overlap

Sharp eyed observers (or people who were in the right pub at the right time) will have seen there's a bit more to see somewhere, and may possibly wonder why I've done that, so here's an explanation; as previously mentioned, the impact of a certain sparkly collective on my life over the last couple of years has been really important to me, and given the chance I'd like to put a little something back. In another world I'm a fish of a clearly identifiable size, even if not an especially big one. That world is one of the last couple of places that remains sparkly content free for me, and there's no reason for that to change. Not now, maybe not ever, I've no idea and it doesn't really matter right now. I'm a lot more than my one dimensional sparkly side, but sometimes the rest of me gets buried under too many layers of foundation, so this is a way of sharing my holiday photos at enough of a remove that I can feel comfortable that that other world is not going to blunder into my sparkly one, even by mistake. If this isn't sufficiently clear, then you're welcome to ask me via email or in another place where I'm sure I'm going to talk about this a little more. But in the meantime, there's packing to do...

Yeah, I know, it's a whole load of stuff you probably didn't fancy reading that thoroughly. But in terms of conclusions, what it ultimately boils down to is me being exposed to a less than average amount of testosterone in the womb. The following evidence appears to back this up: * Mother, one of lots of children - the many, many offspring of my mother and siblings are almost exclusively female * Father, one son of one of four sons - total offspring of my generation almost exclusively male You don't need to be a major statistical genius to suggest that a testosterone-heavy Y chromosome on the paternal side was meeting a hugely progesterone/oestrogen-heavy X chromosome on the maternal side. And the Y chromosome carries less information, and his dad is no doubt significantly less tough than the X chromosome's mother, and the result of this instant combination gets the benefit of nine months of incubation in a progesterone and oestrogen rich environment. Over-simplistic, sure. But nonetheless pretty accurate, as far as I know. My vocabulary and foreign language fluency are things traditionally associated with being 'women's subjects', and on the male side, even my job title includes the word analyst. I know that doesn't necessarily lead to the best of both worlds on the wardrobe front, and yes, nurture has a role as well as nature does, but that's a whole other set of neuroses for another time. What else all that tells you I couldn't say, but you're welcome to speculate...

