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Site Safety during Demolition-Part E
If you have to do some demolition work before you build, Part E is the section of the National Building Regulations that you need to familiarise yourself with. But really all it states is common sense and caution.There are only three elements that are covered: 1 – demolition itself, 2 – making sure basements are safe during and after demolition, 3 – prohibition of dangerous methods of demolition. And if you contravene any of these, or ignore any notices, conditions or orders that relate to the demolition, you will be considered to be guilty of an offence.
Demolition of a Building
First and foremost you have to get permission from your local authority before you can demolish a building or solid structure on your property.
Very often the local authority will give permission, but at the same time impose specific conditions that must be adhered to according to Part F of the National Building Regulations – Site Operations.
Essentially the sub-regulations they normally refer to are those that relate to the safety, health and convenience of the public, and those that aim to prevent damage to property, which might include neighbouring buildings, not just the structure that you are wanting to pull down.
The building regulations state categorically that nobody is allowed to leave any build that is in the process of being demolished, or which has been demolished, in a dangerous condition. Again this is primarily to protect members of the public as well as neighbouring properties.
If the local authority finds that the site is dangerous in any way, they can serve a notice requiring you to immediately make it safe, and if you don't, they can do the necessary work and then hold you liable for costs.
Safeguarding Basements
Basements can cause great challenges during and after demolition, particularly when a building is flattened to ground level. In this event the owner of the property must ensure that there is safe lateral support for the sides of the basement.
Prohibition of Dangerous Methods
Safety is paramount, and the local authority will decide whether or not you may use a particular demolition method. For instance blasting in a built-up suburb may be considered a danger to either other buildings or people, or both. If they do not allow a particular method to be used, the owner of the property is entitled to a relevant reason, in writing.
26 Responses to "Demolition Work"
We are busy doing a re-branding project for a big petro-chemical company. Only internal walls are being demolished and we're not changing the footprint or roof over the existing building. The building inspector from the local authority is now demanding a demolition permit – even though we are NOT demolishing the building. We've been doing similiar projects across Southern Africa and never before has this been required.She is now threatening to stop the construction. The building regulations aren't quite clear on this matter. What is your opinion?
Hi there
Do you need council permission to demolish illegal (ie. no approved building plans) structures?
I'm trying to get hold of SANS 10400 E. I've looked online and phoned SABS directly and they say there is currently no such document.
Is it something that does exist or is it only a planned document for future?
im Bongani from a company colled Bukamuso services
im working on a tender to demolish a hall in norh west Klerksdorp
i need advices as to how to go about quoting for Preliminarys & generals
and occupational health & safety and constraction regulations.
my email; email@example.com cell 0719611908
your help will be highly appreciated
thanking you in advance
Can someone give me a rough estimate of the costs of demolishing an existing house in Cape Town northern suburbs – single storey, approximately 260sq meters.
Hi There I want to demolish a property please please advice on demolition agencies/ comapnies I can contact thereof
Will a demolition of a carport, or the removal of a roof of a carort/similar structure, constitute construction work
Thank you for an informative webpage. I am experiencing great difficulty with neighboring demolition (of a private residence) which commenced in June 2013, halted in December 2013 and where no demolition rubble has been removed by the halted activities, the access to the property as well as my own is now unsecured, and the landowner, despite friendly requests, wishes me "good luck" in identifying and ensuring the required regularization procedures and necessary complaint actions. Municipality involved does nothing. I want to compile a form of Due Diligence, where I can clearly outline the legislative requirements to both local authority and the landowner. Would you be able to assist? In hopeful anticipation of your response
I have a demolition company and looking for jobs from small to large scales. Please assist!
good day, will you be able to help me get a demolition generic plan please? aswell as a blasting plan and shutdown plan. please email me on email@example.com
im looking for a demolition permit
Hi .
I am interested in starting a business in the construction industry to dismantle and clear buildings to be refurbished .
Could someone please direct me to the correct place where I can get the applicable legislation and regulations in this regard .
Much appreciated
Theo .0832293425


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Don Iñigo Lopez de Mendoza, 1st Marquis of Santillana, Los Proverbios, 1532
November's rare book of the month is Los Proverbios (also known as Proverbios de gloriosa doctrina e fructuosa enseñanza) printed in Seville in 1532 and written by Don Iñigo Lopez de Mendoza, 1st Marquis of Santillana.
Lopez de Mendoza was born into a noble and literary family in Carrión de los Condes, Palencia on the 19th of August, 1398. His father was High Admiral of Castile and a poet, and his mother was a wealthy noblewoman from Cantabria whose descendents include the eminent Spanish Golden Age poet Garcilaso de la Vega and the Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, a chronicler and historian born in Cusco, Peru. His paternal lineage includes Diego Hurtado de Mendoza, a poet and diplomat who is the hypothesized author of the Spanish Golden Age picaresque masterpiece, Lazarillo de Tormes. Lopez de Mendoza followed in his father's footsteps and became a politician in the court of King Juan II of Castille, where his loyalty and acumen in battle won him land and titles. He was also a man of letters and, influenced by his family's literary tradition, produced a number of Pre-Renaissance Humanist works. He is celebrated as one of the most important poets of the fifteenth century in Spain, having met and been influenced by his contemporaries such as Ausiàs March, the renowned Valencian poet and knight. He was also an avid reader of the classical humanist authors such as Virgil and the great Italian writers of the late Middle Ages such as Dante Alighieri and Petrarch. From these influences, Lopez de Mendoza is credited for introducing the Italian sonnet into Spanish, hence known as the creator of the Castillian sonnet. His appreciation for the lyricism of the Provençal troubadour tradition led him to compose serranillas, short poems about pastoral love. He died in Guadalajara on the 25th of March 1458.
His Proverbios de gloriosa doctrina e fructuosa enseñanza, a book of didactic poems, was written at the request of Juan II for his son the prince Enrique IV. These 'proverbs' fall under the tradition of gnomic poetry, ethical wisdom and morals written in short prose sayings. These recommendations were composed for the moral education of the royal prince. Lopez de Mendoza finished writing in 1437 and these verses inserted themselves in the gnomic genre in Spain, following the writings of earlier authors such as Sem Tob, the fourteenth-century Spanish Hebrew poet, and other medieval texts comprising maxims inspired by Greek philosophers of antiquity. In the prologue, Lopez de Mendoza writes that the sayings are passed along as a 'father speaking to his son, as did Solomon, because a son must receive counsel from his father before any other.' The literary tradition of didactic poetry continued throughout the Renaissance and other famous Spanish writers of the genre include Pedro Pérez Ayala, Pedro Vallés, and Gonzalo Correas Íñigo.
Later editions of the Proverbios appeared in Zaragoza (1488), Sevilla (1499), Salamanca (1500), and Toledo (1510). An English translation was published in London in 1579 by Thomas Dawson for Richard Watkins. The translator is Barnabe Googe, a pastoral poet, who dedicated the work to William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, chief advisor to Elizabeth I during her reign and kinsman to Googe. The work was translated as: The proverbes with the paraphrase of D. Peter Diaz of Toledo: wherein is contained whatsoever is necessarie to the leading of an honest and virtuous life (ESTC S108829). A pithy reference to Googe and his translation of Lopez de Mendoza appears in The Poetical Decameron, Or, Ten Conversations on English Poets and Poetry, particularly of the reigns of Elizabeth and James I. In an exchange between Elliot and Morton, it is lamented that: "Such is our pride, our folly, or our fate, That few but such as cannot write translate!"
The copy in Middle Temple seems to be unique. As of October 2016, no other copy from 1532 has been recorded in COPAC, USTC or Worldcat. The book is bound with two other Spanish works, Historia del gran Tamorlan, by Ruy Gonçalez de Clavijo (1582); and Coronica de las Indias, by Gonzalo Fernandez de Oviedo y Valdés (1557). The latter has a list of all of the titles written on the title page in Robert Ashley's (1565-1641) hand. A digitised copy of the book is available to download to the right.
Martine Gagnon (email@example.com)
Translator and PhD Student
November 2016

subset: commoncrawl


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We no longer sell Klout.
Effective May 25, 2018, Lithium stopped providing the Klout service.
Shortly after, Lithium merged with Spredfast to become Khoros and the company does not plan to resume providing Klout.
We are incredibly grateful for our loyal Klout customers throughout the years. The Klout acquisition provided Lithium with valuable artificial intelligence and machine learning capabilities, but Klout as a standalone service is not aligned with our long-term business strategy as Khoros. As a result, we made the difficult decision to turn off Klout.
For all of the loyal Klouters out there who stuck with us all these years – keep influencing! Take a look at this Entrepreneur.com article about five social media tools you can use instead.
For our enterprise customers, please know that Khoros is committed to providing you with innovative technology and services to differentiate your customers' experience, and we're excited to share our new capabilities with you!


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Pita Bread Appetizer Pizza Recipe
Fresh Basil chopped
Fresh Plum tomatoes put through the food processor or your favorite sauce
Homemade Pita bread or store bought
Olive oil
Minced garlic
salt, pepper
Oregano dried flakes
Additional toppings can be used, you can get creative by topping the pita with sauce then adding meats of your choice, peppers, olives, eggplant, pepperoni, loose cooked sausage, ham and pineapple, mushrooms, chopped broccoli, zucchini or spinach, shrimp and garlic with cheese. Use your imagination. When having a party, you can cut these in strips and use as appetizer pizza bites!
Place the pita bread on lightly greased foil and bake on 425 hot oven until browned and crispy. Take out of oven, add the chopped basil, sauce on top, mozzarella, sprinkle with oregano, salt, pepper and minced garlic. Place the oven on broil to high and watch carefully until the mozzarella begins to brown. Remove, cool slightly and serve.


