Cardiff, Emma, Cars, Chickens and Does MH really read this blog?

There has been a slight delay in getting this week’s blog out. An inch of snow overnight required clearing off the drive before it was driven on and compacted to ice, making the drive un-passable again! Anyway, last Monday afternoon saw me on a two carriage train trundling its way to Cardiff. The train driver took great pride in stopping at every train station between Manchester and Cardiff. It was a long journey. But a worthwhile one. I was on my way to the Council of Deans of Health. This is a organization that grew out of a group Head of School and Deans of Nursing coming together to provide a concerted and considered voice of reason in order to challenge the many governmental polices and plans that threatened to slow the progress of the professionalisation of nurses. These days the Council of Deans is a broader church, and now represents many health care professions – except, of course, our colleagues in medicine. All four countries of the UK are represented. This is a group whose influence extends not just to the UK Government, but to health care systems world wide. The collective ability to deconstruct and critically analyse health care policy is incredible. However, nurses and midwives have a long tradition of being able to shape the course of health care practice. This week two midwives working both in clinical practice and in our School received a prestigious award from the Department of Health for their work in developing further the skills of midwives. Their success was underpinned by a research based approach and is a great example of how research can have a long lasting impact upon the experiences of others. This achievement clearly reflects the contributions to health care made by nurses and midwives down the ages. I came across a brilliant web site this week that captured the contributions of Walt Whitman, one of the all time great contributors to nursing - http://www.whitmanarchive.org/ - have a look and remind yourself that actually the biggest differences to the quality of life of others sometimes come from the smallest acts. And small acts repeated over and over again.

This week I also sat in awe of a young lady courageous enough to tell the story of how she had experienced her mental health problems over the last eight years. She was 19 years old. Throughout al this time it was her GP who had provided the time, presence and therapeutic relationship to enable this young lady to move forward and recover from her problems. What she described in her account was receiving a form of talking therapy that was about her GP always being there for her, (providing the unconditional positive approach that is usually a characteristic of nurses and midwives relationships with their patients). Over all the years she was troubled, this GP was her constant rock. It was both a humbling and exhilarating experience.

Friday saw me picking up my new car, black and sleek. Enough said.

Saturday morning was given over to Jason. He is a ace photographer and a real artist. He has previously taken photos of colleagues that have been truly amazing. With me it was slightly different. He maintained an almost constant refrain of 'look happier, even more than that', dominated the couple of hours shooting! Some 150 photo shots later he drove away leaving me wondering what images he was going to send in for use. A clue is that they all included chickens.

On the other hand, our VC appeared to know what shots I was using. At a professoriate dinner with the VC and a dozen other professors this week, Martin Hall, observed that I had taken a photo of ‘that picture’ and he understood it now appeared on my blog. So if you do read this weekly offering Martin, just for the record, I think you are doing a great job.

It is a increasingly turbulent world at present. I am very aware of the huge efforts being made by all my colleagues in the School under what by any measure are very difficult circumstances.

Just for the record, I want to say thank you, I think you are all doing a great job too.

6 INCHES OF SNOW!!!!!!!!!

To some of you this may not be a big deal, especially if you're from up north and are used to having snow come in feet. But down here in Tennessee we hardly ever get this much snow. What's even stranger though is that this past Sunday it was 66 degrees and now a little less than a week later there's snow on the ground and it's below freezing. I'm very happy though. I got to make a real snow angel today and by real I mean one where you cannot see the grass when you stand up.
Anyway. I'm going to go and enjoy some more snow and I hope you can do the same. If not go enjoy whatever your weather is. Adios.

Interesting....

I was looking up some similes and proverbs for themes for a photo contest and found these-
"As tricky as a box of monkeys"

"If you can't be good, be careful."

"Youth is wasted on the young."

"Opportunity never knocks twice on any ma's door."

"Little things please little minds."

"Comparisons are odious."

"Don't keep a dog and bark yourself."

"Pen is mightier than sword."

" 'tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all."

"Love makes the world go round."

"Walk softy and carry a big stick."

"In the kingdom of the blind the one eyed man it king."

Most of these I just like. Some I like a lot. Others I don't really understand (the whole box of monkeys thing). I'm thinking about doing a photo series with these as the theme but I'm undecided. I hope you enjoy them!

Joining the Operation and Accepting an Award

Once in a while other, more interesting blog writers than myself come up with an idea that strikes a cord with others. This time a really wonderful writer, Holly over at Mama Dearest/Domestic Goddess, has come up with what she has decided to call " Operation Think Happy ". What is this operation, you ask ? Well, its basically just a promise to make regular posts about things that have made you happy; Holly is going to make her list every Thursday and i'm going to ( try ) and make mine every weekend. What better way to finish a week than to look back at the things that made you smile over the preceding 7 days ?

* My post pregnancy boobies - ok sure they sometimes get tingly, hard as a rock and leaky, but boy do they look good!

* Flynns new found smiles - my boy gave us his first smiles this week. He does this little smirk thing out of one side of his mouth and then throws his head back and has a huge open mouth, like he's laughing with out sound. Too, too sweet....

*Caramel Tim Tams, straight outta the fridge - chocolate coated chocolate biscuits with a chewy caramel centre. Yes please.... a little bit of happiness at my finger tips.

* Black shorts - or, more precisely, finally finding a pair of black shorts that were the right length, right price and that flattered my mummy tummy.

* Getting out of bed to find that Mr Gil has sorted all the dirty laundry - and was in the process of washing it all too. What a good fiance/daddy!

* " Burn Your Name ", by Powderfinger - still absolutely loving this song and everytime i hear it it makes me smile....

* A bbq at my parents place - just us and them. I'm happy to admit that Mr Gil and i get along really well with my parents. So much so i think we can say we actually LIKE hanging out with them ( O.M.G ... is that wrong of me ? )

So thats my first contribution to " Operation Think Happy ". And now, onto accepting an award which was given to me by Suzanne Icognito at Incognito Soapbox Confessions. Apparently she thinks i'm a " Kreativ Blogger " :

I dont know how " kreativ " i am - lets face it, i'm not all that good at coming up with new and exciting blog projects or operations of my own - but hey, if she wants to give me an award i will gladly accept it! There is also a meme that is supposed to be done when accepting the award - i have to share 7 things you guys dont yet know about me. Even though that seems like an impossible task ( how long have i been writing this blog, and how much random crap have i already shared ? ) i'll give it a shot. Here goes:

1. I like my tuna sandwiches best when there kind of soggy. Dont drain all the brine or water from the tuna and add lots and lots of avocado!

2. I have a scar in the centre of my hairline from walking into a door when i was little. No, i wasnt drunk - i was only a toddler and learning how to walk and, you know, i lost control and crashed into the hinge of the door. Ouchy McGouchy!

