The total opposite

Is your life today what you pictured a year ago?

I like to normally stay upbeat, but these recent prompts have really got me thinking. I know everyone wants to see the “Yes my life is perfect” answers, but I’m afraid you’ll have to head to Insta and Fakebook for those replies. To be honest looking back at the last year it’s been fairly “Shit” to be honest.

Now I’m not going to fill this post with my woes and issues as there are a lot of people out there that have had it a damn sight worse than me, but the question has been asked and I have to answer it truthfully.

The family is on the point of breaking up due to “family” things, there has been illness, emergencies and grief by the bucket load, however myself and my wife have managed to keep smiling through it all, hiding exactly what we feel on the inside. As I have stated, there are others out there that have had it a lot worse, and to be honest my thoughts and prayers lay with them. Being a strong willed couple, my Wife and I can overcome much that life throws our way, and hopefully we have enough left in reserve to help others who may not have that support to fall back on.

So yes, we’ve had a bad year, just like a lot of people, but we have also learned from our discomfort, pain and uncertainty.

So through mild adversity we remain united and strong, and that is a good sign….isn’t it? I guess all is not that bad, once you have faced the pain and issues head on.

Stay safe everyone.

Loss is forever

What skills or lessons have you learned recently?

No skills but a valuable lesson. It’s a strange one and you’ll probably think I’m a right ass but it hit me straight between the eyes I tell you.

I was standing staring at a picture of a dearly departed and very much loved family member that I was very close to. It suddenly hit me that I will never ever, see or hear this individual again. I don’t know why this occurred but it was just like a wave of undeniable acceptance swept across me and it shocked me.

I have my faith, that I question frequently, but it gives me comfort, and part of that comfort lies in believing I will meet my loved ones once again. But the question now is will I?

Can’t answer that I’m afraid as can no one else, I guess the truth will unfold on the day of my last breath. My god, that will be a day of truths if ever there was one.

It was just such a strange and unexpected moment.

Stay happy and humble.

I Care

Tell us one thing you hope people say about you.

I’ve probably covered this in a number of earlier posts, however this one in particular probably sums it all up just fine. Why bother? I care that’s why.. I’m a pretty hard shelled character and it takes an awful lot to gain my confidence, but I do hope people go away from meeting me and say that I’m a caring soul.

Says it all

I have been hurt an awful lot in the past especially by those who were put on this planet to help me on my way but failed miserably. Through this all though I have kept and nurtured a caring attitude as I don’t wish for anyone to be alone with poisonous thoughts and attitudes. If I achieve nothing else in my life at least I can rest comfortably knowing I have helped along the way.

There is an old saying,” Helping one person might not change the whole world, but it could change the world for that one person”

Simple. Isn’t it. Stay humble.

Morning..probably

Are you more of a night or morning person?

Working a 24hr shift roster as I currently do it’s hard to give a true preference. I have never had a problem in rising though and am quite proud to say I have never been late to work in my life, for that I can be totally relied on.

I love an early rise, I like my cup of tea or two before the rigours of the day kick in, yes I’d say I’m more of a morning person.

Shift work really throws your sleep patterns out of kilter though, and there are times when you have changed from night shift to early shifts when you just don’t want to wake up early, but your body says different. There you are due to rise at 04:45 for an early shift but your body and mind decides you are going to be awake about 3 hrs earlier. This is where fatigue steps in.

However a week or two’s holiday sorts this out and after a few days your sleep pattern is sorted. So I’m now quite confident that I’m definitely a morning person. It’s lovely to rise early before the world is totally motivated and get the day underway, nothing is wasted.

Have a lovely day. Peace to you all.

Anti Social media

What technology would you be better off without, why?

It’s poison, venomous and down right nasty and to be honest it allows the less ingenious of society to literally get away with murder.

I admit the advent of the digital age has many benefits but allowing knuckle dragging morons to voice opinions on every subject that they have no knowledge of, or interest in is only a bad thing.

Yep as you can see I have also experienced them as I’m sure everyone else who passes by this post has also experienced one of these individuals.

Influencers, now that’s a joke of a job description if ever I have heard one. Don’t get me started, have we really become such a society that we need these individuals to coerce us into making decisions and purchases on items they have no experience or knowledge in, just because someone offers them a years supply of said item just to spout a load of old tosh on how this is going to change your life. Give me a break 🤦‍♂️

Have a good day. Don’t be influenced or insulted.

End of life

What’s the hardest decision you’ve ever had to make? Why?

That has to be ending the life of a much loved and cherished member of the family, a pet.

