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mustn't grumble: the story of my great good fortune

2/3/2014

82 Comments

 
Picture
My mate Claudia collects the OFM's Best Food Blog award on my behalf. Surely it'd be all beer and skittles from here on in? You might well think that, but...

you'll be doing alright with your christmas of white, but i'll have a blue, blue christmas

The more eagle-eyed amongst you might have noticed a certain lack of activity on these pages of late. I’m afraid that, as last November bled into December, I went into one, big time. I resurfaced only a couple of weeks ago. Cooking, at least cooking anything that might merit a mention here, has been beyond me these last few months. I’ve been eating shite.

If you don’t know, writing this blog and volunteering (at The Maudsley and The Dragon Café) have been the two major pillars of my recovery. So when, in October, the blog won an award and the volunteering led to me being offered a job at the Maudsley’s new Recovery College, you might reasonably have expected a festive season of unrestrained jubilation, fireworks and marching bands.

But that would be to ignore the fact that you can’t chart the recovery journey in a straight ascending line. Not only does it rise and fall, it also spirals backwards before continuing along. Even when your demons are at bay it’s never safe to assume that it’s more than a fragile peace.

You know how you can work your bollocks off all year and then, when you take a holiday, you come down with awful aches and pains? Well, it’s the same with we frazzled of mind, except the aches and pains are psychological – in my case self-loathing, self-doubt, anxiety and alienation. With Princes Corned Beef and Findus Frozen Macaroni Cheese for Christmas lunch – culinary, maudlin self-harm.

But fear not, because The Skintster abides, and is currently bobbing along on an ocean of wellbeing. And it’s all because I started the job three weeks ago. The first paid employment I’ve had in eight years. And what a joy it is. I hadn’t quite realised what a vast difference being a wage earner once again would mean – I’m even walking differently, the service-user shuffle replaced with a spring in the step. I should have known because, before my crisis, I’d had a long and rewarding career; had, in fact, never been out of work since I gave up studying for a law degree to run off and join the theatre. But you don’t, I guess, realise the weight you bear on your shoulders until it’s lifted from you.

The corrosive effects of unemployment aren’t limited simply to the obvious financial hardships or to the stress imposed by the current system of demonization; a big part of it is the loss of identity, of status, of a sense of self-worth, of a valued place in the community. If you find yourself without a job, without a home, and mentally ill then you find yourself in a world devoid of hope, control and opportunity. And without those three elements in place, nobody can have a satisfying and meaningful life. I’ve now got them back.

The story of my life for the past decade could, I suppose, be told in mainly tragic terms and I have, of course, told it that way on occasion, both to myself and to others. But now I’d like to tell it a different way. I’d like to tell the story of my great good fortune .

there is (or was) a safety net

In 2006 I was in free-fall, crazed with self-hatred, at the mercy of rank depression and drinking myself into oblivion. But somehow, at some point (I think it was late autumn), I must have gone to a doctor, because I found myself referred to SLaM’s Lordship Lane Community Mental Health Team and found myself under the tender care of the sainted Rachel Sheppard. She remained my care coordinator for the next seven years. It is no exaggeration to say that I wouldn’t be here today without Rachel and the others in the team.

I’m going back very soon, not as a service user this time but as a colleague, to talk about the Recovery College. Such a scenario would have been unthinkable back then. They couldn’t do much with me at first, though they tried their best. I’d not hit bottom yet. 

Thankfully they didn't give up.

rachel sorts out my benefits

By the end of 2006 I had absolutely no money – in fact I was in debt to the tune of about £250,000. But I did have two previously unused chequebooks and a guarantee card, so I started living (fraudulently) off those. When I ran out of cheques in February 2007 I signed on, and spent the rest of the year on the basic Job Seeker’s Allowance. It was an awful time. I was drinking whenever I could, and going through withdrawal – the shakes and vomiting blood – when I couldn’t.  The bailiffs were becoming increasingly resolute and I’d hide behind closed curtains and a locked door.