3. I may be 26 but i still love " Sesame Street ". In fact, because its Sunday afternoon and there is zero else to watch on tv, " Sesame Street " happens to be on right now.

4. I think i have too much body hair for a woman. Seriously, i'm one of these poor unfortunate ladies who is a natural brunette and is sadly afflicted with dark body hair. I'm not exactly the bearded lady, but its enough to make me feel decidely unfeminine sometimes...

And thats all i've got. Sorry Suzanne, but i seem to have exhausted my supply of random tidbits a long time ago!

Three Monkeys

Lots of news last week: Haiti’s earthquake, Scott Brown’s victory, the Pentagon report on the Fort Hood Massacre, and the beginning of the Geert Wilders trial in Holland. Three out of the four stories pertain to Radical Islam. Only Haiti doesn’t, but it and the Massachusetts election drowned out coverage of the last two stories.

One of the many facets of Scott Brown’s upset win was what his Democrat opponent Martha Coakley, said about the Afghanistan’s Taliban in their debate. Even though the Taliban has been killing American soldiers in Afghanistan for years, and at a accelerating rate, Coakley said: “They’re gone. They’re not there anymore.” That is astonishing ignorance in someone vying to become a US Senator during wartime. The scary fact that she almost won makes me wonder: How many other high officials in our government are that stupid? A big clue is in the Pentagon’s report on why Major Nidal Hasan shot forty-something people at Fort Hood. It looks like the answer is quite a few of them are - perhaps even most.

When I was a little boy, I had a recurring nightmare in which I was in the back yard of our suburban Boston home being chased by a monster. My father was cooking at his grille but didn’t even look up. I knew my father could defeat the monster if he would only look and see what was happening, but he never did - and that’s what scared me the most.

Now I’m afraid that way again, only this time it isn’t a dream. The Pentagon report on the Fort Hood Massacre, says columnist Diana West, “is 86 pages long and doesn't mention the words ‘Muslim,’ ‘Islam,’ ‘jihad,’ ‘Sharia’ (Islamic law), ‘Koran’ -- despite the fact that we know, among other things, that the killer, who initiated his massacre with a cry of ‘Allahu Akbar,’ was a Muslim inspired by Islam to perform an act of jihad as sanctioned by Sharia derived from the Koran.”I’m afraid. I’m very afraid. As I wrote last November: “After US Army Major Hasan openly admired Muslim suicide bombers, declared the US an ‘oppressor’ of Muslims, asked an al Qaeda recruiter what he could do “to further the Jihad,” shouted ‘Allahu Akbar!’ while he gunned down forty-three US soldiers. President Obama said: ‘Well, look, we -- we have seen, in the past, rampages of this sort. And in a country of 300 million people, there are going to be acts of violence that are inexplicable.’ Inexplicable? We’re in deep trouble.”

Then, three days after the Christmas Pantybomber burned out his crotch trying to blow up Northwest Flight 253, Obama said Abdulmutallab was “an isolated extremist.” Then, last week, the Pentagon again pretended Radical Islam had nothing to do with the Fort Hood Massacre.

Some of us look for the truth. Some of us run from it. Others of us claim there’s no such thing. Dutch Member of Parliament Geert Wilders went on trial last week for rubbing the painful truth in the faces of his countrymen. He made a film called Fitna in which he quoted sermons made by Radical imams (clerics), and quoted from the Koran as well - juxtaposing these words with images of Radical Muslim attacks. Then he compared all this with quotes from Mein Kampf - Hitler’s autobiography. The similarities were obvious, painful, and apt. No one questioned their veracity. Radical Muslims threatened Wilders with death if he released the film, but he released it anyway - knowing he would have to spend every minute of every day under armed guard for the rest of his life.What did the Dutch government do? Did it root out the radicals in its midst? Did it offer protection to a member its Parliament threatened with death? No. Incredibly, it charged Wilders - one of its own - with hate crimes for “offending” Radical Muslims with their own words! I wish I were making this up, but that’s what is happening. Last week, the Dutch government started laying out its “case” against Wilders. If convicted of “hate speech” for telling the truth, Wilders faces two years in prison and fines of 18 thousand Euro, or about $25,000.

Multiculturalism trumps truth in Holland - and in the rest of old Europe as well. Radical Muslims are killing us, but we mustn’t hurt their feelings. It's as if we had do discuss fighting Hitler's Germany without mentioning the evils of Nazism.

The truth is - there is evil in our midst once again. It threatened western civilization twice during the 20th century in the form of fascism and communism. Both times we ignored it, then appeased it, until it got so bad that tens of millions died before it could be subdued. We listened to wimps like Neville Chamberlain and ignored leaders Winston Churchill until it was almost too late. Then "sophisticated” and “nuanced” intellectuals ridiculed Ronald Reagan for calling the Soviet Union “The Evil Empire.” Then they scoffed at George W. Bush for calling Syria, North Korea and Iran “The Axis of Evil.” Now the USA, the UK and the EU are the three monkeys of “See no evil, Hear no evil, and Speak no evil.”
Those monkeys seem to have originated with an 8th century Chinese proverb, declaring: “If we do not hear, see, or speak evil, we ourselves shall be spared all evil.” But we won’t be spared until we pull our hands away, look Radical Islam in the face, and call it what it is.

Like An Australian Virgin

Do we really need politicians telling us what we should and shouldnt be doing with our sex lives? I only ask because in the past day we have had the leader of the Liberal party here in Australia saying that young women should remain virgins until theyre married. I mean i respect that he, just like everybody else, is allowed to express his opinion - but should politicians really be concerned with that kind of stuff when they could be worrying about roads and hospitals and schools and stuff ? And - should we care what they think ?

I think it is quite clear that i am NOT a virgin ( unless i'm like the second coming of Mary and my child is the second Immaculate Conception ). I am also NOT married ( yet ). So what is Tony Abbott, this aforementioned leader, think of me? Would he now think i'm some kind of whorish, slutty cretin ? Does the status of my virginity really speak to what kind of person i am ? I understand that he is the father of three teenage daughters and his opinion is probably based on what he would hope they are ( or arent, as it were ) doing - but then why has he directed this statement at all Australian women ? And - ahem - why wasnt it inclusive of Australian men?

He also admits to having " given up " his virginity before he was married so i want to ask why would he even bother publicly espousing this opinion when he cant even hold to the standard himself ? It reeks of hypocrisy, it opens him up to all kinds of criticism and i dont think its going to help him appeal to female voters anymore than he already does ( also being against abortion and gay marriage ). He already seems like he's on the very much conservative side, so giving an interview in a womens magazine where he decides he wants to tell women what to do with their bodies and sexuality only makes him less electable - to me anyways.

