Day one in Devon

To say that we are tired is an understatement.

I got home late last night and was not too pleased when my wife woke, as planned at about four in the morning. I tried and failed to get back to sleep, so got up and packed.  We left later than she had planned though.  The drive took us along the M4 and not past Stonehenge (one of our children admitted that they had thought it was in Scotland once and the other asked when we were to pass it).  When we got to Bristol, traffic started to be a major issue.  I tried to avoid it by driving round Bristol, but missed the turning, so drove into it.  That was a mistake.  The children helpfully pointed out that thanks to my diversion, our ETA changed from noon to 1400 hours! But the drive was not as stressful.

However, we did get here.  Unlike last time, we are in the cottage and it is even more relaxing than when we stayed before.  

I have been for a walk with Leia already, which she loved.  The image that I have posted was taken by my daughter when Leia was waiting for my wife and I coming back from Barnstaple with take away food.

13 Reasons Why; The Drunk Slut

I watched this with my son yesterday. Another good episode.  While many could argue that this topic comes up over and over again, the counter is that for too many women, this issue comes up over and over again.

It did result in a conversation with my son about consent, but also why women do not come forwards when it comes to harassment, sexual assault and rape. But we also discussed the conviction rate when women do come forwards.

My last Wednesday vaccinating

Today was my last Wednesday vaccinating. I think.  I am still to vaccinate people at the surgery and now the requirements for storage of the Pfizer vaccine have changed, that means that I may be mixing again.

I say vaccinating, I was mixing the vaccines today, like I do most Wednesday’s.  However being the clinician in charge of the morning, that meant dealing with the collapse, the almost collapse and the queries about if we should vaccinated a few patients.

This work has been hard as it has meant that I have not had the time to do the rest of my CCG work.  Which means that I am very behind on my e-mails, and also my appraisal!  Hopefully I will be able to sort this all out over the next few Wednesday’s in the next month or two.

13 Reasons Why; Two Girls Kissing

I watched this with my son as we slowly work our way through the season.  As the title suggests, the theme is about a same sex kiss.  

Life was easier when I was younger.  Saying that, being a nerd, I never got the courage to ask a girl out at the age of these characters. But, then, it was rarer for someone to accept their sexuality.

The ghost/hallucination of Hannah was an interesting addition to the series.  Skye is lovely, and watching her trip to the house of Clay’s parents, my son warned me to be nice when he brings someone special home.

The Holy Land, again.

My daughter asked me for a quick summary about what has happened in The Holy Land.  It is a bit hard to explain this.

From my understanding, issues arose as a result of the eviction of non-Jews from Jerusalem, violence towards Muslims during Ramadan, and the violence at the Dome of the Rock.

Let me be clear, I think that a two state solution is needed.  I consider the way Israel acts towards those in the West Bank and Gaza to be the actions of apartheid, but I am also aware that Christians and Muslims in Israel have more rights than the Palestinian Authority or Hamas allows them in Gaza or the West Bank.  But the situation for Christians and Muslims in Israel is changing.    

Back in 1993, the Oslo Peace Accords had been signed and it looked like a just peace for many would come to the region.  Yes, many Palestinian refugees considered this to be unfair, but it was a better situation than things had been before.  But then settlement expansion started to take place.  Some considered these to expansion of settlements that had already existed, but many considered otherwise.  Basically, the Palestinians negotiated a peace deal, and then Israel ignored it.  

The issue of the Right Of Return is a contentious one.  Allowing Jews with an ancestral right to return to Israel is right, but only if the same right is given to the Christians and Muslims who used to live in Palestine. Two examples of this are two villages, Iqrit and Kafr Bir'im. But I doubt that is going to happen.

As much as I disagree with the actions of Israel towards its non-Jewish population, as well as its actions in annexing land in Jerusalem, there is no justification for Hamas to fire missiles from Gaza, even though Israel has attempted to lay siege to it, and I understand why Israel has responded with force.  

There is a lot I have missed out, but I have to return to work now.

Why I think that safe spaces should be genitalia based

Posting this on The International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia may be a red flag to some, but this has been something I wanted to update my view on for a while.  I have posted my views on this before and I am aware that many will consider me to be transphobic for my views.

Part of my views are based, not on discrimination against those who are trans, but rather based on safeguarding.  My job role involves this, and I have encountered predators both in a personal as well as professional role.  Put simply, I have few concerns that someone who is trans is going to assault others, specifically, I have few concerns that someone with a penis who is a genuine transwoman, is to assault a biological woman in a safe space.  This is despite having treated someone who identifies as a woman, who did sexually assault women (they were in secure accommodation to control that risk).  I am more concerned that men who wish to sexually assault women or worse, will use the rules to self identify to gain legitimate access to safe spaces and carry out assaults. 

Some have called for a risk based system on this, thereby preventing those guilty of assault and rape from having access to the women they have assaulted.  But that forgets the discrepancy between the number of assaults that are alleged to have taken place, and those who are found guilty.     

Another reason for my view that spaces should be genitalia based are as there is an argument that there are a hundred genders.  Not everyone identifies as female or male.  Restricting safe spaces to male or female forces them to make a choice, but having the option to have this based on genitalia is a simple (and if needed, verifiable) method.  Ideally, people should have the option of using unisex spaces, but not everywhere has the ability to cater for that.  

I do not agree with everything that JK Rowling has said on this, but I do agree with most of what she has said.  I am still sad that my children, who have called her a transphobe, have yet to read what she has written about her views.  However, that does include that there is an issue those born with the genitalia different to the gender they end up identifying with.  Working in healthcare, certain things are affected by sex, an example being how eGFR is calculated.  Not allowing for this means that some people may be over investigated for issues that they may not have, or worse, people may not be investigated for issues that they do have.   

Addicted to Fresno

First of all family. I only got to spend a short time with the children and my wife compared to the time I normally have with them.  The reason was because I was vaccinating in the morning, which was exhausting.  When speaking to patients, I learned that the Indian Variant is now in Essex which makes the need to vaccinate even more important.  I was shattered when I got home to the burger my wife had lovingly prepared for me.

The kids and I had fun with Leia during the day, so I did get some time to recharge my batteries.

When ironing I watched Addicted to Fresno.  I had started to watch it a while ago, but my wife hated it, so I finished it while ironing.  I liked it, but I can see why it did not do well as the subject matter is not something that appeals to many.  That and the end of the film which I thought was not discussed that well as there was no insight into why the character did what they did.  I am glad I watched it, but I would have been disappointed if I had paid to watch this in the cinema.