Category Archives: Activism

5 WAYS TO LOOK AFTER THE PLANET TODAY

“I’ll look after the whales once all the humans have been looked after.” This used to be my (imaginary) answer to anyone who stopped me in the street wearing vaguely environment-related branding. I’m not proud of it – and thankfully I never said it out loud! Perhaps because my privileged life has not yet negativelyContinue reading “5 WAYS TO LOOK AFTER THE PLANET TODAY”

An afternoon at Loaf Pottery

What better combination is there than pottery and pizza, set in a 17th century building? None is the answer, and the newly-opened Loaf Pottery in Crawfordsburn styles the winning combination excellently. What’s more, the Pottery is in fact the latest project of award-winning social enterprise NOW Group, which supports people with learning difficulties and disabilitiesContinue reading “An afternoon at Loaf Pottery”

Honey, I unplugged the kids.

He’s here! Our beautiful son was born a month ago and we are so in love. We decided before he got here to keep him offline, and many have asked about our decision. Here’s what we decided on, and why… 1. No images Trust me – he is beautiful (not that I’m biased!) But weContinue reading “Honey, I unplugged the kids.”

Be still 

“Maybe this is your time to learn to be still.” My throat tightened: “I’m not sure I know what that means.” “Well, that’s where you start.” I had just told my dad I’d been signed off work after a scary hospital stay and introduction to the term ‘complicated pregnancy’. Minutes before, my doctor had toldContinue reading “Be still “

Thought for the Day: it takes time 

Drawing inspiration from William Wilberforce, Rosa Parks and the Suffragettes, here are some thoughts on progress… Listen here. 

Thought for the Day: bananas 

Today, I’m on BBC’s Thought for the Day for the very first time! I really enjoyed the experience of jotting down and recording these thoughts which you can listen to on BBC Good Morning Ulster each Monday in June. I’ll also be sharing them here over the coming weeks. Up first, one of the mostContinue reading “Thought for the Day: bananas “

Staying Safe Online

A couple of weeks ago, I started a discussion on internet safety over on my Instagram feed. It reminded me of some things I’d rather forget, and renewed my conviction that staying safe while enjoying the Internet is a difficult yet oh-so-necessary task to get right. I’ve never publicly shared either of my experiences ofContinue reading “Staying Safe Online”

Know Thyself; on running your race and taking dodgy personality tests 

We decided to walk the length of Portstewart Strand and found that with each step, the beach bustle became quieter – as we passed the Windbreaker-in-any-Weather families, the enthusiastic games of “beach volleyball” (quotation marks intended), the romantic wanderers and the new puppies, the sand looked more vast and more ‘ours’. We got to theContinue reading “Know Thyself; on running your race and taking dodgy personality tests “

#IWD2017: boldness and bananas

The lump in my throat came when she took out the photos of her wedding day as we sat in the very house the newlyweds had moved into together. She was wearing a silky sleeveless number that looked like it was made only for her: he was also wearing white. Her fingers slowly flicked throughContinue reading “#IWD2017: boldness and bananas”