Been watching this programme on the Beeb. Men and women are just the same. Just as caring, just as promiscuous, just as good at a three point turn. Aren't they? The results of a new BBC sex survey of 500,000 people from around the globe - the largest ever carried out - provide very revealing answers. And five men and five women are put through a unique battery of experiments to uncover the real differences between the sexes. So of course I had to do the brain sex quiz on the web, to Get a brain sex profile and find out if you think like a man or a woman And my results? As ever, I'm neither firmly one thing nor the other. * Part 1 Angles This task tested your ability to identify the angle of a line by matching it with its twin. This is a spatial task, which looks at how you picture space. Your score: 19 out of 20 Average score for men: 15.1 out of 20 What does your result suggest? * If you scored 18 - 20: You have more of a male brain. On average, men outperform women in this task and those with more mathematical knowledge tend to score quite high as well. In past studies, 60 per cent of the people in this range were men. Spot the difference This task tested your ability to identify which objects changed position. You lost points, if you incorrectly identified objects. Your score: 14% Average score for men: 39% What does your score suggest? If you scored between 0 - 33%: You may have more of a male brain. Scientists say men tend to under perform in this task. The corpus callosum, the part of the brain that links the right and left hemispheres, is a fifth larger in women. This means women can process visual and other signals at the same time more easily than men. There is also a theory that oestrogen levels in women give them an added advantage in spatial memory. * Part 2 Hands You said your left thumb was on top when you clasped your hands together. Left thumb on top: This suggests the right half of your brain is dominant. Some studies theorise that as a right brain dominant person, you may excel in visual, spatial and intuitive processes. * Part 3 Emotions and Systems This task looked at whether you prefer to empathise or systemise. Empathising Your empathy score is: 3 out of 20 Average score for men: 7.9 out of 20 Average score for women: 10.6 out of 20 What does your result suggest? Empathisers are better at accurately judging other people's emotions and responding appropriately. If you scored 15 and above, you are very empathic and would be an ideal person to comfort people in a time of crisis. Women in general are better at empathising. Systemising Your systemising score is: 17 out of 20 Average score for men: 12.5 out of 20 Average score for women: 8.0 out of 20 What does your result suggest? Systemisers prefer to investigate how systems work. A system can be a road map, flat pack furniture, or a mathematical equation – anything that follows a set of rules. A score of 15 and above suggests you're good at analysing or building systems. Men in general are better at systemising. Eyes This task tested your ability to judge people's emotions. Your score: 7 out of 10 Average score for men: 6.6 out of 10 Average score for women: 6.6 out of 10 What does your result suggest? If you scored 7 - 10: Your result suggests you are a good empathiser, sensitive to other people's emotions. Women generally fall into this category. * Part 4 Fingers We asked you to measure your ring and index fingers. Your ratios came to: Right Hand: 1.02 Left Hand: 1.02 Average ratio for men: 0.982 Average ratio for women: 0.991 It's thought that your ratio is governed by the amount of testosterone you were exposed to in your mother's womb. The ratio of the length of your index finger to the length of your ring finger is set for life by as early as three months after conception. Even during puberty, when we experience intensive hormonal changes, the ratio stays the same. Men generally have a ring finger that is longer than their index finger, which gives them a lower ratio than women, whose ring and index fingers are usually of equal length. * Part 5 Faces This task looked at how you rate the attractiveness of a series of faces. The images you looked at were digitally altered to create slight differences in masculinity. Your choices suggest you prefer more feminine faces. Highly masculinised male faces possess more extreme testosterone markers such as a long, broad and lower jaw, as well as more pronounced brow ridges and cheekbones. Interestingly, women's preferences are said to vary across the menstrual phase. A more masculine face is preferred during the 9 days prior to ovulation, when conception is most likely. A typical 'attractive' female face possesses features such as a shorter, narrower, lower jaw, fuller lips and larger eyes than an average face. * Part 6 3D shapes This task tested your ability to mentally rotate 3D shapes. Your score: 11 out of 12 Average score for men: 8.2 out of 12 Average score for women: 7.1 out of 12 What does your result suggest? If you scored 10 - 12: Are you an engineer or do you have a science background? People with these skills tend to score in this range. Past studies have concluded that people in this range have a more male brain. Words This task looked at your verbal fluency. Your score: you associated 10 word(s) with grey and you named 10 word(s) that mean happy. We are assuming that all the words you entered are correct. Average score for men: 11.4 words total Average score for women: 12.4 words total What does your result suggest? If you produced 1 - 5 words: You are more of the strong, silent type with a male brain. You probably find it easier to express yourself in non-verbal ways, preferring action rather than words. If you produced 6 - 10 words: Most people in this range have a female-type brain. Women are said to use both sides of the brain when doing verbal tasks while men mainly use their left side. Studies have shown that girls develop vocabulary faster than boys. This difference in brain power is caused by levels of pre-natal testosterone.

Or if not the saddle, at least the driving seat. After a break of over two months, yesterday I repeated my frequent journey back to my usual place of worship, to see a returning hero of days gone by, and to honour a longstanding servant of the club. There's something about friendly games, like cup games, that make them so much more enjoyable but ever so slightly unsatisfying - the pressure's off, there's no points at stake, there's no risk of falling down the league table. And yesterday was a chance to get a look at some new and prospective new players as well as get back in the swing of things without it really mattering - good news all round. In the seasonal weather, I felt I should remind myself what is good about the place, and spent half an hour swimming in the sea, looking out across the bay at this view of the Isle of Wight. Half an hour rinsing my sinuses out with natural clean brine and reminding myself about how confident I can afford to be in the water. All in all, a great two ice cream day.

