My name is Hugh. I live in the city of Swansea, South Wales, in the United Kingdom.
My blog covers a wide range of subjects, the most popular of which are my blogging tips posts.
If you have any questions about blogging or anything else, please contact me by clicking on the 'Contact Hugh' button on the menu bar of my blog.
Click on the 'Meet Hugh' button on the menu bar of my blog to learn more about me and my blog.
Wordless Wednesday – No words, just pictures. Allow your photo(s) to tell the story.
Even a spider’s web is a home
Not sure what Wordless Wednesday is or how to participate? Click here for full details.
Are you participating in Wordless Wednesday? Although I am not hosting this challenge, you can leave a link or pingback to your post in the comments section to help promote it to other bloggers.
To help those with eyesight-impaired vision, please remember to complete a description of your photo in the ‘alt-text’ and description boxes of the picture in the WordPress media library. For more details, check my post, Adding Images Or Photos To Your Blog Posts? 4 Essential Things To Do.’
Follow Hugh on Social Media. Click on the links below.
I don’t like the idea of killing time. I don’t like the idea of killing anything. But when it comes to killing time, do you do it?
How do you kill time?
I can’t remember when it was I heard this quote, but it’s stuck with me like a sticky bun sticks to my fingertips.
‘Life and time is like a toilet roll The nearer you get to the end The quicker it runs out.’
Unknown
How to manage time before retirement.
Before I retired from full-time work in 2012, my life was hectic, and time was often my enemy. With deadlines to meet and places to be, I was forever rushing around like somebody who was too busy to tell anybody how busy I was.
I’d look at people’s schedules and wonder how they could easily complete everything. Some people seem to be naturally gifted at managing their time – or maybe they were better at saying “no” to distractions than I was?
However, I’m proud that I’ve always been a good timekeeper. I’d rather look after time than kill it.
I always arrive at appointments with lots of time to spare. And then it backfires on me as I start questioning myself about the time I am wasting when sitting in a waiting room or killing time when window shopping in the high street while I wait for a friend.
Maybe I should start arriving late than early? But the thought of being late for anything is something I can not face.
How do I look after time?
In many ways. But one thing that has helped me is to use time wisely by keeping a daily schedule.
I write down the things that I want to accomplish that day, and then I try to stick to that schedule as much as possible. Of course, things come up, and I need to be flexible, but having a structure in my day helps me feel like I am using my time wisely.
Another thing that helps me is to prioritise my tasks. I try to focus on the most important things rather than wasting time on things that don’t matter. This helps me be more productive and feel less stressed.
How do you kill time if you don’t have enough of it?
I’ve never liked the thought of killing time because I don’t usually have enough of it to get everything done in my day. After all, how can you kill something that you don’t have?
How often do you hear somebody say, ‘I don’t have enough time’ or ‘I wish I had more time?’
When we’re enjoying ourselves, time tricks us. It makes us think it’s going fast or gone quickly. Whereas when we’re doing something we don’t enjoy, it reverses that trick by making us think it’s going slow. Yet, all along, it has travelled at its usual pace.
Is time fooling you?
When I was at school, time seemed to go slowly. I remember the school summer holidays and how those six weeks of freedom seemed to last forever. They seemed endless until the nightmare of the night before returning began.
Even the two-week Christmas school break seemed to last forever. Back then, time was my best friend. It was always there and gave me as much of what it had as I wanted.
When time runs out on you.
Then, I got my first job and soon found myself fighting for time and trying desperately not to allow it to leave. It was as if time was upset with me and wanted to leave. If only I had saved up some of the spare time from my childhood. It would have come in very useful.
Work days would always go quickly. Somebody told me it was a sign of being busy. I’d arrive at work dreading the full week ahead, but it would often pass me by like an intercity express train.
When Friday afternoon arrived, the thought of all that free time over the weekend would put a big smile on my face.
Even better was when the weekend was extended because of a public holiday. I remember being told by a work colleague, ‘ Three days of time to roam free‘. It’s yet another ‘time’ quote I’ve never forgotten.
Time is like money. Those who spend it wisely, will never lose it.
Hugh W. Roberts
Yet, when the office clock struck five and a long weekend was upon me, why did I resist going home and getting the long weekend started? Was I fooling myself by believing that the long weekend would last even longer if I delayed it? Or was it because I wanted to enjoy that feeling of ‘three days of time to roam free’ even longer?
