Al Hodgson

Coming to the end of this year I thought I’d round up this interview series with my ultimate inspiration, my husband Al. I apologise for getting cheesy here, but sometimes it can’t be helped (and extra sorry to Al who cannot stand an ounce of cheesiness in any form). Seeing as this year we have been at home together almost 24/7 at times, it’s been an even deeper insight for me of how he works and just how dedicated he is to his personal projects. It’s amazing to get to watch someone work so hard on things that they love. I also enjoy that I often get to experience him sharing with me the first few seeds of ideas for a new video, then to watch each step unfold along the way as he brings it into fruition and completion.

He’s been incredibly supportive to me with all of my work and creative endeavours, from allowing me to practice my advanced yoga classes on him to always being open to my most impulsive and experimental recipes! The challenging confinement we’ve all endured this year has been difficult for everyone, but I am incredibly grateful to say that it’s a challenge we passed well. In fact watching Al get straight to work with some very exciting projects and focusing on the positive aspects of the situation certainly helped me to keep up my own work with a similar energy.

Read below for insight into Al’s approach to his work, how he keeps himself inspired and importantly, when home becomes both work and living space how he takes time to unwind, to keep balance and good health…

Please introduce yourself, and what it is you so wonderfully do:

I’m Al, I run a small skate brand/project called O.W.L through which I release video projects and occasional product, and I also work as a video content creator for a modern music university. 

What is your ideal way to start the day?

Since working from home this year I haven’t been setting alarms as we usually get woken up by our little cat Chia, who starts to get bored of waiting for us by about 8-8:30. So that’s been a nice way to start the day recently. Then I try to head straight down to a big breakfast first thing before I start work. 

Do you have any daily rituals/ routines? Morning and/or night?

My days tend to be pretty variant so I don’t really have many specific rituals per se, but I guess the most important thing I try to do is if I’m working on anything, I try to stick to using my dedicated work space. It means I associate that space with productivity, and then when I’m in different spaces in the house I can relax and not think about work.

Do you have any practices or remedies to stay healthy, both in body and mind?

Eating well is a pretty big thing. On the whole I always try to ensure every meal has plenty of nutrients and a variety of veg, etc, and that there’s a quality protein source. I don’t eat meat, and very seldom eat dairy, but I do occasionally eat fish and eggs, so most of the time the protein source is bean & grain combo based, but sometimes it’s from those other sources. 

I’m wary of caffeine intake so only ever have one coffee a day in the morning, and I stay away from refined sugar as much as possible. For a sweet treat at the moment, I really like making hot chocolate with cacao, reishi and cinnamon powder, honey and oat milk. 

Since I’ve focused more on the quality of the food I’m eating, I’ve noticed that I only ever get ill if I drink too much alcohol, and that drinking has a much stronger effect on me than before. So for that reason, these days I tend to go a bit easier on drinking than I used to as well. If I ever do start feeling ill though, I'll have a dose of vitamin C power in water and that pretty much always sorts me out.  

Aside from diet, I try to sleep between 8 and 9 hours a night (and ideally never less than 8 when possible). Since having to work from home, I’ve been able to have an extra hour in bed and I’ve noticed a significant rise in mental health and capability. 

When you need to get out of town, where in nature do you like to escape to?

I love so many places in nature. The fresh water spring in Fulking is a really special place, but to be honest anywhere verdant and foresty makes me happy. The countryside on the downs and in Lewes is super nostalgic for me, and places further afield like the New Forest, Dartmoor and the rural areas around Bristol are all really special. 

How do you like to spend your nights and or/weekends?

Recently life has been a lot more home-based due to the weather and for obvious other reasons. Plus I quite like the idea of hibernating in winter because summer is always so full on; I’m almost always out working on projects when the weather is good. So spending cosy evenings relaxing with you and Chia watching films has been really nice lately.

How do you unwind, re-centre and find balance?

Listening to music I love has a pretty amazing ability to help me find balance. I also really value time spent in conversation with my dad and brother or my close friends, at home or the pub, and find that can be a really good way to unwind, trial thoughts and put things into perspective. 

What is your favourite way to exercise?

