David's blog

I was hoping to go for a walk with a group on Thursday, but the weather was terrible, so it was cancelled. They said they would rearrange the walk and the talk, but I didn’t think it was for the same day. The walk was off, yet I got a text saying the talk was still on. I managed to make it there, though I wasn’t too keen on listening to someone talk about trees. Anyway, I gave it a try, and it wasn’t as heavy as I expected. They spoke about tree bathing, the Japanese practice of immersing yourself in a forest environment to reduce stress, enhance mindfulness, and support overall well-being. It’s about slowing down, being present, and appreciating nature with all your senses. I live quite close to woods so I guess I can give it a a go sometime. I was not aware that trees lived as long as they did, for thousands of years apparently, if they are not cut down, there is a drive to get trees planted much more than there use to be something to do with climate change. I have one growing in the...

  Have you ever opened a letter from a "professional" – a lawyer, bank, or government office – expecting clear advice or official notice, only to find yourself squinting at illegible scrawls, typos galore, and sentences that make no sense? You're not alone. What was once a hallmark of expertise has devolved into rubbish on paper. Let's unpack where it all went so wrong. The Golden Age of Professional Correspondence Picture this: the 20th century. Letters from professionals were crisp, typed masterpieces. Secretaries or typists ensured perfect grammar, logical flow, and readability. Even handwritten notes from doctors came with legible script trained through years of practice. These documents commanded respect because they looked professional – no smudges, no errors, no confusion. Standards were high. Legal firms proofread contracts multiple times. Banks used templates honed over decades. The result? Communication that informed, persuaded, and protected. The Digi...

Three years ago, I went to the hospital for a pain I’d been dealing with for years. They tried all kinds of treatments, but nothing worked, and eventually decided I might need some sort of intervention. I realized this when they handed me a piece of paper outlining the procedure and its awful side effects. I felt I had no choice, but hoped they’d explain more about it. No one told me anything beyond what was written.   was in pain and felt stuck, so I went ahead. When I got home, the side effects hit hard — they were awful. The treatment temporarily left me weakly incontinent, which was a horrific experience. You take control of your body for granted until it’s gone. If I’d been properly informed, I might have coped better. Instead, I was caught short in all sorts of places, which was frightening, and I worried it might never end. No one reassured me, and to this day I still have anxiety about it because it was so traumatic. I’m angry they didn’t warn me or explain the consequ...