Great Distraction

There is far too many things around here to cause one to become distracted.  I have a good understanding of ADHD and the prerequisite of chemical imbalances that exists in the ADHD brain. The many children and adults who have been misdiagnosed, in my opinion, because they simply live a world of distractions.  

It is difficult to concentrate, not because the chemicals in the brain are disproportionate in a way that speeds up brain function and causes thoughts to zigzag and bounce around instead of moving in a direct pathway towards finishing.  It is difficult to concentrate because the world simply presents far too many detours which are, usually, more appealing to our childlike minds.   Radio, Television, Internet and even the old fashioned book all avail themselves to us at any time of the day or night - beckoning to us - tempting us with adventure, friends, humour and above all escape.  Many of these media are useful for work and communication, keeping us up to date with the latest news, catching us up with family and friends, offering information and allowing the construction of products 'easier'.  All the while, they sneak into our lives and tease us with the answers to any and every question you ever wanted to ask (good on you Google), photos of animals with cute captions (thanks a bunch Haz Cheeseburger), updates complete with pictures and videos of every fleeting move or random thought our friends and family feel the need to share (fabulous job there facebook and twitter) then there are the videos of teenagers lip-syncing bad pop music (yay Youtube).  Don't get me started on the ridiculous and addictive online gaming, the millions of dollars spent on ebay and other online shopping sites where spending money is so simple that it is hard to track how much you have spent.  Then, someone thought it would be a great idea to make all these things available to us on a pocket size device! 

Where is this rant coming from? 

This weekend I had, probably for the first time in ages, reasonable and modest plans.  I was going to get out of the house with the BFF, tidy up my room, do some grocery shopping and catch up on a few blog posts (maybe two or three).  Nothing ambitious on that list at all.  But, even my conservative list was thwarted by my laptop pre-crisis.  There were viruses and weird programs playing havoc with almost every function of my computer.  The BLUE SCREEN OF DEATH hadn't popped up yet, but I could see it on the horizon heading towards me with a sinister laugh every time I threw my hands up in frustration at the stupidity of my laptop... it was being rather difficult... like a naughty child. So, instead of sitting by and waiting for the sky to fall, I decided to head it off by cleaning up the drives and running some basic maintenance.  Unfortunately, I am about as good at virtual cleaning as I am at actually cleaning and my virtual mop and bucket was ineffectual.  Therefore a restoration to factory settings was in order and that took a good 3 or 4 hours.  Bear in mind, this was additional time after I had spent at least 4 hours trying to do everything in my power to fix the problem without resorting to a compete system rebuild.  I have spent a lot of time in the past 4 days running scans, reading help articles, defragmenting, updating, backing up, processing, registering, checking and restarting in an attempt to fix the problems.  I am convinced that the end was, indeed, near and this was the best course of action to avoid a catastrophic failure at an eminently inconvenient time (report cards are due in little more than a week).  However, the true source of the mysterious computer illness is still unknown to me... hence it's mystery I suppose.  

Anyway - my point... there really is one... is this.  Just when we think that we have it altogether and we are focusing in the correct direction, something comes along to drag us away.  Sometimes, we are strong and the little tug does nothing to pull us off the path, we stay put.  Even better, we keep travelling on the path that is heading directly towards the goal.  That is when the great distractions become even greater and we do need to be literally, dragged to be pulled off the path.  Unfortunately, I fear that most often it only takes something shiny to distract us.  A small thing that leads us in the direction of the BLUE SCREEN OF DEATH, a tiny glimmer of something in the corner of our eye and we are suddenly merging to exit.  Our path becomes foggy and unclear and the distraction is lost among the pandemonium of trinkets and tassels and even squirrels.  

How are we ever to get back on track?  Perhaps the best way is to close one's eyes and be sure to ignore the glitter and the glam.  Let the inevitable distractions do without us for a while... they really won't mind... and remember what is really important.  This is certainly easier said than done.  Sometimes the distractions are necessary learning curves, experiences that must be endured so that the true path can be forged with less fuss.  

This post was a long and winding road!  I wonder if you managed to keep up with me.  I wonder if you feel the same way.  I wonder what .. what .. what that noise is?  I wonder where I put that book.  What groceries did I need to buy?  What will I have for dinner on Tuesday?  Hhhmm, is there any pizza?  Oh look, frozen yogurt!  

Oh, you're still here!  What was I writing about?

Bye! 

6 More Great Words

To read more about 6 word memoirs click here.  If you want to share a 6 word memoir with me please do so in the comments section or link back to your own 6 word memoir posts.  
I also want to tell you that I created this in Microsoft Word using the basic text box, formatting, auto shapes and snipping tools.  It was relatively simple and the most time consuming step was choosing the fonts that I liked!

Here's Hoping your Wednesday is Wonderful!

A Great Video- Apparently

Hello - Hagrid here.

M reckons that this is the greatest video ever.  I am not so sure myself.  It's a video of Shelly playing with a ping pong ball in a washing basket.  M has been doing a great job of boring everyone with it. You guys are no exception.  I have tried to hold her off as long as I could.

I don't get it either.
Have a great week and don't forget to hug your teddy bear!

