I’ve just been sorting through my music.

Being an obsessive, organised sort of person, I like to do this from time to time. And yes, I’m old school enough to still own my own music. I like the idea that it’s mine and I can listen to it whenever I want to. And besides, if you’re relying on an external service to provide your music, what happens if they should go bust? Sure, those streaming companies look pretty big and solid, but in the technology world things can change pretty quickly. That’s why I keep all my music, preferably in more than one format. Did I say I was a bit obsessive?

Well I suppose it had to happen. Here I was tempting fate. In effect, raising a finger to the world. And I couldn’t expect the world to ignore me. There was no way I was going to get away unscathed. I had to suffer the consequences.

I know. I’m probably making even less sense than I usually make (and that’s saying a lot). But bear with me. Things will start to fall into place.

Mental health seems to be a pretty hot topic these days, doesn’t it.

In these times of pandemics and lockdowns and political divisions and hyper-partisan politics and social media angst and trolling, psychology has definitely become a hot-button issue. And as far as mental conditions go, there are two that seem to be especially prominent – anxiety and depression.

Well, we did it. We just crossed over the halfway point for 2021. Hello July. Welcome to the second half of the year.

It feels like an odd sort of milestone. After the hardship of 2020, this was going to be the year when things started looking up again. We’d reached our collective low point and were ready to raise our eyes to the sky. So how have things actually gone in that regard?

Here we go again. Time for me to find something to whinge and complain about. Time to give free rein to my grumpy side.

So what topic can I find to grumble about today? I’ve got it. The perfect candidate.

Cooking shows.