Ten years a blog

It is hard to believe that ten years ago today I first sat at my laptop and wrote a blog post.

Back then I was in the post first time general election candidate daze, but was already thinking about how I could do more to get myself recognised and my views heard ahead of the next election at some point before 2010. Back then the blog title was Stephen's Linlithgow Journal as back then anything I thought I would stand for as a Liberal Democrat candidate had the word Linlithgow in the title. Of course when it came to be going for selection in 2010 for the Edinburgh Central seat I didn't want to see five years of thoughts lost to the general public, so I changed the URL and the title to the current title.

Little did I realise that across the blog I would have over 1 million page views back then I was just looking for a way to reach out to the 70,000 or so voters who lived in the catchment area that I thought I would be reaching out to for a number of years. Of course I also didn't realise that circumstance would cause me to move three times within 4 years from the area that I had come to consider home back then in 2005.

Of course another thing that really impacted on my blog was the sudden death of Robin Cook in the summer of 2005. My blog up until that point had a limited readership, but then I became the go to blog (not just Liberal Democrat) for the ensuing by election. To suddenly go from 10-20 readers a day to upwards of 500 on certain days of course made me change the way I went about my blogging. It moved from being largely about local issues, though they would still exist, into a more national outlook on things. Sadly of course with such a high profile death at the start of my decade of blogging there was of course the leader of my Party then Charles Kennedy's also sudden death at the other end of these first 10 years.

My blogging diversified down the years and I realised that I was almost blogging as much about sport as politics, indeed at some points of the year more so. So I set up a secondary blog that focused on the sport, Stephen's Sporting Almanac but of course as soon as I did that I lost a little of the mojo and stopped blogging as much on both blogs. This may also have come about from the fact that I was no longer blogging on the bus ride into work in the morning which had instilled a certain discipline into me finding something to write about, but was also down probably to a large part to the continuous search for work after the Yes to Fairer Votes campaign. Of course I took a step back then from political blogging in the same way as I had to work closely with people of other parties.

But somehow I have managed to struggle through and kept on blogging. So here we are today celebrating 10 years as a blogger. I've seen many people give up in that time, many start to greater or lesser success, others move to collaborative blogs, but I have maintained a one person blog for 10 years now. The output has not always been at the same level but I hope that every now and then a little gem comes from the tapping I do wherever and whenever the mood strikes me.

 I'm now in the post third time General Election candidate haze, and looking for how to work for the Lib Dem Fight Back after the poor showing on 7 May. Having stood a second time in Linlithgow and East Falkirk in 2010 and in Sedgefield this year. Sometime soon I expect you'll see me going for selection ahead of 2020.

Will I still be blogging in 10 years time? Who knows, but I'm not for giving up just now.

Half a million thank yous for reading

Since I migrated this blog from its old location in 2010-11 (I ran an overlap of posting to both during transition) there has been quite a few people who have visited and read. Indeed this morning I realised just how many:

I have now passed half a million page views on this site, which added with the almost 300,000 on the previous site means there are really 800,000 page views in just over the 9 years that I have been blogging. There have been times of hiatus and others of less activity but I am glad that many of you have still kept with me. After a period of relative inactivity in recent months I have got my mojo back and will continue to blog for the foreseeable future.

So once again than you for reading, commenting and linking/tweeting to what I have to say.

The Votes are in

It is that time of year that internal party elections kick in from local party, through regional parties to the various organisations that party members are part of. So amongst the various ballot papers I have received was the one that my name actually appeared on.

This morning LGBT+ Lib Dems have officially announced the results of the election of their new committee for 2014. I'm glad to say that along with Wales' Rodney Berman, I have been elected unto a committee that truly covers the whole of the UK.

New chair Ed on left with outgoing chair Adrian

The new chair to succeed the great work that Adrian Trett has done over the last 3½ years will be Ed Fordham who had helped to plan the vigil outside the Houses of Parliament during the debates on equal marriage earlier in the year.