I suppose the politics of the man dont matter much to anyone who isnt an Australian voter - but what do you think ? Whatever your own opinions on the matter, do you think its right, or OK, for politicians to poke their noses into what is very much personal business or should they just stick to ( trying ) to run their countries?

Suicide, Durkheim, Foucault, and the Joys of Teaching

In the main this has been a great week. Highlights included facilitating two teaching sessions with mental health students. These were students half way through their third year of study, more of which later, and the fact that the central heating got sorted. Makes washing my hair much easier.

But I have to start with an apology – to the many people who took the time to ask me whether I had eaten ALL the Swiss Chocolate… …and not brought back any to share?... …well yes, sorry, but it was sooooooooooo good!

There were some things that weren’t so good however. When I first arrived in Manchester I liked listening to Piccadilly Radio (for young readers, this was the precursor to Key 103) – all except programmes from a full of himself DJ named Steve Penk. It came as no surprise to hear that on the 14th Jan 2010, in response to a request from a listener sitting in a traffic jam on the M60, he played the song Jump by Van Halen. Four lanes of the motorway were closed while police attempted to deal with a woman who was threatening to throw herself off a bridge. He told listeners he was playing the song to empathise with frustrated motorists. Moments later the woman jumped from the 30ft bridge.

Fortunately, the women involved only received minor injuries.

Although this whole episode in itself was distressing, I think I was more upset by the various reactions to this news. For example, Daily Mail readers flooded the online comment section on the web with huge numbers of responses that were generally really difficult to accept. These ranged from the uninformed:

I think it's funny. These people who climb bridges at rush hour aren't serious about suicide… …to the smug: It's irresponsible - this woman could have overheard it on someone's car stereo… …but unlikely, more likely she had been listening to Chris Evans' new breakfast show!!... …to the uncaring: it’s a free country and Some people need to get a sense of humour!... …and the grounded: I had totally forgotten about this has been, his short-lived TV career crashed and burned some time ago… … nice to know he is now bringing the same low standards to radio!

Although I didn’t hear the actual programme, like Mind and the Samaritans I complained to Ofcom about the show. It was not an easy thing to do – and I mean it literally was not an easy thing to do – Ofcom didn’t recognise Penks radio station on the list of stations broadcasting.

There was a sustained but somewhat muted response from mental health groups. And I guess, given other world concerns, not least of which the dreadful events in Haiti, perhaps the subdued response is understandable. However, the World Health Organisation estimates that each year approximately one million people die from suicide, which represents a global mortality rate of 16 people per 100,000 or one death every 40 seconds. It is predicted that by 2020 the rate of death will increase to one every 20 seconds.

Over 100 people a week take their own life in the UK.

We did talk about the story in my sessions with the students. However, it was interesting that I discovered none of the Students had ever come across Emile Durkheim and his ground breaking sociological work on suicide. This work was first published in 1897. One of the things he noted all that time ago was the higher than average rates of suicide to be found in Scandinavian countries than elsewhere. Something as unfortunately true today as it was then. I was also surprised that the students hadn’t come across my most favourite philosopher and sociologist, Michel Foucault. Particularly so given his huge contribution to our understanding of society, the relationship between individuals and the State, the importance of social institutions and his work on knowledge, power, psychiatry and human sexuality.

He also suffered with depression for long periods at different times during his life. He first embraced psychiatry and psychology, only to reject these and seek asylum (in its truest sense) as the way to finding his own road to recovery. For me it was a great joy to be able to discuss with these ideas with the students and to consider the impact that these great thinkers and writers had on the way in which mental health care, the policy, practice is understood today.

For me the teaching was entirely positive for my own mental health and well being, which in a demanding week, had been sorely tested this week.

O.M.G - Brangelina Are Breaking Up!

I know - how shocking? If i werent already happily attached this may have given me the perfect chance to get together with Brad and we could raise a rainbow family of our own ( but only if he shaves off that hideous beard - he looks like a lumberjack ).

Now that i have that very important news out of the way - the rest of my birthday turned out very well. I had a couple of spare hours up my sleeve alone with Flynn before Mr Gil got home and my family turned up, so we watched " Rent " on DVD. Despite the fact that some critics said the movie version is not all that good, " Rent " is my favourite musical and i really like the film. I threw it on and sung all the songs to Flynn ( in between feeds ) and danced him around the loungeroom when he got a little grizzly. So what if the musical subject matter includes such baby friendly topics as AIDS and drug addiction ? Its essentially a story about love and besides that singing to your child ( whether its nursery ryhmes or Top 40 stuff ) is engaging for them. I loved it!

I got quite a few nice presents ( DVD's , a book, a new wallet and some chocolates included... ) and my birthday dinner was fantastic. Mr Gil ended up making me butter chicken and it was just the right mix of saucy and spicy and yum... so yum that i ended up eating the leftovers for my lunch the next day. So i'm officially 26 now. One of my loyal readers ( you know, of the 3 of you... ) asked if i felt any older - i'm going to go with yes, but no.

How do i get yes, but no? Well i do feel older but i dont think it has all that much to do with having a birthday, and i dont necessarily think its older but rather i feel more mature. I think this whole " I actually feel like a proper grown up now " feeling has rather less to do with hitting age that is closer to 30 than it is to 20 and more to do with becoming a mother. You know - i'm partnered up, i have a small, wrinkly, but entirely gorgeous small person who relies on me for everything, i have a mortgage and a car loan and when my annual leave pay runs out we'll only have one income and few government benefits to live off until i go back to work. I mean, those are grown up concerns right?

If they dont qualify me as being almost entirely adult now, i shudder to think what you have to do to join the club.....

Happy Birthday - To Me!

Oh yea, thats right - go Amy, its your birthday.....

* Note * This is not my actual birthday cake - i just thought it was cute!

My 26th birthday to be precise, and my first as a mumma. So far its going well.... Mr Gil gave me my birthday present at 4am when Flynn woke up for a feed ( I gotta say it was a nice suprise to be spoilt in the middle of the night! ) and i'm a very lucky girl - my boys got me a Pandora bracelet! I dont know if Pandora is a big thing overseas but its pretty popular here. Basically its a completely personalised charm bracelet system, where you start off buying the base "snake chain " bracelet and then add on which ever charms you so desire. Mr Gil has bought me the silver version ( very cleverly knowing that i dont wear gold jewellery ) and had included two charms - an " M " bead ( for his first name... ) and an " F " bead for Flynn. Aww, my boys are two cute!

Flynn also decided to spoil me by going (almost) straight back to sleep after his 4am feed and then sleeping another 3 and half hours - which means i got around 7 hrs sleep over night ( score! ) and got to eat my breakfast and take a quick shower uninterrupted. Mr Gil claims this is because he had a little father-to-son chat with Flynn and told him he had to be good on mummys birthday. Which he has - he's only just fallen asleep after 4 and half hours awake, but it was relatively calm awake time, so i truely am getting a good little boy today.