I hadn’t a clue about the benefits system and even if I had I was in no fit state to do anything about it. But Rachel took matters in hand and, by the end of the year, I was getting Income Support and Disability Living Allowance. You may be of the opinion that such largesse shouldn’t be wasted on a miserable sinner such as myself and I wouldn’t argue with you. But I am ineffably grateful. It allowed me to live with a degree of dignity these last few years, while I tried, falteringly, to get back on track.

saved from the streets

Eventually, the bank decided that, all things considered, they'd quite like their money back, thank you very much, and that the best thing all round would be to repossess my flat, which they finally did in early 2008.

But beforehand, Rachel had arranged with the Homeless Unit on Bournemouth that a colleague of hers would take me there straight from handing the flat keys over to the bailiff and that I would have a place in a homeless hostel that very night. Otherwise…well, otherwise I don’t know. I’d have been on the streets obviously, but I’m not sure how long I would have lasted.

with all my worldly goods

A couple of weeks before I went into the hostel I was whining to a chap at the Homeless Unit about how I was going to lose all my stuff – furniture, clothes and, most importantly, my kitchen equipment and my books. ‘We’ll store all that for you’ he said. And they did. For a one-off payment of £20 they put everything into storage. How fortunate was that?

a brand new home

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After a few months, I was moved out of the hostel into temporary accommodation in a flat in a large block of flats in the Oval. I spent about nine months there waiting for a place of my own. The council publish a weekly magazine listing all the available council and housing association properties and one day I saw a flat that was more than I could have ever dreamed about. Built by Habitat For Humanity, eco-friendlied up the wazoo, it was in exactly the spot I would have chosen if I’d been given the chance, in my adopted homeland of the Republic of Peckham.

I applied for it and I got it.  Yet another stroke of good luck. I moved in during the spring of 2009.

an opportunity to volunteer

I date the (very tentative) start of my recovery from then, when I had a place to call my own again. I was more receptive to attempts from Rachel and the CMHT to engage me, although I was still pretty fucked up. I tried Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, but it wasn’t what I needed, some occupational therapy activities and some vocational workshops at Southwark Works. In 2010, one of the advisors there, Chris Finch, despite me being a pretty useless and unresponsive client, let me know about a volunteering opportunity at the Maudsley. He got in touch at just the right moment, just when I was ready to attempt to re-engage with the world in some way after far too long as a recluse.

So in October 2010 I started working for Gabrielle Richards and her team. Gabrielle is SLaM’s Professional Head of Occupational Therapy & Trust Social Inclusion Lead. The latter bit of that title means she is in charge of implementing the trust’s Recovery Strategy.

I was doubly fortunate here. Firstly, I’d got a chance to be working on a variety of recovery-related projects as part of my own recovery. And, secondly, I got the chance to work in an office with such wonderful people as Gabrielle, Sarah, Alexis, Isabel and David. I love ‘em all.

All was fine and dandy for a few months but then I became unwell again and had to leave in early 2011. Most of the rest of that year was spent in a dank and dismal limbo.

But I came out of it and started putting together this website. I was bowled over by the response I got when it went live in the first week of January of 2012. A week later, and only because of the boost I’d got from that response, I got back in touch with Gabrielle and asked if I might have another chance. Wonderfully, I was taken back into the fold. And in the winter of 2012 we began working on a new project for the Maudsley – a Recovery College.

Where I now work.

i used to think i was french but i'm alright maintenant

At the beginning of 2013 I finally got access to what I think I needed all along – full-on psychodynamic psychotherapy. This is a precious resource within the NHS and I am so blessed to have been considered a suitable case for treatment. It’s done wonders.

But 2013 was about to bring even more good fortune.

my (flat white) cup runneth over

October 2013. What a ‘what the fuck’ of a month that was. The Observer Food Blog of The Year Award and an interview for, and then an offer of, the job of Operations Manager of the SLaM Recovery College. If just one of these had occurred I would have been overjoyed. For the two to happen a mere couple of weeks apart was scarcely to be believed.

The film-maker Mark Green made videos of the winners of the OFM awards and here’s the one he did of me. It is, in part, a kind of a love letter to the food culture of Peckham.
We don't have a video of our college (yet), but here's one from our good friends over at the Central and North West London Trust's Recovery College.

what's so funny 'bout peace, love and understanding?