Holly Matthies and Jen Yockney were returned unopposed as Secretary and Treasurer respectively. The rest of the new general committee are Zoe O'Connell, Dave Page, Sarah Brown, Paul Trollope, Nicholas Coombes, Gina Dungworth and Lee Dargue.

I already know that Ed is looking to engage more with the non-English parts of LGBT+ and having Rodney and myself on the exec committee is going to make that process earlier. 

However, I do know that there are LGBT members and supporters in both Scotland and Northern Ireland who are not currently members of the organisation. For just £20 standard, £5 unwaged, £30 two members at the same address it is well worth it to ensure that the party that has been at the forefront of so much LGBT equality continues to be ahead of Labour and the Conservatives on knowing the issues and working out the solutions. You can join online today and be a part of it.

Bowls at Midnight

As you read this I shall be out on the bowling green about to START playing bowls. Yes, here as we near the longest day of the year it is possible to play bowls at midnight. In fact it has been possible to see the outline of the roof next door against the sky for a number of weeks at midnight recently.

Kirkwall Bowling Club

This will be a knew experience. I have played bowls at midnight in the past, but most often in some church or community hall somewhere around the country as we were getting toward the point of qualifying for a finals night. I've played to near 10 in the outdoors but in Northern Ireland it was getting dark about then. This will be different.

Update for the record I was playing skip against my third from the previous night's Argo Cup win and beat him by a shot, with a nicely drawn bowl by me in the last end after midnight. With the cloud cover it was worse than one of those late night rearranged games we used to play on the Bangor Irish Cup runs.

No longer running the Belfast Marathon

It may probably not come as much surprise to some of you but I am no longer going to be taking part in the Belfast Marathon in less than a fortnight's time.

The month of February was wiped out due to a little excursion to Hampshire. Although I lost weight and was on my feet all day, every day I didn't do a great deal of moving, beyond a small area of floor. Therefore my legs were not able to pick straight back up with the required training.

As some of you may recall towards the end of that period I was drinking the occasional Lemsip because I had fallen to a cold which didn't really shift for a full fortnight after that, so training again was unable to start. Then towards the end of March just I was starting on the road I pulled a tendon in the area of my right shoulder.

This all finally cleared up only two weeks ago and four weeks is not enough time to put in the miles I would need to complete the course never mind do myself justice.

However...

...this is not the end of the road. I shall be looking for another opportunity to run and raise sponsorship. I just haven't decided when or where yet. It may be the Hoy Half Marathon in June or some other event later in the summer or early autumn possibly the Cardiff Half Marathon in October. I will let you know more once I know how my body is coping.

It's official, I'm now in Orkney

The email from BT confirming I will have a line and broadband from Monday, the letter from Scottish Hydro confirming my contract with them, the email version of my new TV license, even the notification from Orkney Islands Council about my council tax are not enough.

This is the proof that I have finally arrived in Orkney.

This Lib Dem One week on

This time last week you would have seen me as somewhat of a whirling dervish. Even good friends, were greeted with the following phrases.

"Can you sign in please."

"How long do we have you for?"

"Do you have a car?"

Once all these questions were asked they were dispatched out the door either with someone they may not have known who had a car, or with the people in the car they came in, with either leaflets or canvass boards. I'm sure that seeing the result in the early hours of last Friday morning none of my friends old or new will hold it against me just how little time I allowed them to loiter in the Front of House when they first turned up. Subsequent returns allowed them to savour tea, coffee, biscuits and cakes.

This week when I see 20 people heading towards me it is not the arrival of a coach from London, Manchester or the Midlands, but is most likely the rush hour as I near the end of my 3 minute commute home from the office. And I do mean walking along the street, it is narrow, cobbled and one way and cars can't hurtle down it. Yeah the pace of life has slowed.

I don't have anyone to enter my data for me, I have to do that myself. Steve Jolly isn't going to produce lovely leaflets for me that is what my own copy of PagePlus is for. I do actually have time to go to the kitchen and make myself a cup of tea or coffee and more importantly I've drunk everyone of them completely in the last week, something I singularly failed to do in the previous three weeks.