The rest of my immediate family are coming around for birthday cake this afternoon after Mr Gil gets home from work. Its only going to be a small gathering but i'm looking forward to it - i mean yes i'll be getting cake and birthday presents but its nice to have visitors when i've been spending the majority of my days with just a little person for company ( note that by " little person " i mean my baby. I havent recently acquired my own dwarfed person ). And then Mr Gil is cooking me some Indian food for dinner and doing the dishes to boot - what a guy!

I guess we'll find out tomorrow how the rest of my 26th ended up....

Hateful? Who Is?

Last October I made a TV commercial for “Stand For Marriage Maine,” the Catholic-led organization to repeal the gay “marriage” law passed by the Maine’s legislature. We won, and it was a setback for homosexual activists nationally as liberal Maine became the seventeenth state in a row to vote against it. Wherever citizens vote, it loses, but fallout from bitter homosexual activists continues.

Three of us made the same commercial. My version was rejected, but Nokomis High School guidance counselor Don Mendell’s version ran for weeks. Now his job is threatened because two other guidance counselors filed complaints with Maine’s licensing board claiming he violated the NASW (National Association of Social Workers) code of ethics by appearing in the ad.

If there’s an occupation with more homosexuals than hairdressing or interior decorating, it’s social work. In the first complaint, social worker and guidance counselor Ann Sullivan claimed “Don [Mendell] has a history of being unsupportive of GLTBQ issues.” That long acronym would mean “Gay, Lesbian, Transgender, Bisexual, and Questioning.” Sullivan complained that “When Nokomis High staff assisted students in beginning the Gay Straight Alliance [GSA], Don was very vocal in his opposition to this group.”

Mendell should be commended for opposing a GSA at his high school, considering that President Obama’s embattled Safe Schools Czar, Kevin Jennings was “the faculty advisor to the nation's first Gay-Straight Alliance” Jennings then founded GLSEN - the “Gay Lesbian and Straight Education Network” - and used taxpayer money to teach fourteen-year-olds sexual techniques like “fisting” - too perverted to describe or this column couldn’t be printed in family newspapers. Jennings also passed out guides to gay bars in Boston, pointing out which ones specialized in “leather” fetishes. That’s code for homosexuals who prefer sick, sadomasochist practices such as those favored by Maine gay “marriage” activist Bruce LaVallee-Davidson, recently convicted of manslaughter. GLSEN gives such literature to students all over the country. Instead of being praised for trying to protect Maine students from depravity, Mendell is harassed by the state.

Days before the vote, I was invited to appear at a press conference where I spoke about some of this. Private school, and retired public school teachers were there, but I was the only active public school teacher present. Why? Mendell’s ordeal is a good example of what we can expect if we speak out against homosexual propaganda in school or even in private life.

In December, the Baldacci Administration ramped up pressure. According to the Sebasticook Valley Weekly: “Maine Assistant Attorney General Robert Perkins . . . has requested that Mendell turn over transcripts of the video commercial he made in support of a YES vote on the recent gay marriage referendum [and] provide copies of any ‘letters to the editor’ that he may have written in the past year concerning the gay marriage issue.”

That’s chilling.

Mendell says his First Amendment rights protect him from charges other counselors made to shut him up. Clearly, they’re supportive of propaganda groups like GSA and GLSEN who actively recruit students to their miscreant subcultures. Considering the average life expectancy of homosexual men is twenty years shorter than other men, it is the two complainants’ ethics which should be questioned, not Mendell’s.

Twenty years ago, homosexual activists jumped on the civil rights bandwagon with the dubious claim that homosexual orientation is biological or “in the genes,” for which there’s absolutely no scientific proof. Nonetheless, the majority of psychotherapists and social workers, like the two complainants, believe homosexuality is inborn and immutable. That’s the kind of propaganda GSA and GLSEN pushes in Maine and in thousands of schools across the nation.

But what if they’re wrong? What if schoolchildren are malleable and can be steered toward homosexual or transgender inclinations by exposure to GLSEN propaganda? It’s one thing for Maine public schools to provide “transgender bathrooms” (which some do), but it would be quite another if they should refer children to newly-opened “transgender clinics.” Children’s Hospital in Boston offers hormone treatments to prevent the onset of puberty in children as young as seven! According to Foxnews.com: “The drugs stop the natural flood of hormones that would make it difficult to have a sex alteration later in life, allowing patients more time to decide whether they want to make the [surgical] change.”

“‘Treating these children with hormones does considerable harm and it compounds their confusion,’ said Dr. Paul McHugh, University Distinguished Service Professor of Psychiatry at John Hopkins University. ‘Trying to delay puberty or change someone’s gender is a rejection of the lawfulness of nature. . . . At some point in childhood,’ McHugh said, ‘many children role play as the opposite sex, but it is a social, not a medical issue.’”

Especially when they’re only seven.

That’s one direction in which homosexual activists are heading. Maine voters set them back and Don Mendell is feeling their wrath.

Sleep, My Pretty, Sleep

Ok, so i may have spoke a little too soon in my last " mummy " update. Yes i said i wasnt finding it too rough YET - yea, well, yet arrived last week. However, i think i still had it pretty good in comparison to a lot of other new mums...

See what happened was - Flynn decided he wanted to start what is known as " cluster feeding ". So instead of being awake/having a feed/going back to sleep Flynn was waking in the morning and then having a feed - and staying awake, wanting another feed around 45 minutes later and then still staying awake. He was averaging four feeds in four hours of awake time and then he would fall asleep for maybe 2 hrs and want to do the whole feed/cuddle/grizzle/feed repeat thing again. My only blessing is that he was doing this during the day time, when i am supposed to be awake anyway, instead of at night. At night he was sleeping for 5 or 6 straight hours before wanting one feed and then back to sleep. Thank. Gawd.

But i'm not going to pretend the cluster feeding thing was easy, even during the day. Hell no - it was exhausting. I mean imagine if you will a four to five hour period where you had a baby on your boob ( ok, sorry, theres no other way to put it ) for 25 minutes and then the baby wanted to snuggle ( which is lovely ) but then they wanted to grizzle ( which is not so much lovely ) and then within the completion of an hour he was back on your boob. I couldnt do anything other than sit on the lounge and watch midday television - " Ellen ", " Dr Phil ", " Oprah ", " The View "... take your pick .Crazy as it sounds i wanted to get some housework done, which i couldnt because i cant wash dishes or hang the clean clothes on the line with one hand. I'm sure as my mummy caper continues i'll develop this skill but right now its sorely lacking.

Also - i couldnt help but feel like a dairy cow.

But now that we've had a cool change in the weather the cluster feeding thing has backed off a bit and, so far, it hasnt been replaced with anything else too strange.

Yet.....

