Logged off: James McArthur, NG Chartered Surveyors
How does one of the busiest property agents in the East Midlands relax at the weekend? We found out…
How do you relax at the weekend?
Since having my son Jasper, who will be 3 in August, relaxing at weekends has taken on a new meaning. No lie-ins or watching Soccer AM any more. To honest I don’t find it too difficult to relax. At the moment no two weekends are ever the same, and we always tend to be doing something, be it going for walks, going scootering with Jasper (I have a scooter) or meeting up with family and friends. At present we are doing quite a lot around the house and I have tried to be a little more hands-on. This is very rewarding and relaxing. I am at present making a coffee table to go on our decking, made out old roof joists and legs from some old pieces of furniture which were being stored in out outhouse. I think they call that ‘upcycling’.
How many hours do you work at the weekend on average?
I try and avoid working on a weekend as it this is when I get to shut down from work and spend time with family and friends. With technology that sometimes is difficult when you see the number of emails increase on your iPhone, it is difficult not to respond. Heading up the management department at NG I can’t totally switch off and issues can tend to arise at the weekend which do need to be dealt with. It is however important to get that work/life balance correct and the support I get from my colleagues at NG makes this easy to do.
What’s your favourite:
– Holiday destination? Without even thinking about this it would be the Maldives. I went there on my honeymoon and it was amazing. I only had to walk ten feet from our beach-hut before I was in the clearest blue waters. The whole setting was very idyllic. The food (fresh fish) was amazing and also the snorkelling was pretty awesome, although I did swim above a sting ray at one point and briefly panicked (Steve Irwin’s unfortunate death crossed my mind). I have never swam so fast in my life, much to the amusement of my wife who was watching on the beach.
– Album? Don’t really listen to albums any more since the days of iTunes and tend to purchase songs that I like, which can be very eclectic. If I had to choose: Guns N’ Roses – Appetite for Destruction
– Food? There is not much food I don’t like except kidney and liver but that’s a throwback to my school days. Hard to choose between full English breakfast and steak and chips. Probably have one as a starter and the other as main course with a Pinot Noir to wash itn down with followed by tiramisu as the dessert.
– TV programme? So many good programmes on at the moment. Game of Thrones and The Walking Dead are brilliant and I could not pick between them. I have just binged watched the In The Line of Duty which was also brilliant. With Netflix and Amazon there are so many other programmes that are available and binge on and you can even catch up on classics like 24, Breaking Bad and The West Wing.
– Website or app? App, it is just easier and more convenient. You can set up notifications and never really miss anything. Although I am conscious that when I with my family that the iPhone is put away and try and disconnect.
How do you usually spend Sunday evenings?
Sunday evenings usually start with an early family Sunday diner, made by my wife who is an excellent cook. It is the one day where we can all sit down and eat together. After that it is bathing Jasper and putting him to bed and then chilling out with a glass of red wine, usually either watching the BBC drama that is on offer on a Sunday evening or a movie.