One thing I did realise earlier is that standing almost still for almost three weeks isn't the best marathon training. So I am having to radically rethink my training schedule and what work I need to do to be able to keep moving for 26 miles in 2 months!!

But yeah live is settling in here in Kirkwall. I'm sure it will still take some getting used to, but it is an ideal place to relax, even when you have to go into work, the week after a hectic by election.

I have acquired a futon, so should anyone get up here and need somewhere to stay that can be arranged. Live goes on and it is good to be back at work, and back sitting down takes some getting used to as well, but is a welcome relief on the old legs.

Still blogging new venue

Many of my readers will know I have been busy for a while, and yes way too busy for blogging.

A lot has happened since I last blogged, a Pope has resigned! Who would have seen that coming?

The voice and creator of Roobarb and Custard both died.

Oh and of course the Lib Dems won a by election on Thursday, in the Berrylands ward of Kingston Borough Council my old stamping ground.

There may have been one of two other things that have happened too. Of which I will say more later, but one colossal thing that has happened was that this morning I was handed the keys to my new flat, and sent a email of tasks for my new job.

The flat is in Kirkwall, which is rather handy as the job is as Parliamentary Assistant to Alistair Carmichael based in his constituency. My commute to work will be a tiring 3 minutes irregardless of traffic. However, for this weekend I am staying in a hotel, while I get things settled and that of course includes sorting out broadband for the new place. So I shall be blogging again when I can, but it may yet be intermittent in the short term.

Stay tuned.

Parish notice

I know I haven't posted much in the last week or so, but bear with me until this weekend.

But there may also be an exciting announcement about something newish to me starting next week too.

Belfast Marathon Training Blog T -120

I've decided to start a little bit of blogging about my progress in getting ready for the Belfast Marathon on May 6th which I am running for Marie Curie in memory of my father, you can sponsor me via my JustGiving page. This is the first such entry.

I've just come in from a wet run on a cold January morning. At 43 my legs are quite as quick on the recovery as they once were half a life time ago. The aches I feel stay with me long after I get out of the shower or bath these days. My legs also feel like they want to go at the same pace they once did along familiar roads. Only problem is that back then I was training for maybe 5-6 miles of racing maximum, the occasional half marathon but not much else. I'm trying to educate them that they have to go five times further so go at a reasonable pace.

The other problem is that at the moment I am carrying around over 25% more body mass than I did at my facing peak. Now to be fair I was what a Doctor would call on the underweight side back in the day, who isn't as a distance runner but there is still a lot more of me around to move around the place and that takes more energy in the engine and the uphills are a hell of a lot tougher than I remember them. I used to be one of those guys who made up places going uphill, but also opened up on the downhill as well with a long stride.

All that being said I am on track, but it is a painful track. Getting back into a shape that I would be happy with to run 26 miles is the aim, not to find myself with 21 year old fitness levels. After all I'm not doing this for the honour of finishing well in a bid to advance my athletics career but simply to raise money for a cause close to my heart.

2012 my blog by your viewing habits

There are two ways to look at the most popular blog posts of 2012. There are obviously the most popular posts over the whole year. That list is at the end, but I thought I also go month by month first (all results are according to Google Analytics)

January top of the heap was Apparently I'm a leper now when Core Issues brought a conference The Leper Among us: Homosexuality and Life in the Church to Orangefield Presbyterian Church. Runners up were SNP MP Claims to be a Unionist and a carry over from the previous January Anne Francis Starred in Forbidden Planet.

February saw my explaining to Charlotte Henry the difference between social and socialist with respect to the Social Liberal Forum in Dear Charlotte, it's social not socialist and it's constitutional. Behind that came the Breaking News that one of my old sparring partners (not physically) Sky confirm that Eric Joyce arrested on suspicion of assault equal with another explanation Neither a Left Liberal nor a Right Liberal, Just Liberal.

March top of this month was my adaptation of a well known verse If - with Liberal apologies to Rudyard Kipling which was basically looking at the Lib Dem constitution. Honourable mentions go to So the Lib Dems are not debating the NHS Bill, but... and a in the words of a late Lib Dem Viv - one sentance to sum up the party - Freedom.

