Heads & Dovetails

GillHB
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Gill is a mindset / life coach and and Jamie is known as the Worcestershire Cabinet Maker. They both love to chat to people and find out about their lives as well as chatting with each other about what has been going on, not only in their world but the world at large. Listening to their podcast is like dropping in on someone else's conversation and you never know what you are going to learn. Some episodes they are chatting about life and other episodes they are joined by guests.

  1. Oct 21

    From consistency to comparison

    Episode 100!!! Jamie and Gill are shocked to have reached their 100th episode and reflect on how it came about. From Gill spotting a post of a pantomine crocodile on Instagram and then Jamie agreeing to do an episode with Gill on her 'GilHB and Friends' podcast to starting Heads & Dovetails. They chat about how did they get to 100 episodes! They decide it all boiled down to consistency. They'd tried various changes to the schedule: weekly, fortnightly, every 3 weeks but ultimately decided that fortnightly worked best and kept to that pattern. The consistency helped them build a habit of recording on a Friday morning at 9.30am (again something they worked out was best for them both) and relassed on teh follwoing Wednesday. The consistency was no doubt appreciated by their listeners! Consistency becomes the topic they chat about and how important it actually is to have in your life for so many reasons. Being consistent can actually help communication - consistently sitting down to have dinner around the table and chatting about your day. Consistency can also help create traditions in families - like eating at the table with no TV or phones. The conversation leads them into talking about comparison and how it can be such a negative thing in everyone's lives even more so these days with social media. Jamie talks about how the dynamic can change in a big group with people especially if they are making something, constantly checking to see if their work is as good as someone elses. Compariosn is something Jamie sees with the men in his workshop and has delivberately kept his classes small and his students make different things so makes it hard to compare. As Jamie quotes: Comparison is the thief of joy.

    From consistency to comparison

  2. Oct 7

    From stressed trees to saving money on electricity.

    Gill had a branch snap on a tree, not completely but was overhanging the lane, so it needed to be removed before it fell onto someone. She tells Jamie the fun and games she and Clive had trying to remove it whilst cars waited. Jamie has also seen several trees with snapped branches. They chat about how many trees they have seen recently where . what appear to be healthy branches, have snapped off. Gill tells Jamie that with a bit of research she learned that trees, when under stress - and there has been a lot this year - will simply discard any branches with flaws. She had spoken to their tree surgeon about it and he said the trees have been really suffering and he expects a lot more problems as the autumn winds and rain start. Jamie and Gill discuss how trees do need managing evenin a woodland. Jamie talks about his cherry tree that he has cleared from ivy and tidied up and what he has done with all the wood he as removed. From making leaf mulch, Gill has a story about her attempts to make leaf mulch, to storing the wood as fire wood.  Jamie also wants to share how he has now saved £25 a month on his electric bill by not only altering his water bed (as we discussed in a previous episode) but also how he has install an 'near the sink' instant hot water heater. Not only is he saving on his electirc but also on the amount of water they use as they don't have to run the tap quite so much to get hot water.  Gill explains that investing in solar panels was one of the best things they did and how they turn off the heating in April, which includes the hot water boiler as the panels heat the water, and as yet (being October) still haven't had to turn it back on. They also export any excess electricity back to the grid which with the summer over the last few years has meant their bill has been credited with an amount rather than then having to pay anything.          Edi

    From stressed trees to saving money on electricity.

  3. Sep 23

    From How things are priced in shops to making tea.

    Gill explains that a few months ago they have moved away from using tea bags, because of the chemicals contained in the bags, back to using loose tea. Apart from the tea tasting so much better and them actaully needing to use less she was interested to see if there was a difference in price. On comparing the prices per 100g there was a marked differnce with loose tea being cheaper. Jamie had listened to a tea expert on a programme on the radio and explains the reasons she gave for loose tea being better quality. Gill coninues to say how she started checking prices on other items eg in somecases the large tins v small tins of things and again found the smaller tins to actually work out cheaper! They both agree they prefer to shop in person and choose their own food for variosu reasons plus it gives them chance to interact with others. Jamie wants to return to talking about tea and how he makes his cuppa in the workshop over the week. When Gill tells him how she prefers hers, Jamie is horrified!  It leads them to question why do some adults put sugar in their children's tea so that they will like it rather than just waiting to see if they like it without sugar as they get older?