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CCS University B.Com 1st year Results 2020
- 1 CCS University B.Com 1st year Results 2020
Chaudhary Charan Singh University (CCS) is recently organized B.Com part 1st Exams and candidates are curiously waiting for results after these exams. Candidates who are waiting for results will be soon able to check their results on the official website of CCS university. CCS university official website is given below in this article. CCS University recently released a notification about CCS University B.Com Part 1st Results. It is announced by the university that very soon it will announce CCS University B.Com 1st Year Results 2020.
Candidates will also be able to check all other details like exam sheet, time table, exam center on official website of university. For more details regarding CCS University B.Com 1st Year Results 2020 read the full article.
CCS University B.Com Part 1st Results Date
Candidates who recently appeared in Chaudhary Charan Singh University B.Com 1st Year Exam 2020 must be waiting for results. Any official date is not announced by the university but we hope that results will be declared soon by the university. Candidates are advised to keep visiting our website regularly for latest updates regarding CCS university B.Com part 1st Results 2020. All the details of CCS University exams are available on our website. We provide only reliable information about results. Candidates can easily check their all exams and results details on our website.
CCS B.Com 1st Year Results 2020
University Name – Chaudhary Charan Singh University
Results – B.Com 1st Year
Status – Available Soon
Official Website – www.ccsuniversity.ac.in
CCS University B.Com 1st Year Results –
Aspirants of CCS University B.Com 1st Year Exam 2020 must be worried about their results and it is quite obvious to be worried about results. Results play an important role in every student's life. We assure every candidate that when CCS University will announce its results we will update it on our website. Till then we advise all to visit our website so that they can get proper information about results. We regularly update news and all notification on our website. Candidates can check their CCS university B.Com 1st Year Exam 2020 details.
How to check CCS University B.Com 1st Year Results Online 2020 –
Candidates are waiting for results and as we mentioned above that results are close. Candidates can check their results on official website of CSS University. But there may be few candidates who are not familiar with internet and don't know how to check CCS University B.Com 1st Year Results Online. To help those students we are explaining some easy steps which will help them to check their results. Anyone would be able to check his results by following these steps. Official website of Chaudhary Charan Singh University is : www.ccsuniversity.ac.in
- Visit the official website of CCS University : www.ccsuniversity.ac.in
- Now search for the Results on this page.
- Click on the results and choose B.Com Part 1st Results 2020.
- Enter roll number and name (if required).
- Click on submit Button.
- Now you are able to see your obtained marks.
- Take a print out of this for future use.
We hope these steps will surely help all the students to find their CCS university B.Com 1st Year Result 2020. We will update results here on this page after the official declaration by the university. Candidates will be able to check their results on this page after the official declaration by the university.
About Chaudhary Charan Singh University, Meerut
Chaudhary Charan Singh University was founded in the year 1965. It is situated in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh. It is also known as CCS University. It provides higher education in western Uttar Pradesh. The motive of University is to provide quality education in western Uttar Pradesh. CCS University runs many graduation and post graduation programs and every year thousands of students participate in university exams.
नोट- Chaudhary Charan Singh यूनिवर्सिटी कॉमर्स ग्रेजुएशन रिजल्ट्स से समबन्धित सभी जानकारी हमने इस आर्टिकल के माध्यम से आप तक पहुचाने का प्रयास किया है. सभी अभ्यर्थी बहुत जल्दी ही यूनिवर्सिटी की ऑफिसियल वेबसाइट के माध्यम से अपने परिणाम चेक कर सकेंगे. सभी विद्यार्थियों को सूचित किया जाता है की यूनिवर्सिटी रिजल्ट्स हमारी वेबसाइट पर भी उपलब्ध रहेंगे . विद्यार्थी हमारी इस वेबसाइट के माध्यम से रिजल्ट्स चेक कर सकेंगे. हमारी सलाह है की आप लेटेस्ट updates के लिए हमारी वेबसाइट को नियमित रूप से विजिट करते रहे. अधिक जानकारी के लिए आप यूनिवर्सिटी की ऑफिसियल वेबसाइट भी विजिट कर सकते है.
Check Also :
Patna University B.A 2nd Year Results 2020
Patna University B.A 1st Year Results 2020


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The Ministry of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India has set up National Health Portal (NHP) to provide a single point access for authentic health information for the citizens, students, and health professionals at different levels.
The beta version of the portal is available at www.nhp.gov.in
Separate section for Homoeopathy also…make your contributions and suggestions.
For making the port operational, a Centre for Health Informatics has been established as a project under the National Institute of Health & Family Welfare, Government of India, New Delhi
A systematic process of content generation, review and validation is a key feature of the portal. In order to accomplish this mammoth task, they solicit participation from individuals, experts, from both public and private sectors. We are in the process of identifying individuals and institutes who can serve as content writers and validators in their chosen areas of interest and expertise. We wish to install a suitable content management system to manage the whole process.
As you go through the portal link above, your views, comments and suggestions are most welcome.
We do hope that the proposed Indian Academy of Health Professionals, health sciences universities and medical colleges and health sciences institutes will play a key role in furthering this national initiative.
They invite your suggestions and views on the following issues, which we are presently facing in designing National Health Portal:
Guidelines and tips for writing good health content especially targeted to general public
Your inputs in the form of useful links, views and random thoughts will be highly appreciated.


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Wednesday, 19 December 2012
Festive wishes to you all.
Whatever it means to you - I hope you have a peaceful time with those you love.
As I will.
And, before the decorations are down, I'm off to Bangkok - and then anything can happen. With luck I'll make it to Laos.
So this may be my last blog for a while - I'll be in touch while I'm away, when I have time and internet connections (the two may not always coincide).
Enjoy the dark days. By the time I'm back it might be light before eight in the morning. (If not I'm going back).
And many thanks to everyone who has supported my blog this year. May 2013 be kind to you all.
Wednesday, 12 December 2012
Singing, just for the fun of it.
We have some wonderful singers. Everyone tries to sit close to one of them, as they can be relied upon to hit the right notes in the difficult buts. And we have some weaker singers - there is the person who is going deaf, but has perfect timing. He watches the conductor, never misses a beat, but his note can be, well, approximate. We have the enthusiast, who has forgotten the art of singing quietly, and so enjoys herself that she joins in with everyone else's part when hers is silent. Nothing will stop us enjoying ourselves - and when we sang Mozart's Requiem in Malmesbury Abbey we surprised ourselves how wonderful we were. And we are always better in concert than we are in rehearsal - the acoustics change in a space that is full of people. In rehearsal - I hate to mention cats ...
Sunday, 9 December 2012
What would you have done?
Typhoid is endemic in many hot countries. It is water borne, and is a major problem around the rice paddies. Prevention, in theory, should be straightforward - drink only bottled water (easy), clean your teeth in bottled water (easy), make sure all your food is washed and cooked in bottled water (impossible, unless you do all your own cooking. How do you do that, if you're moving from place to place?)
Five doses were delivered in November, and another five in December. Many more of us have travel plans and need them. The advice - keep ringing and make an appointment when the vaccine came in.
I didn't worry in November, I had another month to go. But supplies were delayed in early December. What if none come in, I asked. The travel clinics have some, though you'll have to pay, the pharmacist said. Where is my nearest travel clinic? Chippenham. I have no car, I said - Chippenham is three buses away, buses that are not timed to connect with each other - the trip would take a whole day.
Make an appointment, she said. Then phone in the morning to see if it's in. Which I did - my appointment was at 9.50; I rang at 9.15 - and the five doses were there. She thought it unlikely that all five would have gone in thirty-five minutes. So I raced off, was duly jabbed, and am protected.
Which is fine for me. But as the needle went in, I had a different thought. What about everyone else waiting for a vaccination. What are they to do?
I googled typhoid, as you do.
The Foreign Office recommends: typhoid vaccine only if you are in the Far East for six months or so.
The NHS recommends: typhoid vaccine if you are away for a week.
I don't take health risks - as some of you know, I've done with being ill in unruly places. I'll do anything to make sure I don't do it again. And I'm in a position to race to the surgery when the vaccine is in.
Those five doses will go to those of us who can be organised to race to the surgery when they come in. But who is to say we should have them at the expense of a family of five, off to visit Grandma in the Philippines, who cannot gather in time, nor afford private jabs for all of them? Or the Grandma going home to Mumbai to meet a new grandson?
I can see why the surgery opted for the 'first come, first served' rationing option - how else could they do it? But it doesn't sit easily, knowing that others may be forced to take typhoid risks while I can wander around rice paddies with impunity.
Wednesday, 5 December 2012
You should be making a list of things to do. Or crossing things off your list. Or doing something and then putting it on a list so you can cross it off.
All those cards - are you going to send them this year? Mrs Next-door and the old gent up the road are worrying about the cost of postage. Maybe you won't send any, then no one will feel they have to send one to you. But if you don't - they'll think you're mean. Best send one to Auntie Nellie - I thought she'd died - no, not her, she'll go one forever. Phew, cards posted. Look a card from Uncle Jack, he's always early, so sad, he says, about Nellie - why did no one tell me ... and from Phyllis did we send her one, no - well she's your cousin why should I do everything ...
Decorations? Make so much dust, do we really need decorations? Of course, we do, the twinklier the better. Even though twinkles give you a headache. Not got your tree yet? No - quick, make sure it's on the list, we must order one that takes up at least a quarter of the sitting room. And food, don't forget food, mince pies, sausage rolls, never as good as the ones my mother made - get plenty, you'll be feeding thousands (well, December isn't the time to think about all the food that will be left over. But what about all the people who have no money this Christmas - must put an the extra tin in the food bank. And check out the person up the road, living alone - even if she likes living alone and is quite happy in front of her own fire, thank you, but you can't have that can you. Not at Christmas.
