Sunday, January 6, 2013 5:34:22 PM
appellation, england, british, english
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I am English I was born in England. The language I speak is English (NOT British English). I find it strange that people don't use weird appellations for other languages - I don't say "French" French or "Spanish" Spanish etc. I don't mind if people from other countries who speak variants and derivatives of the English language want to call themselves "English speakers", however I do feel quite frustrated that I, being a native English speaker have to see my own language misrepresented in this way.
P.S. In case I didn't make it perfectly clear, there is no such thing as a British accent either.
Thursday, November 17, 2011 6:13:24 AM
social convention, jobseeker, application, guilt
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Well... OK then it's another well-considered rant about employment issues in particular and social irrelevances in general.
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Thursday, November 3, 2011 5:27:36 AM
mellitus, diabetes, health, diagnosis
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Any diagnosis of chronic illness can seem very frightening if your health has been reasonably good for most of your life. You will encounter many articles and many people all too willing to tell you what you should do now that you are a diabetic. It is not my intention to do that. Instead, the following article is a description of some common emotions that people encounter when first diagnosed, and I hope that this will give you some idea what to expect at first.
When I learned that I had been diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, I was in some ways quite fortunate. My father had contracted it in his 60s (type 2 or "late onset" diabetes often runs in families) and as a result I had taken the trouble to find out about the disease. In addition to this I had been misdiagnosed some 8 years previously and until recently had been labouring under the misapprehension that I was already a diabetic. This gave me some time to get used to the idea. I will explore here the feelings I experienced after the misdiagnosis - since I believed I had diabetes the emotions I experienced back then were very raw and overwhelming and even somewhat shocking.
A diagnosis of chronic disease is in some ways a changing process, much like bereavement. Something very big has changed in your life and it will take time to adjust. I recall that my initial reaction was one of astonishment - even though my father had diabetes and I knew that heredity was a factor, I never expected to be diagnosed at the age of 38. I felt physically very tense and a little sick. My mouth went dry and I was lost for words. Unfortunately the first thing that doctors do when they diagnose you is to begin the lectures and it is not easy to take everything in when you are in a state of shock.
After I had recovered from the initial shock reaction - I began to think about what being diabetic would mean to me. Although I had done some reading on the subject and had some idea about the foods I could and could not eat, I was mostly concerned about how I could make such a huge change to my regular eating habits. It seemed like a gigantic task and thinking about it was pretty stressful, I got to the point where I was almost scared to eat anything. I almost obsessively went over in my mind things I had eaten in the past.
Another thought that constantly came to mind was "why me?". I know that my diet over the years has actually been pretty healthy - the only problem being that I only eat once a day when I become hungry. I don't exercise much, because exercise puts me in a very bad mood, but I used to do a great deal of walking for many years. It felt like a death sentence, and I felt it was not fair. I was pretty resentful.
At some point (I believe it took several weeks, during which time I had to get used to the changes in habits needed for blood testing and medication regimes) I overcame some of my resentment and tried to work with the doctor to begin to make appropriate adjustments to tackle my diabetes. I was not fully engaged - I did not do any other exercise other than my daily routine, as I was in a fairly physical job and felt that this was sufficient. I was not hopeful that I would be able to make the appropriate changes to my lifestyle but I was at least resigned to the fact that I would have to try.
For a while I seemed to be going along quite well. I was used to the medication, I was at that time taking Diaformin, but was finding the constant thirst really tedious. Nevertheless I persevered with my routines. The changes I had made to my diet seemed to make very little difference to my blood sugar readings. Sometimes the meter would give me some very low readings I did not expect. I came to believe that this was a result of not getting a suitable sample of blood to test (at these times the drop on my finger looked a bit transparent and watery).
I lapsed after a while into a phase where I felt belligerent and defiant. I was probably feeling withdrawal symptoms for some of the food items which used to regularly feature in my diet, potatoes for example. I fell off the wagon and began to eat whatever I could afford (we were faring pretty badly financially and many of the foods that are bad for diabetics are good budget options - bread, potatoes, pasta, etc.). From time to time and as our fortunes changed I would go through virtuous spells when I would observe a good diabetic regime (still not too hot on the exercise though - I really don't like an angry me) interspersed with defiant bouts. This is the pattern I still have today.
Several years on, and having been first misdiagnosed, then eventually told about the misdiagnosis, and then told one year later that now I really did have diabetes, I am still going through a range of emotions. In my case there could be other underlying causes for these mood changes (menopause) but they are very similar to the emotions and thoughts I experienced when first (mis)diagnosed. In conclusion, if you have been diagnosed with diabetes, I believe it to be quite normal to experience a range of disturbing emotional responses. At some times it seems pretty bleak, but over time your feeling will change and you will be able to get on with your life. Or you may be one of those lucky people who can take these things in their stride and breeze through your disease.
Friday, October 14, 2011 6:31:41 AM
death, eulogy, apple, steve jobs
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“Being the richest man in the cemetery doesn’t matter to me. Going to bed at night saying we’ve done something wonderful…that’s what matters to me.” – Steve Jobs
I think the man wrote his own eulogy here. He lived a very full and productive life which by rights should have been longer.
Thursday, July 14, 2011 12:04:40 AM
reporting, claims, news, Australian
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You may have noticed that not a day passes without sensationalist headlines with equally sensational stories attached. Throwing caution to the winds, Australian journalists say whatever they want, however they want, with scant regard for the truth.
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Wednesday, July 13, 2011 10:54:18 PM
tribe, fauna, culture, dam
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Scientists are now certain that the rainforests are like the lungs of the world and they make a huge contribution to the overall health of the air that we breathe. Only a tiny percentage of former rainforest areas still exist - and that is only one of the many reasons why this petition is so very important.
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Monday, July 11, 2011 10:02:27 PM
tips, work, jobseeker, job search
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Well my new online publication seems to be publishing itself very nicely now, after a few teething troubles. I have to admit that some of the articles that have been featured have been very interesting to me. I have already learned quite a few facts, tips and techniques that I didn't know before.
Now all that remains is to put them all into practise...
Watch this space, but don't hold your breath.
Thursday, May 12, 2011 2:11:44 AM
job agency, employment, shortage, job agencies
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Addressing the lamentable current state of Australian employment agencies, and the need for urgent placement of skilled workers.
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Wednesday, February 23, 2011 5:11:54 AM
celebrate, pirate, yarr, talk like a pirate day
I must say I am most impressed with this new piratey theme and banner. It's right up my street. In anticipation of this year's "Talk like a pirate day" (19th September), it is my way to do my bit to raise awareness about an under-recognised international phenomenon.
Unlike other festivals and holidays, talk like a pirate day is an invitation to pure, uncommercialised frivolity. Whether ye just talks like a pirate, hosts a dress like a pirate party or simply wears piratey clothing, just for fun, it's a chance to let yer hair down and have some old-fashioned fun.
To learn more, check out the official
Talk like a pirate day website.
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