April my top post seems rather topical considering some of the Christmas It's Easter let's show the love with Christians, unless they are Gay. Elsewhere my Olympic posts were picking up views as the Games drew nearer with 1948 Summer Olympics London: XIV Olympiad and 1900 Summer Olympics Paris: II Olympiad the next most popular in April. 

May my post on the last London Olympics in 1948 had been written in March, but it was most popular in May. Following were two more not written this month What...is...are the biblical definitions of marriage from December 2011 and 1936 Summer Olympics Berlin: XI Olympiad another from the series from March.

June top was the sad post about the loss of a dear friend Nikki Thomson 1967-2012. London 2012 fever insured that London 1948 featured yet again along with Never, say Never to second looks - Argyll and Bute.

July top this month was outrage at Why have @Twitter suspended @equalmarriageni ? when our newly established Twitter account disappeared just hours after it was created. Another Olympic post this time 1952 Summer Olympics Helsinki: XV Olympiad shared the honours with London 1948 once again in the top three.

August and London 2012 was upon us and dominated my blogging but top story was a sad one Cyclist killed by Olympic Bus. It took precedence over a look at the Games to come Summer Olympics 2020 XXXII Olympiad plus what other look at the stamps but Super Saturday's the fourth day that the Royal Mail were busy and the first issue date on a Sunday.

September post Olympics and a shock is that an art post from June 2011 takes top spot Artful Thursday - Escher, it wasn't even the month in which he passed away 40 years ago. But elsewhere it was praise for Team GB Well Done Team GB but it was back to politics with Mike Nesbitt and his bigot question.

October with the debate in Stormont on marriage equality at the start of the month my top story was related Alliance Party censors criticism. Elsewhere Escher featured again plus David Ford issues apology for Monday.

November top was clearing up a little bit of language from the Prime Minister Dave paedophiles are not a subset of gay men (any excuse for a good Venn diagram). The others that month were Co-opted Councillor resigns from party for a little local politics and more of Escher.

December as of the time of writing it is actually very close at the top, so I will only update the order at the end of the month. But the three in contention (for now) are personal politics In which I join the Alliance Party, a tribute Kenneth Kendall 1924-2012 and Why designated days actually make the Flag special.

Which leads to the biggest hits of 2012. Will there be any sleeper that hasn't made a months top three that may sneak in? 

• 10 1936 Summer Olympics Berlin: XI Olympiad
•  9 1976 Summer Olympics Montreal: XXI Olympiad and V Paralympics not mentioned in any month above
• 8 Summer Olympics 2020 XXXII Olympiad
• 7 What...is...are the biblical definition of marriage?
• 6 Nikki Thomson 1967-2012
• 5 1948 Summer Olympics London: XIV Olympiad
• 4 1952 Summer Olympics Stockholm: XV Olympiad
• 3 1900 Summer Olympics Paris: II Olympiad
• 2 didn't feature any month but was the first Olympics revisited post 1896 Summer Olympics Athens: I Olympiad
• 1 not even written this year but - Artful Thursday 4 - Escher

Just out of interest my top 5 posts about the 2012 Olympics were:

• Team LGB at London 2012 
• Team Northern Ireland #London2012
• Well done Team GB#London2012 
•  Cyclist killed by Olympic Bus
•  Royal Mail Golden Stamps 4 #London2012

In which I join the Alliance Party

Don't panic I'm also still a Liberal Democrat.

That is a little constitutional anomaly with the Liberal Democrats not contesting elections here in this part of the UK. It means that members of our party here can join a local party that is in line with Liberal Democrat thinking.

There are already a number of members of the local Liberal Democrats who are also members of the Alliance Party.

I have never been a member of the Alliance Party, I only joined a political party when I went to University in Kingston, the first time I came back I wasn't aware that the Lib Dems existed locally, but also didn't want to get involved in local party politics at that time (late 90s) then I was working in the Civil Service. When I returned this time at the start for the sake of my job local party neutrality was a key factor while I worked for the Yes to Fairer Votes campaign. Then after that I felt that I could continue with my neutrality to work with whatever party was leading the way on liberal values. And yes that party wasn't always necessarily the Alliance Party.