Oh heck, I haven't closed that bracket yet. )
Meanwhile, the children - What is this thing they're asking for - Octonauts - we played with dolls and train sets in my day. Batteries, must buy batteries. Everything needs batteries these days. And sings or flashes or crawls along the floor. Daft, when the kids end up playing with the boxes. Next year, I swear, I'll go to the supermarket and get them a box. Now what are Octonauts again? How did you say we were going to explain three Father Christmases in the High Street?
Wrapping paper. I nearly forgot wrapping paper. Get an extra roll. Though there's never enough.
All this and you've still got real work to do - work can't come to a stop just because it's December. Shops and offices and schools and hospitals and oil rigs and taxi drivers - Christmas is no excuse for slacking you know. You have to cook something for the office party. Can't I buy it? No - if Jilly from HR can manage to cook and her a single parent with six kids then I'm sure you can. Don't forget the secret Santa (what can you possibly buy for that bloke from accounts with the face like a dog's bottom?).
Yes, I know my pronouns are muddled in this post. What makes you think I have time to read it through?
So what little beacon of light keeps you going in the middle of all this?
Sunday, 2 December 2012
World AIDS day
Wednesday, 28 November 2012
Do you have a bucket list?
For anyone who hasn't come across the idea, it's the list of things you want to do before you die - 'kick the bucket', in colloquial terms. Some people want to see Niagara Falls, or fly to the moon, or read all the books of Dickens, go to the theatre to see The Mousetrap - it can be anything.
Good luck to everyone who has a bucket list. I'm sure it's a way of keeping you going, having dreams like this.
But I don't have one; and here is why:
I'm lucky, and I know I am, to live in the affluent west - I have everything I need. If I'm hungry it's because I've missed lunch, not because the rice crop has failed. If my roof leaks I can pay a man to mend it. If my heating fails I can go to friends or family who will give me shelter and wine. I have been taught to read and write and to think - and to ask questions about the wonderful world around us. I have a library within walking distance, know many people who love books and love talking about them.
If it occurs to me that there is something I might like to do - then, if I can, I do it. I want to travel - and so I do. There seems little point in saving a trip to Laos, or Malaysia, or Madagascar until I'm dying. Go now - you never know, I might live for decades and fit in fifty trips before I snuff it.
But there's a deeper reason - what if, say, you foster a travelling list and then are felled by an ailment that dictates you can't fly - or even be far from home. You are left with a piece of paper and wasted dreams. Those around you, who love you - will they ever feel good enough if you are grieving for things you never got round to doing?
When I'm sitting by the fire, sipping cocoa and rubbing my arthritic knees, I'll know I've done the best I could. I'm proud of all I achieved at work. I'm proud of my magnificent daughters. And I'm making the most of retirement. I'm contented now, and hope that I'll be contented by that fading fireside. Or maybe just a little bit crabby, to keep my kids on their toes ...
Wednesday, 21 November 2012
A short post to say thank you.
Sunday, 18 November 2012
This may never happen again ...
So it took a few minutes to take this one in. It was from an editor. In America. Please would I write a piece on taking a gap year as an older person, for a book he is editing. There's no money, as it will raise money for a cancer charity.
This is a joke, I thought. Proper editors don't seek out people like me. Delete it, I told myself, before I get too excited. Then I googled him - and he is everything he says he is. He has worked for Big Publishers. This book will be a companion to another that came out last year.
Oh heck, I thought. Then, well, yes - of course I'll write something on taking a grown-up gap year. When do you want it? In ten days, he said. Oh, bloody hell. But - hey ho, what have I got to lose? Though I explained that wouldn't give me to reflect on it. He agreed to read an early draft, see if it was what he was looking for.
He has been utterly professional. And I have sat at my computer, pinching myself because he assumes I am a Proper Writer. So this is what Proper Writers do - flop about with coffee, go for a walk, write scrappy notes, and then tease them into some sort of shape? Does that look professional to you? It felt surreal to me. But it's what I did - and he likes it! Just one small suggestion to add to my first draft, and it was done.
We're into line edits next week, but he has told me to expect very few changes. The book will be out in the spring - and I'll be able to tell you more about it then; and you can feel smug buying it as it is for a good cause.
And I shall probably stare at my name in the credits in disbelief. This may never happen again - but it happened once. So I am allowed to raise a small glass of wine to celebrate?
And you - has anything wonderful dropped on you out of the blue, that made the world look a bit different for a while?
Wednesday, 14 November 2012
Now for the injections ...
No, they aren't compulsory. Nobody will check if I have them. There will be no surrogate parent will greet me at the airport and scowl, send me to bed without my supper. The only person it matters to is me.
And no, they aren't fun. But who wants typhoid? Or meningitis? Or rabies? Or Japanese encephalitis? (Does anyone know what that is?) Malaria - that's a thorny one. It's patchy - less common in the big cities, or during the dry season. And no one wants to pop pills unnecessarily. (My solution - yours may be different - is to find out when I get there if there is a problem. For instance, on my long trip I knew it was all over the border between Thailand and Cambodia, but I spent just one night there, so smothered myself in DEET, covered every inch of myself in shirts and long trousers, slept under a mosquito net, and managed without a pill. But several days in the backwaters of India - that was too much of a risk, so pills it was.)
Back to this trip. I trotted to the surgery to make an appointment with the nurse. Have I filled in a form? No - please may I have a form, I can fill it in now. No, that is not possible; you must go home and find the form on the website, fill it in, and we will ring you to say if you need an appointment. But I know I need an appointment, my typhoid jab is out of date. I'm sorry, you still need to go home to fill in the form.
Times have changed. Before the long trip I made the first appointment with the practice nurse about four months before I left. She and I poured over maps and Government guidelines and decided which injections I needed, some of which came in three doses - and the result was one injection a week for twelve weeks, to have them all. We got quite friendly in that time. I know she has small children and has always wanted to go to New Zealand. She knows about my magnificent daughters. Send me a postcard, she said before I left. I sent her a postcard from New Zealand.
This time - I have to negotiate with a computer! Where is the fun in that? And she still had to ring me to tell me I need an appointment.
I know change is part of being human. And I don't want to join the bah-humbug brigade that grumbles when we have to do things differently. But, just sometimes, I wonder if we haven't lost something along the way.
And you - are there things that you miss?
Sunday, 11 November 2012
In praise of ...
Have you ever needed physio? They tend to lurk at the end of long corridors; the entrance to their sanctuaries have no roses round the door. There are no fanfares. But without them I'd have seized up long ago (a dodgy back), been unable to lift a rucksack ever again (broken shoulder) and now I'm back again, with wrecked knees. If you've never needed one - lucky you. The rest of us know we'd be permanently crock without them.
All my physios have been women. I know there are men in this profession - please bear with me if I stick to the feminine pronoun here. And my physios have mostly been young. (They are getting younger ...) Their capacity for empathy, for humour, for simply understanding the significance of information that you might drop by the wayside - is astonishing.
I blogged, ages ago, about my crumbly knees. My consultant hopes that phsyio (plus steroid injections - I wince even thinking about those) will keep the muscles in good enough condition to hold what is left of the bones together for a little while longer.
I have a quite different agenda. For if I want to go to Laos (and I do) I need to be able to use a squat toilet.
Yes, it's funny - I thought it was funny enough, when I came back from Cambodia a couple of years ago, to write a little poem:
But my physio did not flinch when I set her the challenge of enabling me to squat. She did not even titter (well, in front of me she did not titter - she may have guffawed when I left). She simply smiled, put gentle hands on my sorry knees to show where the muscles seem to have collapsed, then gave me exercises, encouragement, and support.
I have joined the 'lower limb group' at the specialised gym in the physio clinic. There is the lass who fell of her horse and broke an ankle, who wants to ride again. There is the bloke who was knocked off his bike and broke his femur - he talks of road racing. There is the older woman who slipped, broke her foot, and wants to be able to climb stairs without pain so she can stay in her own home. And me - who wants to use a squat toilet. Together we grimace, and puff, and wince as we make forgotten muscles do what they were designed to do, and do it over and over again. Alongside us the physio is quietly encouraging.
Now I can get down, and (imagine a fanfare) get up again. I can go to Laos.
Wednesday, 7 November 2012
Why Hidden Tiger is an ebook
Firstly, I must thank all those who have said wonderful things about my little ebook. There is nothing more encouraging than knowing someone has read and enjoyed one's work - especially those outside family and friends who have no reason to be kind.
And I do understand those who, on hearing all this, are asking for a print book. I can only say - I'm sorry. I was away for just one month - long enough for a few excitements, but not long enough to fill all the pages of a 'proper book', given that reading what I ate for breakfast or the spider that scuttled across the floor and into my shoes in the mountains is of limited interest.
This little ebook is only 78 pages long - if I were to print it there'd be barely room on the spine for the title. It would be a flimsy little book, an apology for a book - but, because of the cost of printing I would have to charge you almost as much as I do for Over the Hill. If you ordered it from Amazon, you would open the cardboard wrapper and find such a puny offering you would look beyond it - it must be a mistake, this book is too thin. You have paid all that money, you might say, for a pamphlet.
But short ebooks work. I can sell it cheaply, as it costs nothing to produce; and so you are less likely to complain about the lack of extra pages.
Which leaves those of you with no ereader feeling left out? By now I am grovelling with an apology - but it remains uneconomic to produce a print book. But if you wait ... it's just possible that I'll write more. After all, I'm off to Thailand and Laos after Christmas, and still have dreams of making it to Madagascar. If I get two more ebooks out of those trips, then I promise to put them together in a print book. And might even negotiate a special price for anyone who has asked me very nicely at this stage to print Hidden Tiger. Does that help? (And Over the Hill is still available as a print book, in case you haven't read it yet - or know someone you'd like to send it to for Christmas.)
Sunday, 4 November 2012
How do I know it's Monday? And does it matter?
