tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-367089072012-02-08T03:54:30.968ZHappines is chemical.J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.comBlogger1821100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-90272748908026924932012-02-08T03:44:00.000Z2012-02-08T03:54:30.976Z

Goldberg back up to 54. Almost feels like an achievement in as much as I've managed to get this far without doing any serious damage, or even starting smoking again. To be honest it doesn't feel like it's fucking worth it. I know giving up smoking can trigger a depressive episode even if you don't have a chronic mental illness, but I thought after 5 weeks I'd be coming over the worst of it and

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-75580618739980856882012-01-30T17:50:00.000Z2012-01-30T17:51:29.746Z

I feel pretty pathetic today. This isn't helped by the fact that as I had to be awake this afternoon I didn't take my meds last night; this usually means I can get 4-5 hours of sleep and be awake, but last night I got none. I've been awake for 31 hours at this point and just before I left for my piano lesson I discovered I couldn't find my keys. Thankfully Dorothy had left her key to the flat so

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-91771946764262155902012-01-18T04:43:00.000Z2012-01-18T04:43:42.682Z

Since I've been diagnosed I've had a few people say to me that I don't seem that autistic, or I don't come across as 'noticeably' autistic online. This gets on my tits a bit, mostly because I think it's supposed to be a compliment. Congratulations are in order because I can seem normal, at least on the surface, but the undertone is "you are lucky because if I could tell I would consider you less

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-38225313848175508312012-01-15T03:06:00.000Z2012-01-15T03:06:02.241Z

I am nocturnal. I know a few people who have had insomnia from a very early age, who probably have what is called Delayed Sleep Phase Syndrome rather than classic insomnia. This is where your body clock readjusts itself so that you generally go to sleep between 2am and 6am and sleep fine - if you are permitted to do so. Obviously this can cause great difficulty functioning in the 9-5 world, and

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-12301090916685624652012-01-13T06:11:00.000Z2012-01-13T06:11:03.380Z

I always wondered how I managed to develop a flawless American accent as a pre-school child. My accent was so perfect that people asked my parents if we'd spent a lot of time in America - or alternatively just looked utterly cabbaged when they heard that accent from a child living in the West Country, surrounded by British English speakers and never having even met a real-life American. My

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-18186971624950349212012-01-12T18:09:00.000Z2012-01-12T18:09:20.815Z

I've felt like absolute shit for about the past week. Not consistently, not all the time - it's one of those episodes where you can't see any point in getting up, start feeling semi-alright in the late afternoon/early evening and then feel crappy again in the early hours of the next morning when you realise that you have to go to bed and then get up and do it all again tomorrow. Just did my

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-27801189038138655032011-12-28T02:47:00.000Z2011-12-28T02:47:26.219Z

A friend of mine posted this on Facebook, an article in the Independent about government plans to ban convicted criminals "from claiming compensation for injuries sustained in attacks, in prison or after release". I have a particular problem with the second part, as the article points out that this could mean that people who have previously been in prison and then are later attacked, for reasons

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-90113345952070208872011-12-11T09:33:00.001Z2011-12-11T10:50:55.829Z

The Centre for the Modern Family recently conducted a survey on people's attitudes to family in Britain, which showed that 77% of 3,000 people polled "see single parents as a proper family" (p.5). This is certainly positive, and the report also notes that 59% "believe that same-sex couples can be a family" (p.12). It is especially interesting to note that only 36% of families in the 1970s

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-58417877453654015372011-12-05T20:03:00.001Z2011-12-06T13:31:37.455Z

In America, as we all know, there are some people trying to pretend that there is some kind of scientific debate going on between creationism and evolution, which we are all aware that there most certainly isn't. Most of the British people I know laugh at creationists. We find the concept that people would deny all scientific evidence in favour of their own beliefs and prejudices laughable. Yet

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-10128346024587702022011-11-13T13:10:00.001Z2011-11-13T15:20:18.501Z

I read a post today by Amanda Baggs on the concept of the 'stolen childhood', referring to young carers. She discusses how this shows what we as a society think about disabled people, that we are seen as a burden and that we detract from the lives of the non-disabled people around us simply by existing. She talks about how the idea of burden is pretty much forced on carers and society assumes

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-20143247036401292922011-10-20T14:05:00.000Z2011-10-20T14:06:41.096Z

Another post partly inspired by Holby City, in that this sentiment was expressed in a slightly formal manner by the Director of Surgery, who has basically had a scandal at the hospital to sort out and some suits came in and told him it was all down to him and that if he failed he was finished, as well as the hospital. At the end of the episode he is seen on the phone to the suit, who is proposing

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-7875642744813824892011-10-18T13:40:00.000Z2011-10-20T14:18:19.658Z

Last week my psych diagnosed me with high-functioning autism (or Asperger's, I'm not completely sure which but as Asperger syndrome is being removed from the DSM-V in favour of a generalised autism spectrum category it's not that relevant anyway). I have heard that there are children with disabilities, including autism and deafness, who become convinced they will die before they reach adulthood

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-46225949756843677622011-08-18T12:25:00.012Z2011-08-18T19:36:46.006Z