However, in light of the events of this week. When there have been direct attacks on democracy following a vote in one council chamber which has erupted into violence, arson and other criminality I decided the time has come to stand and be counted. So I have joined the number of dual memberships.

Blogging a Re-arrange

Last week I was looking at my blog and realised how little on here over recent months has actually been about politics. See as that was the initial main thrust of the blog the revelation did rather startle me. Of course I do blog a lot of local political stuff either at Northern Ireland Lib Dems or LBGT Lib Dems Northern Ireland.
I also

It may have something to do with not being in work, as I used to commute in every day while composing something political to write about. it may also have something to do with my last job being one where I was limited to a small area of political activity and I limited my other political views.

But largely it was because I have blogged so much about sport.

Therefore I have set up a separate blog to archive my sport contributions (past ones will still remain here) and dedicate this one more to politics (though other stuff will make occasional appearances). Therefore I'd like to introduce Stephen's Sporting Almanac for your sporting pleasure. Although the transfer of the archive is a bigger task than I first thought.

This blog will once again I hope become a focus of my liberal and Lib Dem political views first and foremost.

Nikki Thomson 1967 - 2012

My friend and Lib Dem colleague Nikki Thomson passed away last night. Because I had moved away from Edinburgh I do remember the last three times that I met Nikki while I was living and working in Edinburgh and the Lothians. I'm going to share the three of them as they pretty much sum Nikki up.

First of the three was at the Meadows Festival in 2010. She was in position in the control tent giving instructions and directions to all those who were around. She devoted a lot of time to the Meadows Festival making sure it was run smoothly and well. On that particular occasion we both agreed that neither of us were talking shop. She knew I could distract her for a few minutes from the busyness of what was going on around her, me taking a break before canvassing support of Edinburgh Central Lib Dems for the rest of the afternoon, when she saw me heading towards her she said don't try and canvass me now.

The second was my time to be grilled, and I mean grilled, by Nikki about why I should be her candidate for the 2011 Socttish Elections. She wasn't letting any of us get away with anything and merely knowing her for some time was not going to be enough for either me or Alex Cole-Hamilton that much was clear. She had been in the party like me a long time, back from the days when you either a Young Liberal Democrat or a Student Liberal Democrat, yes Liberal Youth reader pre-LDYS days, when she acted a conduit between the two. She had been involved in Kingston just after I had left, in Edinburgh South campaigns she was one of my many slave drivers, often running the office that I saw only long enough to refuel, use the toilet and stock up on leaflets mostly.

I have to admit that Nikki's grilling of me did come along with a nice glass or two of red at Bar Reverie on Nicholson Street. But you could tell that she knew exactly what she wanted from her questions. She'd already talked to the other three candidates but I must have done ok, because at the end she promised me her first preference.

The final time me and Nikki met that summer was to relax in a shared passion. It was a Neil Hannon concert in the Liquid Rooms on Victoria Street. We met for a meal at Pizza Express at the top of the hill where we could watch all the wet (well this was Edinburgh) tourists heading for the queue for the Tattoo. Pizza and pasta were washed down with more wine and by the time we were ready to head the short walk down the hill to see Neil it was dry. Of course for a Hannon gig in the liquid rooms there is only drink that can be drunk, so I imbibed on gin while we belted out lyrics, or brass sections or whatever, while Neil performed some of his back catalogue and new stuff from Bang Goes the Knighthood.

I think those three elements sum up Nikki. Her desire to serve other, her love and devotion to doing things right through the Liberal Democrats and her sense of relaxing and having a good time. Of course the Liberal Democrats are one big family of interconectiveness. When I came to Northern Ireland both Michael, then local party chair, and Pam, then Treasurer, also knew Nikki amongst other Lib Dem friends. Nikki, Pam and I all having bizarrely a connection to Kingston.

I know the sudden news of her illness and now passing has affected all of us and our thoughts and prayers are with her family and other friends who are also missing her vibrancy and her smile.

