A select few pieces I've read online in the last month...
Human Rights
There is a longer read human rights piece by the Guardian that has shocked me to the core. It's so easy to forget that things like this are happening, but we must always be aware of democracy and justice in other countries.
Covid
It's so clear to me that we should all be wearing masks in indoor space, but if you're not convinced, look at this article that breaks the thinking behind it down in a clear, interesting way.
Life
It's up to you how you wish to live your life, and although finding a second form of profession at retirement age might not be the dream of everyone, this man makes the point that we should all find something to get us out of bed in the morning. I couldn't agree more with that stance.
Money
I have never been that interested in money, but I am at that time in my life, where I need to think about what I really want and how I'm going to get it. I found this article on The Cut.
I'm not a fan of how this world operates in an ethical sense, so I am generally put off by many elements of our financial industry, and our unlimited growth and economy driven bullshit.
I don't like the thought of 'buying into' property development, when the UK housing crisis is in the state it is in. I don't feel comfortable shackling myself to a mortgage, essentially giving up my freedom, and taking on extra admin and stress for the sake of being a 'valued home owner'. I don't feel comfortable participating in gentrification of places that cause local communities to be priced out, and I do not appreciate that there is less and less social housing available, pushing more people to be homeless. But what to do to lead a quality, happy life, when you live in a society that prizes money above all else? Buy land and build something? Invest into green energy and hope for long term return? Open a high yield savings account and carry on minding your own business? Go travelling and say sod you, I'm not saving for shit! Who knows, but I do know having a cushion of money is sensible, (and allows you to not be constantly financially anxious) and learning how to grow you money in an ethical way is sensible, for me anyway, which in this world, for my generation, is hard. Really really hard.
Anyway on my 'what to do with money' travels I found an article with a seemingly similar predicament.
Tech
Uh oh, Facebook are getting their claws around Whatsapp privacy issues. You might have already seen this in the news, but following on from this, there are a few things we can do to make sure that we keep things private. As time goes on, I am growing more and more wary of how my personal data is being harvested, and often think how great it could be if I completely got rid of all my personal social media accounts, but the problem lies when you have connections through business, or like me, a personal blog, which requires an accompanying social media account. Ahh, what to do?
Volunteering
I've signed up for some volunteering work for the COP26 event in Glasgow in November, which runs from the 1st - 12th November, and I've also signed up for the NHS Stewardship volunteering position, guiding people around the vaccination sites. There is a list of different volunteering roles, (unfortunately I am not eligible to be a vaccinator) and there is comprehensive information on the site.
FYI I've been volunteering in all sorts of ways over the last few years, but in 2020 I picked up so many varied volunteering gigs, it is a slight wonder why I have not yet got volunteering fatigue. I think the trick is to know when to take a break, know when you've taken on too much and need to say no, and keep things varied by switching activities up.
Children's Books
Let's leave on a heart warmer then, this cute article tells us about a book called The Snail with the Right Heart, a children's book with beautiful illustrations by Ping Zhu that depict elements of philosophy, love, existence, beauty and diversity. I've nabbed this from the article, but please read the whole thing.
"Great children’s books move young hearts, yes, but they also move the great common heart that beats in the chest of humanity by articulating in the language of children, which is the language of simplicity and absolute sincerity, the elemental truths of being: what it means to love, what it means to be mortal, what it means to live with our fragilities and our frissons. As such, children’s books are miniature works of philosophy, works of wonder and wonderment that bypass our ordinary resistances and our cerebral modes of understanding, entering the backdoor of consciousness with their soft, surefooted gait to remind us who and what we are."
Nice huh?