Time doesn’t stop for anybody, so why was I kidding myself?
Time after retirement. And why do some people find time boring?
When I retired, the thought of all that spare time on my hands was one of the benefits of retirement.
At first, I had no idea what I would do with all my spare time. However, I knew that I would not allow myself to get bored or become addicted to daytime television or social media.
When I hear people say they are bored, I want to arrest them and put them in ‘time jail.’ How can anybody get bored with their time?
When I see people on social media saying they’re bored, not only do I ask them how anybody can get bored on social media, but if they’re bored, do something less boring than spend time on social media.
I’m proud to say that I’ve never been bored or addicted to daytime television or social media.
Looking back, I wonder how I managed to fit everything in. Where did I find the time to work and find all the time enjoying a social life that often took me away on vacation or on long weekend breaks? It’s something I never found out the answers to.
Fast forward to the present, and I ask, ‘Where does the time go?’
Unlike my early years, days, weeks, and months seem to zoom past even more quickly. I often compare my life to the toilet roll I mentioned at the beginning of this post.
I was never good at mathematics. And when it comes to time, the maths still doesn’t add up.
But even with good time management skills, sometimes I feel like time is slipping away. It’s a strange feeling – like I’m racing against the clock and can never quite catch up.
But at the end of the day, I try to be grateful for my time and make the most of it. Because, as the saying goes, time waits for no one.
How do you manage your time? Do you kill time, or are you somebody who never seems to have enough of it? Is time your friend, or is it an enemy? Do you have any tips on freeing up more time? Share them in the comments section.
Follow Hugh on his social media platforms by clicking the buttons below.
June 20, 2023, prompt: Write a story about grains of sand in 99 words (no more, no less). Where are these grains, and what importance do they hold? How many ways can you think of using sand? Who interacts with the sand and why? Go where the prompt leads! See June 20: Story Challenge in 99-words for more details.
What Lays Beneath – by Hugh W. Roberts
On the secluded beach, grains of sand held a horrifying secret.
As twilight embraced the shoreline, their malevolence awakened. Slightly serrated edges transformed into razor-sharp teeth, hungry for flesh.
Unseen to the unsuspecting visitors, they slithered beneath the surface.
With a sinister intelligence, they devised a plan. Swiftly, they surged, entangling ankles in a web of gritty terror. Screams of agony filled the air as victims got dragged below, devoured by the insatiable maw of the sand.
Panic swept the beach, but the grains, now stained red, revelled in their newfound power, forever cursed to prey upon the unwary.
Written for the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.
Flash Fiction Friday
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Enjoyed this piece of flash fiction? Then you’ll love ‘More Glimpses.’
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32 short stories and flash fiction pieces take readers to the edge of their imagination.
June 13, 2023, prompt: In 99 words (no more, no less), write a story about fathers in general or a specific father. You can use different names — Papa, Daddy, Fabio. What is significant about a father? Write a homage, rant, comedy, tragedy, or anything in between. Go where the prompt leads! See ‘June 13: Story Challenge in 99-words‘ for more details.
The Fatherhood War – by Hugh W. Roberts
In a whirlwind of chaos, a father attempted to conquer the art of nappy changing.
Armed with wipes and a nappy that seemed to defy logic, he engaged in an epic battle against a giggling, wiggling baby. Hilariously mismatched socks were his battle armour, and a superhero cape decked his shoulders.
As he bravely dodged tiny feet, the father’s face turned into comical distortions. With a triumphant cry, he emerged victorious, the nappy expertly secured.
But, alas, victory was short-lived, for a naughty giggle signalled an incoming surprise attack. In the war of fatherhood, laughter was the ultimate weapon.
Written for the 99-word flash fiction challenge hosted by Charli Mills at the Carrot Ranch.
Flash Fiction Friday
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Enjoyed this piece of flash fiction? Then you’ll love ‘Glimpses.’
Glimpses
Glimpses
28 short stories and pieces of flash fiction take the reader on a rollercoaster of twists and turns.
Blog posts containing images and photos get up to 70% more traffic than posts without visuals. So why wouldn’t you use them in your posts?
Visual content is an essential component of any successful blog. Adding images, videos, and infographics to your blog posts can make your content more engaging and memorable.
Are you making any mistakes when adding images or photos to blog posts?
If you plan to include images or photos in your blog posts, there are four essential things to remember. These steps will help ensure your content is engaging and visually appealing while avoiding copyright issues.