But here's the thing: probably my greatest piece of good fortune was that what happened to me happened when it did and not now, a few years later. Because I seriously doubt that that all important safety net would still be strong enough now to catch me. Not with social care battered by budget cuts, reduced staffing levels and out-sourced services, as the noble endeavour that was the NHS is sacrificed on the altar of free-market ideology; not when many people seem to have accepted as fact the despicable propaganda war against the poor, the unemployed and the disabled. Not when peoples' lives are being devastated by the current benefits policies every single day.

It's hard to remember, in the current political climate of malevolence, divisiveness, rancour and fear, that it wasn't always like this. In 1945, after the fall of Germany, the people of this country, it's returning soldiers, rejected, to the world's astonishment, Churchill and his party - the Tories. They voted for a better, fairer Britain. They 'had known the 'thirties, and they didn't want it again: the dole queue, the street corner, the true poverty of that time. They wanted jobs, and security, and a better future for their children than they had had.'*

They voted for this:
The nation wants food, work and homes. It wants more than that - it wants good food in plenty, useful work for all, and comfortable...homes ...It wants a high and rising standard of living, security for all against a rainy day, an educational system that will give every boy and girl a chance to develop the best that is in them...The nation needs a tremendous overhaul, a great programme of modernisation and re-equipment of its homes, its factories and machinery, its schools, its social services...proper social security for all - social provision against rainy days, coupled with economic policies calculated to reduce rainy days to a minimum...In the new National Health Service there should be health centres where the people may get the best that modern science can offer, more and better hospitals, and proper conditions for our doctors and nurses.

- From the 1945 Labour Party Election Manifesto

And they got '...one of the great governments of British history - those five, six years of creating what is now being so brutally and wantonly and callously dismantled...'**.

I am very, very far from being a political animal, so I'd just ask this: surely we can do better than this, can't we?

Surely we are better than this?

a final word on brand awareness

So, there you go. I've been lucky in so many ways. And I have a chance, just a chance, of having some kind of a future after all. There are some past misdeeds that I think I might be able to make amends for and there are others that I know I cannot make right. I'll have to live with that. But I feel like I've served my sentence.

So I’m going to carry on with the blog, and carry on as the Skint Foodie, if that's alright with you lot. You don’t fuck with your brand after all.

I do have a job now, it’s true. But luckily, in this regard at least, it pays jackshit. And anyway, as I hope I've made clear, it was never about eating as cheaply as you can. It was, and is, about eating as well as you can for a modest budget. I’ll be able to afford more fresh fish and fruit now it's true, but, other than that, the way I eat won’t change at all. What will change is that, instead of only being able to spend money on food, I’ll now be able to spend a bit on other things as well – books, cinema, a few clothes etc.

This weekend, I celebrated getting my first pay check by going on a trip to the wonderful Brockley Market. Treats included a lovely piece of Dexter shin of beef from Nathan Mills of The Butchery Ltd, chorizo and cheese from Flavours of Spain, raw butter from Hook & Son, ham from Moons Green and, to eat there, a buttermilk fried chicken bap with coleslaw and Korean hot sauce from Spit & Roast. Lawd have mercy!

I am now so close to getting my cooking mojo back and I’ve quite a few ideas for the blog in the back of my mind (I’m close to perfecting an almond thins recipe for example). Normal service will be resumed here very, very soon.

Unless things go tits up of course.

links

  • Article by Owen Jones: Farewell to the NHS, 1948-2013
  • Keep Our NHS Public
  • Fighting to end mental health discrimination: Time To Change
  • About the Recovery concept in mental health
  • From the Centre for Welfare Reform: How to Reform the ESA System
  • The problem with WCA goes far deeper than Atos
  • A report from The Baptist Union of Great Britain, Methodist, Church of Scotland, and United Reformed Church: 'Truth and lies about poverty'
  • How much does each benefit really cost?
  • Unnecessary suffering
  • From the Joseph Rowntree Foundation: A Minimum Income Standard for the UK in 2013
  • War on Welfare Petition

* From 'Quartered Safe Out Here' by George MacDonald Fraser (a great memoir, by the way)

** From Denis Potter's final interview in 1994. God knows what he would have thought of the utter shower currently in government.
82 Comments
eddy
2/3/2014 14:55:11

fucking come on!!! you're a fucking inspiration!!!!

