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I Don’t Wanna Talk About It

Male suicide is the second biggest killer of young men in this country, yet the problem remains largely ignored. When you think that we’re often brought up to believe that boys don’t cry, perhaps it’s not that much of a surprise that so few people feel able to talk about how they’re feeling.

In an attempt to understand this problem more deeply and to see if more can be done to raise awareness of the issue, I’ve agreed to spend some pro bono time with the Campaign Against Living Miserably (or CALM for short), a charity established to help reduce the high suicide rate among young men.

CALM are particularly interested to learn more about how they can use social media to campaign more effectively on behalf of the people who need their services, and don’t yet know they exist. And this is where you come in. I thought it would be interesting and useful to throw open the question, ‘how can we use the social sphere as a means of raising awareness of male suicide?’ to you too.

I’m visiting the CALM offices this Friday – it would be great to have some thoughts and ideas from you that we could play around with by then. Please speak up, I’m looking forward to hearing from you. And if you’d rather contact me privately feel free to use the contact us page of this website.

Cycle of Silence

Following the publication of the USADA report into routine doping in the world of professional cycling, Dutch firm Rabobank has announced its decision to stop sponsoring a professional cycling team from the end of this year. Rabobank has said it will continue its ties with amateur cycling as a sponsor, including the youth training and the cyclocross team.

Current pro cyclist David Millar (who has himself served a ban for doping) has lambasted the bank for their decision, calling it ‘sickening.’ He’s gone on to publish an open letter to the bank in which states he believes it is the ‘duty’ of Rabobank and others, to stand by the sport. I think Millar is plain wrong on this. It’s not his job to try and coerce anyone to pay money to keep the sport going. Rabobank can decide to sponsor whoever they wish or not and reap the benefits and suffer the consequences accordingly. Personally I think a total collapse in sponsorship of the professional sport now could help in the long run – a total rebuild including a new professional body (because let’s face it the UCI aren’t coming out of this well at all) and a total removal of anyone found to cheat or have cheated.

Meanwhile Rabobank and others can continues to support the sport through investment in grass roots cycling, if they want to of course.

photo credit – the drawing above is by @BagOfGuts on Twitter. I love it, absolutely love it! I’ve approached the artist for permission to use the picture. I hope they will continue to let me do so. Fingers crossed.

 

Miss You

I don’t think we ever get over the loss of someone close, it’s more like we just move further away from the moment. I find myself catching thoughts of Mum, often unexpected, always welcome – and she died back in 1984. I find these experiences a very lovely kind of sad, if you know what I mean?

Keira has been missing her Grandpa this week. It started at school on Tuesday when her class were asked to make up a story for the local newspaper. Like most kids, Keira doesn’t read the newspaper that often and the request took her mind back to the articles and obituaries that appeared locally when Dad died earlier this year.  Since then she’s had a few wobbly moments and has also decided to make her story about Grandpa, which I think is a neat idea.

I appreciate Keira’s vulnerability as a part of what makes her the complete person Carole and I love so much. Whether we know that vulnerability through the death of someone close or some other reason, we all have it, and I think we’re better for acknowledging it.