    From How things are priced in shops to making tea.

  4. Sep 9

    From labelling people to triangular greenhouses!

    Jamie is tired of people being given a range of 'labels' even when not officially diagnosed as an example how somebody wanting to be organised or liking things to be tidy is suddenly seen as being OCD. Jamie has various examples and he and Gill chat about both the positives and negatives of people being labelled and the role of 'Dr Google' in self diagnosis. They questions when did the use of labels become so common place?  In his woodworking Jamie has an eye for perfection and details and how he wants to make things that become 'heirlooms' rather than an item you just throw away. Woudl he be given a label of hypervigilant or OCD becuase of that eye for detail? Jamie and Gill are both ideas people and laugh about the problems that causes when you get an idea you want to follow up on from Gill wanting to make a willow bike basket (which expands into becoming a dual purpose one to Jamie wanting to make a triangular greenhouse! Gill has been thining about the impact of boundaries and how that along with calling people toxic has over the last few years have beome 'things'. She is concerned that rather than us becoming more connected its actually leading to people becoming more isolated.

    From labelling people to triangular greenhouses!

  5. Aug 26

    From 'The End of the Line' to regional accents and dialects.

    Gill and Jamie are joined in this episode by an octogenarian author, John Uttley who has written his 4th and what he says, being realistic about his age and a recent health concern, is his final book.  Originally from a working class family in Lancashire John went on to study at Oxford and had a career in what was orignally the CEGB (Central Electricity Generating Board) and when privatised he worked for the National Grid. On leaving that role a   a portfolio career followed. It was at this point that John found he had time to write. Gill and Jamie chat to John about his books which are set in his home county of Lancashire, although John admits he's lived in London a long time. How he came to write them, where he gets his ideas from and does he have a specific strategy when writing. Ultimately the subject of accents is brought up when John asks Gill where he thinks he's originally from. Knowing the strong reactions between being identified as a Lancashire man or a Yorkshire man incorrectly - Gill didn't dare get it wrong!  John's books are available to order from: bookshops via his website https://www.johnuttleyauthor.com/ or purchase online from Amazon

    From 'The End of the Line' to regional accents and dialects.

  6. Aug 12

    From insect bites to dealing with past traumas.

    Jamie is being badly bitten by something up his garden unlike previous years and asks Gill if she gets bitten more now than a few years ago as he has a theory.  Gill says she only has to walk outside and she gets bitten even through jeans, hence she never wears shorts or dresses! She reacts badly to bites with them itching constantly and they become swollen and red for days - she still has the scars from last years bites. Jamie thinks its because we eat 'cleaner and healthier' now that we have become tastier to the insects. Gill thinks it's because she doesn't drink as much alochol these days as she used to when she didn't get bitten!  However she can't wait to tell Jamie that she is about to make something and see if it works. She's been hearing and reading about ribwort plantain balm being excellent for bites and stings. Having discovered they have loads of both sorts of plantain (flat broad lead and ribwort plantain) growing in their garden, of course  Gill being Gill has decided to make some to see if it is effective.  They chat about how the more natural ways are often the best and how we have forgotten about so many of them that herbalist and naturopaths use or actually has marketing and big pharma steered us away from making our own natural remedies? Gill had shared an IG post with Jamie about some research around trauma, which she had found interesting. It was looking at why after a trauma some people can move on and simply view it as a memory and others stay stuck in the trauma cycle despite therapy. In essence the research found that those that journal about it for 15 - 20 mins over 3 or 4 days can then move forward with their lives. Jamie says he has something he'd like to move on from and is going to give it a go to see what happens. They chat about what they used to use for writing from fountain pens to Quink ink, blotting paper and cartridge pens.