I don't generally watch soaps, but Dorothy has got me hooked on Holby City over the past few months - I think it's filling a void now Nip/Tuck has finished. They seem to like purging a significant proportion of the cast every now and then, which is quite handy for me as I started watching it around the time they introduced several new main characters and several others left so I didn't have too

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-7320302042883790312011-04-25T16:01:00.007Z2011-04-25T16:55:54.980Z

I've been reading some stuff about the concept of healthy multiplicity; this is basically people who have multiple personalities and are quite happy with this. The idea is similar to that of the Hearing Voices Network, which supports people who experience hearing voices by promoting the idea that they can have personal meaning and that there can be something to be gained from the experience,

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-52883085295523802522011-04-24T14:34:00.012Z2011-04-24T15:50:54.974Z

This post was inspired by this, and by people who think all psych meds (and other meds, but I'm going to be talking specifically about psych meds) are evil. There are a lot of people who, aside from any personal beliefs about the validity of mental illness, genuinely believe that psychiatric medications do more harm than good and should be avoided......Unless absolutely necessary. This is

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-79844267013954263932011-04-13T21:53:00.009Z2011-04-13T23:52:28.384Z

This post is going to do what it says on the tin, really. This has come to light due to Rihanna's song S&M. I quite like the song, and this isn't about whether or not it should be considered 'controversial' or if the video should be banned or any of that; I'm not terribly bothered about that, and while I do enjoy some of Rihanna's songs I wouldn't consider myself a huge fan - it's not the genre I

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-826480270470005262011-03-28T15:28:00.004Z2011-03-28T15:58:40.020Z

Dorothy and I seem to have settled into a routine, the sort where you go shopping on the same day every week and buy the same meals and eat them on the same days (more or less). It's reassuring that we can maintain this sort of affairs without too much hiccupery, but it's rather odd.We're both used to drama - the constant rollercoaster of moods and crises and demands put upon us by others. We're

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-73047328851994097132011-02-19T19:11:00.003Z2011-02-19T19:56:09.795Z

Minor hiccup today: I received a letter from the OU informing me that continuing students can't get funding for courses less than 30 credit points unless they're a compulsory element of a named degree. I was unaware of this rule, apparently it's new this academic year. I do, however, still have some part-time fee grant funding left for this year - I'm not sure exactly how much as the letter

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-12951481641494324062011-02-15T19:20:00.006Z2011-02-15T19:54:11.063Z

Happy belated Valentine's Day everyone. I couldn't find us a stoning to go to so we settled for an evening of classy dinner, good wine and great sex (oh, and Bridget Jones's Diary, because we both like it for some reason). Dorothy's brother-in-law did send me a rather detailed suggestion list for Valentine's Day, which I completely ignored on principle. Not only were his ideas infinitely less fun

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-46865337637767816322011-01-22T07:23:00.005Z2011-01-22T07:42:34.239Z

I'm grappling with the nature of life right now, I should know better than to try to be awake for...ooh, 12 hours? It feels like 36, probably because I'm heavily sedated. Oh well.I'm concerned that I'm starting to lose insight; I keep having these fleeting thoughts that maybe I'm not really bipolar and I don't really need the meds and if I quit the drugs and start going to the gym it'll all be

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-21312584113495365892011-01-21T04:08:00.006Z2011-01-21T07:03:10.612Z

I saw my psych today, been given quetiapine to try and lift me out of this unremitting depression (Goldberg score of 58 and rising). He brought up the L-word - lithium carbonate - and this freaked the fuck out of me so quetiapine was suggested as a possibly temporary alternative, though if I can't maintain stability for any real length of time (i.e. over 6-12 months) on lamotrigine and

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-5061497250617267042011-01-11T23:10:00.005Z2011-01-12T00:27:01.950Z

Today I achieved something no man (or woman) has achieved for the past decade; I got Dorothy to go to the dentist.She had toothache (and what we later discovered was a gum ulcer coming through) so bad she couldn't sleep and was shaking and crying last night - ibuprofen, aspirin, paracetamol and co-codamol barely touched the sides. I was slightly mean in that I made her ring the emergency dentist

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-274923985111967602011-01-09T19:44:00.009Z2011-01-09T21:35:18.081Z

I like Musical Fossils, a website discussing adult instrumental students with a view to educating teachers and the students themselves about the specific challenges that come with being an adult learner and how the teacher can assist in tackling them. A lot of it boils down to 'adults have baggage', and the page on myths about teaching adults is particularly interesting in this regard.The author

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-11153059656812159662011-01-08T07:09:00.011Z2011-01-08T13:03:35.123Z

Today on education, Simon Hughes talking out of his arse."Every university should, wherever their fee level is, but specifically for a fee level above £6,000, recruit on the basis of no more people coming from the private sector than there are in the public as a whole ... I don't believe you have to look to the private sector to give you the quality of exam results and ability to make up the

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-5040010576435609562011-01-07T10:27:00.004Z2011-01-07T11:11:12.938Z

I'm currently reading a very interesting book: Social Skills for Teenagers and Adults with Asperger Syndrome by Nancy J. Patrick. It's somewhat ironic that Dorothy's opinion that I may have the aforementioned neurological atypicality, formed in part by my obsessive 'special interests' such as North Korea, has led to me developing a somewhat obsessive interest in reading everything about autism