Which means it is easy for one day to melt into another. I can sit in bed with a cup of tea and book in the morning, struggle downstairs for breakfast when I'm hungry. A friend might ring - shall we have coffee? Why not? The sun is shining; the forest is wonderful at this time of year. Maybe a grandchild will come over and we can kick through the leaves and come home with bits in our hair to warm our fingers on mugs of hot chocolate.
But, you are wondering, when do you write? Is that not work? In a way it's work - it gives me a purpose; I carry on doing it even when I don't feel like it, or the story won't tell itself. But I carry on because I know that such days are temporary, that I love the way words come out to play when I'm not looking - I write because I breathe. I don't sit with the computer at nine o'clock and refuse to move until lunchtime.
This is a long-winded way of saying that one day can be very like the next. Does that matter? Yes, I think it does. I still need a rhythm of weeks, a way of noticing the passing of time, anchors that make sense of seasons. I would feel too floaty without that. And so I have landmarks: the market on Saturday, choir on Monday evenings, a book group on Tuesdays - you get the picture. All activities I enjoy, of course; but they are more than that - they structure my week.
But I don't automatically know what day it is as I wake. I have to stop, as I pour my tea, and think - what day is it, what shape will it take? What choices do I have in that - to do something differently? To take myself off with a book, or sit at my computer and write?
It is a conscious decision to formulate my week like this. I reassures me, roots me in the reality of time passing. And you - are you happy to float along (lucky you!) or do you need to punctuate your days as I do?
Wednesday, 31 October 2012
Why I'll not be writing a NaNoWriMo
Surely, those travelling people might say, it can't be that hard. Say you have a twenty-hour flight, surely you could scribble several thousand of those in one go? All those hours waiting in bus stations. Would that it were that easy.
Writers, of course, come in all shapes and sizes, and there are those who rise to the challenge of writing 1500-2000 words (useful words, so probably at least three times that many deleted) every day for a month. Which involves clearing workspace, social space and headspace for a whole month (plus the time to go on the relevant website and 'chat' to everyone else going through the whole process with you). When I'm away from home my head is full of travelling - far too involving to free up space for writing.
I am in awe of everyone who does it. That level of self-discipline is astonishing. And I'm sure that many - even if their novels ends up in the 'could do better' file - are better writers for it. All that practice must keep the internal dictionary working, and the imagination firing on all cylinders.
What possible excuse can I have for not doing it? I live alone, so don't have to work round children (who are, in the UK, at home over half term - how can you write with children tugging at your sleeve wanting you to paint/play football/take them to the park?). I've retired, so don't have half my head (or more) filled with Child Protection challenges. I'm not on another trip for another month, so don't have to bury myself in the Lonely Planets quite yet.
I don't do it - because I don't want to put that pressure on myself. Sometimes I write 1500-2000 words in a day (sometimes even more) and sometimes I don't. If the words flow I can sit at the computer till my fingers freeze. On other days it's like pulling teeth and I'm better off going out for coffee. Writing is not work for me. I knew pressure at work - and it was right that I did. We made huge decisions about children's lives, decisions that should never be made without serious soul-searching. I don't need to do that any more.
But I shall cheer those brave writers on from the sidelines. I shall think of you as I drink tea in bed in the morning, and as I raise a glass of wine when the sun goes down (well, a bit later than that - the sun does down around 5ish now). I hope each of you writes the best book you have ever written, and wake up on 1st December feeling knackered but rightly smug.
And that, I'm afraid, is the best I can do. (If anyone who is actually writing NaNoWriMo has time to read this blog, do tell us why you are doing it!)
Sunday, 28 October 2012
A blog award!
Wednesday, 24 October 2012
I am not a robot.
Is anyone else losing patience with the captcha, anti-robot thingies that pop up each time you try to comment on a blog?
I've taken mine off, as one of my followers told me very nicely that they were driving her bonkers. It is her comment that has made me notice them more - and I agree that they are getting increasingly difficult to decipher. I get that we must take a moment to work out what they are wanting us to say - but do they have to be so obscure that letters run into each other like rain, or numbers are lost in the shadows? And if you get them wrong once, it often seems impossible to correct that on the second or third attempt.
It might help if they were a real word, and not something like EdvUlgn 61. What's that meant to mean - though anyone with a child using the phonetic reading scheme would say I should be able to read it without worrying about meanings. But I want to know what 61 EdvUlgns might look like, smell like? Are they animal, vegetable or mineral? Can I eat them? Will they eat me?
Since taking mine off, I've had a couple of ridiculous comments, and a flurry of invitations to check out a foreign bank, but blogspot seems to pick most of them up and send them to my email for checking - so they are easy to delete. But it's not been a huge problem.
So on a little blog like mine it seems, from my follower's comment, that having to prove you are a real person was putting people off.
I accept that, for those with thousands of followers, some form of filter might be necessary. But surely there has to be an easier way than making ordinary people squint at their screens trying to work out if that splodge squashed between the 't' and the 'r' is an 'e' or an 'o'. Are you quite happy deciphering EdvUlgn 61, or is it driving you bonkers, too?
Wednesday, 17 October 2012
Publishing ebooks.
I must begin by saying that this is only my experience. There are thousands of us uploading, downloading, groaning into our cocoa trying to make the bloody technology work and then realising we forgot to press the save button ... We all have different stories to tell.
The decision to self-publish was easy: I won a place on a mentoring scheme, as a result of which Over the Hill was lashed into shape. It was my mentor who told me that, ten years ago, I would have found a publisher. But not now - I'm neither young nor famous. But this was good enough to see the light of day and so I should do it myself. So I did - there are some early blogposts of the general angst but I made it.
And don't regret it. I've made mistakes, learned along the way, but have generally enjoyed myself. Putting the second book on Kindle was an easier decision: it's too short to be a print book but was such fun to write it made sense to give Over the Hill a follow-up.
But - there has to be a 'but' - is it cost-effective? It's not going to make me rich. In fact, if I cost the time it took the write, then paying the copy editor, then the time formatting and uploading, then it's a crazy way to spend my time if I want to make money. Amazon, of course, makes money. Cheap books (less than $3.50, I think) earn me only 35% - so that's 35p for a book costing £1; that's how many books to pay for one cup of coffee? And how many cups of coffee are needed to write one book? Pricier books earn 70%, but you still have to sell them in the hundreds or more to make serious money. Mine are niche books - they are never going to sell in huge numbers. (Well, would they if I spent hours marketing? I'll never know - that's the bit I'm truly rubbish at).
So, why do it? I'm lucky - and I know it. I have enough to live on and so am not dependent on my writing to pay the grocery bill. I can do it because it's fun, because I love it when people send emails saying they've enjoyed the book, or asking more about my travels - and yes, emails that prompted this post. And because I love the writing - I can make myself laugh. (I am already working out how to write a trip to the physio where I must ask her to get my knees strong enough to manage squat toilets ...)
That's how it was for me. How was it for you?
Monday, 15 October 2012
Travel writing from home
So, after my blog-wandering, I'm back to writing about my home town and its quirks. Travel writing from home, so to speak. Every October, on two successive Saturdays, Marlborough High Street closes and the fair moves in - known as the Mop Fairs. It goes back, or so we are told, to times when servants would stand in the street at the end of harvest with the tools of their trade (hence the 'mop') and new masters would inspect and hire them.
But this was not an organised gathering - it was not like choosing teams at school - I'll have Nicola cos she's good in goal and you can have Enid who can't run for toffee - no, it wasn't like that. Servants jostled for places, trod on each others' toes, may even have speared each other with pitchforks. The ale houses were busy, beer slopped onto the street to mix with the horse droppings. Stray dogs snuffled in corners till kicked away. There was shouting and mayhem - and fun.
Now - we have the Big Wheel, the Dodgem cars, the Waltzers. A great stall called Froggit (smack the little post with a mallet and send rubber frogs flying towards the lily pads). Hook-a-duck. All play different music - which gets louder over the course of the day until by 11.00pm it can be heard half a mile away. The ghost train, with its bits of old tights dangling down pretending to be spiders' webs. Lights flash, children scream, lads prove their manliness by not throwing up when turned upside-down. The pubs, of course, are as busy as years ago - though now it is plastic glasses that litter the street alongside the wrappers from candy floss and hot dogs. Children clutch blue bears twice their size. (My grandaughter won a vulgar blue creature with a band round its head that said 'Tony Bear.' If I could have separated it from her long enough to take its photo for you I would have done.)
I love it - It is noisy and smelly and disrupts the polite order of things.
Yes - this happens on two consecutive Saturdays. In between, the fair retreats to the common. For our ancient charter, which allows this fair to continue, stipulates that it must clear the High Street by midnight, leaving everything clean for the righteous who must put all this revelry behind them and go the church on Sunday morning.
Such a wonderful, ridiculous collision of tradition and modern celebrations! Do you have anything like this where you live?
Wednesday, 10 October 2012
When daughters fly
And sometimes she flies. No, I don't mean fly the nest. Not that moment when you leave her in the car park at uni knowing she has cases to unpack. Leaving her full of excitement and terror with all the gizmos she might need but no sensible knickers. And you go home to an empty house and you're not sure if you like it, or if you should like it, so you make her favourite meal for tea and wimper a bit and then play your own music and read your own books and no one interrupts and you realise you could get used to this.
No - I mean flying in the air. In an aeroplane. A huge metal contraption that, looked at objectively, shouldn't be in the air. That smell - of stale air, and yesterday's supper. That are filled with people who, at best, could be overweight and at worst (I disregard the terrorism option) are sick with beri beri or typhoid or mysterious green-frothy disease which everyone will catch. Daughters sit in this thing, above the ocean, for hours. With no realistic means of escape. Then they have to land - on something as tiny as a runway and come to a careful halt, without so much as bruising a finger!
I know what you're thinking. I agree with you - it's fine for me to go flying, head across the world when I feel like it. There are countries to explore, adventures to be had. And I have no problem with them having adventures - even adventures in unlikely places. I do not need to keep the world away from them.