As for you Nikki, tonight you fly over the houses, the streets and the trees



See also Caron's post with her memories

Not losing my religion, but my church may lose me

The REM song Losing My Religion sprung to mind yesterday morning as I stormed out of church. Not that I am losing mine but certain lines stuck out.

That's me in the corner
That's me in the spotlight
Losing my religion

When I am in the bad we do sit down in the corner after we have finished playing waiting for the sermon. That was where I was yesterday morning, in the front pew next to the West door. Although I was furthest into the pew by the time we had all set down instruments and headed out. So in essence I was in the corner and in full view of most of the congregation.

That was where I was when the prayers of intercessions mentioned the evil of equal marriage, asked to pray for our lawmakers that they would come to their senses. There was me who had made sure that those very lawmakers were not forcing any church to do anything their didn't want to do in bringing this forward.

You see the issue I have is that I'd love God to be involved in helping me find someone that I can love, helping me find someone that I can spend the rest of my live with, and if possible and both of us agree invite God to the wedding if there is one. Of course that is something that I still couldn't do even if civil marriage is equalised. But my church doesn't even want me the option of getting civilly married.

I thought that I heard you laughing
I thought that I heard you sing
I think I thought I saw you try

There is no thought about any of these statements all of these did happen. You see I may have stormed out during the prayer but I snuck in just behind the  door I'd stormed out of to listen to a lot of the sermon, which yesterday was on marriage. I could go off into an Alanis Morissette song there ironically, but I won't. When then had been announced earlier I was half thinking how much of that could I listen too calmly.

There was laughing, from the congregation at a few jokes that were hurtful to anyone present who may have been homosexual. I did hear them and the laughter and was in tears, when I did hear that.

The reason I did hang around is that there was one more song. Both our worship leader and the drummer had come out after me to see if I was okay. You see there are people in the church who do care about the hurt this is causing. The drummer is someone I have known for years, he grew up a few doors down from us, he was behind me age wise within the Boys' Brigade and was another decent runner, he is now an elder in the congregation so might well have been at the meeting where my application for membership was discussed and voted down. Because they had done that and said come back in we need your bass for the last song I didn't just dander across to Costa for a coffee.

Having said that the words of the last song were too much for me at one point. Having noticed the hypocrisy and cherry picking of the sermon to meet one meaning I just couldn't carry on playing for a few bars.

Then there was the try from the minister to say he understood that I was upset but that he didn't want to hurt me. It was rather too late for that, I was already getting hurt by this escalation of attacks on marriage equal poeple as a gay christian but also as one of the poeple who had got this issue dealt with in a sympathetic way for churches in the first place.

I'm not losing my religion, nor my faith, but my church is most likely on the verge of losing a bassist if that is all I was to them.

I am the bowling rain God

I apologise for any rain you may have encountered this evening. Unless of course you are one of the people who was added to the drought area earlier today, in which case you're welcome.

Saturday may have been the first friendly match of the season but that was away. It was also the opening day of the greens at Ward Park, Bangor where my team North Down play their home matches. Therefore today I was always going to get down there to play a few ends.

Of course this morning the Sun was out, but I was helping my Mum with some things. This afternoon though overcast and windy was dry. Of course as soon as I started to get ready to leave the house this evening after a yummy fish pie it started to rain. Not a lot, but a persistent drizzle, that lasted at least as long as daylight did.

However, as bowls is a sport that you have to carry on playing even in the rain, that is one reason that I do practice in drizzle when I get the chance, I don't want to have to encounter it for the first time in a match. So I was out in the rain for the first session of the season on my own green. That said, despite the green being heavier than the all weather surface down at Cloughey on Saturday, I was happy with my first bowls on grass this season. Weight and line were good the majority of the time.

So again I apologise for this evening's weather. But I'm a bowler, I was expecting it.

5cm more on my April Fool Nose

Of course my last post was an April Fool. I haven't triple jumped anywhere near 16m plus in over 20 years.

My Olympic dreams are over, well unless they bring bowls into the mix, but in the meantime keep up with my series of posts about the Olympics that have already taken place.

Hope you enjoyed though.