May I say, that I was just hanging out in the laundry basket when M chucked the ping pong ball in with me. She is a bit of a nut, you know.  I was merely defending myself.  I might add that M did not ask for my permission to record my play time in the privacy of my own home.  Once it's on the internet it will never go away, therefore I must simply accept that you are humans and you lot will insist on invading the privacy of the adorable.  Hagrid might not understand why M finds me so entertaining, but at least there aren't any embarrassing videos of him on any blog sites.  I will take solace in the fact that AGT has a tiny following and this shouldn't hurt my chances of becoming famous for something dignified - like juggling.

Shelly - Meow!

A Great Whine

I like Puns.

I like blogging.  Actually, I love blogging.  Often, my love of blogging causes me to devote too much time to it - much to the detriment of my "homework".  Don't I sound grown up! 

This might seem quite contradictory, as you are expecting some whining.  Don't worry, it will come. You might be thinking that I often seem to go underground and my work couldn't possibly suffer at the mercy of my blogging schedule.  While that is probably true, I would often rather choose my love instead of my job.  Unfortunately, my job is not so much a love as it used to be (insert sad face here).

My school is a place of change.  A place where stability is spoken of highly, but not often experienced. A school should be a dynamic environment that quickly adapts to the circumstances and community within it.  I get that.  Sometimes, things move so much faster than I can handle.  My aversion to change aside, the speed with which our leaders make decisions and activate their plans often results in: errors of judgement, structural breakdown, communication breakdowns and at times, failed implementations.

Some might say that my mental and physical state slows and dulls my own thinking processes.  Some might say that I am the one who needs to adjust my pace.  Perhaps the seemingly breakneck speed at which my workplace operates is, in fact, the rate of normal.  But, I still worry.

My perception could be a bit whacked, but the facts don't change.  There are still decisions being made without appropriate consideration of all the factors and products involved.  There are still break downs in communication and great (as in, huge... not good) mistakes are made.  Even worse, the mistakes are not acknowledged, then future judgements don't take these errors and issues into account.

This might seem a bit more than cryptic to you, my dear readers.  I hope it doesn't stop you from continuing along the journey with me.  Let me try to explain.
I'm frustrated, angry, sad and disappointed.  I no longer have faith in the leadership of my workplace and this causes me to doubt if I have outlived my usefulness.  The fact that I struggle to keep up with the ever increasing speed of change not only causes me to question my superiors, it also makes me question myself.

I don't like politicians or decision makers right now.  It isn't personal.  Maybe it is.  But I urge you, dear readers, do not keep running to try and keep up.  Instead, work out what speed works for you and be prepared to watch the pack as they leave you behind.

Slow down!  Take your time!
Look at all the angles and consider all the options that are before you.  Don't be angry.  Don't be quick to judge or afraid to acknowledge the mistakes you have made.  It is far better learn from them.  Don't you agree?  Move forward slowly, especially if your decisions will have an impact on the quality of a service people depend on.  Move forward fairly and remember that the world is not always about you.
How difficult it is to accept that your world is not the only one.

I hope you are not as confused as I am right now.  Perhaps go look at something pretty to lift your mood now that you have seen what happens in my dusty cobwebbed mind if late.  Don't worry.  Mum is on a cleaning frenzy.. no doubt she will get around to vacuuming the inside of my head one day.

I've whined better before.  Perhaps next time.

A Great Story... about Cats

A cat lives at one of the houses on the main road.  She walks to the bus stop, near her house, so she can visit with the people waiting for the bus.  She lies beside the seat and watches the cars go by.  She knows when the bus is late.  She revels in the added minutes of company while waiting passengers sit mesmerized by her presence.   The fuzzy grey ball sighs, as the bus rolls to a stop.

********************************

This anecdote is based on a true story (sort of).  You see, there really is a cat in our local area that likes to spend his time at the nearby bus stop.  He or She (I couldn't get a proper look) enjoys the company of the locals as they await the arrival of their bus.  The passing traffic, although often quite loud, doesn't seem to disturb him/her in the slightest.  I know if Shelly were sitting at a bus stop she would be off like a shot the second a large vehicle zoomed past her position.  She would be difficult to find until dinner time too.  I'm sure you can understand my curiosity at the rather calm demeanor of the fluffy grey feline while I was waiting for my bus last week.  The most intriguing and perhaps the most amusing part of this series of events is yet to come. 

We all know that I like to add a picture or two to my blog posts.  Now is not the time to examine why I find it necessary to add images (usually borrowed from somewhere if not a photo of my furry friends). The usual method of choosing these images is quite simple: Google Image Search.  Nice! :D

The results of the search uncovered something that I simply had to share.  Not just the images that appeared (although some of them were certainly far from what I had expected to see), but a few news stories and blog posts.  It seems that the Old Grey Tom ain't the only one.  There are a couple of kitty's in the UKwho not only hang out at the bus stop, but like to hitch a ride as well. 

Check this out. 

 This kitty - nicknamed Macavity - apparently catches the bus to the local fish and chip shop.  Click here for details. 

This Ginger cat - nicknamed Dodger - has been reported to take round trips on various buses that leave from the bus station behind his owner's home.  Click here for more info. There is even a book that is rumored to have been based on Dodger's travels, titled The Little Cat and the Big Red Bus. 


Then there is Casper who rode the same bus everyday for 4 years.  Sadly, he died after a traffic accident, when he was hit by a car.  The hit and run driver was never found.  Casper has also had a picture book written about him and has his very own wikipedia page.  

You can't make this stuff up!