Today is all about…July 2023

As August is known to be a busy one socially, I thought I would get this July ‘Today is all about’ out of the way quickly. Turns out, that didn’t happen!

For another year, it shall be light as I didn’t write anything else in June blog-wise.

Again, like last month, that is a lie! I did write a blog. I have finished it. Just not posted.

The post was about Philip Schofield, and the “unwise but not illegal” incident”. However, I wasn’t sure how people would react as it’s a sensitive subject.

And then the hoo-ha about the BBC presenter made me place it on hold, with a possible revisit, especially around the kangaroo court of the media and social media.

When you thought everything was over, the trilogy was released, with the disgrace of journalist Dan Wootton creating his storylines.

It feels like, if I were to continue with the original post, then I would need to release an additional two about the other situations, but I just don’t have the time. Which is frustrating!

I have also been doing some background updates to the website.

July saw how disorganised and dysfunctional Musk is, especially with his mismanagement of Twitter. His rebrand of the company could have been achieved more successfully by a group of students as part of their GCSE coursework!

So, I’m doing a lot of work in preparation for the demise of the Twitter platform and/or the closing of my account. The plan is to finish this little project soon.

For now, though, enjoy the Talking Points for July.

Talking Points

Anxiety be gone

I’ve never shied away from discussing my anxiety and depression.

At the beginning of the year, and as part of my 2023 Goals, I made the decision that I wanted to come off my medication, as I felt I was in a good place mentally.

The plan was to reduce my dosage from 150mg to finally 0 over the year. With the plan of decreasing the dosage every couple of months.

However, I knew that this journey could provide some obstacles, so I didn’t want to place pressure on myself, as that wouldn’t help in the long run.

If I didn’t get to 0 that’s okay. If I needed to increase the dosage because I was struggling, that was okay too!

GP Support

The support I’ve received from my GP has been fantastic.

They’ve made it clear that I’m controlling this journey, and their role is to support me through it.

They also made regular calls to me during the transition period, to make sure I wasn’t having side effects that could be damaging.

GP receptionists on the other hand…

Receptionists at medical practices think they have spent years in medical college that they can tell me what to do.

My medication has always been on repeat prescription, and there have never been any issues. I just order through the app, it gets approved and I just pick it up from my local chemist.

However, after April’s dosage drop, for some reason, the repeat prescription was cancelled.

When it came to May’s re-order, I had to phone the doctors and the receptionist told me off for leaving it late!

I did remind her, that maybe if my repeat prescription wasn’t cancelled I would have had them on time. The fact that I was late, was due to troubles getting through, and additional work commitments. Now I will run out before I can get the prescription!

But it was the receptionist telling me ‘I didn’t need them anyway’, that shocked and upset me.

The fucking audacity!

After a few days without medication, I received a call to sort it out. I made a complaint, both for the repeat prescription being cancelled and for what the receptionist said.

It appears that fuck all was done about either!

When it came to June’s prescription, I was in the same predicament that there wasn’t a repeat prescription available.

So, back on the phone, I went to try and sort everything out. The receptionist informed me that they would get someone to call me.

Now, whether they took things into their own hands, I don’t know, because that call never came!

Life got control and I remembered a few days later that I never got the call, and I just couldn’t be arsed with all the drama!

Premature stop

I was already planning to take the next step in June, whether to half or stop the medication.

I took this non-phone call as an intervention and was a sign for me to stop the medication now.

What could possibly go wrong?

Thankfully, I have had very minimal side effects that I can think of or was aware of. Yes, my emotions have been a little erratic of late, but I’ve managed. But reducing medication is different to stopping…right?

The medication side effects generally take around two weeks to come out of the system.

So July saw that two weeks had passed, and my confidence was that I was no longer on the medication and I was happy.

And just because I am off the meds, it doesn’t mean I’m cured!

I still suffer from anxiety and depression. It’s just that it’s manageable that I don’t need the support right now.

That doesn’t mean that I won’t need help in the future. Whether therapy or prescription.

I just know, at the moment, I am in a good place.

#NotTamesidePride

Summer has been a slight washout for the UK, with June the wettest on record! July was also the wettest on record for Greater Manchester.

A group of us planned to go to Tameside Pride, but at the last minute was cancelled due to adverse weather!

So what is a gay to do?

Well, we plan to still go. While the main event was cancelled, the local bar, Sykes, was still holding an event.

So a gaggle of gays descended on ‘Stalyvegas’!

As much as this should have been a tacky day out, on paper, a great time was had by all.

Living in the city centre we are spoilt on where to go, but Sykes gave a variety of characters in one place.

Granted, when we arrived, it did look like we were about to invade the place. But then people arrived and the atmosphere just exploded even more.

I had a great time, and I even got to meet Sandra from Gogglebox…even though I don’t watch the show!

Colors Festival

I have been known to attend a few galleries/art exhibitions in my time, including Van Gogh Live and Banksy.

As much as I would love to have this level of talent, I don’t. So I just have to admire it instead!

I came across Colors Festival on Faceache, and it intrigued me for two reasons.

Firstly, it was an immersive street art show. It’s designed to place you into the work, play with and experience it differently.

Secondly, it was being presented in a disuses Staples store!

The Show

The exhibition showcased the work of a large group of artists, with their unique styles.

Entering via a bright pink room that looks 24 toon and contains art framed on the wall. When you look back and you are presented with a huge Barbie print wall!

You go through numerous stages including a neon section, where you can create a piece of work (colouring in) which can be hung up and become part of the exhibition!

You leave via a powerful LGBT+ space that showcases Queen/Freddie Mercury images!

Overall Thoughts

Was it the best art exhibition? Nope! But that doesn’t matter. It was nice to do something different on a damp July Saturday!

The exhibition was feeling a bit of wear and tear, but if you look past that you can see great pieces of art, and get introduced to some amazing artists.

I think it was well displayed and presented. You can tell that Color Festival has done numerous iterations of the art festival in other cities.

Be warned though, if you see the ads for it in your city, the art may not be what is being displayed. They recycled the imagery from previous/other Color Festival exhibitions.

The shop was good, but small. It kind of felt like an afterthought, which is a shame. The art was stacked in boxes like you were flicking through bric-a-brac, and I’m sure that there was work from previously exhibited artists too.

Another thing I thought was a little disappointing, was the website. While it advertises the artists involved in the exhibition, it does link to their socials/website. The lack of artist promotion is disappointing!

‘Today is all about…’ photos