Something else that's come up is the tricky line between the internet and reality. I don't really see much of a line, and if I've met you then you're almost certainly in my mind as "firstname" rather than "username", and in my phone memory too, for that matter. Somewhere along the way, I think I missed out on the normal friends business. I rarely socialise with colleagues since I moved house - lycra cycling shorts and jersey do create certain dress code difficulties with your average high street drinking venue. I've got friends I see at football from week to week or month to month, I've got friends I see at gigs every few months, and I've got friends I see on the internet most days (and in person at varying intervals). And friends I do other stuff with too. Given this compartmentalisation, it's maybe not the biggest surprise that I don't see my lovely internet friends - and that's you, dear reader - in any way differently to how I see all my other various friends. I just wish I'd realised before everything got a bit mixed up that even if it doesn't really for me, such a line must exist for others. So there's a question - what is friendship for you, and does it differ much according to the medium? * Yeah, I know there was a post that disappeared. It occurred to me that it struck a tone that was remarkably zeitgeistig, but widely open to misinterpretation, and in an especially not helpful way.

I tend to stay out of web-based politicking. Ask me a question on an individual issue or point of detail, and I'll almost always have an answer or be able to clarify my position without thinking too hard, but really I'd rather stick with things that genuinely interest me.

All the same it has been known for me to e-fight with people in other fora on issues of rabid nationhood when someone manages to needle a specific tiny sore spot, and yesterday has brought me back to an ever so slightly modified position on this.

I've always considered myself, in decreasing order of importance, to be

* european * Bournemouthian * British

* then, having lived here for more than a decade, I have a strong attachment to Wales and last and most definitely least, I remain * technically by birth English

It's days like these, even at this sort of range from the action, that blur the differences a bit more, and emphasise what we all have in common. Patriotism in any form has always repelled me - there's just too much damage has been done to too many people in too many places in its name - but I don't believe I've ever felt as much at home or connected to the other sixty million people, living on an island in the sea.

And I'm certain that wouldn't have happened without the interactive community connectivity that comes with the internet.

Of course in light of today's events, pretty much anything that can be said is superfluous. But I'm relieved to be able to say that as far as I'm aware, there's nobody close to me that's not accounted for. I hope the same is true for you.

Given the number of bloggers getting into strife for commenting on work-related issues, you'll understand that this is necessarily vague. Recently I've been forced into doing some sessions which are not remotely related to the specific practicalities of the work I do. Part can broadly be summed up by saying 'it's only work, get a life!' and part can probably be summed up in the statement 'work and office politics is mostly bullshit, so learn to bullshit better if you want to be a high flyer'. It's several wasted hours of my life I won't get back, and a presenter with an unconvincing collection of yankeeze psychobabbly slogans which have been copied and pasted wholesale, a pile of barely relevant personal anecdotes and a poor grasp of the English language does nothing but make the whole thing seem truly preposterous. On the one hand I have a faint scintilla of respect for the honesty of an organisation clarifying just how much BS office politics is. But on the other hand there's something I just don't get about saying 'here's a load of hokey old pantomime cobblers that everyone knows is utter cobblers, and it's better for you to join in by doing x, y and z'. Oh no it isn't.

This evening I had the privilege of seeing one of my favourite songwriters for the first time in way too long. Before the show I was thinking about how long ago it was I last saw the guy, which was in the same venue though it's been through some changes in the meantime. And then I started thinking about the person who I was there with that night, before I realised that the same applied to the headline act. I just checked and it's eighteen years and one day since the very first time I saw the musical genius that is Willie Dowling, but that was several bands ago! Tonight he was doing some of the songs of his current band in acoustic duo versions as the support act for someone else I've also seen across several different bands over the years. It amuses me no end to think that some of the longer lasting relationships in my life are with musicians and songs, and while I'm fully aware that the standard domestic family set up would put a huge dent in my freedom to put in quite the mileage I do in pursuit of live music, if it doesn't happen then at least I know I'll have done something else with the time. For the record, it was an excellent night's entertainment.

Labels: rock, The Grip, Willie Dowling