Jill Chambers

Just cleaned my aquarium and one of my previously healthy male guppies has dropped down dead. No idea what happened. Fright? Perhaps I knocked him when cleaning the algae? There's way too much death around me at the moment, little happy guppy, you absolutely didn't need to join in.

Like when I've removed a live tick from my dog and I try to squash it whilst shrieking 'die' for hurting my boy and for all the terrible parasitic damage it can still do whilst it is alive, but the damned thing just won't expire.

I've had a small, easy, tropical aquarium for years and every so often I get back into actively thinking about it and not just passively enjoying it. Every time I notice changes to the hobby. Really enjoying the blokes expressing their creative sides in the YouTube aquascaping community right now 🌱🐠

The news that an old, formerly close, and latterly estranged friend had recently died hit me like a ton of bricks last week. Doing my morning jobs listening to Paul McCartney whose voice for some reason sounds like home and thinking about her a lot. Life is very complicated and rarely fair.

Well yes, but this coming Saturday is the cross quarter day (in addition to being Halloween), which marks the halfway point between autumn equinox and winter solstice. Then we'll have already endured a quarter of the dark months and will soon be heading towards longer days again.

Thrilled at the prospect of getting a whole extra hour to lie awake listening to #StormBoelo do its worst whilst simultaneously reflecting on the government's prepping advice.

Bought myself a birthday present back in September - a fabulous Saltrock changing robe like this one. I don't care that I've joined the ranks of the dryrobe wankers. I am a cosy, dry, (and probably quite smug as well as snug now) dryrobe wanker.

So yesterday's 1 beer 'hangover' was actually the winter bug in disguise. Partying at the weekend must have tipped me over the edge. That explains feeling tired and emotional in a sober way for the last week. Please don't be flu or COVID! Missing the invincible immune system of my early adulthood.

But the problem was that after people paid for their devices and an internet provider to access it, they didn't want to pay for the sites themselves, and nobody wants to work for no wages (seems fair). How many people pay to support Wikipedia? Oh, and capitalism too. A huge chunk of that.

Owwwwwww!!! Jedi Jill did a lot of dancing at last night's space themed party/rave and apparently didn't stay hydrated and now has a raging hangover despite only having one beer. Still in bed feeling like Yoda in his final mortal moments. Even The Force can't save me now. Bleugh.

Today I need to pick up a lightsaber on my way down to rock band rehearsal, ready for the space themed fancy dress party I am attending this evening attired as a Jedi knight. I am 51.

This is a brilliant, life affirming place to go hillwalking, but I found it was made less so by sad evidence of game shooting. If you're anti-blood sports, and pro-wildlife, a donation would be a tangible step you could take to make the positive change you want to see in the world.

Putin really has done a number on the world. He owns the USA, bought Brexit (reported by Cadwalladr, admitted by Burnham) and continues to destabilise the west and the press largely shrugs its shoulders while countries burn and people suffer. www.reuters.com/world/europe...

Bit alarmed at how much I'm veering towards wanting a rockery and Cyprus trees (so basically conifers) for my garden refresh. I seem to be having a '70s moment. When it's done I'll get my brown enamel fondue set out and host a retro-tastic BBQ alternative with lashings of snowballs.

This is true, but also think there's an ulterior motive behind public executions: It makes the onlookers both complicit & accepting. And thus of course prepares them to accept even greater atrocities.

I have never been known for my culinary prowess, but I've just made vegetarian dumplings for the first time and they're not bad (Quorn mince casserole with seasonal veg and dumplings). 5 more mins in the oven, a bit of red wine and a touch more salt and it would be just about right.)

Why I stopped paying the licence fee in 2019. They've been like this for ages and I absolutely refuse to support it. Meanwhile middle England still seems to think that the BBC is impartial. That's what makes it so dangerous. I used to be such a supporter of the BBC too.

It'd be really great if I could stop dreaming about morgues and dead bodies.

It's officially Fleet Foxes season. Can feel it in my bones. Cool mists and timeless yearning. Am working in the conservatory feeling connected with my outdoor space and the season. Feels different this year somehow. Less like an end and more of a natural continuation. That's why I love circles.

Just found myself on the Saga website browsing ideas for a rockery. Death is nigh.

I submitted my first draft of a freelance job I was worried about, and just like that my earworm turned to Bowie's Starman like someone changed the radio station. Earworms can definitely be stress and trauma related.

I keep thinking about Christa Pike and honestly don't know whether I'm hoping that she lives just to spite the messed up US 'judicial' system or dies to finally stop the carnival of relentless suffering that has been her entire life. Life programmed her to murder. It's those factors that need fixing

Help me!!! I've had the That's Life Theme tune loudly on repeat in my head for the last 24 hrs! Suspect it's a stress response linked to a freelance work deadline of 9am tomorrow. God I hope it's that because at least there's a cutoff point. 🤞🤞🤞Make it stop! 🔇🙉

The total raised hasn’t been updated yet but donations are still pouring in with individual amounts given in the last 4 hours ranging from £6 to £19,900! If you can contribute anything before the end of today to help this appeal towards its goal, please do. #Rewilding #Nature #Wildlife #Conservation

When I was little I had a fear of clocks and time and theme tunes that signified it was late /bedtime such as That's Life. Feeling a wave of existential unease at the news about Esther Rantzen. Let's enjoy ourselves my Gen X friends, it's later than we think. Oof. 🕛

What I love about the Met Office is its propensity to be consistently utterly wrong about absolutely everything all of the time. Love 'em.

After turning 51 earlier this month I can confirm that today was the day I finally aged out of getting help from the lads at the tip. Luckily I got help from a fellow conifer clipper in a show of sore-armed solidarity. Armed with an array of kettlebells, I've now entered my badass crone season.

Looking for a way to reimagine the way I dress in winter, since part of why I hate the season is feeling constricted by being bundled up in layers of synthetic clothing. It's a sensory nightmare. There MUST be a way to enjoy this time. Wishing away half of each and every year of my life seems crazy.

It's great to see tailoring accommodate such extreme movement today. This level of tailoring was a bit more common in the past, as you can see in old films featuring Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly, but many modern suits will lift off the wearer's neck even when they're just walking.

Guess who ended up studying dance at degree level and getting paid to teach it in Scottish & Newcastle's top-taking nightclub, riddle me that Lisa?! Oh you now have a PhD and travel the world with your glamorous, well balanced and impossibly photogenic family? Ah well.

Bizarre things that happened in your assembly: I convinced my primary school teacher that I could dance, purely because I got some brilliant silver shoes and she let me do an enthusiastic improvised display of my 'skills' in assembly alongside beautiful Lisa Riccalton who actually did ballet lessons

Opt out of Palantir being given access to your NHS data 38d.gs/PalantirOptO...

Ahh, Autumn Equinox. And so my watch begins until March when the daylight hours reign once more. Spent yesterday working in the glorious sunshine. The light months certainly went out with a bang. Just three months until Winter Solstice and then we are headed in the right direction.

I'm enjoying reacquainting myself with my local library service. Need to call and ask a question? You can get straight through to a human. Need to print a document? Absolutely, no ink subscription required. Get a DVD? Yup. Libraries may well be leading the resistance. Please use them!