Stories of Schizophrenia, Science, Swiss Chocolate and Mob Rule

I have for a long time now complained loudly whenever I have come across some one being referred to as a Schizophrenic. Schizophrenia is a disease not a person. Last week I sent another email to the BBC when they announced that a Schizophrenic mum, who we now know is called Aisling, stabbed her daughter, Chloe, 52 times. Aisling was suffering from Paranoid Schizophrenia at the time. This is a tragic story told of events that occurred some 7 years ago, but which, for a number of reasons, has only now been reported on. There were the usual accusations levied at individual professionals, a social worker and psychiatrist in this case, and the various agencies involved were found to be wanting in a number of respects. Refreshingly, the Manchester Evening News, in their coverage of the story, steered well clear of referring to Aisling in any other way than as a Mother. No condemnation and no reductionist and patronizing personal pathologising. In what was an account about a very sad and tragic occurrence, this approach was at least a one that properly reflected the sensibility and humanity of all of those involved.

It is a shame that the same cannot be said about the governments Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies. I am talking of course about the latest twist in the Swine Flu scandal. It beggars belief that over half of the SAGE group (11 out of the 20 members) have done work for or have a link to the pharmaceutical industry. Many of these people have long established links through the research they have undertaken as part of their work at a University. Many of these people have been paid sums of money ranging from £500 for a lecture to £100,000 for a directorship. No wonder Mandy is stamping his foot and threatening to stop funding much University research. GSK are likely to be the greatest beneficiaries of the preparations undertaken for swine flu. In July 2009 the UK Government was predicting up to 65,000 deaths from swine flu. To date there have been some 251 deaths. Unsurprisingly, the Government is now busy trying to off load nearly one billion pounds worth of unwanted swine flu vaccine.

 

As some of the more astute readers among you will have gathered, I have been reading the Daily Mail again. It was the only free English language newspaper on the Swiss Air flight I took this week to get to Budapest. There was little snow in Budapest, but it was minus 7c for much of the time. I was there working on a bid with colleagues for a £300,000 project from the life long learning EU funding stream. We were interested to build upon previous work a group of us had done looking at the role of academics who facilitate learning in and from clinical practice. It was a fascinating discussion. There were many differences in approach across Europe. For example, in the Czech Republic, nurse tutors worked for up to 6 hours a week with their students in practice, maintain clinical loads, and despite being employed by their university, are very much part of the clinical team where as in Romania, university lectures seldom met with students when they were out in practice – perhaps has something to do with many of these lecturers were doctors. They may well have been busy sorting out the swine flue pandemic.

 

Another really good thing about Swiss Air is those mini bars of Swiss chocolate they bring round at every opportunity, its lovely stuff. One needed a good blood sugar level upon arrival at Manchester airport on Saturday. The airport had chosen to upgrade the arrivals and passport hall this weekend. There were only four desks open, instead of the normal 14. I arrived to join a queue of 2000 other passengers. It took an hour and 15 minutes to get through passport control. The flight from Budapest was one hour 45 minutes. What I found frightening about this experience was the regular wave or anger and frustration that swept through this mass of people. People were hot, tired, needing to get their luggage, go to the toilet and so on. It was the constant apology for the delay that seemed to particularly anger people. Clearly people wanted their cake today and not tomorrow. And although I don’t intend this blog to be focused on food, if anyone has been to the newly renovated Pitcher and Piano (now called Barbirolli) – I hear it now features jazz, blues and acoustic live music- perhaps they could let me know if it is worth a visit.

Snapshots of 2010

I hope you enjoy these pictures and are having a very good New Year.

Pictures-
1) My birthday cake. I baked and decorated it. I think I did a pretty good job but I don't think I have a future in cake decorating.
2) Ecc 3:1-8. I found this alarm clock and decide to take pictures of it. I thought it kinda fit the verse I put on it. I'm not sure if you can read it or not.
3) Bundled Up. I thought this was a cool angle of my scarf and jacket.
4) Hands Down It's 2010.

Deadly Infection

Only recently have I become aware of the depths to which political correctness has permeated our culture. I knew it was bad, but I didn’t know how bad. It’ll be the ruin of us if we don’t kill it and comb its nits out of our hair.
I began to get a clue at a private reception for Dutch Member of Parliament Geert Wilders in Washington last February. After Wilders was escorted out by his bodyguards (radical Muslims ordered him killed for making a movie called “Fitna.”), I found myself in extended conversation with a young Defense Department analyst who had been tasked by the Joint Chiefs of Staff to research and report on the ideology of our radical Muslim enemies. He immersed himself in Islamic law and came to the conclusion that it’s the radical Muslims who appear to have the doctrinal base in Islam, not the moderates.

He said that most of the highest officials at the Pentagon rejected his brief. Then they rejected the young man himself - and that was during the Bush Administration. The Pentagon, he said, “as an institution,” wanted to believe that the Radical Muslim interpretation of jihad, which is holy war against infidels worldwide - convert them or kill them, was an aberration.

I had hitherto believed that our National Security planners knew the threat, but were just being polite in their public statements. Not so, according to my young friend. Radical Muslims posing as moderates had more influence with Pentagon planners than he did, he told me. It was their advice the Pentagon was heeding. I’m withholding his name because that’s how he apparently wants it at this point. Last week he was interviewed by Bill Whittle of Pajamas TV (Go here, then click on "The Islamic Infiltration, Part 1") and appeared only in silhouette as he told his story.

Next, Whittle interviewed a former FBI special agent (also a silhouette) who spent most of his fifteen-year career working on the Islamic movement in the United States, the Muslim Brotherhood, and Islamic doctrine. He said our Department of Homeland Security is being advised by people from the Council for American Islamic Relations or CAIR. The trouble is, he claims they’re a front for Hamas - a Radical Islamic organization. The Muslim Public Affairs Council and the Islamic Society of North America - ISNA - a huge financial entity for Hamas in the United States.”

A little background for readers: The Muslim Brotherhood, according to author Robert Spencer, spawned both Hamas and al Qaeda. Khalid Sheik Muhammed, who planned the September 11th attacks for al Qaeda and goes on trial in New York City soon, belonged to the Muslim Brotherhood.

Now back to the anonymous FBI agent in Whittle’s interview: “CAIR and ISNA (both closely affiliated with Hamas),” he said, “are the two groups that DOD, DHS, the State Department all use to do their Muslim outreach in North America. “They sit in on brainstorming about investigative techniques that our agents are using in the field.”

“I have to stop you,” said Whittle, “because, frankly, that sounds so absurd that I have to really make sure I’m understanding you correctly. Are you saying that the radicalized Muslim groups are invited in to learn our investigative techniques, that they’re invited in to get their feedback on how we’re going to fight against them. Is that what I understood you to say?”

