Everything That's Wrong with Universal Credit

I had avoided watching Skint Britain - Friends Without Benefits for some time, as I knew it would likely upset me, since the story is quite close to home. I watched a close friend struggle for years on benefits, it's still too painful for me to write about fully, since my beautiful friend eventually died from a stress-related condition, but it really brought home to me how life and death the benefits system is. It's not just a decision whether or not to hand over some money, or how long for, there's so much more to it than that. It's people's lives. So I guess this post as been a long time coming as I have a lot to say about everything that's wrong with Universal Credit.

Growing Old Gratefully - The Anti-Ageing Debate

There have been a few social media 'challenges' recently. The 10 Year Challenge, The Puberty Challenge and The Ageing Challenge. The first is fairly self-explanatory; you post a picture of yourself now and a picture of yourself ten years ago, to see how much you've changed. In the second, you post a photo of yourself now and one from your youth, to illustrate what puberty can do in terms of features, mood and fashion sense. The third is particularly brutal; you post your first ever social media pic, and your most recent, to see how much you've aged.  These are all variations on a theme and have been interpreted very differently by those taking part.

Autism in Adults with BBC Doctors

The recent story line on BBC Doctors following the struggles of foster son James, played by Daniel Kerr, has been a difficult watch. It has been at times harrowing, heartbreaking and thought-provoking, but most of all it has been a joy to behold. The acting has been superb and the story lines have really highlighted some very important points about the care system and the challenges that young people face when they find themselves on the autistic spectrum. Autism is a struggle a lot of parents face, but it doesn't go away when the child gets older and is expected to fend for themselves.

Kirstie Allsopp's Confession - Would You Smash your Child's iPad?

Kirstie Allsopp admitted today that she smashed her children's ipads to teach them a lesson. I don't want to pass judgement on any parent, since we are all doing a very difficult job and we should be supporting each other, not taking the moral high ground. I also don't agree with trolling and bashing people publicly, especially over what is essentially a difference of  opinion. I hope this post will be viewed more as constructive criticism, or alternative parenting advice. Kirstie, I'm sure you're a great mum, and you must parent how you see fit, but I can't agree with you and so here are all the reasons not to start vandalising anyone's belongings today.

Thoughts on Homophobia #Pride

I was brought up in an era where being gay wasn't yet fully accepted. It was getting there, but homophobia and bigotry take a long time to die. Relationships in general weren't really talked about and I don't remember ever encountering an openly gay couple until I was in my teens. The word 'gay' wasn't spoken out loud, particularly around children, and it was an era of many, many euphemisms and wildly inappropriate expressions. I can talk quite openly with my children about sex, relationships, anything really, (age appropriately, of course!) but in those days, grown ups were excruciatingly embarrassed. All the time.

Why I Love Instagram but Still get it Wrong

There are certain things I really like about social media, and certain things I don't. It has great power to affect a person's mood, outlook, even relationships, which isn't good, but on the other hand, it can provide a lifeline for people who are lonely, or just not very confident socially. The key seems to be not to take it too seriously, which is why I'm particularly fond of Instagram. It's mainly inoffensive pictures and quotes and a mindless scroll is quite relaxing. Also I love taking photos and looking at other photos, so it's perfect for me. It seems, though, that I've been doing it all wrong, but I'm not about to change. Here's why.

Thoughts From a Mum on the NHS at 70

Like most parents, I've had a lot of dealings with the NHS over the years, and I thought it was only right that I should recognise its 70th birthday. I have written political commentary previously on the struggles that the NHS faces and I still  do worry about our government's commitment to this service and the effect of budget cuts and sneaky privatisation. Today isn't about that, though, today is about celebrating a service that many of us, including me, don't often stop to appreciate. It's about recognising what the NHS, as a whole, actually means and what it gives to us as a nation. 

All the Reasons not to Share your Child's Details Online.

By details, I mean full name, full birth-date, school, family members, or location, which can include photos with your house or car in the background, or any other identifying features which could pinpoint exactly where he or she lives. Before you think I've gone internet-safety crazy like some kind of social media nosy-neighbour, I promise I will explain, and if you have ever tagged a photo of your child with their full name, which also includes the logo on their school jumper, please take a moment to read. I really would appreciate it, because this is something that really worries me and, each to their own, but I would love it if you could make sure you are aware of these security concerns first.

Activision's Live Stream and Spyro - A Huge Letdown

LD is very interested in video games. Not just playing them, but also learning about them, reading, researching, and anticipating new releases. Activision announced a livestream, promising to reveal details of a new release, which he was hoping against hope would be Spyro, because he had been waiting for news for a very long time. It mattered to him, and he was so excited about the release finally being confirmed, that I thought it would be fun to see the announcement live, so I let him watch the livestream, which went on til 2am UK time. Despite many promises, though, they actually announced nothing, leading to anger and disappointment for those who had put themselves out and had their time wasted.

Is Autism Even Real?

Anyone who knows me at all, particularly if you've read my Awesome Autism post, will realise pretty quickly that this is an ironic title, not something I personally believe, or have even considered. It is, however, something I hear a lot, so I would like to take this opportunity to explain why, in my view, the title above is a really stupid question. This will be based on observation and experience, which, in fairness, is something people really ought to rely on, before making silly statements that are likely to cause upset and distress to others, instead of just letting any old garbage fall out of their open mouths. Is Autism even real? Let the ranting begin.

