It’s Christmas Day in my little corner of the world and I feel very fortunate to have received some thoughtful gifts. My partner and I are staying with a member of their family; parents came to an enormous dinner and returned later for an indulgent tea. Amid this abundance, what I value most is the simplest thing. Feeling comfortable, welcome and free to be myself. … Continue reading The best gift

I’m very lucky to have two laptops from work – one a MacBook Air and the other a Lenovo ThinkPad. The ThinkPad has a better spec and is technically the best PC I’ve ever had. I’m very pleased with it and I can’t think of anything to fault. If you asked me to tell you about it, I wouldn’t be talking for long. It was … Continue reading It’s how you feel that counts

Especially in the current polarising climate, it’s very easy to say you hate or can’t stand someone. What that really means, I think, is that either you see things differently or have different values. In some cases this will be a very strong feeling, of course. If it’s acknowledged that these are simply differences then it’s much easier to empathise. Much easier to reach out … Continue reading Value differences vs hate

It’s frustrating, dealing with requests that are ambiguous and opinions that fluctuate. There’s often hard work to be done either to pin things down, or go through several iterations until the right one is found. This is true in general and especially true in my work as a software developer. In a lot of cases though, this is some of the most valuable work and … Continue reading Dealing with ambiguity

I feel like I’d benefit a lot from more resources, by which I really mean more money. Not for day-to-day living, but to improve the conditions in my (often freezing) workshop. If I put in a new heater so it warmed up quickly, I’d be more likely to go. If I put down even just a cheap rug, I’d want to spend more time there. … Continue reading The need for more resources

I’ve been wondering about ‘good’ lately, both in general and specifically in DnD alignment terms. What’s classed as good is a matter of perception, of course. Boris Johnson probably perceives himself as Chaotic Good. The country/his friends need x to happen to get the best outcome; to hell with anything in the way of that and a grand plan isn’t actually necessary. He’s certainly chaotic. … Continue reading Good is good?