Nearly January first, eh? No-one saw that one coming. Time to look back and to move forward. To pull up your socks and get good. Stuck for inspiration? Relax my cherubs, Aunty Emma’s on the case. Where to begin? Hmmmm. Let’s see if Religion can help. Now, God’s a bit hands-on, but whatever floats your boat. Some of His suggestions may be of interest. Then again, Christianity is probably a bit retro, a bit 2010. Bear it in mind, by …Read More
So…Christmas, family-style. Everyone HAS GOT TO ENJOY THEMSELVES. All the time. Endless, relentless FUN. And as we all know, there’s only one sure-fire way to ensure such bliss. Bring on the Board Games. Guaranteed to cause the maximum amount of unhappiness with minimal time and effort. Marriage going well? Crack open the Charades. Enjoying time with loved ones? Break out the Bingo. Thinking you just might have got through it all, relatively unscathed? Not if Colonel Mustard has …Read More
Blimey. It’s a tinsel jungle out there. I made the fatal error of ‘popping into town’, only to be overwhelmed by a tsunami of shoppers. All just as crazed as me. We lost a few good men in Poundland, but they went down bravely, cold fists clutching the last Chocolate Orange. Christmas casualties, taken in their prime for the sake of 100 English pennies. I could weep. Of course the panic began many hours ago. I awoke, sweating, arms still …Read More
Yesterday I was speculating about some of the reasons why we worry. One possibility is that it helps us to subdivide uncontrollable fears ( like nuclear holocaust), into more bite-sized chunks – for example, whether or not that red skirt makes my bum look big. But perhaps such anxieties also stem from the unrealistic and unhelpful comparisons we can make with other folk. Just as I may hide behind my Sunday-best veneer, too often I’m equally deceived by the glossy exteriors of others. Here’s …Read More
A recent survey by NPower* claims that the average Briton spends at least 2.3 years of their life worrying. That’s not simply dipping your toe in the niggle bath. It’s sold-out, full-tilt speculative commitment to all the What If’s? of Life – from skincare to death. And I suspect it’s a conservative estimate. Here’s the top-line fears; money health keeping the house clean upsetting people getting wrinkles drinking too much eating too much spending too much being able to afford …Read More
As I write, one of my friends is in hospital being force-fed through a drip. It’s part of the initial stages of treatment for her anorexia. This sounds horrendous – and is causing her a great deal of distress. But what are the alternatives? Prior to admission, she was unable to make herself eat and was consuming laxatives, diet aids and exercising herself into the ground. Her body was eating itself. Even now, she can’t bear to lift a spoon to her …Read More
Q: What am I feeding my mind? Does it matter? On the one hand, yes. Theoretically, of course it matters. ‘Whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think upon such things..yadayadayada.’ Yep, got it. A mental smorgasbord of puppies, Little House on the Prairie and Power Ballads Volume Three*. *All product placement requests happily endorsed for a small fee or extra starbucks points In practice however, I reckon I’m immune to the mice and moths …Read More
I’m afraid the old website was a little bit limited in what it could do blogwise. So now I’ve switched to WordPress. I hope this will be easier to read / navigate / comment (it’s certainly much easier to publish and maintain). Also the design is much more flexible so tell me what you like and what you hate and we’ll see if someone who knows something about the Interweb can fix it. Is the snow a bit much? It’s …Read More
News Flash! There’s no such person as Father Christmas. (We all know kiddies can’t read medium type). Yes, I know. What about the pressies? (for pity’s sake, someone needs to bear responsibility for last year’s Lapland inspired home-knits). Or the shopping centre grottos? (So lifelike). And if it’s not Santa, then who exactly drinks (increasing quantities) of the (aged malt) whiskey left out every Christmas Eve? Alas, dear friends, these are mysteries to be contemplated alone. But the fact remains. …Read More