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Lesley link
2/3/2014 15:06:55

What a heartwarming post, and, yes, great writing. Eloquent, concise and really paints a picture for me.
I must admit, I had been wondering how you were doing. Especially after your post about getting the job
It's really great to hear that you are doing well

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Tamara Maite
2/3/2014 15:28:52

Congratulations again and lovely to see you back here.
I can't wait to update my aunt on your story so that she can show the rest of the management in the West Midlands what can be achieved.

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Maurits
2/3/2014 15:34:58

Glad you're back.

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Diana
2/3/2014 17:05:05

I have been reading your blog for sometime. Your story of struggle and hope is informative, affecting and inspiring. It should be read by many more people especially those in power who seem to have forgotten why we pay taxes. Glad that the safety net was there for you when you needed it. I don't live in England any more and I can assure you that the demonization of the poor, the sick, the disabled and now the ageing too, goes on everywhere. Keep blogging because you have a voice worth reading.

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Saffron
2/3/2014 19:41:38

You changed my life in a way too.I am learning to cook .
Wishing you all the best from Australia

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Pauline
2/3/2014 22:02:49

Thank you so much for having the courage to share this with us. Truly inspiring. I hope you appreciate you, as much as we do. Wishing you continued wellness. I'm so relieved you're carrying on with the blog😊. P x

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Helen Corrigan
2/3/2014 23:33:04

Can't have the Aussie's commenting without a Kiwi voice too: sooo glad you're back. You had us worried here at the end (or the beginning) of the earth.

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Rachel
5/3/2014 05:03:00

Surely you mean Middle Earth - which is fortuitously half way between the end and the beginning.

I'm another Aussie who has been keeping watch and hoping all was well at Skint Foodiesville. So glad about the job and looking forward to season three.

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Mecha-Rigsby
2/3/2014 23:33:30

Keep on keeping on, Mr SF. Glad to hear that things are going well for you and look forward to seeing more of your recipes.

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Kate
2/3/2014 23:51:42

Hooray!!!! I missed you!! This is SUCH AN IMPORTANT POST!! You MATTER to people, to me, and are doing so much good. Fuck yes. This has really cheered me. Xxx

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Susan Walter link
3/3/2014 00:07:30

You made me cry at breakfast time, but I am sooooo glad you are in a good place again, and can document your journey so eloquently. It is a privilege to have access to a blog like this. I'm only sorry that you've had to have such a crap time to end up with what we see here -- a beautifully written and expressed blog, inspirational and a lesson to us all that mental illness, especially depression, lurks for all of us or our family. I'm always impressed by anyone who can articulate an illness like depression, and is willing to do so. I have an inkling of what you have been through, having lived with someone who had an episode following a traumatic event. Thankfully fully recovered, and like you with much thanks to some wonderful professionals.

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michael
3/3/2014 00:15:24

as they'd say here (Norn Ir'n) 'keep her lit' - you are an inspiration in so many ways

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Rachael
3/3/2014 00:57:49

Truly inspiring! It is so precious to have positive recovery stories like yours out there. They give us all hope. Thank you!

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Mondomulia link
3/3/2014 01:45:08

Congratulations on the new job (trip to Brockley Market = great way to celebrate!) and thank you for sharing this inspiring and useful post!

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Diana
3/3/2014 02:40:22

What a brilliant post + thrilling news. Gazillions of congratulations!

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flyingshuttle
3/3/2014 02:52:29

Missed your blog a lot, wondered where it had gone, don't give up, its a long and winding road, small things work for me like light, taste, smell and laughter. A job bygod!

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Spadeforkspoon link
3/3/2014 04:16:14

Thanks for your post. I too have been using food (and my allotment) to support my recovery from depression and anxiety. It's heartening to hear that there is a route back into work through volunteering. I'm not confident enough in my own skills to sell myself in an interview or application (despite being successful in my previous career). Thank you for the post, all that came before, and all to come.

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Rory TIMONEY
3/3/2014 04:16:39

I check your sit from time to time noticed you were gone , was a bit worried but hoped for the best . As my granny always said " the cream always rises to the top " great to see your back .
Cheers
Rory

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Sabine link
3/3/2014 04:36:00

You are fabulous, reading this made my day.

