how th...

Gill's been thinking about what does inspirational mean for her and maybe others. She chats with Jamie about how people can see things very differently: one person posts about how they've coped in a 'trying time' in the belief it will 'inspire' others but it can actually make some people feel worse about themselves. How this can then lead us to compare ourselves with others without really knowing...

Jamie has been busy sorting out, organising and de-cluttering which has left him with a dilemma about what to do with the items. He has a complete set of classic novels but as a set not worth very much, however, after some research, selling them individually they are worth more. Or does he offer them to his daughters? We chat about the problem of sorting things out when someone has died and doing...

Continuing on from our 'men only' discussion in episode 31 we are joined by Honor Davis-Marks who runs a women only online membership club and retreats at her gites in the South of France. She shares what she thinks for women and why. How her retreats are as much a holiday as a safe place to share stories and feelings - interesting observation is that it is enough often around the table at meal-ti...

Jamie and Gill talk all things boxes. From Jamie talking about old cardboard boxes to making a memory box /  frames for two of his Dad's pipes his cousin has just found. Talking boxes reminds Gill of when she worked as a sales administrator in a cardboard box factory and the trauma of the Tiny Tears boxes!  18mins 50 secs - Jamie remembering his Dad and the emotions that brings leads them into cha...

Both Jamie and Gill have got jobs to do which involves mixing cement! Gill had an 'Aha' moment when weeding between the large number of flagstones she has that instead of weeding she could just re-do the mortar between the flagstones! Whilst Jamie is busy sorting out his patio to aovid flooding.  It's also Gill's turn to have a real rant about litter! She explains that she walks up her lane each d...

Jamie attempts to persuade Gill about the benefits of nettles from nettle tea to nettles on her pasta! They chat about the benefits of foraging for your food or simply picking it from the garden straight to the pot, not only are there benefits in doing so to our mental health but also to our physical health.  And being British they can't avoid talking about the effect the weather and climate chang...

It's all about shows and festivals in this week's episode!  Gill was lucky enough to be given tickets to go to the Chelsea Flower Show with her husband Clive for the first time this year. Jamie, having seen it on TV, wanted to know what it was like for real. Gill and Jamie talk about the various show gardens and how the gardens have changed over the years to reflect helping nature and how people a...

Jamie and Gill chat about their different perceptions of time particularly over the last 2 weeks, they've rushed by for Gill but seem to have gone more slowly for Jamie. They wondered why there is a difference in perception, both of them have been busy but what had happened to each of them in those two weeks changed the speed at which they perceived it had passed. Gill talks about a friend and her...

After the weekend celebrations Jamie and Gill have a quick chat about the coronation before Jamie shares his good news! Having been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis some years ago Jamie is now symptom free but as he says he is still work in progress. He describes what he did and how looking back he can understand what the triggers were and how important it is not to ignore them. Jamie and Gill...

Jamie has been busy restoring a plane that was originally made in Germany and they chat about the importance of doing some research around the items you buy. He is also thinking of doing some carving on it and making it bespoke. This reminds Gill of a 'team building' day she went on many years ago and the lesson she has always remembered about how important it is to ask your potential customers wh...

From accidentally making compost out of his wood shavings last year Jamie has been on a mission to improve his briquettes and has been testing out various 'mixes' to see which burns the longest and gives out most heat. They chat about their experiences of making compost and what Gill does to make her compost that she uses in the garden. Gill has a rant about the number of discarded dog poo bags sh...

Jamie wants to talk about barriers both mental and physical ones that prevents people from doing things they want to do. He describes his barriers and together Gill and Jamie work out what he actually does that allows him to remove any barriers and how that can be duplicated to removing other barriers. As is usual with Gill and Jamie they then somehow end up talking about buying friends presents a...

Gill has had a few clients recently who are working out when is enough actually enough and what does having enough really mean? Jamie and Gill chat about their different perspectives on having enough and the choices they made to enjoy life now and stop chasing 'enough'.  They also talk about what they are both reading at the moment and how they both prefer 'real' books to using a device. Jamie exp...

At the start of the podcast Jamie is busy applying E45 to his head and Gill tells him that she found out she was allergic to it whilst going through her cancer treatment. This lead to them chatting about having cancer as Jamie's wife has also been through it. Jamie tells what it was like for him supporting his wife and Gill explains the very different approach she took and how that lead to her wri...

Jamie and Gill decide that a good dose of positivity is needed as it's so easy to get caught up in all the negativity in the world at the moment. Jamie is pleased with his auction piece win and explains why it is important in this case to make comparisons. Gill was reminded at the weekend of how good it feels when you 'save up'  for something and how much more it then means to you when you buy it....

Jamie announces he's making big changes to get better results from his YouTube channel. He's been doing some research by listening to Steven Bartlett's podcast 'Diary of a CEO'.  Learning from those that have already done it is always a good place to start! Gill and Jamie chat about the importance of being clear on the reasons you are doing something so you avoid any potential stress. It leads int...

Gill has a bit of a rant to Jamie about the tactics some dentists use in an attempt to persuade you that your smile needs fixing in some way and you need to invest in having the 'perfect smile'! They both agree dentists have improved since they went as children. Talking about memories Gill explains why she'll never have the currently trendy, small white tiles in their house because of their link i...