1. Use High-Quality Images And Photos.
Always use high-quality images that are relevant to your post. Blurry or low-resolution images can detract from your message and make your blog appear unprofessional.
Additionally, using images that are not directly related to your topic can confuse readers and reduce the effectiveness of your post.
2. Ensure Images And Photos Are Not Copyrighted
Ensure you have permission to use any images and photos you include in your posts. This means sourcing images from websites offering free, non-copyrighted images (such as Pixabay) or purchasing the rights to use images from a stock photo website.
Not all images are free to use. And some that are free may only be free for a limited time. Always check the small print.
Don’t think you’ll ever get fined for using copyrighted images or photos. There are copyright bots continually looking for copyrighted images that have been illegally used and downloaded all over the web.
I know of two bloggers who have been fined for using images/photos on their blog posts that were not free to use.
To avoid copyright issues, use your own images and photos and watermark them before adding them to your blog posts. I use a free app called Photobulk to do this. Seeing a watermark is a great deterrent in persuading some thieves not to copy and use them.
Of course, if you’re not concerned about your photos and images being used by anybody else, you don’t need to watermark them.
3. Ensure Images And Photos Are The Correct Sizes.
Optimize your images for web use by compressing them to reduce file size.
Large images can slow down your website’s loading speed, negatively impacting your blog’s search engine rankings and overall user experience.
If you have limited space in your media library, not reducing the size of your images and photos will soon take up all your media space. When that happens, you won’t be allowed to download additional images to your blog unless you free up space or move to a plan that gives you more storage space.
I recommend reducing image and photo sizes to 900 x 675 pixels.
There are several ways you can reduce the size of images and photos. You can reduce them using photo editing software or your device’s software.
The WordPress media library also has editing software, but please note that if you reduce the size of an image or photo using this tool, the original image is kept in your media library when you reduce the size of the image- thus, you won’t save any storage space.
The newly edited image with the reduced size is added as a new file in your media library. You can always revert back to the original image by clicking on the image in the media library, selecting Edit, and then choosing the “Restore Original” button. If you’ve inserted an edited image into other published posts, reverting an image may break this image on those posts.
I use an Apple iMac and can change the size of photos and images by clicking on Tools – Adjust Size on the menubar of my desktop computer. I do this before adding them to my WordPress media library.
On a Windows computer, you can use Microsoft Paint. Open your image with that program, then click on Resize. You can find this option on the middle-right side of the “Image” section at the top of the Paint window.
However, as I mentioned earlier, you can also reduce the size of images and photos on WordPress. But only do this if your WordPress plan has a large storage space allowance.
To do this, ensure you view your media library in Classic view.
Click the editimage button on the image you want to edit.
Click the edit button.
Add the new dimensions in the Scale Image box and click the Scale button.
Add the new dimensions of your image.
Click the save or update button to save the changes.
Your photos and images will be reduced in size, but remember that a copy of the original is also kept, so you won’t save any storage space.
If posting to your site using the Jetpack App, the app can optimise images.
In the Jetpack app for iPhone, you can set the Max Image Upload Size so the original file is resized automatically when you upload it. This option can be found by going to My Site and clicking the profile icon in the top right, then choosing App Settings.
In the Jetpack app for Android, click on your profile icon in the top right corner and choose App Settings. There, enable Optimise Images to resize and compress images on upload.
4. Add information to your images and photos.
Don’t forget to include alt text and captions for your images.
Alt text is a description of the image that allows visually-impaired readers to understand what the image is conveying. At the same time, captions can add context and help readers engage with your content. This is especially important when participating in blog challenges such as Wordless Wednesday and Silent Sunday.
Always add information about your images and photos.
Adding a description of the image or photo also helps with SEO searches.
Click the save or update button to save all the changes.
Following these four essential steps, you can create visually stunning and engaging blog content with images that stand out.
Let’s wrap it up.
Always use high-quality images and photos on your blog.
Never use images and photos that are copyrighted. You may be fined for doing so.
Use your own images and photos. That way, you won’t encounter any copyright issues.
Reduce the size of images and photos before loading them to your blog.
Alternatively, reduce the size of images and photos with WordPress’s tools in the media library, but only if you have a WordPress plan that offers a large amount of storage.
Always add information about images and photos before adding them to blog posts, as this allows visually-impaired readers to understand what the image conveys.
Adding a description of the image or photo also helps with SEO searches.
