Mayer Family Blog
Andy Mayer

Founder of Agile web agency Yoomee that makes cool social web platforms for social change. Geek, father, husband, Lotus fan and keen fencer - touché!

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April 7th, 4:38am 0 comments

Kids Tobogganing

Thanks to Eve (8) and Mia (nearly 6) for a great time yesterday on the Toboggan run at Sheffield Ski Village, celebrating their birthdays. Joel and Anna had a great time too. The weather was so good that I got sun burnt on my head. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPOfMNp-rRM

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February 11th, 4:39am 0 comments

Fencing competition video

Just finished putting together a short video of my first fencing competition from 28 January. It's hard to tell what's happening with the fast action, so I've used some slow motion. I am the guy on the left with my back to the camera. Throughout the competition I tried to keep a positive mental attitude by imagining I was Maximus - it was a huge amount of fun! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R_5pMGVJGqU Thanks to Annette for the video clips. Click here to see a list of those I defeated! For those that don't know, I took up fencing last summer mainly in an effort to get fit. The sport has really hooked me. The physical demands have encouraged me to get fitter, coupled with the challenge to make lightening speed decisions. I now fence two to three evenings a week.

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February 4th, 4:41am 0 comments

Work video

Check out this video! The Jigsaw scheme offers high growth businesses, located in South Yorkshire, financial support to employ and train new staff. Si, who works with me, benefited from this scheme and so they made the video about him. Unfortunately I hadn't prepared my lines - but Si was a natural star! Click on the comments link below to let me know what you think. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOZqu0uasIo

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Posted
January 21st, 4:45am 0 comments

Nicola is 40!

It's hard to believe, but we celebrated Nicola's 40th birthday last weekend. We visited Manchester and then stayed in a beautiful boutique hotel in Didsbury which was awesome. The following weekend we celebrated with the kids and grandparents at Nonna's. Click here for a pop-up slideshow on Flickr.

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January 21st, 4:45am 0 comments

Breaking news: First fencing competition

Breaking News: I've just come second in the 2006/7 Sheffield Novice Foil competition! My first sports competition ever! This was a complete surprise, especially as I was only two hits away from coming first. Amazing. I didn't even have any lunch with me because I thought I would be knocked out quickly. (Update: results are here). Fencing

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January 8th, 4:46am 0 comments

Happy New Year: reflections on Africa

We got back into Sheffield at the weekend, and now it's my first day in the office. What an awesome holiday. I don't know where to start in describing the amazing experiences of the last 10 days! The North African culture is a full-on assault on all the senses; extreme smells, sights and sounds. Despite their limited resources, they really know how to have a good time and live life to the full. In the same way that no part of a sheep goes to waste (boil the head, and make shoes from the skin etc) it seems they have the same knack of extracting the maximum from life also. I have over 2,000 photos of the holiday to sort out, so it will be a while before posting them on this website! In the meantime, here is a taster of a picture I took of the Koutoubia Mosque in Marrakesh by night. Popup slide show on Flickr Click here for a work in progress slide show on Flickr.

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Posted
December 27th, 4:48am 0 comments

Off to Marrakech

It's 7am and we are just about to wake the kids to take them to the airport. We are all so excited! Anna hasn't even been on a plane before. From the Adventure Company brochure this is what it says we will be doing:

An exciting, small child-friendly taste of exotic Morocco combining city, mountains and beaches.

Marrakech Souks & Atlas Mountains

Marrakech is an exotic and vibrant world - only a few hours from London but a different universe. You’ll see the city from the comfort of a horse-drawn calesh and discover the colourful main square filled with snake-charmers, jugglers musicians and acrobats. You’ll be amazed by the array of things on sale in the incredible souks. Leaving the bustle behind, you head up into the Atlas Mountains where you’ll experience something of the Berber way of life. Explore local villages on foot (with mules for the children) and enjoy plenty of fresh mountain air.

Essaouira & Beach

An old Portuguese port and pirate’s lair, the town of Essaouira offers a beautifully preserved walled town with a maze of narrow streets, ramparts and long stretch of sandy beach. The pace of life here is far from frenetic so kick back, enjoy fantastic seafood, take a ride on a camel, watch the woodcarvers or the fishermen bringing in the catch and relax on the beach.

See you next year!

Filed under holidays
Posted
December 25th, 4:49am 0 comments

Christmas Day at Epworth

We visited my parents in Lincolnshire for Christmas Day and had a great time feasting on scrumptious turkey and trimmings: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYqL0luwKn4 Tomorrow we are off to Morocco with the Adventure Company. We'll be spending new year in the Atlas mountains and returning to Sheffield on 8 January. Whoopee!

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December 24th, 4:50am 0 comments

Anna singing on Christmas Eve

It's Christmas Eve, and the kids are excited. Will Santa bring them coal, or a few pressies?

Answers please in the comments below.

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December 23rd, 4:51am 0 comments

Welcome

Today the Mayer Family Blog is reborn after over seven years in hibernation (hence the 2.0 version number). Do you remember the original blog when Joel was born? It was brown coloured. That was in the days before people had even heard about blogs.

Over the next year we'll be using this website to stay in touch with family and friends - so be sure to check back regularly and add your own comments to stay in touch.

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