“Yes,” he answered. “The General Counsel of the FBI invites them in as well as the ACLU and other groups in [to make sure that whatever our government agencies did] was okay and not offensive to these organizations.  . . . that’s nothing short of outrageous.”

“So you’re giving away the farm in order to make sure their feelings don’t get hurt,” said Whittle.

Evidently, political correctness could be fatal.

“There’s no training for local law enforcement officials about the real nature of the threat,” said the agent. “The training they get is given by agents of the Muslim Brotherhood.”

“How did this happen?” asked Whittle. “How did [it] get this far?”

“The Muslim Brotherhood has a long-term strategy,” said the agent. “They’re well organized with hundreds of front groups that support their public relations, their research arms, they have insinuated themselves into our largest universities. They have Muslim Student Associations (MSA), which is [sic] the first Muslim Brotherhood organization that formed in the United States in 1963. MSA is on every major college campus in the United States recruiting people to the Brotherhood on our own campuses.”

No wonder we haven’t captured Osama Bin Laden after eight years.

When we know how closely foxes are consulted on the design our National Security chicken coop, we can begin to understand why our Commander-in-chief said he wasn’t sure Fort Hood’s Major Hasan was a radical Muslim after he shot more than forty of our soldiers while yelling “Allahu Akbar!” or why he said the Christmas Pantybomber was “an isolated extremist.” We can understand why he won’t call this a war with Radical Islam and instead refers to it as “Overseas Contingency Operations.”

Radical Muslims are fanatic, yes, but they understand us better than we understand ourselves. They know we’re so infected with political correctness that we’re more afraid of offending them than we are of losing a war to them.

A Sad State of Underwears

No, i'm not talking about me - although lately all i get to wear is nursing bras and cute stretch cotton knickers ( shut up! They're comfy.... ). Nope, i'm talking about what i assume is the universal sad state of mens underwear.

What is up with men keeping their underwear until its literally falling apart? I've folded quite a few baskets of washing lately and i've come across at least 3 pairs of Mr Gil undies that are in dire need of throwing out. You know the ones : i like to call them the " Hole-y Undies ". Not because they're similar to the particular y-fronts that Jesus favoured back in the day, but because they're full of holes. And not jus the holes for your legs to go into, no - i'm talking about extra holes in the crotch, or in the behind, or the side seam coming apart. I dont know how you boys can wear them, what with the risk of inappropriate bits and peices falling out; and if your junk coming "untrunked" is not the issue, then why arent you just going commando?

And i know its not just Mr Gil. When i was a teenager and made to fold the households washing as my share of the chores, my dad and my brother did the same thing - insisted on wearing underwear that was just barely holding together until the point that some kindly woman in their lives ( wife, mother, sister, whoever it may be ) decided to throw them away. I mean the typical woman gets a even the whiff of a seam coming apart and her knickers are straight in the garbage. But a dude? He insists that the holes mean the undies are only just being " worn in " and thats the way they are most comfortable.

Or at least the men that i've washed for do. Please tell me its not jusy them....

Mandy buys us all a drink, but there's still a shortage of Zimmer frames.

What a great week for the senses. No sooner had we got back to work after Christmas than many of us were confined to barracks by the extraordinary snow fall on Monday night, more of which later. Also on Monday, I received confirmation that one of my PhD students had got through the examination process and was to be recommended for the award of a Doctorate. Congratulations all round, particularly as this student is an academic member of our School of Nursing & Midwifery here at Salford. It is an unfortunate fact of life that despite representing the largest group of all health care professions, there are precious few Nurses and Midwives who have gained their PhD.

In 1950, my role model Virginia Henderson, decided to collect together all the published research undertaken by nurses. The collected works filled just two slim volumes. As a profession we have come a long way since, but there is a long way to go. For example, it was estimated that in 1997, there were less than 300 nurses in the UK who had a PhD. While this number has trebled the current number of nurses and midwives with a PhD has to be put into a context of some 600,000 nurses currently registered in the UK. We are looking forward in 2010 to having the first Midwife with a PhD in the history of the School.

However, if Mandy has his way nurses and midwives with a PhD might well be a thing of the past. At least 80 UK Universities face being forced to abandon postgraduate research as funding is concentrated on centres of global excellence. If the proposals are accepted,  Doctoral research would be restricted to about 30 Universities where there are centres of high specialist science based research. The proposals are expected in a review due to be published shortly by Professor Adrian Smith, formerly of University of London, and director of research in Lord Mandelson’s department. So I was interested to read yesterday that Imperial College, London, a likely ‘winner’ in these proposed changes, reported that a team of their researchers have developed an alcohol substitute that mimics the effects of drink, but doesn’t give rise to drunkenness or hangover (?!) and the effects of which can be instantly switched off by taking a pill. Hmm….

…Of course alcohol misuse is a big problem. Some 945,223 people were admitted to hospital with an alcohol-related diagnosis in 2008/09 - 47% higher than the 644,185 people taken to hospital in 2004/05. Although the figures include patients with alcohol-related conditions such as liver disease, some cancers and alcohol poisoning, they do not include those injured while drunk or the victims of drink-related violence.

But back to the snow. It came out of the early morning sky on Tuesday. I lay in bed watching it fall but by 5am I was up and outside busy clearing the snow from the drive, vainly hoping to get to work. However, by 9am I gave up and worked from home for the next two days. Well it was more working and digging. By Thursday morning I was exhausted, but at least could walk to the station and catch a train into Salford. It was good to get to work and meet other colleagues.

Having got myself mobile again, I felt much better, but I did feel for the physiotherapy manager at Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. There is a shortage of Zimmer frames in Lancashire. Since the beginning of December there has been a 75% increase in the number of patients being treated for falls and injuries caused by the snow and ice. This equated to some 550 extra patients being seen, treated and discharged. The consequence of this increase in patient numbers was an absolute shortage of Zimmer frames to give out to patients. Pleas for the return of old Zimmer frames punctuated local radio programmes all week.

Despite the difficulties the snow brought and the forced changes to my plans this week, I have been amused by the endless mental images of what might have been the consequence of an early resolution of the Zimmer frame famine – especially as our car parks were, up until Friday afternoon, still covered by 18 inches of snow.

However, the last word has to go to the story I eventually resisted using for this blog. The news from Northern Ireland caught my attention, and made me think about one of my all time favourite films  The Graduate. For a short while I was almost seduced into thinking about weaving the various Mrs Robinson/young lovers/students/politics/older people story lines into a commentary on the state of the UK higher education system. But resisted. So here’s to you Mrs Robinson, there's no need of Zimmer frames for you!

Oh.My.God - There's Poo On My Carpet!