What do you use to resize images and photos for your blog posts? Do you always complete the details of images and photos in the Alt Text box? If you have any questions about adding images and photos to your blog, please leave them in the comments section.
To follow Hugh on social media, click the links below.
Not sure what Wordless Wednesday is or how to participate? Click here for full details.
Are you participating in Wordless Wednesday? Although I am not hosting this challenge, you can leave a link or pingback to your post in the comments section to help promote it to other bloggers.
To help those with eyesight-impaired vision, please remember to complete a description of your photo in the ‘alt-text’ and description boxes of the picture in the WordPress media library.
Follow Hugh on Social Media. Click on the links below.
“As you’re an author and writer, I thought this would be the perfect new home for you, Mr Roberts.”
“Oh, I already love it. How old is it? Of course, I’ll need to see the inside, but I like what I already see.”
“It’s over 100 years old. The seller has instructed me to accept any offers just below the asking price. If you make an offer today, I’ll take it off the market.”
“Perfect. Living here will give me so much inspiration and new ideas for my next novel.”
***
Twenty-four hours later.
“Sign here, Mr Roberts. All being well, you’ll be in tomorrow. The current resident has already left. She was delighted when I told her you were the buyer.”
“Wonderful. I can’t wait to use that huge, dark study in the attic. I wonder how long before I have my first visitors?”
***
It was only a short time before I had my first visitors.
A family of four – the two children under six couldn’t see or hear me as I watched them unpack boxes.
The ‘Hauntings’ Estate agents had come up trumps in finding me my next place to haunt.
Moving In
***
Flash Fiction Friday
Enjoyed this piece of flash fiction? Then you’ll love ‘More Glimpses.’
***
32 short stories and flash fiction pieces take readers to the edge of their imagination.
Wordless Wednesday – No words, just pictures. Allow your photo(s) to tell the story.
Can pigs really fly?
Not sure what Wordless Wednesday is or how to participate? Click here for full details.
Are you participating in Wordless Wednesday? Although I am not hosting this challenge, you can leave a link or pingback to your post in the comments section to help promote it to other bloggers.
To help those with eyesight-impaired vision, please remember to complete a description of your photo in the ‘alt-text’ and description boxes of the photo in the WordPress media library.
Follow Hugh on Social Media. Click on the links below.
If I’d not taken five minutes, my eleven-year-old son Billy would now be dead.
It could have been so different if I had not decided to do what I promised myself for the last five years. Just five minutes, that’s all it took.
The world of technology had taken over my life. Like most of humanity, I had my head buried in a screen. Morning, noon and night, I couldn’t resist it.
I was missing out if I wasn’t checking my social media accounts or email every five minutes. I was missing out on a new world! A new world that just five minutes could change.
The distant sound of crying coming from Billy’s bedroom forced me to bring my head up from the screen of my iPad. Why was he awake and sobbing at this ungodly hour?
When the familiar sound of a ‘ping’ came from my iPad, I could feel myself being pulled into the online world again. I’d made the mistake of looking down and seeing the notification on the screen telling me that Rachel was online.
Aroused by the thought of Rachel, my finger hovered over the Skype button, where I could instantly connect with her, while my ears picked up the sobbing coming from Billy’s room.
What should I do? Check on Billy, or find out if Rachel wore that sexy nurses’ uniform.
Thank goodness I chose to take those five minutes wisely.
If I hadn’t used them to check in on Billy, I’d never have discovered he’d been contemplating suicide. Not only had the death of his mother, five years earlier, taken him to the edge of a cliff, but my new online world and the neglect it had forced upon him had also taken him there.
The self-harm images he’d been looking at online were worlds apart from those I’d watched when Rachel was online. Ready to blackmail me, she’d had the camera ready to record me that night.
Not only had those five minutes saved my son’s life, but they’d also saved mine.
Five minutes.
***
Flash Fiction Friday
Enjoyed this piece of flash fiction? Then you’ll love ‘More Glimpses.’
***
32 short stories and flash fiction pieces take readers to the edge of their imagination.
Wordless Wednesday – No words, just pictures. Allow your photo(s) to tell the story.
Not sure what Wordless Wednesday is or how to participate? Click here for full details.
Are you participating in Wordless Wednesday? Although I am not hosting this challenge, you can leave a link or pingback to your post in the comments section to help promote it to other bloggers.
Follow Hugh on Social Media. Click on the links below.
Hugh's Views & News 