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-88125229841040290182011-01-06T09:11:00.002Z2011-01-06T09:56:59.313Z

Yesterday I was out running some errands and on my way home I walk past the local primary school. I noticed that on the board outside they had a picture illustrating the 'school aims', which included the usual stuff like working together and learning, but also included "developing a sense of economic well-being". I was surprised to see that, and my immediate thought was that we're moving up in

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-72700375526339027262011-01-05T06:09:00.003Z2011-01-05T07:27:44.578Z

Just been working out my budget for the next couple of months, I will finally pay off my overdraft at the end of this month and hope to have paid off my credit card within another couple of months. I don't like being in debt, and the ESA shift hangs over my head like the sword of Damocles. According to this FOI request response the re-assessment for people exempt from the PCA (such as me) is

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-92518861726725212011-01-03T07:42:00.004Z2011-01-03T07:57:24.890Z

I self-harmed for the first time in G-d knows how long on Sunday morning. Over a year at least, and probably about two years since I really went for it like that. No serious damage done - the skin on my arms is so scarred already that it's extremely difficult to actually cut deep, bordering on impossible with the weedy blades I had. It's just a spectacular return to form really; there's evidently

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-6472024273115863212010-12-31T04:38:00.003Z2010-12-31T04:45:13.141Z

I think my brain is failing me. There's about 3 posts written but not actually finished over the past couple of weeks, but every time I get near to clicking 'publish' I am drowned in an overwhelming sense of futility about the post I have written and everything I have done in my life up to that point. Whatever I've done, it's never enough, and it will never be enough. I've also given up smoking (

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-74080059362975272372010-12-14T00:20:00.003Z2010-12-14T01:26:07.375Z

I spent the day in bed today because I was having a complete sensory overload. When Dorothy tried to give me my teddy I chucked it across the room because the fur was over-stimulating, and I flapped and hid under the covers when the pizza delivery guy rang the doorbell. I'm feeling a bit better now, but I've been run down for the past few days with a cold and the various assessments and exams

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-9608962025787072022010-11-26T03:18:00.003Z2010-11-26T03:57:40.891Z

I'm currently suffering from a complete lack of energy and enthusiasm. To sum it up: I'm tired of learning.I suspect this has something to do with me being a complete dickhead and forgetting that I needed to go pick up the testosterone I was supposed to have injected on Wednesday, resulting in a frantic search for the receipt label yesterday and not being able to collect it until tomorrow because

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-35535658041255717842010-11-21T17:44:00.003Z2010-11-21T18:31:22.587Z

Vince Cable has lost the plot. I believe the Lib Dems are actually starting to believe their own bullshit, and that's what's really worrying. The principles of CBT are real, to some extent; it is definitely true that if you keep telling yourself) something, eventually you will start to believe it. I suspect they're not only brainwashing themselves, and it's disturbingly simple for someone else,

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-11472983115432381702010-11-20T04:16:00.003Z2010-11-20T04:56:40.081Z

Warning: this post discusses EDs and includes numbers, please don't read if this may be triggering for you.---------------I'm getting to the point, once again, of feeling utterly disgusted with myself. I'm currently 13.5st, which is a long way off my highest weight of 16.5st, but still higher than my 12st at 18 or 9st at 15, or my dream weight of 8st. I don't know why 8st is the magic number, it

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-78332763217220358042010-11-19T19:03:00.001Z2010-11-19T19:03:13.284Z

This is a test post from my phone, as (I think) the RAM on my computer is knackered and I will probably spend the weekend sorting it out. I hope it's just the RAM that's knackered, as that will be cheap and easy to fix and I can't afford a new computer. So I can pretend this isn't just a vanity post: That Lord Young eh? What a twat.

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-3621912382587135842010-11-16T01:44:00.004Z2010-11-16T02:35:09.068Z

Yes, I smoke. Yes, I know I shouldn't, and I do plan to give up. A friend of mine asked me how I could smoke after my dad died of lung cancer - the simple answer being that I hated my dad and thus couldn't really give a toss how he died. The same applies to the other members of my family who died of smoking-related illnesses: my grandad, my gran and my mum's eldest sister. Three of the four dead

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-81178755524948315142010-11-13T00:11:00.003Z2010-11-13T01:18:44.563Z

Revealed: Lib Dems planned before election to abandon tuition fee pledgeThis is currently on the main page of the Guardian website, and while I am loathe to believe anything written in a British newspaper it certainly sounds plausible. I was a first-time voter in the 2010 election, and while I admit to being hopelessly naive (I did, after all, briefly toy with the idea of voting Tory, for about

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-35028797986382299372010-11-10T01:33:00.008Z2010-11-10T03:23:15.104Z

Further to my last post; is it possible to forgive someone for the wrong they have done to other people? The Torah says that in order to be forgiven by G-d for a sin against another person, you must first offer a sincere apology and make amends as appropriate to that person, before those sins can be forgiven by G-d on Yom Kippur. If that apology is not coming, and you know it won't or indeed

