“Lost generation of over-50s”
It comes as no surprise that analysis of official data has suggested unemployed people over the age of 50 are more than twice as likely as younger groups to be out of work for at…
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Turning a corner
I’ve been to a couple of leaving do’s for former colleagues in the last couple of weeks. It’s been nice to catch up with people and to remember stories or events from the past. But…
He(a)r Majesty
I’ve been wearing a hearing aid for about five years. It seems I’m in good company after The Queen was seen wearing a hearing aid in public for the first time. I have asymmetric hearing…
What’s the big deal
I can’t understand what the fuss is about over a former MP turning up at a job centre to seek work. As I’ve chronicled on this blog, all sorts of people find themselves out of…
One door closes …
It’s six months since my corporate life came to an end when my post was made redundant. It’s also six months since I started blogging. Today also happens to be New Year’s Day so it’s…
The ties that bind us
I’ve spent a few days back in the corporate world. It felt both odd and reassuring: odd to be mixing with other professionals after so many weeks not working; and reassuring that my skills and…
I am a free man
On a train trip to north Wales in the summer, I visited Portmeirion, the Italian-style village designed and built by Sir Clough Williams-Ellis and used as the set for the 1960s’ cult TV series ‘The…
I’m listening
One of my all-time favourite TV shows is ‘Frasier’. The catchphrase of radio psychotherapist Dr Frasier Crane, played by the brilliant Kelsey Grammer, was “I’m listening”. The reason I mention it is because I’ve always…
Lost links
It was a long, long time ago. Long before ID cards. It was a rite of passage. I’m referring to getting served in a pub under the age of 18. I tried it a few…
A few of my favourite things
They certainly know how to put on a show, those Viennese. Every street in the city centre is rammed with statues of Habsburg rulers and reminders of the country’s imperial past. This once was a…