Work/Space, Time & Self Care
Summer is here again. Five years on and time to slough a skin
Slough. (No, not the one in the Thames Valley that Ricky Gervais made famous in The Office)!
Who knew that in 2020 we would be here today? We’re nearing the end of 2025, and still wondering when that longed-for ‘Tipping Point’ will arrive. I felt it was time for a renewed approach - in workspace, work/space, time and self-care. So I’ve had a (Southern Hemisphere) slough: a Spring clean.
Even the author of that famous 1990’s book ‘Tipping Point’, Malcolm Gladwell, admitted he ‘got it wrong’ and wrote a new book recently. It’s title says it all: “Revenge of the Tipping Point: Overstories, Superspreaders, and the Rise of Social Engineering.” You see, few could have predicted how the MINDSPACE report, global expansion of the Nudge Units and the subsequent hijacking of our regulators by unelected bureaucrats change our world. Here’s a 4 min clip of Gladwell articulating his thoughts about that shift in thinking:
My sloughing-off included sending many boxes of books - outdated and/or now repulsive in substance - to the local [charity] ‘Opp’ Shop’. Then three large fires were lit with the contents of box files of disgusting BigChem/Pharma propaganda that previously I would have included in my adult teaching sessions, without so much as a second thought. Images of food pyramids, BMI charts and articles on Critical Race Theory. All BS. Shame on me. Watching the flames was very cathartic.
And then I re-examined those beloved children’s classics I have kept. would love them! As Alice went down those Rabbit Holes, so do we, but at least we have the option to escape when we need to. Just because it’s not marked ‘poison’ doesn’t mean it’s not.
Whilst cleaning, sanding, painting, re-sanding, heaving boxes around and day-dreaming, waiting for paint and wood-stain to dry… I listened to various of Bill Cooper’s podcasts. I reflected on how long WW3 has really been running. For instance, in episode 1091, 4th April 1997, nearly thirty years ago, Bill discusses the significance of the symbolism in the Disney films like The Wizard of Oz. He asks who does that Cowardly Lion really represent?
A lot has happened in recent months. I can’t believe it’s been almost a year since we chatted about the wrap up for 2024, ! But going into 2026, I feel much more prepared for whatever lies ahead. I hope our readers do, too? We understand much better now, who to dis/trust.
Looking at my resources, I see new patterns here. Rather than separated into disciplines and topics, I can apply a more holistic view of learning. Fiction and semi-fiction and academic provide equally useful insights. Books are the future. Passing on the knowledge that helps people recognise propaganda is the future. WE are the future.
And although lots of reports and articles are online, I try to print out those reports (old and new) that are essential background info. Here’s four examples:
And meanwhile, there’s always the ‘yet to read’ pile…
Slough [ verb] ˈsləf verb
1 a : to become shed or cast off or b : to cast off one’s skin or c : to separate in the form of dead tissue from living tissue
2 : to crumble slowly and fall away
[NB The etymology of slough comes from Middle English slughe and is related to slūch, a Middle High German word meaning “snakeskin.” - how appropriate!]
It’s perhaps not a coincidence that the word ‘slough’ is also pronounced so it rhymes with ‘blue’ (and also ‘cow’ as in the English town), to mean muddy swamp or quagmire. And as a noun it can also describe a ‘discouraged state of mind’. Which are kinda connected?!
Let’s enter this new season with renewed hope. Cast off those old habits, fears and associations. I’m an optimist at heart. And I’m not delusional, we are winning - although not in the way we perhaps originally all hoped.
The sloughy ‘swamp’ may never be ‘drained’ - but let’s stay out of that quagmire and limit our time in those dark rabbit holes. 2026 is just around the corner: can we create the change we want to see?
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