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-73674673987617134602010-10-25T01:57:00.006Z2010-10-25T03:11:33.919Z

I have been listening to this song, and crying, for the last hour. I'm hoping that crying will offer some catharsis, because this is tearing me apart. It's been tearing me apart for years.I'm not just crying for Dorothy. I'm crying for my mum, who hid it all so I didn't know until I was grown up and my sister didn't find out until after my dad died. I'm crying for her friend who would show up

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-9113191579248433652010-10-20T23:43:00.003Z2010-10-20T23:56:22.823Z

I wish I had the energy to write about the spending cuts, I really do. I wish I had the emotional wherewithal to be incensed, or even to care at this point. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't have any sympathy for the people who are going to get hit with the shitty stick about this, that as usual it's the people right at the bottom who are going to suffer the most, but right now my

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-28757211587512305602010-09-27T23:26:00.004Z2010-09-28T01:24:09.910Z

Oh look, Ben Summerskill's at it again, this time at the Labour party conference. Only this time, as well as spouting more nonsense about the non-existent need for "consultation" on the subject of marriage equality, he's dug himself an even deeper hole and also pissed off the T community something rotten.Let's be clear on this; Stonewall officially haven't decided whether or not they're in favour

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-86351085429876464482010-09-21T06:53:00.007Z2010-09-21T07:44:31.956Z

I found something else to write about: Ben Summerskill is a colossal douche, in case you weren't already aware of this. If you don't know who Ben Summerskill is, he's the chief executive of Stonewall, a group set up in 1989 by idealists such as Sir Ian McKellan and Michael Cashman to campaign against Section 28, which is now the largest gay equality organisation in Europe. If you do know who Ben

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-21664230706173772052010-09-21T02:52:00.003Z2010-09-21T03:44:45.911Z

John Humphrys did a very interesting documentary on BBC2 last night, which is also on iPlayer and summarised here on the BBC News website. It was very thorough and interesting, if somewhat pessimistic in tone, which is understandable based on the facts put in front of him.Children in Stoke-on-Trent are already a year behind their peers in speech and language development at the age of three, and

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-61424205506290325422010-09-09T10:45:00.004Z2010-09-09T11:49:36.620Z

While browsing the BBC language website I found a very interesting discussion on Radio 4 about how languages are taught in (primarily) England, focusing on the advantages of learning a foreign language and discussing whether it is necessary to do so, given that so many people speak English around the world nowadays.Firstly, the previous sentence is a common misconception. According to the

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-3239338597714412072010-08-08T03:17:00.004Z2010-08-08T05:08:09.522Z

Dorothy and I often have discussions about education, not least as we are trying to coach my sister, who is about to start Year 11, through her A-level and university choices. Most of my friends in their early 20s could not give a toss about education; this often frustrates me, but I suppose there is no practical reason why they should. None of them have kids or significantly younger siblings

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-66915806173488392732010-08-06T23:36:00.004Z2010-08-07T00:46:50.855Z

I finally have a proper internet connection again! It was connected on Wednesday, bringing the whole saga of hassle with the secondary utilities to an end. We had to get an independent contractor to fit the Sky dish, and had to have a new phone line put in because the BT engineer discovered the line they thought was connected was actually connected to the old style BT master socket rather than

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-67268561172119655202010-07-24T23:46:00.010Z2010-07-25T01:47:19.293Z

I've had very limited internet for the past few weeks, as Dorothy and I have now moved into a new flat and are still on a temporary connection with a mobile internet dongle as there is a problem with the phone line (isn't there always with BT?) that was supposed to be connected nearly three weeks ago now and obviously I can't get a DSL connection set up until there is a working phone line. It's

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-38853011138181656322010-06-24T09:57:00.005Z2010-06-24T10:46:38.212Z

Ah, the Budget (as reported by Aethelread). I'm sure everyone is aware by now that they're lazy workshy scum who are only pretending to be ill, and that poor people shouldn't be allowed to live in proper places with the rest of us. You may also have heard that losing an in-work benefit is the best way to encourage people to get a job, but we all knew that already.The Conservatives believe that

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-28106764853040964212010-06-08T05:44:00.009Z2010-08-07T00:49:17.791Z

More Cameron spiel about these mysterious and as yet undefined public sector cuts:"Prime Minister David Cameron has warned of "difficult decisions" on pay, pensions and benefits as he set out the case for "painful" cuts ahead.Dealing with the deficit would affect "our whole way of life" but not in a way that hits the vulnerable or "divides the country", he said."(BBC News)This is an oxymoron.

