daughter – Debbie Young's Writing Life

Sock Drawer Technology

Posted on April 14, 2016July 18, 2016 by Debbie Young

In the April edition of the Tetbury Advertiser, I’ve been praising local technology experts for their patience with my stone-age husband.

The ulitmate sock drawer organiser? Photo by http://www.aplaceforeverything.co.uk

This month, my technology-averse husband finally agrees to invest in a new PC for his study. Our cottage is not large, but by sacrificing the dining room and third bedroom, we have engineered to each have our own study. This strategy has helped preserve our marriage and my sanity. It spares me from his one-way conversations with his laptop and his pathological untidiness. Continue reading “Sock Drawer Technology” →

Family, Personal life

Votes for Minions

Posted on November 28, 2015July 18, 2016 by Debbie Young

This post was written on 12th October, the day of the general release of the film Suffragettes, for the November edition of the Tetbury Advertiser.

Lucienne Boyce and Debbie Young wearing the official colours of the Suffragettes — Lucienne and I show our true colours

Today I did two things I’d never done before: I went to the cinema alone, and I saw a film on the day of its general release.

Though I’d wanted to see Suffragette for ages, I don’t usually get round to seeing films until they’re out on DVD, unless they’re children’s movies such as Minions, whose bright yellow and blue merchandise is everywhere just now. Continue reading “Votes for Minions” →

Family, Personal life

What are The Mall’s Fashion Show Organisers Trying to Tell Us?

Posted on October 2, 2015July 18, 2016 by Debbie Young

A trip to the Bristol Fashion Week Show (Autumn/Winter), staged at our nearest out-of-town shopping mall, The (imaginatively named) Mall, at Cribbs Causeway near Bristol, has become a twice-yearly treat for my sister, my daughter and one of her friends. But the contents of the goody bag we brought home this time has set me wondering whether they organisers are trying to send a secret message to audience members about their own appearance and demeanour…

Continue reading “What are The Mall’s Fashion Show Organisers Trying to Tell Us?” →

Family, Type 1 diabetes

On Brunel, Bears, Birthdays and Banting (oh, and Type 1 Diabetes)

Posted on May 20, 2015July 18, 2016 by Debbie Young

A post about my first official talk as a volunteer speaker for JDRF

Earlier this year I trained as an official volunteer speaker for the JDRF, the leading charitable fundraiser for research into a cure for Type 1 diabetes, which affects both my husband and our daughter. The training day was held at the the London headquarters of the UK branch of this global charity, bringing together dozens of volunteers whose lives had been affected in some way by this incurable, serious disease. We had an uplifting, inevitably emotional day sharing our experiences as we practised our talks. For some participants, it was the first time they’d ever talked publicly about their illness (or their child’s, depending on who had it).

Once trained, we’re obliged to do at least three talks per year, which is fine by me, and I was excited to receive my first assignment, to speak to Morning Break, a group for toddlers and their carers, in Nailsea, south of Bristol. Continue reading “On Brunel, Bears, Birthdays and Banting (oh, and Type 1 Diabetes)” →

Family, Personal life, Writing

History is Relative

Posted on May 18, 2015July 18, 2016 by Debbie Young

How long ago does something have to take place before you consider it to be history?

Getting our fix on a Sunday night

Last night, my eleven-year-old daughter and I were watching Oliver and Company, an old Disney film on our newly-acquired Netflix. Based loosely (very loosely) on Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist, it was one that neither of us had seen before, most likely because it was made at a time when I was way too old to be following the studio’s output, and before Laura was even born. Continue reading “History is Relative” →