Ok, firstly, let me just get the whole post title explanation out of the way. Its kind of self-explanatory really - theres poo on my carpet. Why? Because my adorable 11 day old son shot liquid poop at me. It was kind of horrifying at the time: there i am, changing his nappy and then i hear this telltale squelchy fart sound and.... poo shoot! There it was, pumpkin yellow liquid poo squirted straight of his little bum and i'd only just managed to jump out of the way. Which meant that i was spared a spray all over my shirt, but also that the offending poo ended up on the carpet. It was horrifying at the time but now its hilarious. Seriously, imagine ( if you will ) seeing something similar on " Funniest Home Videos ".... yep, hilarious.

Ooh, also, i got thrown up on for the first time today. Ace!

Aside from these little misadventures, things are going quite well with mini Flynn-y and I. I'd heard all the horror stories about getting zero sleep and high-pitched sqalling crying that never ends... but i havent had much of that. We had a horror evening last night - to the point where i got all teary and felt like the worst mum ever because i couldnt figure out what was up with my baby - and i think he's having an early growth spurt because he's had a period everyday for 3 days where he feeds, sleeps for around 40 minutes and then feeds again, but on the whole the first ( almost ) 2 weeks have been a little easier than i thought. Not that i'm gliding through motherhood like some kind of superwoman either - my boobs are sore and heavy sometimes, i havent had a proper time-to-myself-shower since the birth and my back is killing me by the end of the day - i'm just saying that it hasnt been the nightmare some women made it out to be.

But God love those poor new mums who do have a rough time of it - i get a cranky crying bub for 4 hours and i get upset, so anybody whose doing it tougher than that gets a round of applause from me...

Bias? What Bias?

Graphs courtesy of Media Research Center

As a history teacher, I must strive for objectivity. However, I know it’s not possible for a thoughtful person to study history, politics, or economics and not develop biases. Best practice would be do disclose those biases to students because it’s inevitable that I’ll teach concepts I believe in with more enthusiasm than concepts I don’t believe in. It’s human nature. To detect this, students would need to understand the left/right political spectrum and the terminology used to describe it, so I sketched one out and taught it. Then I advised them point out my bias when they detect it. Those exercises train them to identify and to be aware of a presenter’s political perspective when any sort of information is promulgated.

As their own biases develop, students need to be conscious of them as well when they listen to information. Facts are facts, and when they learn things that contradict their tentative understanding of cause and effect, they have to be willing to do the work necessary to adjust it. Thoughtful, informed teachers and students inevitably develop a point of view on issues. Only a robot could play it completely down the middle every time.

The same would be true for a reporter. Some stories are just straight news and bias doesn’t come into play, but when a reporter researches background to find causes for example, it probably will. He or she will look for certain things and not others according to his/her understanding of cause and effect. An editor can mitigate that by suggesting alternative areas of inquiry to the reporter, but when the reporters and editors all share the same biases, that’s just not likely to happen, and that’s been the case for decades in our mainstream media.

Up to now, I’ve been pointing out unintentional bias, but evidence is increasing that Mainstream Media (MSM) bias is becoming more and more deliberate. By MSM, I mean the three major broadcast networks of ABC, NBC and CBS. I mean the big-city broadsheets like the New York Times, Washington Post and Los Angeles Times. I mean the weekly newsmagazines like Time and Newsweek, and I mean taxpayer funded media like PBS and NPR.

Although MSM influence is waning fast due to the rise of the internet, of talk radio and of cable news, it still predominates with much bigger audience share. The clearest example of MSM left-wing bias is their coverage of the last presidential campaign. Compare the merciless vetting of Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin with the almost complete lack of scrutiny into Senator Barack Obama. Obama had been impressing crowds with his oratorical skills - especially compared to the hum-drum speechifying of Republican rival Senator John McCain. But when McCain picked Palin as his VP nominee, she gave a speech that electrified the GOP base and many independents as well. Then she followed up with another hard-hitting speech at the GOP convention and the MSM went after her relentlessly. One poll indicates that 90% of Americans believe he MSM actively helped Obama get elected and 70% believe they’re promoting his presidency.

When he promised to lower ocean levels by reducing carbon emissions, the MSM cooperated by hyping alleged human causes of global warming. When Democrats pushed Obama’s Cap and Trade bill, CBS’s Scott Pelley compared global warming skeptics to Holocaust deniers. When a hacker exposed the bias, lies and hypocrisy of global warming scientists in Europe and the United States just prior to the big “climate change” summit in Copenhagen, again the MSM ignored the story.

When Obama made his speech before Congress on health care “reform,” he used erroneous examples of people who allegedly suffered at the hands of insurance companies, but the MSM declined to investigate. When he made a speech in New Hampshire claiming surgeons would rather make $30-50 thousand on a amputation than treat a patient to save his leg, that was a whopper. Medicare pays $700-1200. Did you see any scrutiny of that? Not unless you saw it online, or on AM Radio, or on Fox News.

Then there was ACORN, the “Association of Community Organizers for Reform Now,” for which President Obama worked on and off while an attorney in Chicago. ACORN officials were filmed during a sting operation in five cities across the country offering to help people avoid tax laws, start prostitution services, and smuggle in underaged illegal aliens to work in them - all with public tax money. The MSM ignored the story until Congress cut off ACORN’s funds.

As a columnist, I deal in opinions. Pushing a point of view and is part of my job. However, my turf is increasingly encroached upon by people purported to be reporters in the MSM. They brazenly amplify stories reinforcing their point of view and they play down or ignore stories that contradict it. Do they do so consciously and deliberately? Evidence is mounting that they do, and that is the most insidious form of propaganda.

2009: A Year in Review, Insomniatic Style

Alright, so now that i have caught up reading other peoples year in review posts, its my turn to post my best, worsts and favourites for the past year. I havent listed all the same categories as last year, and have thrown in a couple of new categories, so bearing in mind that when i say "best " i mean " My favourite " not the technical best; and when i say " worst " i mean " totally poo " . Also, all items are listed in no particular order.....

BEST FILMS:
1. " Inglourious Basterds " - whats not to love ? Its vintage wacky Tarantino, its good vs evil and Eli Roth ? Hella gorgeous.
2. " The Boy In Striped Pyjamas " - ok, yes, another Nazi themed film, but this one is rather more poignant than it is violent. I alternated between sadness and anger during this film, but the performance of both little boys was what made this film really special.
3. " Grand Torino " - Mr Gil and i saw this on our second date, so that alone makes it memorable, however it makes the list simply because its Clint Eastwood at his absolute best. Director, actor, composer - his touch is all over it.
4. " Wolverine " - anyone who is deriding me for this choice can go jump in a lake. I love me a superhero film and i love me some Hugh Jackman, so why wouldnt this film make my list ?
5. " The Proposal " - i dont normally rate 'chick flicks ' so high but this one was suprisingly enjoyable. Ryan Reynolds could just be my new favourite cute/funny/goofy dude....