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-77125662129561260252010-06-07T03:53:00.004Z2010-06-07T05:11:06.025Z

I am currently doing an OU course in mental health, and I am getting unbelievably bored with it.Don't get me wrong, it's not a boring course per se; if you know little or nothing about mental health when you start it, you will by the end. The material is written and presented very well, like all the OU courses I've done so far, and the essay titles are the sort of questions that give you a lot

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-88747273918570208212010-06-06T01:52:00.007Z2010-06-06T03:02:02.526Z

It's blissful to have some time on my own, without having to worry about anyone else. Dorothy is asleep and I'm rotating my sleeping pattern as I have a 9am psych appointment on Tuesday, so I get the whole night to myself. I've actually been managing to get some OU work done, and tomorrow I'm putting a bunch of stuff on eBay to raise some funds for moving house.I'm actually quite glad that I'm

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-76236040487816715332010-06-04T02:21:00.005Z2010-06-04T03:29:57.162Z

Warning: Contains discussions of self-harm which may be triggering for some people.Sometimes I really wish I could get rid of my scars. Both my arms have fairly extensive scarring from years of self-harm - one looks like a chessboard and one looks melted. I don't tend to cover them up if I'm just going to the shops or going to work, but I do have a collection of long-sleeved T-shirts for nights

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-41220443161244356392010-05-28T14:22:00.004Z2010-05-28T15:11:13.583Z

Once again we're back onto the whining about IB claimants (scroll down to Welfare).All 2.6m current claimants of incapacity benefit will be reassessed for readiness to work. Those regarded as capable of work will be moved on to the jobseeker's allowance, which is less generous."Generous" is an interesting word to use here. I'm not entirely sure what they are implying by its use, unless it's that

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-21473494013373066082010-05-19T16:29:00.005Z2010-05-19T17:28:12.951Z

Janet Street-Porter's diatribe against the concept of depression is a popular topic in the mental health blogosphere (G-d that's a silly word, we need a better one) at the moment, and I thought I'd throw in my 2p worth...well, basically because I can.Alex over at Teenage Misanthropy has done a thorough fisking of the whole article already, so I won't repeat everything he's said. I can pull up

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-26084290912455656772010-05-12T21:36:00.007Z2010-05-13T14:50:22.190Z

A thought occurred to me the other day regarding 'coming out' as LGBT. One of the most common issues related to coming out is uncertainty of how family members, as well as friends, will react, and the fact that a positive reaction is certainly not guaranteed (though conversely, neither is a negative one). Based on my admittedly limited observations, I feel I may be able to form an initial

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-35916868370554070512010-05-04T14:56:00.007Z2010-05-04T15:24:39.276Z

I'm so unbelievably freaking tired right now. I'm starting to think the tiredness and anhedonia is depression minus the actual, well, depression (thanks to the meds). It's still irritating and frustrating but it takes away the dangerous aspects like the urge to self-harm, which is a very good thing. It may of course just be that my mirtazepine is too sedating and making me feel like a zombie;

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-75602798031421913572010-04-17T02:27:00.008Z2010-04-17T03:28:01.836Z

(title: Being Human S1 E4)I don't do mornings. Unfortunately, GP surgeries almost invariably require pre-meridian activity, and in this case it was unavoidable. Our bathroom has a fairly substantial step in the middle of the (marble tile) floor, and this combined with Dorothy's dyspraxia led to her slipping and falling over rather spectacularly onto her leg, in a scenario reminiscent of The

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-61171924821560310252010-02-16T22:07:00.003Z2010-02-16T22:14:26.092Z

The solution to the dilemma in my last post was that none of us went, and the three of us all went out for a meal on Valentine's Day. It was very nice.All I want right now, more than anything in the world, is two hours to myself, uninterrupted and unencumbered by the demands of other people, and without anything terrible or dangerous or unpleasant happening either immediately before, during or

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-46112508756999043432010-02-03T05:55:00.002Z2010-02-03T06:25:27.348Z

I've stolen some time to myself while Dorothy's in bed, on the pretext of nipping out for a fag. Yes, I say 'stolen', because it makes me feel like a shit to leave her on her own, in case she wakes up or has a nightmare or something, but I need some time to let off steam and deal with my own thoughts without either her or Gary peering over my shoulder. I'm hungry because Gary has been too tired

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-34188486234696255902010-02-01T19:33:00.008Z2010-02-02T05:58:33.431Z

Two weeks ago my life was saved by flame-retardant bedding laws.I was half-asleep in bed, and heard Dorothy mumbling something. I rolled over and saw her holding a candle to the bed, trying to get it to light. I removed the offending article from her and enquired as to what the fuck she was doing, and was told that as I didn't want her to kill herself she decided if she set the bed on fire we'd

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-8448466965112513052010-01-31T15:45:00.002Z2010-01-31T15:52:59.685Z

Dorothy is still very ill, and is currently in a position where she can't be left alone for literally more than five minutes or she will hurt herself. Everyone keeps telling me I can't watch her 24/7, but as there's no-one else to do it and I can't countenance the Crisis Team's (verbatim) suggestion of "leave her to get on with it", there's not a lot else I can do. She has an appointment with a

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-82615071267010917502009-12-31T13:56:00.012Z2010-08-07T00:49:58.974Z

I'm exhasted. It's hard to muster any enthusiasm to write when my reserves are constantly being drained in a number of directions - mostly trying to get Dorothy's life back on track whilst not falling into an abyss myself. Maybe I'll get around to explaining what's been going on at some point, or maybe I'll emerge and say no more about it, but either way it's far too hectic and too close right

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-88295545239217350952009-11-21T15:19:00.004Z2009-11-21T15:48:01.673Z