No School Attendance Policy will Prevent Childhood Illness

School absence is a subject that comes up a lot these days. It's a society-wide issue, for many reasons and is often a subject of media scrutiny. It can be to blame for everything from criminal activity to unemployment statistics and, whilst I am not denying it's an issue, I'm really starting to think Ofsted have got it a bit wrong. To be clear, I fully support the need for children to be in school, but there are always going to be issues that cause a child to be absent, such as illness, and this is partly what I want to focus on. I realise holidays in term time are another issue, but that is a big enough issue for a whole new post!

Blogging versus Blagging: The Social Influencer Debate

Sometimes it's a struggle to explain your job, when you make money from writing a blog. I started blogging in 2012 and my blog was, and still is, something I wanted to be proud of and hoped might bring value to others. The fact that people pay for ads and some of the content is a happy bonus, particularly as my health has worsened, I am grateful to be able to earn money doing something I love. The beauty of blogging, Instagramming, YouTubing, etc, is that you can make money out of something you enjoy. There are no barriers, there is an audience out there for everyone and that's a wonderful thing, so why are some people so negative about it

Taking my Child Out of School in Term Time, WWYD?

This is an interesting post for me to write. As an ex-Governor, and a qualified Teaching Assistant, I have spent a lot of my life knocking around the education system, in one way or another. I know exactly how important it is for every child to have a consistent, routined school experience, not just because it helps instil discipline and gives them the best opportunities to socialise and feel part of something, but also because missing blocks of learning leads to problems later on, when it's revisited at a later date. Or, worse still, when it comes up in an exam! For all those reasons, I am the last person who should be planning a term-time holiday and yet, here I am.

Children's Costumes and Racism; Has the World Gone Mad?

Disney may have its critics and it's faults, but it has never been afraid to embrace diversity and culture in its vast catalogue of popular children's films. However, a debate blew up recently on Good Morning Britain, about whether children dressing up as the Disney character Moana could be a case of 'cultural appropriation' and something that shouldn't be encouraged.  This isn't the first time this issue has made its way into the media. A post reappeared recently on Reddit, where a mother received a lot of negativity for dressing her daughter up in a Geisha costume for a Japanese tea party. So when does innocent fun become racism?

Stop Naming Terrorists - We Don't Care

Yesterday, I wrote about the bomb blast in Manchester and how I felt that it was pointless for many reasons. One of those reasons was that the cause, or the perpetrators, would not be remembered, only the innocent and the brave who were caught up in the atrocity. Then, this morning, all over the news, were all the details of the 'loser', to quote Mr Trump (yes, I know, only sensible thing he's ever said!) and it made me really angry. Why are we giving them what they want? Why do we care what his name was or when his birthday is? The mindset of anyone who could commit an atrocity like this is to make a name for themselves, so why are we giving them that opportunity? Stop naming terrorists!

Manchester #WeStandTogether

I went to bed early last night, so it wasn't until this morning that I woke up to the horrific news from Manchester Arena. There are no words are there? There are no words that will do anything to ease the pain for those families, the ones with missing children, the ones who are coming to terms with losing a loved one. Nothing anyone can say will make it any better for any of them. Not even the ones that maybe weren't hurt, the 'lucky ones'. Those people, most of them very young, will carry the memories, the emotional scars of what happened, probably forever. And for what? What can it possibly achieve? I just don't get it. I don't understand the point of it at all.

Gino's Generalisations - 'Fussy' isn't Always a Choice

It's a common bugbear amongst experienced parents, when other people pass judgement on your parenting skills, your children's behaviour, or any other aspect of your family life. It's not actually limited to parenting, no one likes to be judged by people who have not walked in their shoes. For the purposes of keeping this short, though, I am going to focus on the particularly superior and judge-y parent-bashers, who think they know best. Some are parents, some are not and one is a famous celebrity chef who jolly well ought to know better. I don't have any pictures of Gino D'Acampo, so I will be illustrating this post with cake, although my son would not eat it if it had jam in the middle, because he doesn't like jam. So there.

Old Man Attacks, but was I in the Wrong?!

Recently, I went to an event at our local theatre, to celebrate the return of War Horse in October (more on that soon!). After the event, a lot of us went to the bar for tea and cakes. Although I arrived at the function on my own, I am glad to say, I collected a couple of new friends along the way, who happily shared my love of cake. I love meeting new people, and it's a perk of the job, when you are a blogger. So there we were, squeezed into a very small bar area, enjoying some rather delicious scones, when one of our party decided to go off and find us all some tea. But what happened next, left me asking myself, was I in the wrong? 

Very British Complaining #FirstWorldProblems

There has always been a stigma around complaining in this country. Very British complaining is an issue that divides the nation. To complain, or suck it up with a stiff upper lip? Personally, in a lot of circumstances, I'm all for it. There are right ways and wrong ways to complain, but if it was my business, and my customers were unhappy, I would want to know. Also, as a consumer, I don't like to waste money, so, if I am paying for a meal, or a day out, or whatever, and it's not enjoyable, I feel like I've wasted our hard earned cash, which really annoys me and I don't think it's very fair. Take, for example, our experience in a local eaterie yesterday...

When is Racism not Racism? My Thoughts on Burberry's BAFTA Blunder

I have been wondering about writing this post for a while now. I may be in the minority, but the whole point of having a blog really, is that you can speak your mind and be yourself, so I really think I need to say this. It began with a tweet from Burberry during the BAFTAs. The idea was to draw attention to the celebrities that were wearing their clothing. However, in all the excitement, Burberry made what turned out to be a fatal error. They confused a British-Indian actor with another, of Pakistani descent. People got very cross and were outraged at this terrible crime and rightly so, if I was either of the gentlemen involved, I would have been understandably peeved that my unique attributes had failed to imprint upon Burberry's tweeter. But was it racist? I don't think so, and here's why.