I just wish she could get there a different way. Not in a plane. I know the statistics - she is safer in a plane than crossing the road (though I have been known to reach out to hold a hand crossing the road, in an unthinking, maternal way, and been put back in my place!). But there's something about planes, all those people crammed together in that tiny space, and no plan B should something go wrong. I quite enjoy it for myself - but shudder each time I leave her at the airport.
I know I shouldn't check the news. I'd hear soon enough if there were a problem. I know there is no point looking up in the sky as if just wishing her well could keep her safe. At least I have the sense not to watch Airplane.
Welcome Home, Anna!
Sunday, 7 October 2012
Taking my knees walkabout.
I took the sensible course. (What? Sensible! Not willingly, I must add. Nagged by sensible daughters who would have to sort me out if the worse happened. I take their point - they have jobs, families, cannot drop everything to fly across the world to rescue me from something I could have predicted in the first place.)
So I have had x-rays and seen the bone-person. I won't go into him looking young - at least I didn't ask him if he's started shaving yet. More importantly - he listened. And he didn't even flinch when I mentioned tottering around unlikely places with a rucksack.
He told me I have arthritis (which I knew) and that both knees are probably beyond tinkering with. 'We could give you arthroscopies, but in your case there is a chance it doesn't work and could even make things considerably worse,' he said.
'I'm not ready to give up my lifestyle,' I said.
'If course you're not.'
(Hurrah!! He's not assuming I'll retreat into a corner with my cocoa!)
'So,' he went on, 'I'll give you steroid injections to help the pain for now. (Ow!) We'll sort some physio to keep the muscles in good trim around the knees - which should keep you going for a while. Eventually we'll give you new knees - starting on the left.'
'So can I go to Madagascar this winter?' I explained about carrying a rucksack, and he asked reasonable questions about weight and distance.
And then he said, 'You go. You'll have less pain in the warmth anyway. But you might need to pass on ten mile hikes - sit on a beach with a book instead; and, if you can, get other people to carry heavy things for you. Then we'll see how you are in the spring and operate if you are still in pain.' (The subtext - I can't make them any worse. So I might just as well take them travelling as sit at home feeling sorry for myself. And then he'll sort me out so I can carry on travelling year after year!)
So - Madagascar this winter, I thought. Raced off to buy the Lonely Planet.
Except that isn't going to be as straightforward as I'd thought - so I'll let you into my tortuous thinking about where to go in my next post.
But the main news is - me and my knees will be off again this winter! Yippee!
Wednesday, 3 October 2012
It's autumn, not Christmas
We can wrap up and go to the forest, kick through leaves, throw them in the air like rain and brush them out of each others' hair. We can find conkers and have discussions on the ethics of vinegar and slow cooking to make them even harder. We can stop to smell that glorious, dank, misty smell of autumn. Bring leaves home to make pictures to stick on the fridge, knowing that they will crinkle and fall and end a dusty mess on the kitchen floor.
When the rain comes, driving against the windows, we can light the fire, toast crumpets, remind ourselves how wonderful they taste dripping with butter. We unearth games not played since April, argue over the rules to Cluedo.
Soon the children will talk of halloween, of fireworks. We can cook baked potatoes, heap them with cheese or beans, and eat with our muddy fingers.
So - it's not Christmas. Not even nearly Christmas. So, shops, that means no crackers, no mince pies, no wrapping paper, no tinsel and not even a cardboard reindeer that sings 'Do you know it's Christmas?' as I pass. I mean, internet marketing people, that I do not need Father Christmases popping up in the corner of sites I am actually enjoying.
So BOGOFF Christmas! (And I don't mean buy one, get one free!)
Saturday, 29 September 2012
There have been at least six crashes of domestic planes in the last two years in Nepal. (I have heard a claim that there have been over twenty - but I can't verify that. It seems too high a figure to me, even for Nepal.) I'm not going to get into the whys and wherefores of this crash - there may or may not be an enquiry in Nepal and it's not for me to second guess what the outcome of that might be.
However, as those who have read Hidden Tiger know, it might take a while to get an Inquiry off the ground. Meanwhile, planes will continue to fly. Tourists will have to weigh the risks of using them, or resorting to buses - surely the more sensible option? Except that roads in the mountains can be, er, interesting. Tarmac clings to the mountainside - if you are lucky. Often it is washed away in the monsoon. Tata lorries give the surface such a pounding that too soon it is broken up into boulders and potholes. Travelling any distance can involve a night bus - do you need details of night buses? It is like travelling in a coffin. Except if you were in a real coffin you'd be dead and never need the toilet ... Or you can use taxis, which is expensive but at least you feel in a bit more control (except when the taxi breaks down ...)
All of which makes any plan to visit Nepal look like a very silly idea. Yet I want to go back. Because I have friends there now. Because the mountains are spectacular. Because the temples continue to mystify me. Because water buffalo wander through the lake at Pokhara. Because I've got the hang of strikes and power cuts, and love those corners where resources are limited and there is only the kindness of strangers. Because there are tigers.
And Nepal needs tourists. Manufacturing is rudimentary; they need to import food and services from India - they have nothing to sell but their scenery. If Nepal is ever to sort its education and health challenges it must attract international income.
So - is the risk of travelling there, by road or in the air, worth the benefits of seeing this wonderful country? Here is a picture, just to show you want you might be missing if you decide not to go. It was taken at Lumbini - the birthplace of Buddha, a site filled with temples from all over the world. Some are quiet and mystical. Others are such fun - like this!
Worth the risk? What do you think?
Wednesday, 26 September 2012
The craft of travel writing.
What's brought this on? Well, a while ago I read Trish Nicholson's Journey to Bhutan: Himalayan Trek in the Kingdom of the Thunder Dragon, and more recently I won Alessandro Gallenzi's book Inter Rail on Jenny Woolf's wonderful blog.
Maybe it's not entirely fair to compare them - Inter Rail is a novel; but the writer informs us that it is based on his journey around Europe as a young man. So I'm assuming he built on his meetings with some rather shady characters and developed that into a tale of derring-do, of drinking and meeting women and careering around in very fast cars with a man who is clearly a con man. What struck me, reading this, is his lack of reflection - he is too busy laughing to think that maybe not paying for a taxi might be funny once, but the driver may have a family to feed and his larks have consequences. I found myself thinking like a mother, wanting to know what he did for clean pants when his clothes were stolen.
Of course, I have missed the point - he's a young man. Behaving as young men do - and having terrific fun doing it. Sometimes I need reminding of that.
In contrast, Trish's trek in Bhutan was instantly recognisable. She paused to drink in the mountain air, to marvel at the mysteries of the culture, to tiptoe round the edges of Buddhism. Her descriptions are wonderful - for those of us unable make it to Bhutan she offers such clear descriptions of her travels that we feel we are following her footsteps. She is hugely respectful of everyone she meets, as aware of her impact on them and their way of life as she is on her own thoughts and processes. (She is also enviably fit. How does she bound up mountains like that?)
Not difficult for me to identify with her. We follow similar pathways, notice the same things. Her lovely book feels gloriously familiar to me.
So why think of them in the same blog? Because they are, in many ways, trying to do the same thing. To show me a place, and the people in it. Their starting points are different, but equally valid. Both have something to say about the writers themselves, though Trish's book tells us more about Bhutan while Alessandro reminded me of the glorious energy of young men.
And did they both tempt me to visit their chosen destinations? Of course they did. But, while my thoughts may be closer to Trish's, I have to admit I'm not immune to joining in the folly of the young (as those who have dipped into Hidden Tiger Raging Mountain already know!)
And you - do you need jolting out of the familiar from time to time?
Sunday, 23 September 2012
Writing the second book.
Wednesday, 19 September 2012
Tis done, and to celebrate ...
And to celebrate, I'm going to post some more pictures from Nepal, and tell you a little about the stories that go with them.
I couldn't resist an elephant ride - well, you wouldn't expect me to. I was in Bardia, a remote National Park in the south-west of Nepal, and we were wandering through the jungle in a gentle, lilting way when the elephant turned sharp right and walked into the river. The mahout was totally unconcerned - this was evidently planned. And we waited for a while until the elephant had stopped drinking before plodding on out way. I had wondered if she was going to take the opportunity to wash her back and give us all a soaking, but not this time!
Long before making it to Bardia, I spent a few days pottering about the shores of Fewa Lake, taking a boat trip across to the little temple, sitting in cafes, and generally taking in the sights and smells of Lakeside. The streets behind me are chaotic, but somehow the water buffalo and little boats in the water bring and air of stillness to the place.
It might seem odd to include a picture of a Tata lorry in a blogpost about Nepal - but for those of you who have read HIDDEN TIGER and wonder how big the lorries are I encountered on That Trip down the mountain - well, this is what they looked like. They look even more precarious in the dark!
Having made it down the mountain, I went to Lumbini - the birthplace of Buddha. It is a huge site, with Buddhist temples built by communities from all over the world. When I was there I spent some of the time with a group of Nepali women on a day out - and together we turned this gigantic prayer wheel. I didn't realise that sacred rituals could be such fun!
Finally, a market picture, because I just love markets. This particular market is in Nepalganj, close to the border with India. Markets in the mountains are far less well-supplied.
So - a few pictures to help bring my little book alive.
Sigh. When I can I go back ...
Where do you long to go back to?
Sunday, 16 September 2012
Reviews for Hidden Tiger Raging Mountain.
Because - Hidden Tiger Raging Mountain is almost ready for Amazon! And when it first comes out it will look a little lonely in the review department. I shall, of course, go on review hunt. Which means I've had to think long and hard about the whole paying-for-reviews, sock-puppetry mayhem. Actually, I didn't - the ethical answer is so very clear for me I spent more time eating cake.
So, if anyone would like to help me out, here's the deal:
If you happen buy the ebook and fancy writing something, that would be wonderful and I shall fall at your feet with gratitude.