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Ana link
3/3/2014 04:59:41

Fantastic article, very well written. I hate to see what the Tories are doing, taking away from the those who need it most. I certainly won't be voting for them when the time comes.

Great to see you post again! Congratulations on your new job.

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Tuppy Glossop
3/3/2014 05:18:25

Nice to have you back.

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Angela Graham
3/3/2014 07:57:50

Fab writing, great to see you back, and love what you have done and how you have got yourself through - I know you had support, but you couldn't have done this if you hadn't had the desire and determination to stick at it. I did miss your tweets and Facebook posts, and hoped you were doing ok.

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Victoria (@FramBookshop on Twitter)
3/3/2014 09:13:43

You are AMAZING. Well done. I love you xx

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Anne
3/3/2014 09:19:28

Congratulations on the new job! Glad to see you back and wishing you all the best for 2014. Look forward to more recipes and reflections from you.

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Sarah
3/3/2014 11:17:01

I can't remember the last time I read something so honest and thought provoking. Good luck and all the best. Can't wait to read some more of your recipes!

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Andy
3/3/2014 12:23:30

Welcome back, you are an inspiration.

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Vicky
3/3/2014 12:28:53

Welcome back. This is a beautiful piece of writing. I hope beyond hope that as a society, we can do better than this x

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Catherine
3/3/2014 12:38:52

Bloody brilliant post. So pleased you are back and congratulations on your good news xx

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Kat
3/3/2014 13:46:16

Had been worried, but glad you're back and with fabulous news. All the best

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Ben Midwinter
3/3/2014 14:45:39

And he's back! Well done. Here's to the return of the mojo!

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Kate
3/3/2014 15:12:48

Best post yet. As john Irving put it in Hotel New Hampshire, keep walking past the open windows.

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Rita
3/3/2014 15:15:53

welcome back, I've missed you. Beautifully written and inspirational post. I am in the process of getting my life back and you have boosted my optimism that I can make it happen. Fantastic news that you have a job and all the positive things that come along with it. May you continue to prosper. xx

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Lindsay
4/3/2014 01:01:48

Good luck with your job and I'm glad you're OK. xx

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Paul
4/3/2014 01:29:16

Congratulations on the job and welcome back. We've missed you. Truly inspirational post and one I shall share with many friends. You may not realise that your story of perseverance (and love of good food) is going to affect the lives of so many. I'm already hatching a plan to help 'unfortunates' in my community using your blog as a template. Best wishes.

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Mary
4/3/2014 01:49:26

It's great to see you back! An inspiring read - thank you!

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Mark
4/3/2014 05:46:32

Well, this has put a big ol' smile of pleasure, admiration and respect on my face this cold and dank day. And I'm only a newcomer to your blog. Really great news that you're back, Mr S-F

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Jo
4/3/2014 09:11:31

Great news about the job SF! Congratulations! Like many other posters here I had also been worried and hoping that you were OK. Really good to see that you're back :)

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Foodiemonkey
4/3/2014 22:48:45

Follow you on twitter but never knew your story & even more overwhelmed by your character. Truly inspirational story which one can only hope aids those experiencing similar. I feel humble to not yet experienced such hardship & hope to take your lessons in life going forwards.

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Chris F
5/3/2014 04:56:27

Hi Tony!
Thanks for the mention, you were always a pleasure to work with you know and your journey taught me a great deal about the value of just hanging on in there with someone. This is one of the valuable qualities that Rachel's approach highlighted - she is indeed very special and courageous. I am so pleased that the great work you have been doing for the Recovery College has come to fruition and that you have now secured a paid role. Well done you, I am very proud of you and I wish you the best of luck with it all.

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vv
5/3/2014 07:10:02

This post made me so happy. Your blog is consistently amazing, and when it goes silent for a while I always wonder how you are and what the next post will be... this couldn't be a better post to come back with. So happy for you.

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Marsala Rama link
5/3/2014 08:34:03

Shocking, honest, heartbreaking; but ultimately inspiring and a completely humbling read - nice one S-F. Now get on with that almond thins recipe chef!