In our married life we have had three wonderful little Bichon Frise dogs, who we have rightly or wrongly treated as our children, they have wanted for nothing and had the best that we could bestow on them. We have never had children as we can’t, we obviously upset someone in a previous life and that privilege and pleasure has been taken away from us. We needed surrogates and the dogs were those stand ins. We were very happy.

There comes a time where you have to let go, you notice changes in an animals behaviour, the little whimpers, the constant sleep and the inability to do things, the little looks you get and the realisation that their quality of life is deteriorating. Decisions have to be made.

That final journey to the vets, me driving, my wife cuddling the little package on the back seat and the fight to see through the flood of tears that are clouding your eyes.

The vets bench, the dogs wagging his tail, he’s ok you think, but he’s not. The injection to subdue him, he rests, the second injection and then he’s gone.

The lonely drive home knowing you have left a family member behind, the sadness you are going to feel everyday going forward.

The little things you miss, the what ifs? that suddenly come to mind and the guilt you feel for ending a perfect little life.

We’ve done that three times now and it hurts so damned much, I don’t think we will ever be able to do it again as the pain is just unbearable.

Life is full of hard decisions, but when it ends in the death of a much loved companion, I just don’t think there are many such decisions that are harder to make.

Peace to all. Be safe.

Die…probably

If you didn’t need sleep, what would you do with all the extra time?

I guess it would be counterproductive, as I’m an individual who likes to keep busy, I guess I’d probably work myself into an early grave. what’s the point.

More time, less life. Doesn’t make sense.

Don’t entertain it, have a kip 👍

Have a great day.

Just three?

Name your top three pet peeves.

I’m sure we can all list a number of pet peeves that wind us up on a daily basis, but for me the ones that trigger me are:

  • Incompetence, in work, sport and all aspects of life, especially so called professionals who should be oozing ability and who struggle to just manage the basics.
  • Ignorance, those in a position of responsibility who just turn a blind eye to the needs of others hoping the whole issue will just go away. Supposedly these people are the high flyers, but to be totally honest are only interested if there is something in it for them.
  • Rudeness, ties in neatly to the two points above. If you can’t say anything nice then just don’t open your mouth. There’s an old saying that goes something like this, “ Put your head into gear, before you put your mouth into motion.” Some people could learn a lot from this. Quite simply just take 5. 5 seconds or 5 minutest, it’s up to you just think about what you say. And in this world of delicate souls it could make the difference to someone between feeling appreciated or totally destroyed. Do not go out there to ruin someone’s day, you just do not know what’s going on in their life.

Peace to you all. Have a great day.

One – alone

Who are your current most favorite people?

We moved into the East Midlands approximately seven years ago, I came up with my wife and my dog and they were, and still are, the most important in my life. However that has changed since the passing of my dog in August. My family unit has changed. I still have my wonderful wife but I now feel vulnerable in a way, as there is no one else. I have no friends up here only colleagues and the recent passing of my dog has made me consider that I am only one tragedy away from being alone.

I am a person who likes my own company, but I’m not looking forward to having that forced upon me. My future seems quite bleak in that aspect but I’m just going to have to prepare for that day I guess.

When you start losing the ones you love it’s as if you are personally having the love and support you are used to, gradually being ripped away from you. It’s a horrible situation that I don’t think that life ever prepares you for, and you will always be caught out by it.

Appreciate what you have. And protect that with all you have.

Bluesky

I’ve never been a fan of social media, I don’t do the main three as I’m not particularly interested in talking to anyone I went to school with, most of them kicked the life out of me so I’m not interested in that. X or Twatter or whatever it is know as now was always a cauldron of vileness and hate and nothing seems to have changed there either. As for Instagram, i don’t need some z list nobody to tell me what to buy or where to go, the fact that you are there ruining it for everyone doesn’t really float my boat.

But there’s a new kid on the block. Bluesky.

I’ve joined out of curiosity, I’ll probably bin it after a few weeks as I usually do, but so far it seems quite pleasant. There seems to be a few people migrating from the other side so no doubt it won’t be long before the poison sets in. Then it’ll be time to go. However the filters are pretty good and I have many words and names filtered and they don’t seem to be getting through so I am actually only seeing what I want to see. And that is good. As long as it stays like that I may be tempted to stay.

Apparently it was how Twitter was back in the early days, but we all know youngsters grow up and can develop an attitude so I’m very sceptical at the moment.

For the moment I’m happy with it, cautiously content is probably the right statement. But could it get any worse?

Update: account deleted on 27/11/24. It really is as crap and poisonous as all the other platforms out there. Not needed in my life.

Stay safe.