It’s generally frowned upon to go around taking pictures in public toilets, but yesterday when Leftwing Idiot and I were on our way to a meeting I came across this in the accessible toilet. So out came the phone for a quick photo opportunity:

I’ve talked before about how important it is to leave the red alarm cord untied so it can be used from ground level if someone falls from the toilet and gets into difficulty.…

For a long time my erratic movements have made me a messy eater. I use plastic cutlery and a cup with a lid to help with this, but while my hands have been out of order I’ve been even more covered in food than usual.…

This morning Leftwing Idiot and I headed to the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery for an appointment with a specialist in treating Dystonia with Botox injections!

Some hours later we emerged in a slight daze into the afternoon sun. I’d gone in with two painful contorted shadow puppets and I came out with recognisable and functioning hands.…

As my hands have stopped moving it’s time for some other movements to start in compensation. Yesterday Claire and I began making adjustments to the way things are organised at the castle and I’m sure more will be needed in the next few days.…

There’s something in my living room that I’m finding upsetting to look at.

Every time catch sight of it, every time I think about it, and every time someone mentions it, I feel impossibly sad. It’s something that until three days ago felt like the most beautiful thing I own.…

Last Christmas I wrote a post about my accessible Christmas essentials. One of the discoveries I shared was paper tape. This easy-to-tear alternative to regular sticky tape eliminated the need for scissors, which I can’t use safely, and meant I could wrap presents much more independently.…

This afternoon at the adventure playground we had our end-of-year party for the children. We made decorations and gingerbread biscuits, had a feast, and played party games.

While lots of the other staff were setting up the party I sat on a sofa in the main entrance, with my new wheelchair beside me, and did some work on my laptop.…

I’ve written several posts about my amazing new wheelchair, but I’m also still using my NHS chair a lot too because it’s much better for inside the castle or anywhere where with tight spaces.

The two chairs have different braking systems and I sometimes struggle to remember which chair I’m in.…

As I’ve mentioned before I’ve been having a great time out and about in my new Trekinetic wheelchair, mainly because I can propel myself when I’m outside, much, much more easily than with the standard chair. This means I don’t need to be pushed as much, and I can wheel along next to my friends and support workers, which is lovely.…

Here’s a story about the NHS that’s very unlikely to make it into the mainstream media.

This afternoon Leftwing Idiot was taking me to our local hospital for a non-urgent appointment. I was in my regular wheelchair so he was pushing me along.…