Happy Friday!

This is the worst personal news of my week. (it’s not but I’m British and I’m going to make a mountain out of this to avoid what’s actually happening!) Melvyn Bragg steps down from Radio 4’s In Our Time. I love In Our Time and it will not be the same without.

I saw a poor, lonely man wandering the A4 – then realised the sheer joy of where he was heading. I know that stretch of motorway and it’s grim, so is losing to Sunderland away!

‘Our hallway’s big enough to play football in!’ The council housing that feels like a holiday resort

The Baby Died. Whose fault is it? This is horrific.

It’s not about Rayner or Farage: the real tax story is how the super-rich avoid paying their share. I have a lot of thoughts about Angela Rayner and Peter Mandelson, as it goes. It’s about hubris. You are in public life, you have to be squeaky clean, you have to be seen to be squeaky clean, if it looks even slightly dodgy, if you have to explain yourself in a very complicated fashion, don’t do it. Don’t be arrogant. But yes also the issue is the super rich and their assumption they can do what they like, largely because they can buy politicians, and we’re back to needing people in public life to be squeaky clean

I’m exhausted but am surviving. How can I heal from burnout without expensive time off?. Oh this hit me where I live. I came across a phrase the other day that just sums up being single and childless. “Lots of people care about me but no-one cares for me”. For me, the non-negiotable is sleep, I go to bed at 10pm and I get up by 7am, I’ve been tired since Stef died but I work on having at least one night a week where the tracker logs 8 hours of sleep. Other things are doing the things that bring you joy, for me thats the plot. And I have planned little things that make me feel good, so from now until Christmas I am going to a couple of comedy gigs by myself because they start at 7pm and end by 9pm and I’m home in bed by about 10pm! And Christelle and I are going to Paris for the day. They are not massive holidays but they are holidays from everyday life!