A I Generated Picture What would you change about modern society? This could be a rant, it could be overly bleak, it could be controversial. There’s so much I could write about the biggest issues facing us, but I have decided to take a different tack with this post. I am going to look at […]
Stopping Cues
This article was one I wrote a year ago today and it gets its inspiration from the Adam Alter Ted Talk that I used in many classes. It’s a superb 10 minute video with barely a word wasted. The link is on the original post so click through to read an article that is still one of my favourites. Your reward is a great video and a really good article, mine is the dopamine of an extra few views. Win/win!
What’s the funniest misunderstanding you’ve ever been part of?
This idea of the ‘funniest misunderstanding’ is, in my opinion, a product of the neurotypical brain. If you are on the Autistic Spectrum as I am, a misunderstanding is a product of misreading the way the world works. It is therefore, both an everyday occurrence and anything but amusing. It emphasises your ‘otherness’ and usually gives people another opportunity to make fun of you. Now, I know that people on the Spectrum are as varied as people who are not, so there are likely to be a number of bloggers who share the characteristics but find their own misunderstandings absolutely hilarious. For me, however, misunderstandings are at best irritating and at worst mortifying. I can’t remember a situation where I have enjoyed a misunderstanding, whatever it’s cause.
What do you listen to while you work? I am a teacher so I will often be in the classroom with no opportunity to listen to anything other than the sound of my own voice and the occasional interjections of the students! When I am planning I will keep background noise to a minimum, even […]
I have no words
Last year I shared three playlists I use when I am marking. They are almost entirely instrumental and great for background. Take a look at the source post above and visit Spotify if you’re interested. They are great I promise!
What app eats up most of your screen time — and do you even feel bad about it?
It’s probably not a surprise that Jetpack on my phone often comes out top of the pile when my usage reports are given. When I am working, WhatsApp, which I use to communicate with colleagues, is very often up there as well, but in non working weeks, of which there are many, it’s definitely Jetpack.
For a start, my response to the daily prompt is always typed out on the phone. This takes between 15 and 30 minutes a day depending on the length and complexity of the post. I always write it in one sitting if at all possible, only editing as I go, in order to keep the freshness of the writing intact. So far, so good. It is something that gives me the focus I need on the writing and I love the discipline of answering prompts every day, some of which don’t engage me at all to start with.
Where it gets slightly less positive, or at least slightly less productive, is what happens afterwards. I can’t avoid regular checks on my readers and my likes! I am regularly found looking at my figures and comparing them to previous days, weeks, months and years! It’s the dopamine hit if I get a like, a comment or over 50 views in a day that’s to blame 😂! Apologies for the overuse of exclamation marks, but I won’t edit those out. Anyway, I know that I should rein in this constant checking and I promise that is my intention. However, the Internet is designed to reward you if you contribute and the rewards in the last year have been building as a direct result of the daily posting. So, I do feel slightly guilty about that but it is understandable.
So, keep reading, liking and commenting to give me those valuable dopamine hits please 🙏 🤣🤣
What’s a movie or book that inspired you to travel?
Actually, it’s always been the opposite for me. It’s been the places I have been that have encouraged me to read or watch things about the country in question. For example, Japan, where I lived from 1995 to 1998, was an experience that was both extremely positive and extremely difficult. Since we left, Janet and I have watched the NHK channel, particularly the Sumo and Document 72 Hours. The latter of these is one of the best documentaries ever made anywhere. It is a camera crew set up in one place for three days where they get the most fascinating and sometimes moving reflections from people who go to the chosen place. If we hadn’t been to Japan I think it’s almost certain that we wouldn’t have done more than occasionally stumble across the channel. What we really enjoy is seeing places that we visited when we were there.
Australia is another great example. As well as being my favourite country it is also fantastic to see the scenery and the sports that epitomise our experience whilst living there. I love watching cricket from Australia, during the winter in the UK, especially the Big Bash and the Women’s Big Bash. One place I saw on television before visiting it was the Great Barrier Reef, and when I finally visited it a couple of years ago it was even better in real life.
Whenever I visit a country I am always looking for programmes or books that will take me back there.
David Pearce - Popular Culture and Personal Passions 