I'm now on 15mg mirtazapine as well as 150mg lamotrigine, and while the stuff is brilliant for making me sleep it's making me an utter zombie the rest of the time as well. I expect this is just adjustment and it'll tone down once I'm used to it - the sedative effect is also greater at lower doses so as I'm putting it up to 30mg in a week it might help somewhat with the zombieness.The problem

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-61288079945324688912009-11-09T19:26:00.004Z2009-11-13T23:40:32.313Z

(One little Jägermeister didn't like being alone...)I'm getting more and more spaced; for a few days I've been wandering around in a fog of depersonalisation, not entirely sure what's real and what's not and having limited energy to deal with the real world.It was my birthday on Friday, I am now 22. Last thing I remember I was 18; everything since then is something of a slow-motion blur leading

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-85188254099586640592009-11-01T14:37:00.004Z2009-11-01T15:13:05.691Z

Once again, the BBC makes my blood boil."School leavers applying to English universities will get more data about courses under government plans to treat them more like consumers.A food labelling-style system will flag up teaching hours, career prospects and seminar frequency, says the Department of Business, Innovation and Skills."(BBC, 1st November 2009)I've said it before and I'll say it again

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-78794322980667012102009-10-31T19:48:00.001Z2009-12-31T14:09:50.712Z

Enjoy.

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-88527924968633494822009-10-31T01:03:00.007Z2009-10-31T18:22:39.353Z

My last post was slightly cryptic and less than informative, for which I apologise. In my defence I have been on-call pretty much 24/7 for the past couple of weeks and my brain has been melting out of my ears somewhat.Last weekend my mum came up to visit, my sister came with her and is going home tomorrow. Having guests always makes me tired, even though I was very happy to see them both and

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-89564286602097154812009-10-25T23:03:00.002Z2009-10-25T23:08:10.302Z

How do you leave the past behindWhen it keeps finding ways to get to your heart?- Rent (Rent, 2005)

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-30502672102909679842009-10-16T17:38:00.005Z2009-10-16T18:47:29.733Z

- Dr. Kevin Casey (Michael J. Fox), Scrubs: S3E12, "My Catalyst"Playing the piano is depressing at the moment. It's not helped by the fact that someone often wanders in when I'm playing and I instantly feel nervous and almost ashamed of my playing, which means I make more mistakes and sound completely cack-handed. It's embarassing.When I left high school I was working towards grade 5 piano - I

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-29089940450077539342009-10-12T13:54:00.004Z2009-10-12T16:07:22.278Z

Lots of people have been commenting on the welfare 'reform' proposals lately, which seem to mostly consist of Labour and the Tories arguing about who is going to beat disabled people with the biggest stick. I haven't posted on this yet, mostly because it makes me so depressed and/or angry, and partly because other people like Seaneen, Aethelread, Brainblogger and BenefitScroungingScum have

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-41323779658340195742009-10-09T20:00:00.006Z2009-10-09T20:33:24.334Z

All we really want is affirmationAffirmation's all we're working towardsSo I don't need your wealth accumulation, you can keep itSecond encoreSecond encore(Tim Minchin)

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-5935435525160415352009-10-05T17:53:00.005Z2009-10-05T18:34:52.316Z

Sleep-wake cycle: 24h (14-10)Sleeping time: 5amWaking time: 3pmT cycle: Day 1/14 (injection day +2)Cigarette consumption: 2.5/5h (~10/20h) Goldberg: 56BMI: 29.7The most important of these figures are the last two; B negates A slightly, but not enough to take the edge off the "...oh for fuck's sake" feeling of the day. I'm thinking my meds need to be upped, but that requires getting up early

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-59404387594083059532009-10-03T15:09:00.006Z2009-10-05T16:49:04.947Z

I've had a number of ideas for blog posts floating around in my head recently, but my cognitive processing has been so poor recently that trying to articulate these ideas has generally met a brick wall fairly early on. This post is an idea for a scientific study which popped into my head while reading the book I mentioned in my last post.It has been noted that autistic people tend to prefer

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-45648629882684220232009-09-27T23:28:00.003Z2009-09-28T00:22:53.799Z

I'm currently reading a book called Born on a Blue Day, written by a guy called Daniel Tammet who has Asperger's and savant syndrome. I'm intrigued by books about autism and Asperger's, especially those written by people with the condition, as they describe many experiences I can relate to.A while ago I did this test on the Wired website, an online version of the Autism-Spectrum Quotient (AQ).

