Published in The Manic Depressive’s Handbook·4 days agoMember-onlyWhat I’m Listening To Today, Episode #22Birds Don’t Sing, TV Girl — Summer is upon us, and for the first morning in months I woke after eight good hours of sleep and didn’t feel the need to hit the snooze button on my alarm. So, time to put finger to keyboard and give you a little update. My house is currently…Music4 min read
Published in The Manic Depressive’s Handbook·Jul 26Member-onlyWe Shall Break RecordsOn Monday morning when the sun came out, I felt good. The preceding week had been filled with news stories about a record-breaking event. This is how society likes to frame success, it is how we are raised. We must win at all costs, and there is no greater litmus…Climate Change8 min read
Published in The Manic Depressive’s Handbook·Jul 15Member-onlyA Bridge Between WorldsWe begin as one must, with the usual apologies. I’m sorry for not posting anything for two (three?) months. That seems even worse now that I’ve said it. My reasons are the following: I didn’t want to. I began a long production run at work, during and at the end…Samuel Taylor Coleridge6 min read
Published in The Manic Depressive’s Handbook·May 9Member-onlyThe Mountain ClimberAt the end of March, the Alpine Fellowship Poetry competition was brought to my attention, along with the words: “hey, you write stuff, you should definitely have a go at this”. I was interested, though having some bitter familiarity with the Fellowship, I wasn’t sure I wanted to bring anything…Poem3 min read
Published in The Manic Depressive’s Handbook·May 6Member-onlyA Gut FeelingGoing with your gut is not something I’m readily willing to do. …Relationships7 min read
Published in The Manic Depressive’s Handbook·Apr 21Member-onlyThe Mormon ConversionNote to reader: I started penning this — at a guess — sometime in August 2020, when the first wave of the coronavirus had begun to die down here in the UK and there was a collective feeling, I think, of having been through the wringer. A few times. I…Humor8 min read
Published in The Manic Depressive’s Handbook·Apr 15Member-onlyWhy I Think Boris Johnson Should ResignOn Tuesday 12th April it was reported that both Boris Johnson and his chancellor, Rishi Sunak had been issued with fixed penalty notices by the Metropolitan Police for attending a birthday party held for the Prime Minister at 10 Downing Street. What followed was a bit of a standoff from…Humor10 min read
Published in The Manic Depressive’s Handbook·Apr 7Member-onlyThe ABCs Of Parenting - It’s Really Very Easy!“What does this look like?” The message flashed up on my phone and then a spinning circle appeared while a photo loaded in front of me. I was dismayed to see that what popped up on screen next was a potty and its contents. This is not unusual, I tell…Parenting8 min read
Published in The Manic Depressive’s Handbook·Apr 1Member-onlyWhat I’m Listening To Today, Episode #21Everyone’s gone to the moon, Jonathan King — In the third quarter of that awful first pandemic year, I had space on my mind. I was given a professional gig to write something (anything!) for a magazine, and my mind came to rest on SpaceX and its starship development. In part, I blame this song for it…Space3 min read
Published in The Manic Depressive’s Handbook·Mar 24Member-onlyWhat I’m Listening To Today, Episode #20Bee Gees, Odessa (City on The Black Sea) — More and more these days, I find not only that I will favour music I have heard in the past over anything new, but also that I seek out meaning in it, and examine with interest the places at which it intersects my life, however tangentially. It was with…Odessa4 min read
