Friday, 24th June 2016
This is the best thing I've found today that sums up how I feel about the EU campaign and result, so archiving it here for future reference. From an Australian journalist, because everything I read in the British press is infused with too much emotion for my stomach, especially today: Whipping Up Fear To Sway the Brexit Vote
As for me, I managed to throw myself down the stairs yesterday morning and now have a sprained ankle and an array of bruises to show for it. It could have been much worse: I only fell three or four before hitting the ground. I'd just woken up and was carrying my laptop down to the basement where my charger lives. The mistake I made was not noticing I was still half-asleep. I normally bounce into full wakefulness because I sleep lightly, but early signs are that my new strategy is working, and my sleep has improved greatly over the past week.
I'm choosing to look at this injury as a step on the road to recovery. Hear me out - I injured both ankles badly when I was sixteen and for the next few years, they were weak and unstable and I reinjured them frequently - usually on nights out involving drinking alcohol. My overall health got worse over time, my ankles remained weak but were paradoxically more stable because they were so stiff. During that period, I tried to exercise doing step aerobics and other equally unsuitable activiites for someone with my health condition, coupled with poor alignment. Inflamed joints and very weak muscles meant that I succeeded only in injuring my knees, hips and spine as well.
Fast forward a number of years and things were so bad I had to leave my job on medical grounds. So I started my ten-year research project into figuring out what was going on. Over time, with the correct thyroid treatment and dietary changes, my health improved. A couple of years ago, I discovered Katy Bowman, and applied her approach of Nutritious Movement to stretching and building a strong foundation. I'm not as diligent about it as I'd like to be, but it's made a huge difference. Yesterday gave me quite a jolt: I screamed very loudly (poor Huw, he came running) and felt like I was going to throw up from the adrenaline. Once I recovered from the shock, however, the pain and swelling has been manageable. I'm resting appropriately and feeling hopeful I'm going to heal well.
In other news, we're having a rare old time at the moment bingeing on "Kirsty and Phil's Love It Or List It" because we're planning to take the plunge and move out of London, sometime in the next year if we can. In April 2017 we'll have been in this house 10 years and we're ready to move on. I want to keep my job at the library (now I'm well enough to work a regular job again, albeit part-time, I'm not giving it up if I can help it), so we need to live somewhere with good rail links. We're thinking South Coast, possibly Folkestone. It's an expensive commute but unless Huw decides to stop freelancing and accepts a full-time job, we can minimise the number of journeys we make.
So that's where I am. My writing course finishes in two weeks. It's been an interesting experience to write with people with a decidedly commercial mindset. I don't think it's where I am, so I've decided to do The Artists' Way next. My vague, half-formed plan is to shift the focus of my PhD to a practice-based thesis in Creative Writing. I'm hoping doing The Artists' Way will help me gain some clarity about how/if I want to take that forward.
Hope all is well with everyone. Clear skies here in London after some very thundery and heavy showers over the past few days. Sitting with my feet up enjoying a view of brilliant blue and little fluffy clouds.
As for me, I managed to throw myself down the stairs yesterday morning and now have a sprained ankle and an array of bruises to show for it. It could have been much worse: I only fell three or four before hitting the ground. I'd just woken up and was carrying my laptop down to the basement where my charger lives. The mistake I made was not noticing I was still half-asleep. I normally bounce into full wakefulness because I sleep lightly, but early signs are that my new strategy is working, and my sleep has improved greatly over the past week.
I'm choosing to look at this injury as a step on the road to recovery. Hear me out - I injured both ankles badly when I was sixteen and for the next few years, they were weak and unstable and I reinjured them frequently - usually on nights out involving drinking alcohol. My overall health got worse over time, my ankles remained weak but were paradoxically more stable because they were so stiff. During that period, I tried to exercise doing step aerobics and other equally unsuitable activiites for someone with my health condition, coupled with poor alignment. Inflamed joints and very weak muscles meant that I succeeded only in injuring my knees, hips and spine as well.
Fast forward a number of years and things were so bad I had to leave my job on medical grounds. So I started my ten-year research project into figuring out what was going on. Over time, with the correct thyroid treatment and dietary changes, my health improved. A couple of years ago, I discovered Katy Bowman, and applied her approach of Nutritious Movement to stretching and building a strong foundation. I'm not as diligent about it as I'd like to be, but it's made a huge difference. Yesterday gave me quite a jolt: I screamed very loudly (poor Huw, he came running) and felt like I was going to throw up from the adrenaline. Once I recovered from the shock, however, the pain and swelling has been manageable. I'm resting appropriately and feeling hopeful I'm going to heal well.
In other news, we're having a rare old time at the moment bingeing on "Kirsty and Phil's Love It Or List It" because we're planning to take the plunge and move out of London, sometime in the next year if we can. In April 2017 we'll have been in this house 10 years and we're ready to move on. I want to keep my job at the library (now I'm well enough to work a regular job again, albeit part-time, I'm not giving it up if I can help it), so we need to live somewhere with good rail links. We're thinking South Coast, possibly Folkestone. It's an expensive commute but unless Huw decides to stop freelancing and accepts a full-time job, we can minimise the number of journeys we make.
So that's where I am. My writing course finishes in two weeks. It's been an interesting experience to write with people with a decidedly commercial mindset. I don't think it's where I am, so I've decided to do The Artists' Way next. My vague, half-formed plan is to shift the focus of my PhD to a practice-based thesis in Creative Writing. I'm hoping doing The Artists' Way will help me gain some clarity about how/if I want to take that forward.
Hope all is well with everyone. Clear skies here in London after some very thundery and heavy showers over the past few days. Sitting with my feet up enjoying a view of brilliant blue and little fluffy clouds.