Stephen's Notebook

It’s getting to the time of the year when I start thinking how nice hibernation could be. Like finding a warmish hollow somewhere and staying there till March. I can dream.

I used to be in a pub quiz team that continually came in second place. We changed our team name to The Runners Up and started winning. “And tonight’s winners are…”

I think there are perfectly rational reasons for wanting to avoid all news media but it’s important not to let your concern with the bigger world abate. There should be some kind of balance. #mbnov

I’ve managed to build up quite a bit of annual leave so guess who has nearly all of December absolutely free. I like to keep a lot of days free for this period because the weather usually takes a bad turn and I’m lucky to be in a position where I can take them all at once.

Microblogvember has been a superb lure to get me posting everyday to my microblog. Whether the posts are worth reading or not is up to somebody else but I’m really enjoying it anyway. It’s starting to feel like a real habit.

I’d describe myself as selective when it comes to using my time but I also recognise that being selective can be an underlying excuse for doing nothing at all. The older I get the more I see this in myself.

It would have been be easy to talk about how murky social media has become but instead I’m going to raise a glass to Murky, the young murloc, that appears in World of Warcraft. /mbnov

Two big issues have so distorted all of politics in the UK, and specifically Scotland, that I rarely stick my neck out and make any comment. There is no room for nuance or doubt anymore. Defend people that need defending and vote accordingly is all I feel I can do.