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Anne
5/3/2014 19:32:06

Wonderful to see you back. Congratulations!

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Victoria
6/3/2014 09:22:35

I am so so pleased to see you're 'back'. Your blog is fantastic, your writing excellent and you yourself a real inspiration. Wish you nothing but well.

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DeborahS
6/3/2014 10:56:55

So glad to see you're back, and with what an inspiring post. Good luck in the job, and thanks for writing (and so well). All good wishes to you.

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Quezia
6/3/2014 13:22:41

i have never commented but have been reading for quite a while. I am so happy for you, congrats! Now please get into that kitchen and cook us some food!

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pd link
6/3/2014 15:46:58

It was good to hear from you so glad you have bounced back and you have a spring in your step, congratulations on your new job and well done. Your writing is beautiful and so witty and you have such talent. Looking forward to the new recipies . Hang in there and please never give up.

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spabbygirl
7/3/2014 05:15:23

Brilliant foodie!! You're so right, sometimes recovery isn't a straight line. I'm so with you on the ConDem's approach to social policy, we're heading right back to Dicken's time.

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Christine
7/3/2014 06:48:54

Good to have you back - and telling it like it is. Looking forward to the next part of our journey.

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Richard
8/3/2014 07:14:42

Welcome back, was worried by your absence. Your story is inspirational and you touch many lives with your eloquence. The decay of the NHS deeply worries me as a health professional. Pleased you received the treatment and help you needed, and am dismayed that others in your situation may not. With this blog and your new job you are making a difference. Chapeau mon ami

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Arabella
9/3/2014 10:38:58

Kept checking in, hoping you were alright. Glad to read this post! Life, eh? All the best.

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Kat
10/3/2014 08:42:02

What a brilliant and inspirational post! Fantastic news that you are back and I cant wait for more recipes. Best of luck with the job!

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Marianne
10/3/2014 13:02:06

This froggie is over la lune that you are back online and fighting. Congrats for keeping on, and you deserve the good luck to go with ypur talents. A brilliant andniniring post. Merci!

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Diane
11/3/2014 01:05:18

So glad you're back.

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sarah link
11/3/2014 02:34:09

I was only looking for a Meat and Potato Pie recipe!
Thanks to the wonders of the internet I stumbled across you, so glad I did, keep up the good work.

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Richard
11/3/2014 12:58:01

Great to have you back. This post was beyond inspirational. Good luck in the coming months in your job. P.S. I'm making the asparagus and parmesan tart as I write this

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Jonathan Davies
12/3/2014 07:08:44

So glad you're back and ready to resume blogging. I love your writing and your passion for food

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Rosamund
13/3/2014 05:48:20

HOORAY! I've missed you! And thank you for your story. My father was an alcoholic and I remember his recovery as a series of highs and slip-ups but he got there in the end and you will too! It's so inspirational for the rest of us so thank you again. You always make me smile! Keep cooking and eating! xx

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Marguerite
13/3/2014 13:24:03

I'm jolly glad to see a post from you! I'd been wondering what the silence might mean. Someone once told me that grief was not a linear process and I'm reminded of it again with what you write. Most emotional processes, especially traumatic ones, are not linear. I hope you've rounded the last curve in whatever you're going through and wish you good luck and success in your new job.

As a public sector worker I have to say that YES! WE CAN DO BETTER THAN THIS ROTTEN GOVERNMENT who deny the burgeoning of food banks since their election, who think public sector employees are useless and good to rob in order to better their financial friends and who are contributing to social engineering in London. But when they lose their public sector pay they can retire to their (multi)million inheritances.

Apologies for the rant but they make me very, very cross.

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Chrissie link
14/3/2014 04:24:07

A wonderful story and it's great to have you back.

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Christine
17/3/2014 10:02:48

Welcome back - lovely to see you again. You have no idea how much hope you give me. I too have been in a hard place and recognise that recovery does not go smoothly. Your words are inspiring, and your recipes are delicious - keep on rocking!

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Stuart Inman
17/3/2014 12:51:22

Thank fuck you are back. I mean, what was I going to cook for dinner?

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Anna
20/3/2014 06:32:29

Congratulations! So happy to have you back, I really missed the inspiring posts. Thank you so much for what you do.