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-24393263111931670642009-09-26T11:48:00.001Z2009-09-26T11:49:48.581Z

Created by OnePlusYou - Free Online Dating

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-1699560620421589482009-09-20T02:51:00.005Z2009-09-20T04:24:49.929Z

I'm pissed off at the moment. I'm angry with myself, with the water company, with the Student Loans Company, with my husband and with my computer.I'm angry with my computer because as I started writing this post it decided to spontaneously shut down, so I had to wait for it to boot back up and lost my train of thought. At least it saved what I'd already written.I'm angry with myself because I

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-87628441341028405982009-09-16T04:46:00.008Z2009-09-16T05:43:31.135Z

I went to the audiologist yesterday to get my hearing tested for the first time in 6 years. I didn't actually have any prior baseline to go on, as I had hearing tests done regularly for several months when I was 14/15 and they wouldn't tell me anything about my hearing loss or whether I had a hearing loss; I spoke to my mother earlier and she said they never said I did have a hearing loss, but

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-83706488140976026382009-09-08T05:52:00.002Z2009-09-08T06:38:40.843Z

Yesterday was not a particularly good day. Firstly, after finally getting through to Trinity Guildhall they tell me the Bristol centre isn't doing theory exams this time around; the next nearest centre is Cardiff, and getting everyone there for 9.30am on a Saturday is next to impossible. I do have the option of using the ABRSM, although this means a last-minute change of syllabus for both

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-57539375621320875212009-09-03T22:01:00.007Z2009-09-03T23:12:11.258Z

Just watched the third and final episode in Channel 4's Benefit Busters series, and it was a truly crap episode. The series started very well - I was very impressed with the first episode, and especially with the advisor featured, and although the second episode was fairly mediocre it did at least discuss some of the issues relating to finding work for long-term unemployed people, and followed

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-77625049200019547192009-09-03T19:00:00.007Z2009-09-03T19:48:20.387Z

Made a happy discovery today - volunteering is not counted in the 'permitted work' rules as these only apply to paid work. There is actually no limit to how much volunteering I can do, as long as it's not paid (I am allowed to claim expenses). This works brilliantly with my plan of using volunteering to test the waters and see if I can gradually increase my hours until I'm in a position where I

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-9045248561007415262009-09-02T22:46:00.003Z2009-09-03T01:29:18.038Z

Further to my last post, I took my own initiative and went out and got myself a job!...Well, sort of. Was in town with my girlfriend Dorothy[1] and her mother, looking in a charity shop and her mum said that she'd been talking about volunteering so why didn't she ask in here? We did so, and went upstairs to speak to the manager and I said I'd go along, see if they could give me a few hours a

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-81363066315427723332009-08-30T13:20:00.004Z2009-08-30T14:02:14.728Z

I've been looking at the New Deal for Disabled People, which isn't nationwide but does run in my area. I'm wondering if it might be worth trying out to see if they can help me find a job I can actually do.I want to be able to work. I'm sick of the benefit claimant stereotypes, sick of the constant hassle of trying to claim, sick of the insecurity, sick of the fact that I'm 21 and I know the

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-20122697385185186922009-08-27T12:48:00.006Z2009-08-27T13:42:11.832Z

(Please note: this is a summary of a post that will be extended later when I have slept. G-d, I hate circadian rhythm failures. Be warned, if you have any delusional hopes left about the British education system, I am about to destroy them.)Two new plans to get poor bright kids to go to university: artifical grade inflation and not giving student loans to middle class kids.Why don't we just

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-69840687161783459412009-08-23T08:13:00.005Z2009-08-23T08:25:41.907Z

There is currently someone parked outside my house, on double yellow lines, right on a corner; and most irritatingly of all, the car is a glistening, spotless Land Rover without so much as a scratch on it. I really, really can't stand people who drive spotlessly clean Land Rovers around the city. What the smeg is the point? Exactly how small is your cock? I can hazard a guess it's bigger than

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-17897071045233776102009-08-20T18:35:00.009Z2009-08-20T19:30:03.894Z

There is a great post on Aethelread's blog today in anticipation of the Benefit Busters programme on Channel 4 at 9pm tonight, which I intend to watch and review in due course. His post also included a link to this steaming pile of horse manure."A centre-right think tank, Policy Exchange, are predicting that the number of working-age adults claiming benefits will hit 6,000,000 this month. They

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-16378722143686674952009-08-17T07:01:00.005Z2009-08-17T07:30:42.820Z

Since I woke up at 3am I've been wanting to smoke pretty much constantly. I had very little to eat yesterday and I'm starting to think my brain has replaced the urge to eat with the urge to smoke without telling me. With my dysfunctional relationship with food, and the fact that nicotine is an appetite suppressant, it wouldn't surprise me.I'm not feeling quite as brassical as I was a few days

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-39400947285580650812009-08-14T15:11:00.005Z2009-08-14T16:01:50.803Z

My brain appears to have been replaced by a cauliflower. 'Brain fog' is really an understatement in describing this symptom, not least because it affects everything else too; vision goes funny, coherent sentences take several minutes to produce and parts of the body occasionally decide not to cooperate with what is required of them. Thankfully this means my paranoia is currently abated, as I am

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-65805804544788611732009-08-12T18:58:00.007Z2009-08-12T19:59:03.760Z

My paranoia hasn't been getting better, and I've realised I've been spending a great deal of time in my room with the curtains shut and am rapidly descending into my Bernard Black impression. Something in the back of my mind earlier went, "I should probably talk to someone about this..." - and then the thought crossed my mind of, who exactly? I don't have a mental health team. I don't have any

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-31885299960324195902009-08-11T02:46:00.003Z2009-08-11T02:52:43.966Z