If you'd like a free ecopy to review, please let me let me know, and I'll email you a pdf. Will I hassle you for the review - no. If you write a wonderful review I shall, of course, be indebted for ever. If you write an unfavourable review, will I stand outside your house at midnight and demand pistols at dawn - no. Nor will I harangue you, pelt you with eggs, nor throw shoes at you. Though I might have a quick snivel in the privacy of my own kitchen.
Will I pay you to write a wonderful review - no. But should you pass this way I make a great cup of tea but will buy the cake as my cooking is rubbish.
(Will I create a hoo-ha with sock-puppets? I think you know the answer to that.)
So, there we are.
Good luck, little ebook.
Tuesday, 11 September 2012
What walks books say and what they really mean.
And I thought I'd go walking. I walk a lot in Wiltshire - I'm used to her Downs and her forests, so surely a mountain is like that, only more so? I consulted a trusty walks book, found a route - it was long, but I'd be fine, if I gave myself plenty of time.
I must be clear - I'm no spring chicken. I'm sure the young and muscled would bound up and down this path without noticing its little challenges. In fact I know they did - the bounded past me, many times. Some even asking if I was all right, in a kindly, patronising way.
My problem, you see, was that my walks book was written for the young and muscled, who know all about mountains, and not for passing wrinklies who feel pleased if they make it to the top of Oare Hill. So here, for anyone who might be tempted to follow me, is a translation of the walks book for anyone who might not be used to mountains:
'Long, steady climb' - means long, steep, plod up a winding path with occasional steps. If you take it slowly, and don't try to talk, you can feel reasonably smug getting up it.
'Steep, zig-zagged path, with a little light scrambling' - means the path has disappeared under a landslip and you have to clamber, crawl, other wise manipulate yourself up scree that feels vertical. Do not believe the young man who tells you the top is less than fifteen away - this final 200 metres takes an hour and a half. (Why not give up? Because you believe the plonkers who come past tell you that the top is round the next corner. Plus there is a cup of tea at the top.)
Coming down, of course, should be easier. But 'winding, rocky and a little difficult in places' - means coming down a ridge, much of it on your bottom as it is the only way to negotiate the boulders. Never be deceived by the twenty feet where you can stand upright - for soon there is another precipice, the path ten feet below and nothing but rocks or sticky-out bits in the way. (Why not go down the other way? What - down that scree?)
'Join the original path, and from there it is a short walk back to the car park' - means that the distance on the ground might be the same as before but this time it takes three times as long, as your legs feel like they belong to someone else.
(Snowdon, up the Watkin path and down the South ridge, for anyone who is curious.)
Why did I do it? Because very soon I have to take my knees to the bone man, and I'm afraid he might tell me to stop doing things like that. Which is a very stupid reason. There must be a better one, surely?
Saturday, 8 September 2012
We've a visitor. So please put your hands together for ... Stephanie Butland.
What's more, she's got a new book out: THRIVE: The Bah! Guide to Wellness After Cancer.
Quite rightly, she'd like to talk about her book. And I'd like her to talk about her life writing. Which should make for an interesting way to pass a Sunday. So, here goes:
As life writers, we expose ourselves and our histories more than most. Are there things that you choose not to write about - and, if so, what criteria do you have for making that choice?
Yes, there are things I choose not to write about. My basic criteria are:
- Is my story to tell? If someone else is strongly involved in something, I might choose not to write about it, or write about it in a very abstract way. Or, if I do want to write about something that other people were part of, I'll ask them if I can write about it, and/or check with them before I publish. So, before Bah! came out, I asked my children to read my account of breaking the news that I had cancer to them, and they both said that was how they had remembered it.
- Will I hurt anyone if I write about this? If I would, then I don't. Although it's not quite as simple as that. Some of my family and friends have told me how hard they found it to read Bah!, because it reminded them of such a difficult time. And some people have been offended by my sense of humour, while others have said the same jokes made made them laugh for the first time in months.
But I think it really comes down to instinct. If I feel it's appropriate to write about something, I will, If I don't, I won't.
Life writing involves a dialogue between truth (albeit a subjective truth) and the needs of a book. As a travel writer, I don't write about the countless days when nothing much happens - though this may suggest to a reader that I lurch from one adventure to another. Do you, too, leave ordinary stuff out, and do you feel it skews the narrative? Or do you put it all in?
Good question! Given the caveats above, I tend to write about everything - on the blog, at least. Books demand more or a narrative, so where there are probably hundreds of posts on the blog about the side-effects of chemotherapy, they are distilled in the books. One of the reasons I love blogging is that I think it does give an accurate picture of 'this is how it feels to be me, today.' Books require more structure and so perhaps distort the truth a little bit. 'I was tired for months' doesn't quite convey what being tired for months is like.
You have become known as 'the woman who had cancer.' You are a wonderful advocate for those dancing with the disease now, and for those researching it. But there must be other things in your life that you are equally proud of - please, what are they?
What a lovely question.
I'm writing novels at the moment - the first, 'Surrounded by Water', will be published by Transworld in early 2014. I'm working on a third version of it and just starting to believe that it might be A Proper Book Written By A Proper Writer And Everything. I think I will be proud of it.
Just looking at my children - who are 18 and 16 and bright and handsome/beautiful and so utterly, utterly themselves - makes me want to burst with pride. They are fabulous. I am a great believer that children grow up in spite of you, not because of you, so I'm not claiming a lot of credit - I'm just proud to know them, really.
And I think I'm proud that I have, finally, learned to ask for help, and to recognise when I'm struggling, and understand that life is all about continuing to learn and grow. I spent the best part of 4 decades trying to be perfect and make everything/everyone around me perfect too. It was exhausting. Trying to do things better is exciting and much more satisfying.
You offer comfort and encouragement to other women with cancer, and with those navigating their feelings once the doctors have done their stuff. Your blog is a testament to the women you have inspired. But who has inspired you - as a writer, and as a woman?
As a writer, I'm inspired by the late John Updike's work ethic and attention to detail; Hilary Mantel's ability to write a sentence that takes your breath away; David Mitchell's imagination; Philip Larkin's sharp eye and surprisingly sweet soul; Anne Patchett, period. But that's only scraping the surface, really. (One of the things that bugs me about mortality is that I don't think I will ever have the time to read all the books I want to!)
As a woman, I get inspired by anyone who is working towards something with determination and doggedness. Olympic athletes are where they are because they've got up at stupid o'clock on thousands of cold, horrible mornings. Women who are running successful businesses now have had days when they've looked at an unexpected bill and an empty bank account and wondered how on earth they're going to manage this one. It's getting on with it, little by little, that inspires me, because whether it's cancer or writing or travelling or grief or a degree, that's what we need to do.
Thank you, Stephanie - this is fascinating. You are an inspiration to many - and now it is our turn to help you celebrate the launch of THRIVE, and to cheer on all the work you continue to do, supporting women with cancer and their families.
Sunday, 2 September 2012
The story behind the cover.
Wednesday, 29 August 2012
Hidden Tiger Raging Mountain has a cover.
How fab is this!!!! I keep looking at it, in all its wonderfulness. I know the original photo (I took it!) and will tell you its story in due course. But I never imagined that it could have a whole new life as an ebook cover. Now all I have to do is make sure the book is equally wonderful.
(And how long did it take you to see the tiger?)
Sunday, 26 August 2012
Grandchildren and other important stuff.
And not just because it was fun (though it was). It was also a reminder why children are so very precious.
I remember, as an adolescent, being mystified when adults insisted that charities raising money for children were so important. I argued that they are simply a component of the continuum of being human and therefore no more or less significant than anyone else. Up to a point I still think that - we should celebrate the needs of everyone, whatever their age or contribution. I don't quite buy the argument that children should take priority because they will grow up to work, to build an economy that will pay for our pensions.
Yet they are, indeed, precious. Why?
As we walked into town, my grandson ran ahead to press the button at the traffic lights. A simple, everyday task suddenly a matter of importance. As we crossed The Green he spotted a ladybird, squatted to watch as it climbed onto a leaf and finally crawl off into the grass. He learned the difference between a dock leaf and a stinging nettle (the hard way). We sat on the top deck of the bus and counted flags. He perched on a beanbag in the bookshop and spent twenty minutes in the serious business of choosing. His response to his small cousin falling in the mud was not to reach for the wipes and spare clothes, but to laugh (as did she.) The small cousin, I must add, is my granddaughter - a determined, feisty little girl who is making the most of being two. With such a clear mind of her own now, she'll be ready to take on the world when she's twenty. Which will not surprised those of you who have come across Anna - her mother.
When did you last gaze at a ladybird - without a child in tow? Or press the button at the crossing and wonder if it will be the red car or the blue that will stop? That glorious living-in-the-moment that allows you to notice everything as if for the first time. The excitement that comes with the realisation that every day is full of possibilities.
I have spent a week with countless wonderful reminders of just how astonishing the world can be.
He will, of course, grow up. Like the rest of us, he will come to take much of the world for granted. Until, of course, he has children of his own.
Sunday, 19 August 2012
Some things are more important ...
What!!!! Surely not - I mean, I'm a writer, and traveller - they are the core of who I am.
But this week my grandson is coming to stay. I have four grandchildren. I have seen the Taj Mahal, I tell them. But do I know the difference between a tinky-winky and a ninky-nonk? (No.) I've trekked in the Himalayas, I tell them. But can I do a back-flip-thing with a football? (No.) I've written a book, I tell them. Does it have pictures? (No.) I've been close to a tiger, I tell them. Then a daughter glares with a look that says don't you dare tell them about the tiger.
My grandson is five. His world is full of the wonder of playgrounds, of football, of ice cream and toy cars and lego. So, for a week, that is what my world will be full of too.
