But the mental challenge of a job would be preferable. Yes, I know I’m stuck looking for part-time but part-time work in an interesting job is better than full time incapacity benefit stuck at home where my only interaction with the outside world is via twitter! (even if it doesn’t pay as much)

I do have a few personal challenges that are admittedly more ‘aim’ than ‘objective’;

1. Create a wordpress e-learning theme that is scorm compliant and at least attempts to be WCAG AAA compliant
2. Write a few nettuts that are payment worthy.
3. Create some fantastic geek jewellery.
4. Create some beautiful ‘normal’ jewellery.
5. Learn more about moodle and blackboard
6. Create my symptom tracker web app
7. Find someone to consider my web taxonomy ideas (a whole other post)
8. Learn to use all available google tools
9. Write an academic research paper fit for publishing
10. Learn to drive (actually this one IS an objective)
11. (just for @lesleyconner and my dad) write a book/ story

And then there’s the ‘none work’ stuff I want to do with my family and friends;

1. Teach bella to read
2. Go on holiday to centerparcs
3. Go and visit friends abroad
4. Take bella to a sandy beach, make a sandcastle and bury stefanio (purely for the photo op)
5. Family photo shoot
6. REGULAR Karaoke with Claire
7. Write some songs with Claire
8. Have a mass gathering of geeks with kids somewhere with a bouncy castle and a wide open space for running games.
9. Visit an aquarium, science and ‘normal’ museums with bella
10. Have a ‘dirty weekend’ spa break with stef.

Hmm.. notice how all the family and friend stuff costs money but most of the work stuff is free? Guess I need that job first after all *grin*

Who wants to pay me good money to do the stuff in the first list? Feel free to contact me; i’m now open to offers ;o)

I feel it like a tight little presence in my head – as though it’s an inflatable air bag around my brain that is always there but instead of air it inflates with stress. When I feel that warning tightness I know I need to take a step back and chill out or I’m in for a really rough ride on the illness front.

But how do you do that? How do you take a step back? How do you stop the stress from taking over?

For me distraction is the key. I’ll sit down and make a to-do list for everything that may be causing the stress to kick in, then I’ll turn on the karaoke and sing for an hour or so – or I’ll read a book or watch a few episodes of some show I like on dvd.

Yes, that may seem counter-intuitive if what is stressing me out is work that needs doing to a set timescale, but believe me it works; it clears the decks so I can then focus on the items on my list.

It’s a 2 part thing really; making the initial list while you are stressed starts the process – it feels like you are addressing the situations that are stressing you out which helps you feel in control which helps you calm down enough to take the 1-2hr breather (or even a full day if you really need it) this helps deflate that nasty tension to the stage where it’s easier to focus on smaller tasks without being overwhelmed by the big picture.

That’s the real trick; making things less overwhelming and more manageable.

You have forms to fill out?

1. Do the easy stuff like photocopying evidence and filling out name, address D.o.B, and NI/SSN on all of ‘em in one go first.
2. Take a singing/ film/ book break
3. Write out the other info you need and check it against your evidence.
4. Take another break then check it all over again before photocopying and do your best not to think about the outcome of your form filling, stay in the moment and do one task at a time.

After the task is complete and you’re inevitably back to stressing about the outcome/ future; take another break – have a bath and try to guestimate how long you stay in there before you start to wrinkle or stare at the reflection on the taps and mentally figure out what is being reflected; try to think about ANYTHING but the things that are worrying you.

If you can’t shut things off; fire off a few tweets, phone a friend or write a blog post to rant and release the tension that way, then make another list.

Take everything a day at a time; you will still worry and stress about things you can’t control – the trick is to only give into it now and again; plan for the worst and hope for the best.

The list is your plan, letting go is what will see you through it.

1. graduate with a 1st class honours in Bsc web based systems
2. take Bella to a centerparcs
3. create my own font (or 2)
4. create a wordpress theme
5. renew my passport
6. present at another conference (probably BLU if i get my abstract in on time)
7. do at least 5 of the beading tutorials I have saved to disc
8. attend a beading workshop
9. attend a wire working class
10. attend a glasswork class
11. try yoga or tai-chi
12. start building my chronic calendar and symptom tracker app
13. start consolidating all of my websites and blogs
14. move house
15. create a video documenting Bellas first 3 years
16. Go to a spa with stef.

What are your plans (or hopes) for this year? do tell..

The ‘always on, always connected’ mentality of folks growing up in this internet enabled world, combined with the growing interest in being green and the always indisputable need for a business to save costs seems to point at a death knell for the tabloids and broadsheets.

I can’t see ebooks killing off the paperback any time soon, but with the uptake in smartphones, netbooks, tablets and internet TV, it could well be bye bye newspapers and sunday supplements as people opt to find out what’s happening in the world their own way on their preferred medium.

Even in Africa – one of the most poverty stricken continents on the planet has a mobile penetration of up to 52% and though I would guess few of the mobile phones in use over there are web enabled right now; think what a decades worth of technological innovation could bring.

We already have scientists working on batteries made from cloth, cameras that can shoot around corners, and a possible breakthrough in memory devices. with all that happening NOW, who is to say what will happen in 10 years time?

I envisage a home where a wireless box connects the tv and various handheld devices to the internet and all news and entertainment is routed through those – something that already happens in several households that I know of now..

..In a decade a paperback book may be the only sign of times gone by – but even that may not be in evidence if drm issues can be resolved and rfid tech may be one of the ways in which that happens; but i’ll leave the whys and wherefores of that to your imagination, this post is long enough and I haven’t even gotten to my tv vision yet!

In 10 years I see a large flat screen led tv with internet/ wifi/ hd/ 3d that is fully immersible smell-o-vision ready (you may need to buy replaceable ‘smell cannisters’ for the scent infusions – Glade will have a tv channel that sends a signal to the tv at certain points of the day to release a different mixture into the room, the heat of the tv is what activates it and cookery shows will have a device to ‘scan’ the dish and transmit the same aroma to you – press the red button NOW to sample it..)

..all tvs will have an ipad-like controller that also acts as a channel previewer, it will likely be programmable so it can also be used as a games controller and video phone with a thumb print lock to stop the kids accessing services and channels you don’t want them to.

..I’ll leave it there for now while you imagine what cookery shows with smell-o-vision will be like and just how popular farming shows will really be when you can tell what working with livestock will do to your personal aroma..

I wonder when someone will resurrect murder she wrote and use this premise for a kidnap or murder victim – if you can’t prove when someone actually went missing how can you even think to find them?

..and what about my previous idea of how twitpic and similar mobile photo sharing sites could ruin a persons life if a total stranger took your picture and tweeted that if they shouldn’t make it home then the subject of the image would be to blame – it’s a scary world in which we live now folks, the paranoia crew can seriously mess with your mind ;0p