This sort of thing makes me terrified to even go to the shops on my own in case someone reports me for benefit fraud. Then again, if I did go to the shops on my own I'd probably actually get run over as I'm not very good at noticing large motorised vehicles heading towards me, so then the benefits thing wouldn't be so much of an issue. Can you get done for benefit fraud posthumously?I'm quite

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-70197049377353870472009-08-10T14:11:00.007Z2009-08-10T14:57:47.829Z

I hate summer. Summer is the time when everyone wants to do everything and nobody has any money to pay for it. I'm particularly grouchy because for the last three days I have been woken up by a large bee buzzing loudly behind my curtain. I am absolutely shit-scared of bees and wasps, and this means that for three days in a row I have awoken, screamed, catapulted myself out of bed and ran into

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-27510993297856278832009-08-07T11:00:00.005Z2009-08-07T12:40:03.591Z

Benefits and Work have started a campaign to create some public outcry over the government's plans to stop Attendance Allowance and DLA.The plans are to stop paying "disability benefits, like Attendance Allowance" directly to claimants and instead give the cash to Social Services to distribute as they see fit. If you are not suitably horrified at any mention of the words "Social Services" in a

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-71606553915640410602009-08-05T02:08:00.005Z2009-08-05T04:02:18.344Z

I woke up this morning feeling like an elephant was sitting on my face. A large glass of squash, a couple of Strepsils and 20mg of phenylephrine later, I actually feel vaguely alive. I thought for a short while that perhaps I had acquired swine flu, but based on my knowledge and past experience of flu the fact that I have managed to get out of bed would suggest otherwise. I am also extremely

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-32308459487484378112009-07-27T06:47:00.005Z2009-07-28T00:24:56.263Z

I think I've found the source of my sleep issues. I'm sure I remember (an uncommon phrase, as years of solvent and alcohol abuse mean what I remember is limited) someone telling me at some point that human beings sleep once every 24 hours. I think I took this literally, hence the 28-30 hour sleep cycle.When my body starts getting tired but my brain isn't, I start shaking. When my brain is

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-65756209164360007352009-07-24T22:22:00.004Z2009-07-24T23:10:20.421Z

The thing on Wednesday went well, the doctor was very nice and didn't ask stupid questions, and there isn't anything wrong with me so that's good. To distract myself from the stress I got myself a new 1.5 TB hard drive on my credit card which is shiny and awesome. I don't feel particularly shiny and awesome right now. I feel shitty and prickly and useless and drained. I'm really hoping this

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-69086700514417343512009-07-20T16:30:00.005Z2009-07-21T13:54:11.091Z

Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurgh.Having been knackered out by a 13-hour round trip to the West Country on Friday for my aunt's funeral, having a friend over this weekend and having to be sociable, and going to the pub quiz last night and then drinking for approximately 10 hours before kicking my mate into a cab at just before 6am, today has been cancelled due to lack of interest. I eventually rolled out

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-30145366354842912642009-07-13T10:31:00.005Z2009-07-15T12:11:07.236Z

Some professor of midwifery has decided the pain of childbirth is good for you. I say if by a man's works shall he be known, then Dr Denis Walsh is a steaming pile of horse manure!Dr Denis Walsh, associate professor in midwifery at Nottingham University, said pain was a "rite of passage" which often helped regulate childbirth.He said it helped strengthen a mother's bond with her baby, and

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-11343742187205395212009-07-12T08:45:00.005Z2009-07-12T09:29:23.125Z

Another quiet period, I'm very bad at this continuity thing. This has mostly been due to my brain melting slightly from knackeredness, as I'm having some difficulty getting some quality rest time in between major events. I also come back into the real world to discover Aethelread's blog has been locked - I have a Wordpress account but logging in doesn't seem to make a difference. Aethelread, I

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-16982295680941418772009-07-09T11:54:00.001Z2009-07-09T12:04:36.316Z

My aunt passed away last night. She had dementia and had been very ill for a long time, and I hope HaShem is taking good care of her.I miss her.

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-66510526335118012072009-07-01T16:08:00.008Z2009-07-01T17:24:41.697Z

When did the UK develop a sub-tropical climate? The Daily Mash provides sensible advice as usual, though I wish my house didn't have such enormous windows that make wandering around in the nude probably a criminal offence. I'm not even sure about these boxer shorts.In other news, The Pirate Bay has been sold and the new owners are going to pay file-sharers to upload content - though this

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-83453485020107567162009-06-26T10:12:00.005Z2009-06-26T11:25:30.553Z

Techy talk: I have put some of the IB backpay towards a dual-core processor (second-hand), new heatsink and fan and a new PSU for my desktop. I must be getting better at computer maintenance, as this is the first time I've taken a computer apart and put it back together and it's worked on the first go without any tweakings. I'm quite impressed by this, as replacing the PSU involved taking every

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36708907.post-65374981194477169012009-06-22T04:02:00.002Z2009-06-22T05:49:28.215Z

Looking over my student loans today, I owe just over £8000 (from one year of full-time higher education). I note that there is a clause that states if one becomes permanently disabled and unfit for work, the loan will be cancelled. However, there is no definition that I can find of what is considered permanent disability, nor is there any information on how one goes about proving that one is

J. Wibblehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13871369377910059267noreply@blogger.com0