I will be gone for a few days. There really are more important things than blogging:
For this week my grandson is coming to stay.
Wednesday, 8 August 2012
Over the Hill to have a little sister.
(Pause for fanfare...)
It is a bit of a mouthful? But I like the pun in it, and it does give a clue or two about some of the adventures of this trip. (Yes, there were adventures ...)
Why just an ebook? You were looking forward to the paper version, I know, that you could smell and read in the bath and leave in book swap places for others to pick up. But this is just a little book - I was only away for a month. While I have diaries full of details about what I had for breakfast I'm not going to pad out the word length just to make this paperback-length. So it's restricted to the interesting bits - and there were plenty of those.
So - what is the timescale? The manuscript is ready for the copy editor. Do I really need that? Can't I manage that myself - after all, this is only a little ebook? No - I can find most of the mistakes but not all of them. Besides, I owe it to you to make this the best ebook I can possibly make it. I learned from preparing Over the Hill for publication just how essential the copy edit is. (She is wonderfully professional, and very thorough. And worth every penny.)
Then the cover. Which will involve me spending an evening with Mark while he does very clever things with my photos and the computer. I don't have to understand it; I just sit beside him in amazement as he tweaks this here and that there and produces a cover. I'll show you when it's done. Since I don't have the cover yet, here is a photograph of monks chanting at Lumbini - the birthplace of Buddha. (There were no tigers in Lumbini.)
Then it's off to the ebook websites, to fight with the formatting again. Surely it won't be as trying as last time? I mean - I've done this once. I know the ropes now. Would that it were that easy. But I'm stocking up with cake and coffee, and plenty of wine for the really bad days. And I might even have a hissy fit on twitter if it's truly dreadful.
The timescale for all this - I should have it ready early in September. When I have a date - I'll tell you. Before then - I'll tempt you with the cover, and even an extract!! I'm beginning to get excited about this ...
Sunday, 5 August 2012
When is it ok to call me darling?
As I embraced feminism 'darling' was reduced to something I could accept from my grandmother, but from anyone else carried a hint of condescension. The man trying to sell me a car, the colleague who felt it was fine to press against me on the stairs, the creep at the party who sidled up with another glass of wine - I dismissed them all. 'Darling' was a word men used towards women, but women had no riposte. It was derogatory, implied I was some sort of floozie, an airhead, reduced to darlingdom that had nothing to do with ideas or thinking or genuine affection. A short-cut term that implied men had a right to claim my darlingness and I must be a killjoy if I should challenge them. It is, after all, only a bit of fun?
But suddenly something has changed. 'Darling' no longer has sexual connotations. It has become playful. It is fine when the man on the market calls me 'darling' - it is part of our Saturday banter. He can even suggest I've been out partying if I should happen to yawn, and it is a joke. He does not wave an erotic carrot, approach me with a courgette. 'Darling' is just part of our chattering, a token of affection and nothing more.
I also, as a grandmother, use it with my grandchildren. I can't find another word that gets close to expressing how wonderful I think they are. They are too little (yet) to complain.
I have not abandoned feminism. It has framed my thinking for the last fifty years and I'll be a feminist till the day I die. I simply notice how my attitude to the darling word has changed as I have aged. And you - are there words that got under your skin a few years ago, but that wash over you now?


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Striped Kamala Linen Cushion- Blue & Brown
Size: 50cm x 50cm
Material: Linen
Care: Dry Cleaner
Material: Linen
Care: Dry Cleaner
More Information
This Striped Kamala Linen Cushion in Blue and Brown is made from 100% linen and hand printed.
This linen cushion covers is made of a special 2 ply linen woven at a small cottage industry in eastern India.
The linen is then hand printed in northern India using silk screens and traditional methods of printing making each cushion cover unique.


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VMware buys Thinstall! What does this mean?
Today VMware announced they're acquiring application virtualization vendor Thinstall for an undisclosed amount of money. Thinstall has an application virtualization product that's similar to Microsoft SoftGrid, Citrix's Application Streaming, or Symantec / Altiris's SVS technology.
Today VMware announced they're acquiring application virtualization vendor Thinstall for an undisclosed amount of money. Thinstall has an application virtualization product that's similar to Microsoft SoftGrid, Citrix's Application Streaming, or Symantec / Altiris's SVS technology. It lets Windows clients run applications locally from a single-file package within a protected sandbox without ever having truly "installed" the application.
The key differentiator between Thinstall and the other products is that Thinstall is "agentless." It doesn't require any software agent to be pre-installed on a workstation before Thinstall-packaged applications can run. Of course in reality nothing is truly agentless--it's just that in Thinstall's case the client agent components are packaged into the EXE package along with the application files.
The specific mechanics of how Thinstall works are not important at this point. (We'll look at that more in the coming days and weeks.) What's important now is what this means in the grander scheme of things, namely, that VMware is now working their way out of the hardware virtualization game and into the application space.
If you think of the OSI stack, the "value" of each layer increases as you get further away from Layer 1 (the physical layer). Layer 1 is about copper and wires and electrons and photons. Layer 2 (the data link layer) is about physical connections like Ethernet and WiFi. Then you get up into protocol routing and stuff... This continues through Layer 7, the application layer, where things like HTTP live. Even though it was developed for computer networks, you can imagine how an OSI-like model might apply to computing in general (at least in terms of how applications are delivered to users.) At the bottom you have your physical hardware, then your operating system, then your user personalization, then your data, and then your applications. (You could argue the order of these higher layers, but probably everyone can agree that applications are more valuable to a business than the hardware on which they run.)
Apply that concept to software vendors like Citrix and VMware. Citrix started life at the "high level, high value" application layer. They only "stooped" down to lower layers (via hardware virtualization and disk virtualization) so they could increase their competitive position by offering the "full stack." (This is important becasue unlike the networking world with its open OSI model, no such model exists for the application delivery world. One company's lower level components are not necessarily compatible with another's higher components.)
VMware, on the other hand, began life down in the low layers of hardware (via hardware virtualization). Even though hardware virtualization can be very strategic to companies and can have its own nuanced layers, fundamentally hardware is "just" something an OS runs on (whether it's virtualized or not). And at some point everyone will have all the hardware virtualization they need and VMware will be in the commodities business.
The folks who run VMware aren't stupid. They know what Citrix's acquisition of XenSource means, and they know what Microsoft is trying to do with Hyper-V. In order to survive, VMware needs to climb up the application stack and into some higher value areas that are closer to the applications. This is where Thinstall comes in.
The immediate impact
First of all, VMware initially plans to continue selling Thinstall as is, except with the added bonus of thousands of VMware engineers, consultants, and tech support staff brought up to speed for support. They also claim that Thinstall will benefit from the VMware QA, distribution, and channel network. Later this year they hope to release a VMware-branded version of Thinstall that incorporates some of the most often-requested new features, although at this point they feel that product will still sport the "Thinstall" brand.
The most obvious place for Thinstall in VMware's solution stack is for use with their Windows XP and Windows Vista desktop delivery products, including their VDI solutions for server-based computing scenarios and VMware ACE for local computing scenarios. Thinstall is great here because the more apps you package with Thinstall, the less you have to build into your base Windows disk image that your desktop users will use.
Last September I wrote an article about the importance of a "stateless" desktop disk (which is important regardless of whether your users are running the desktop locally or remotely). Owning an application virtualization capability allows VMware to offer a more complete desktop delivery solution. Up until today, VMware's desktop solution went something like this:
VMware: "With our stuff, you can completely manage, deploy, and provide access to desktop instances of Windows from anywhere."
Customer: "Cool! What about my applications?"
VMware: "Ummm.... Citrix?"
We all know how much VMware and Citrix like each other now.
But now it can go like this:
VMware: "With our stuff, you can completely manage, deploy, and provide access to desktop instances of Windows from anywhere."
Customer: "Cool! What about my applications?"
VMware: "Glad you asked! You can use VMware Thinstall to 'virtualize' your applications too, and provide them on-demand wherever they're needed, whether that's within a virtual instance of Windows or on a physical Windows desktop."
The million-dollar question now is whether the Thinstall acquisition fulfills VMware's needs in the application space.
On the one hand, you could argue that single user-based SBC solutions (VDI) could replace multi-user terminal server-based SBC solutions (Citrix Presentation Server, Ericom, 2X, Quest / Provision) as hardware continues to fall in price and VDI user density approaches terminal server user density in terms of users per dollar.
On the other hand, all of VMware's solutions today are only useful if VMware is delivering and managing the entire desktop. (Again, this can be remotely via VDI or locally via VMware ACE.) But what if the user already has a desktop and doesn't need another one? This is where the beauty of single application publishing from those traditional terminal server-based application delivery companies comes in.
So what does VMware do next? Do they buy one of the terminal server-based SBC vendors do delivery applications into unmanaged desktops? Or do they assume that in the future, all applications will run on managed desktops, and unmanaged desktops will simply run a managed desktop in a VM? (Maybe even seamlessly?)
While you're thinking about this, don't forget that Microsoft will release Windows Server 2008 in a few weeks, and one of the new terminal server features is "Remote Applications," a capability that lets Windows-based clients connect to remote terminal server applications in a seamless way. The out-of-the-box feature from Microsoft isn't necessarily mature enough to use on its own, but maybe there's enough there for VMware to build upon?
Then again, that may be "dancing with the devil" for VMware, because if they wanted to just add management capabilities on top of core Microsoft capabilities, then why did they buy Thinstall instead of simply building on top of Microsoft SoftGrid? (The answer to that question may have to do with Microsoft's focus on SoftGrid, and the hoops they make customers jump through just to get the product!)
The bottom line is that it's no secret I think this is a brilliant move on VMware's part. (In fact I wrote "they might as well buy someone like ThinStall" in an article last October about whether VMware should focus more on applications.) What a great day in our industry!