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@Coffeeflava link
20/3/2014 11:44:09

A true inspiration. A great story. Thank you

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Flossie
21/3/2014 07:37:53

You have looked it in the eye. The fear of falling. And accepted it. We all have to if we are to have resilience in this testing life.

I do worry that you seem so heavily meat oriented. Do you eat enough vegetables for those nutrients that keep us sorted? God knows the nutrient levels in fruit and veg are not what they were decades ago, so I hope you are eating lots of veg/berries.

A little present I'd like to give you..... Now that you can maybe afford avocado more....you might like this. Toss chunks of avocado, tomato and cooked beetroot (not soaked in vinegar) with honey mustard (Edmond Fallot or Maille) and Sicilian Monti Eblei olive oil......

You are worth saving. I trust you now believe that.

The oil and mustard are at my local Tesco. Waitrose USED to do the Edmond Fallot mustard but my local one dropped it. It needs to be unctuous and my two recommendations pass muster(d!). You might find better from one of your sources.

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carol link
21/3/2014 18:44:46

Lovely to see you back! Thank you for sharing that wonderful inspiring story, I felt quite emotional! I will show it to my Daughter, who is struggling with many issues at the moment! Wishing you lots of success for the future, and with your blog, which I love! X

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Rachel
26/3/2014 03:48:37

I'm glad you're back - if food be the music of love, play on

Reply
Maro
28/3/2014 05:27:02

That was a very inspiring read, and all the more seeing as I am reading it the day after Tony Benn's funeral. So delighted you are back on THE road. Looking forward to future posts! :)

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Donna
3/4/2014 12:45:33

Bless your heart x

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Ann
6/4/2014 04:18:14

Please don't give up your blog. It has taught this Aussie much both personally and professionally.Its made me think an awful lot and have been inspired. Sending best wishes Mr Skint Foodie. You have a worldwide cheer squad who care about how you are going and wish you well.

Reply
Em
7/4/2014 06:13:06

So good to have you back - missed the blog very much. Devouring a SF inspired cheese and tomato tart as I write - not quite as posh as your version but delicious non the same. Keep the inspiration going. Thank you.

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Gehan
12/4/2014 22:34:18

Keep on' keepin on.

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Michelle
15/4/2014 04:58:22

Good to see you back sir and congratulations getting your Bloggar of the year award. You are an inspiring guy and i look forward to more fab dishes :)

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caffsgaffe
28/4/2014 13:48:05

welcome back. As you can see, you were missed *wry grin*

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Celia link
29/4/2014 22:24:40

Inspirational. But more importantly, so very honest. Thank you and all the very best for the road ahead. x

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James Mewis link
17/5/2014 12:39:44

You are a truly inspiring person: to have gone through what you've been through and come out to achieve this is really amazing.

On the subject of the government, vote for this bunch in the London region for the European elections this Thursday: http://nhap.org/

Trying to turn the tide of the disastrous stealth privatisation that is under way.

Reply
michael
18/5/2014 09:21:52

f***k the tories and their useful fools lets get them out but we need you skintster so we can eat well while we do it ! a very warm welcome back

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Dizzy Izzy
2/6/2014 08:26:38

I have been missing you and wondering how you doing. Am pleased you able to raise your head above the parapet again. Keep trying, keep fighting, you will get there (easy for me to say, I know). Really hope the mind fog and f**kery dispersing - am looking forward to the almond thins!

Reply
Aysha
3/6/2014 11:29:33

Hi Skinty About time for another post? Sorry for being bossy but your last post was in March. We miss you.

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Candied Nuts link
16/6/2014 03:58:08

Thanks for creating this wonderful post :)

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flissymum
18/8/2014 22:32:39

Only just discovered your blog. Often considered blogging but obviously who would be interested in me.. So glad you managed to access the safety net .

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N/A
4/9/2014 01:47:39

Hi Skinster
Hope you are reading your comments. Please let us know that you are doing OK. No recipe necessary. I face similar problems and you are an inspiration and a comfort as well a fellow food obsessive. I still like to read about food even if I cannot be arsed to cook or eat it. Hope to read you soon. Take care.

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