I’ve been a Skateboarder for over half my life, so that’s definitely my preferred way to stay fit and let off steam. There’s a super creative and social dynamic to it, and it’s definitely been one of the defining aspects of my life. 

Contrast to lots of other forms of exercise though it can be pretty hard on your body, which is definitely a downside I’m coming to notice much more as I reach 30. 

So when your ‘Slow Flow and Matcha’ classes were on pre-COVID, I really loved doing them as a restorative practise. Looking forward to when they’re back on for sure. 

Your favourite meal to cook?

I don’t really have a specific meal that I like to cook. I used to love cooking different soups in winter, but at the moment I’ve been really enjoying roasting vegetables with kala chana, smoked paprika and herbs. Usually with a side of grain like buckwheat, polenta or quinoa, some boiled greens and a protein source like fish or decent vegan sausages. It varies all the time and the meals are never the same but in my head that’s a pretty perfect one haha. I also absolutely love mushrooms so I try and cook with them as much as possible. 

Your favourite place to get dinner?

This changes all the time, but recently I’ve been getting food now and then from a cash-only Indian food place called Tun Tuns on Lewes Road. They do a vegan, vegetarian or fish thali for £10 and it’s massive. It’s like two meals worth. Plus everyone knows family-run cash-only places like that are always the best. 

In what ways do you work to find balance in your life? Eg. work, social, family, self

To be honest I think balance is something I’m not very good at. I can be a bit obsessive with whatever I’m doing and find it hard to switch off sometimes. 

During lockdown meals have been a good way to break up and structure the day. We always have meals together and they kind of act like a start, mid and end point to base the work day around, which is helpful when you’re setting your own structure. 

As for socialising, I’ve always tried to come up with and work on projects that are centred around being with my friends. Winter is always tough for that as skateboard projects specifically rely quite heavily on decent weather, but for that reason I’ve been spending this winter planning out projects and trip ideas for next summer so we all have something we can be working together on again. 

What/where/who do you turn to when you need inspiration?

Discussing ideas with you/friends definitely helps inspire me when I’m having a block, as talking about an idea really helps bring it into the real world. Music is a huge inspiration too and its always helped me visualise ideas. I’ll often have the music I want to use for a video in my head before I even begin. Other than that, projects from creatives I look up to always get me super excited to work on something new. 

How would you describe your style? What & who influences you?

That’s a tough one… ‘80's camping uncle’? Haha, I’m not sure. But I intentionally almost never buy anything brand new, and pretty much all my clothes are from charity shops. 

What is your definition of beauty?

Authenticity, intelligence and tranquillity.

Do you have any additional ways that you care for your mind, body & spirit?

I think a really important thing is to try and see projects that you start through in some shape or form. Every time I complete a task, no matter how small, it’s a loose end tied and mini victory that I can be happy with. But leaving projects/tasks unfinished means you never get to reach the crescendo of whatever it is you’re doing, and therefore never get the validation from it. So I make sure that I always try and finish what i’m working on in some form, or I’ll have a to do list that I can tick off, and that structure really helps.

Other than that I sometimes listen to philosophical and anthropological talks and podcasts to try and help make sense of the world and our place in it. It’s difficult to navigate the existential minefield that is the present, so I find that can be helpful sometimes for clarity. 

What are you most grateful for in your life?

You, our little cat Chia, and all the projects I’ve been able to work on with my friends the past few years. 

Current favourite…

Book- Entangled Life - Merlin Sheldrake

Movie- I watched 'The Straight Story' recently and it got me right in the feels. 

Song- Quite impossible to answer, but I've been enjoying ‘Echus’ by Boards of Canada a lot lately, as well as all the new stuff Anton Newcombe has been releasing this year.

Podcast- Not really a podcast but I’ve been listening to a lot of Terence McKenna talks again recently.

Clothing item- I have a big white arctic winter fleece that I really like.

Despite the current events and our time in isolation this year is there anything you are working towards/ what are your future visions?

I have a few video project and product plans for next summer which I’m super excited for. Going to be doing a skate video solely on the Sussex coast, so we’ll be doing a few cycle trips East and West for that which I’m really looking forward to. 

Where can we find you? Follow you?

@al_hodgson & @orwellian.world.landscape 

Thanks :)

Posted 14.12.20