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Product Design
We Help Entrepreneurs and Startups Bring Ideas To Life From Strategy To Prototype
We are working with early and late stage technology businesses looking to learn how to get their ideas off the ground. We bring together exceptional designers, product developers, Silicon Valley industry experts, and marketers to share their most exclusive learnings, provide rapid iterative design and research process. Join our community and find your product design team.
What We Do
Our Innovation Partners
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Tell us a bit about yourself and your startup, WeddingDates.
I'm Ciara Crossan, Founder & CEO of WeddingDates and passionate about technology and the hospitality industry. My degree from UCC in Business Information Systems gave me a great grounding in the overlap of tech and business and as business ownership is in my family I always thought I would like to start my own one day.
The idea for WeddingDates came about 9 years ago when I noticed many of my colleagues planning their wedding in work on the high speed internet (back then nobody had fiber in their homes!).
You could book a hotel bedroom online but you couldn't find out any information about availability in a hotel for a wedding – the gap was identified and armed with a laptop and a copy of the yellow pages, WeddingDates was born!
WeddingDates is an online software platform for hotels, wedding venues and suppliers to drive targeted wedding leads to their business and then manage their pipeline of enquiries right through to the ultimate booking. We also run consumer facing websites; WeddingDates.ie here in Ireland and WeddingDates.co.uk in the UK for couples planning their wedding to find venues and suppliers that are available on their date and get ideas and inspiration from our popular wedding blogs.
I was 25 when I started the company so am a big advocate for young entrepreneurship as well as Women in Business. Now there are more and more women starting companies and in leadership positions but back when I started most of my meetings were with men in suits. Then, three years ago I became a mum to twin boys so now I balance home-life with the business and am a strong believer in flexible working for parents.
What is your vision for your startup?
My vision has always be to become the Daft.ie of weddings. I would like to see WeddingDates.ie be the first place couples go to when they start to plan their wedding and for wedding businesses WeddingDates will be a source of expert information and industry insight.
What have been your biggest hurdles as an entrepreneur and how have you managed to overcome them?
One of the biggest challenges for me is juggling all the aspects to the business. I am naturally strong at sales and marketing and tend to gravitate towards those activities but there are so many other facets to the business that I have to oversee. I have had to learn to be comfortable in so many other areas; accounts, HR, legal etc. but it is all a balancing act.
What are your views on entrepreneurship in Cork?
Cork has been a great base for me to start my business. Back in 2008/2009 there was a great group called Cork Open Coffee full of other tech/entrepreneur types and I made some great connections in the early days that we a big help with advice and direction. I was involved in organizing a tech "unconference" called BarCamp Cork off the back of that too. In recent years much of the start up focus has been shifted to Dublin and the community up there is now bustling but we have some great entrepreneurial role models in Cork with the likes of Pat Phelan of Trustev and Peter Coppinger of Teamwork.
Now BuiltInCork, the group run by DC Cahalane, is probably the best start up/tech networking scene for us in Cork. The Rubicon Center is one of the top incubation centers in the country and I was lucky enough right out of the gates to get a place on their year long Genesis program (now New Frontiers) back in 2008. This was a massive help to me in the early days from the start up training, mentoring, peer support as well as a physical office space to go to every day. WeddingDates remained based in the Rubicon Center for 8 years and only this year moved out to our own premises in a business park near the airport.
Plugging into the Enterprise Boards, Enterprise Ireland and the incubation centers is a must for anyone starting up their own business.
There are of course financial supports available but in addition to that lots of courses and networking events which are key to an entrepreneurs self-growth.
What motivates you – in other words – why do you do what you do?
I absolutely love doing what I do! I get such a kick out of making new sales, satisfying our customers and seeing my team succeed and push themselves to always improve. The autonomy of running my own business is a big attraction for me but of course that comes with its own stresses! But overall, I would say I am very proud to have built up something that has been running nearly 9 years and employing a team of 8 people.


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Patient insight partner group
Our focus is to put people with arthritis at the heart of everything we do and ensure our decisions are guided by their perspective. This includes listening to and involving them in all aspects of our work. The perspective of people living with arthritis is key to ensuring that the research we fund is relevant, accessible and sensitive."I appreciate the way the charity encourages "patients first" and I believe that the way that patient insight partners contribute is inspirational" Maureen Grossman, patient insight partner.
We're one of the leading medical research charities in incorporating routine public and patient involvement into the research funding decision-making process, initially in the form of the USER stakeholder committee, which was established in 2008.
In line with our current strategic focus, we have innovated new ways of involving the patient voice, building on the previous success of USER.
The patient voice is integrated fully into all of our research activities through close collaboration with our patient insight partners. This group work alongside researchers and health care professionals to ensure relevance whilst maintaining our high standards of research quality.
We collaborate with our patient insight partners on a number of activities including:
- setting research priorities
- supporting researchers to undertake effective public and patient involvement
- reviewing research proposals
- monitoring and providing ongoing input into funded research
- evaluating and disseminating outcomes of research.
To find out more about becoming a patient insight partner, please contact us at email@example.com.
Becoming a patient insight partner
Our patient insight partners contribute to our research funding decision making activities in many ways, including:
- The review and evaluation of research applications (at panel meetings and/or at home)
- setting research priorities
- evaluating and disseminating research outcomes such as the work of our centres of excellence.
Maureen Grossman, one of our patient insight partners, comments: "I'm asked to take part in a range of activities, such as visiting centres of excellence, commenting on products designed to make life easier for patients, lobbying my MP, working with European partners in osteoarthritis research and co-delivering workshops to help scientists involve patients in their activities."
As our patient insight partner group continues to grow in its volume and diversity, we welcome enquiries from people with experience of arthritis in any of its forms (whether that be patient, or carer, family or friend of someone with arthritis) and an interest or experience in health-related issues and/or medical research.
We would love to hear from anyone who:
- Enjoys communicating with a variety of different people
- would like to use their lived experience of musculoskeletal conditions to improve research
- is happy to constructively critique research in order to ensure that the patient is kept at the heart of the project.
The process of becoming a patient insight partner involves submitting an application and attending an interview. Interviews can take place in a variety of locations across the country (subject to requirement) or via Skype.
To find out more about how to apply, contact the research involvement team on firstname.lastname@example.com
One of our key principles around involving people with arthritis in our research activities is to ensure that they feel supported. To ensure that our patient insight partners have the tools available to undertake the tasks we ask of them, we've developed a series of resources and pulled together a list of helpful reference documents and web links.
We know that research applications aren't always written in accessible language so we've put together a glossary of terms (PDF 433 KB) to support people when reviewing and evaluating applications.
NIHR patient and public involvement learning zone
The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) have developed a learning zone with a variety of resources for patient and public involvement (and engagement) including online courses and information around involvement in clinical trials.
INVOLVE resources
INVOLVE is the national advisory group for public involvement in research in the UK. The INVOLVE website includes many resources for researchers and members of the public around health and social care research, including involvement cost calculators and training for the public
We know that if you are considering applying to become a patient insight partner (PIP), you might have some questions. Below are some of the key questions that our PIPs told us they had before, during and after the volunteer recruitment process.
Q: What's the application and interview process to become a patient insight partner?
A: We currently have a two-stage application process, whereby we ask that prospective PIPs submit an application form and CV, followed by an informal interview with the research involvement team and a current PIP. Interviews are scheduled across a wide geographical area to ensure that they're as accessible as possible.
Q. What skills and experience do you need to become a patient insight partner?
A. Patient insight partners bring a variety of skills, including excellent communication skills (written and verbal), tact in critiquing the work of researchers, and a willingness to challenge conventional thinking. Ultimately PIPs all have one thing: experience and insight of day-to-day life with a musculoskeletal condition.
Q. Is there any training provided?
A: Yes, we provide all PIPs with an induction which incorporates some 'on the job' training, as well as continuous training at patient insight days throughout the year. We also have a resource pack that all PIPs can reference while undertaking the role.
Q. What kind of activities might I be asked to do?
A. Within research, we have a wide variety of projects all of which we aim to involve PIPs in. Traditional activities are based around review and evaluation of research applications (written and panel reviews), but we also invite PIPs to contribute to priority setting activities, monitoring of our centres of excellence, and other projects such as reviewing of new product ideas in the Design Council Spark awards. We also work closely with other parts of the charity to give PIPs the opportunity to contribute to other work outside of research.
Q. Are there any expected minimum commitments in terms of time and duties?
A. It is up to you to decide how much (or how little) time you would like to contribute. We advertise opportunities as they come up (a couple of times every month) and ask PIPs to give us their preference of what they would like to do. We do however, appreciate that everyone has other commitments in life, and advocate that PIPs respond with a 'no' when they need to. As a minimum, we ask that any new PIPs attend a one-day (10am to 3pm) induction. Patient insight days take place approximately three times a year and we would actively encourage PIPs to attend at least one of these.
Q. Are health conditions accommodated for and how do these impact on the role?
A. Any activities that PIPs undertake in the role will be sensitive to all long-term health conditions, including arthritis. Meetings are designed around good musculoskeletal health, and much thought is put into accessibility and the needs of PIPs. For PIPs who are unable to travel for any reason, we offer activities which can be undertaken at home or set up teleconference capabilities where appropriate. During all-day meetings, adequate breaks are factored in, as well as timings that allow PIPs to travel outside of peak times.
Q. Is this a paid role and will volunteering cost me anything?
A. This is a voluntary role and therefore unpaid. However, volunteering shouldn't cost you anything. We can happily arrange travel and accommodation beforehand, ensuring that PIPs aren't out-of-pocket for any events that they attend. Expenses incurred whilst carrying out the role are reimbursed (standard-class travel, mileage, overnight stays as agreed).
Contact us
Are you interested in becoming a patient insight partner but want to know more about what it's really like? Do you have a burning question that you can't find the answer to on our web pages? Contact the research involvement team on email@example.com.


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