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There is much to commend about home working.

The freedom to work on what you want, when you want.

The freedom to wear shorts (or nothing at all, though that can scare the postman) if it is hot.

And much more.

I am lucky. As a writer primarily, and a net based one at that, I don't 'need' to be at an office to do what I do.

That all said, it is not a role many take to. And, frankly, not a first choice for me. I am a social creature and enjoy human contact. At my agency I would be at my desk 30 minutes but then off checking and chatting with my creative guys the next.

The main reason for me to be doing this is circumstance, and this situation has allowed me to balance looking after my aging Mum and her deteriorating mental and physical conditions at the same time. A bank of screens and sensors put me a few seconds away when needed, if I was not also popping over with daily cuppas, meals, TV channel changes, etc.

Sadly, as such things do, things have started to deteriorate, and faster and faster of late.

A bad month turned into a nightmare of a week, and she is now in the hospital I ended up having to resort to very bad behaviour to get her into, in the face of a box-ticking, target-concerned, bean-counter-driven medical system (nice one , Mr. 'getting on doing the job' - there a Gordon acronym there if I work on it).

And it looks like I will now be a tad distracted getting her out of there and into something I hadn't even thought about, not having realised 'residential' homes (which I had been planning and scoped out) are not the same as 'nursing' homes (which are much fewer, and farther away).

So, the day job is taking a second seat still, and a while longer.

And, I must say, I kinda miss having colleagues and bosses (or partners) who cover for you or let you scoot off on pay to handle such duties.

And I know it won't be easy, because we made the mistake of saving for just such a rainy day, and the system only really gets interested or helps if you have nothing to your name and no one to call on. Sadly, Mum has both, so I am still pretty much on my own, or in the hands of the truly inept, a while longer.

Pity it is while I am in the thick of the competition, the next newsletter in complement, and some big decisions and strategic efforts on behalf of RE:tie.

But, while still not ideal, I see a glimmer of stability at least soon, and then I can get back to helping save the planet a bit. But family comes first.

The end that is end of the world...averted

A planet-friendly diet for cows?

It's old news, but I just loved the coy last line.

Though he is quite right, that is the more dangerous end of the herbivorous meat tube's digestive system.