    From insect bites to dealing with past traumas.

  7. Jul 29

    From ice creams to earning money by collaborating.

    Following on from the last episode Jamie and Gill chat a bit more about EV's and the problems they've come across in last couple of weeks. Jamie had an incicent with a student and when Gill was in Lyme Regis with Clive she saw an 'exchange' between 2 car owners - one in the charging space and one waiting to charge. It did raise more questions about owning an EV car.  Gill's husband had suggested they treat themselves to an ice cream. When they saw the rpices they realised how long ago they must have last bought an ice cream whilst out and about. It leads Jamie and Gill to chat not jsut about ice cream prices but about prices in general and how much they have increased. They both agree that in no way do they blame the business owner - but ultimately Gill only got her ice cream when they got home and she made them!  Jamie has been busy dismantling his tree house that he built for a TV show and says how he wished he hadn't bothered building it as it was so much hassle! He has got of bits of video he took whilst taking it down that he could edit to put on YouTube. They discuss the effort and time it takes to make and post videos, how it has to be portrait for one platform and landscape for another. Gill says she will be posting a lot more in landscape now as she's working on a series for her YouTube channel which is best in lanscape. Jamie warns her about copyright music and some issues he has had in the past using 'free from copyright' music. They talk about how people think it's quick and easy to make money either posting videos or working on collaborations with businesses - it isn't! It take a lot of time, andi n the case of YouTube can be a long time before you earn a penny let alone get paid. They both agree it can bring in an income but you have no idea why one month you get lots of views on a video and the next not alot!

    From ice creams to earning money by collaborating.

  8. Jul 15

    From horse s**t to apprenticeships and EV cars

    In this episode Jamie and Gill are joined by a guest Andy Leech, founder of Fleet Evolution (EV cars). Andy is a horse lover and somehow very early on in the podcast they start talking about horse s**t and the furore it can cause in a community. There are people who think owners and riders should clear up their horses mess the same as dog owners are meant to, Jamie of course is a dog owner. They chat about the diffiulties that would cause ot just out on the road with traffic but for the rider too having to climb back on - as Andy says at his age he'd need a step!  With Andy owning a company both Jamie and Gill are interested to kow more about his apprenticeship scheme and how it works compared now to many years ago. Jamie didn't do an aprenticeship but worked and learnt under a skilled / master craftsman. They chat about the benefits to doing an apprenticeship rather than everyone going to university and all agree about the huge positives of 'learning on the job'. Not only does a young person learn the role but also what it feels like to go to work, be part of a team, earn while you learn and about how to communicate and take feedback. Andy set up Fleet Evolution back in 2010 as a salary sacrifice scheme for companies. Neither Jamie nor Gill are fond of EV cars for a variety of reasons but Andy does a good job in convincing them of the positives, how it really is about adapting, planning in advance and a shift in mindset! Part of the planning is looking for places you are going to stop and charge which leads them to talk about the best Motorway services. Gill and Andy agree there really aer only 2 in England for them - the  Gloucester Services on the M5 and Tebay on the M6 n Cumbria.  However Andy does admit that if you can't charge it at home, and there are plenty of people who can't, then it is more of an issue.  He does say to Jamie that if you own your own car outright (both Jamie and Gill do) had it for several years and it's going OK with general servicing then that is the best form of sustainability.

    From horse s**t to apprenticeships and EV cars
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About

Gill is a mindset / life coach and and Jamie is known as the Worcestershire Cabinet Maker. They both love to chat to people and find out about their lives as well as chatting with each other about what has been going on, not only in their world but the world at large. Listening to their podcast is like dropping in on someone else's conversation and you never know what you are going to learn. Some episodes they are chatting about life and other episodes they are joined by guests.

Information

  • Creator
    GillHB
  • Years Active
    2021 - 2026
  • Episodes
    101
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © GHB2022
  • Show Website
    Heads & Dovetails