I'm looking for 5cm

Somethings you never lose. In my case it is something that was drummed into 31 years ago. How to get the perfect technique in the triple jump. Thanks to Murray Lee and a certain symbol of the mid 20th Century as reference I was always rather good at the event. Sadly at school being one of the best in Northern Ireland didn't necessarily mean that you made it to Northern Ireland school boy level, we were just too good, at least in my year.

However, free and off to University my light was less hidden my a bushel, though it was never my number one priority that was middle distance running and eventually steeplechase. It almost became something that I overlooked and just turned up a meets that had a contest and score top or close to top points in it. I probably should have concentrated on it when I younger, before I did too much damage to my foot, knees and back through running.

However, when one has time on your hands one has to fill the time. So a little bit of practice and the technique has come back. This week of course has been the first decent week of the year. So I was actually able to practice down at the new sports facility out the Old Belfast Road for the first time properly going full speed. I was delighted on Monday to match my old personal best of 16.82 metres on my second jump. Especially as that was three cm short of the B standard qualifying for London. So with my coach we watched back the tape of the technique to see how we could fine tune it.

There was about 10 cms to be gained at the board and a slightly higher and therefore longer step would get me nearer to the pit. So I went back to try again. It was long, but it was a foul. So a slight adjustment once more and I sailed out to 17.15. My coach started to go delirious, I wasn't sure why. I was merely getting ready to take part in some club meets, triple jump doesn't clash with my bowls as it takes place in the morning with long jump in the afternoons.

"Ok," I said, "I know it is a good jump. But that was only training."

"Yes," he said, "But you are just shy of Olympic Qualifying."

"I won't get there with just the B standard." I say.

"I don't mean the B, you were already close to that earlier. I mean the A."

I thought he was joking until I got home and looked it up, he was right.

Yesterday I had another session. It was a bit cooler and there was a bit of wind swirling around. I did jump further than 17.20 but was way over the board. So we think I have it in me, and I'm really looking forward to training again. Who knows I may end up in London in July.

The Question: Q2 - February 2012

It is time to get my thinking cap back on and come up with an answer to The Question as posted on Stephen Chapman's State of the Nation blog.

The question this month is:

What is the best piece of advice you have ever been given? 


The cliche answer of course is to say just be yourself and to be honest that is pretty good advise. My parents were good at this never forcing me or my brother into anything but letting us do the things that we wanted to do and getting their support whatever we decided to do.


But as many of us know being ourselves and being honest about ourselves is something that at times others have issue with a take exception to. As someone who was bullied as a child I know how painful it can be to be different from others and be yourself. 


However, it is a supplementary piece of advise that someone else gave me that I think is the most important.

If people take exception to you being you, they have the problem not you. Carry on being you and work at changing their or people like them's perspective of what is acceptable.

I think that piece of advice probably explains why I've ended up as a Liberal Democrat campaigner taking on so many issues of equality. It is the fact that I am content with being me, but find that people do not seem to want to accept that me or other people are a valid option or deserve the same things as the perceived norm. But each of us is unique and don't fit into a box.


So that fact that I can switch from supporting rugby to watching the ballet in a couple of hours. Be a person with a faith yet be a gay man. Have been a sportsman and at the same time play more than one musical instrument as well as sing, means that often I don't fit into people's idea of how to box me. But I will carry on being me, if you have a problem with that look at yourself.


If you want to add you answer visit Stephen's blog and post you link in the gadget and read the others responses as well.

The Tweets I couldn't do under #TwitterBlackout

Because I was self censoring my Twitter outlay yesterday in protest at Twitter threatening to censor when requested by a Government on a country basis here are some of the gems you missed from me.

Londonderry/Doire have been awarded the Fleadh after the in-out-in manouvering of the Ulster Council

BBC ignore the fact that a third Northern Irish golfer is ahead of England's best in Dubai. Where's Gavin Maybin at -5?

The whole Liverpool beating Man United running commentary and rants from me.

The Athletics from Glasgow.

The Ice Skating from Sheffield

My night with some haggis, neeps and tatties in my kilt.