Sitting across from me on the leather armchair Tom covers his eyes and says, "Oh no, I don't think I can watch this" turning his head away from the screen and towards me. I have a small keyboard on my lap trying to work out the chords to Abba's "The Winner Takes It All" while I laugh at his … [Read more...] about How To Have Everything Perfect
Relationships
How To Be Afraid Of Anything
My friend Martin, a long time recovering alcoholic, was telling me, during a recent recording of the podcast we run together, about how he invented aerophobia (fear of flying). Being stuck on a plane for hours is a nightmare for an alcoholic with even the most accommodating of cabin crew, so … [Read more...] about How To Be Afraid Of Anything
How To Buy A Car
My car, now fifteen years old, is literally falling apart. Today, the doors won't open at all, which is good for fuel economy but not much else. After I have spent twenty minutes with a screwdriver breaking into my own vehicle I decide to fill up the washer fluid too and then find that the bonnet … [Read more...] about How To Buy A Car
Why We Need To Talk About Death
I remember once my daughter coming home from a day at school where they had been focusing on death. "That's an interesting and important subject to talk about. What did they get you to do?" I asked. "Nothing much. They didn't talk to us about it. We spent most of the day designing a poster … [Read more...] about Why We Need To Talk About Death
How To Manage Yourself
My daughter is in a good mood as she climbs into a bin bag and says, from within its dark recesses, "I have cripplingly low self-esteem" It makes me laugh, and her too when I show her the photo I take of her hunched on the kitchen floor. It's remarkable that she is in such high spirits … [Read more...] about How To Manage Yourself