AND THE WORST ?
" The Hangover " - i've chosen this as my worst film for the year not because it was bad necessarily .... but because it was disappointing. So many people told me it was the new " The 40 Year Old Virgin "; that it was hilariously funny; the funniest movie they'd seen in years. And then Mr Gil and i watched it last week ( so it only just makes 2009 ... ) and it was just - meh. To be quite honest, I didnt see what all the fuss was about.
____________________________________________________________________
BEST SONGS:
1. " Breakeven " by The Script - a soulful, sad, sexy pop song by some cute Irish lads. It got played to death on radio over here, but rather than grate on my nerves, i just liked it more and more.
2. " The Fixer " by Pearl Jam - yea, yea, yea! This has been my sing-along-song for the past few months ( not that i know all the words.... ). Its the one that comes on the car radio, i turn up the volume and rock out at the traffic lights. Every list needs one of these songs, and Eddie Vedder and the boys get that honor this year.
3. " Last Day On Earth " by Kate Miller-Hiedke - this is an exquisite, melancholy love song. It initially came to my attention because it was attached to an episode of my favourite soap ( hello, " Neighbours"! ) but then it gained radio airplay and i totally fell in love with it.
4. " Like It Loud " by Cassie Davis - another Australian artist, this time with a perfectly crafted party song. Not that i've done much partying this year, but this was my favourite song to get my happy face going....
5. " Burn Your Name " by Powderfinger - this is officially my song of the summer, and reminds me of both my fiance and now my beautiful son. It doesnt hurt that its by one of my favourite bands either.

AND THE WORST ?
" Pokerface " by Lady Gaga tied with " Down " by Jay Shawn - it is no secret that i just cant stand Lady Gaga, so its no suprise i'm going to choose one of her songs to be my least favourite of the year. " Pokerface " happens to be the one that annoys me the most ( pa-pa-pa-pa-pokerface! Pa-pa-pa-please! ). Tied for this incredible honor is " Down " - pretty much because its just been totally overplayed and its a weak Backstreet Boys impression to begin with ( seriously, check out the clip. Someone totally wants to be in a boy band ).
____________________________________________________________________
BEST BOOK:
" Eat.Pray.Love" by Elizabeth Gilbert - ok, so i'm a little late jumping on this particular bandwagon - you know, seeing as Oprah had been praising the book in 2008 - but this was just a really great book. It might seem kind of hippy-dippy or hokey-spiritual to some, but when i was 8 months pregnant it was an inspiration ( woman divorces; falls into depression; decides to take a year off and visit Italy, India and Indonesia; ultimately finds redemption and happiness ). It was - is - nice to think that if we want something bad enough and strive to reach for it, we can have happiness, for ourselves and others.

FAVOURITE TV SHOW:
" The Big Bang Theory " - this was on last years list, and its still my favourite. Seriously, Leonard and Penny are my new Ross and Rachel - and Sheldon is just in a league of his own.

BEST MOMENT FOR ME, PERSONALLY:
27.12.2009, the birth of my son - the proposal of marriage by Mr Gil was pretty damn sweet, and had my son arrived on his due date, the engagement would have made the top spot. However, seeing as Flynn decided to arrive 2 weeks early, making him a 2009 baby and not 2010 like he was supposed to be, meeting my little man and the making of our little family gets to be #1.

And that be it. Last year i included a list of best albums, but i had to leave them off this year because, sadly, i havent purchased too many actual albums this year. I have 3 or 4 that i've been meaning to buy but just havent got around to it, and now that i'm going to be home quite a bit with a sleeping baby i'll have ample opportunity to sit down and actually LISTEN to a whole cd at a time, so look out for a " best albums " list in my 2010 countdown....

Pandemonium as Obama walks in the footsteps of the Head of School

I had one of those strange feelings today – you know it’s like the simple tickle of excitement that comes when you first fall in love or experience something totally unexpected and inexplicable. Partly this feeling came from reading the story of how the the Chinese government has announced that as a first step in the process of calling in the United State’s debt of approximately $800 billion, it will repossess the National Zoo’s giant panda cub. In a masterful and inscrutable sense of understatement, a spokesperson for the Chinese Ambassador in New York said:

“We will credit America $5 million dollars for the panda, which means the US only has $799.995 billion left to go.”

The US National Zoo learned that the panda, four-year-old Tai Shan, one of fourteen such animals living in zoos across the US, will be leaving for China asap. It appears that even the offspring are forever the property of China. However, it wasn’t the pandas that caused the excitement it was watching a film clip of President Obama gently strolling on the same part of the Great Wall of China I had been on several months before. Regular readers of this blog will understand where I am coming from here (for the rest of you, see my blog for the 29th August 2009). I know when I stood on the Great Wall, the sense of history of all those people who had been there before me was almost tangible.

Pandas aside, China will be a major feature of the Schools future, not only in the forthcoming year but for some years to come. 2010 is likely to be the first of what is going to be a number of challenging years for the School. The challenges will come from many sources both internal and external to the School. The most powerful of these drivers for change arise as consequences of the current economic recession. The notion of ‘flat cash’ has entered our lexicon.

An uncomplicated explanation of this phenomenon is that the very best the School is likely to receive in terms of its main income will be no more than we received last year. Against this static income, will be the inevitable rises in real costs for the School. Of course, the worst case scenario is that our income will be reduced because we either cannot recruit students or retain them. Against this backdrop of fiscal uncertainty are other changes, including a sustained reduction in the overall commission numbers for pre-registration students, the move to an all graduate profession and a move to National Bench Mark Pricing as the means of calculating the Schools income for pre-registration nurse education and training.

I remain very confident in our abilities as a School. Our collective knowledge, creativity and above all else, our commitment to what we believe in has set a high achievement benchmark for the many other Schools of Nursing. Our Institute of Nursing heuristic is alive and well in my heart.

In last weeks blog I wrote about a couple of books I have been involved in. Despite trying hard not to do anything except eat, drink and be merry over the past week, I have taken a couple hours to tidy up another chapter for a new book due out in the summer of 2010. This is a chapter that explores the notion of resilience, and whether such resilience can be taught or better caught. Resilience is a precious attribute. I believe it is better caught than taught, but we can learn how to better protect ourselves from the emotionality of what it we do in practice, in our contact with students, and in our dealings with the challenges posed by our University in these turbulent times. Individually, and as we work in our Directorates and the School as a whole, we will all need to develop our own strategies for staying resilient. Helping and caring for and with others is what we are good at doing – we just have to remember to include each other in providing this support.

The Financial Times in its report yesterday about New Year resolutions observed that those individuals who didn’t make any resolutions were likely to remain mentally healthier, as there was no danger of feeling a failure! As this is the first blog in the new year of 2010, and unlike the FT, I hope all the blog's readers are able to achieve whatever dream, hope or resolution they set out to do over the next 12 months.