Irresponsible Advertising - pandering to nudge nudge attitudes.

I am getting very weary of complaining about advertisements on TV.  There are some ads that I really like, such as 'You can call me Brian...' on  Confused.com: endearing,  likeable and I hope they bring out a little model!

The most recent Marmite ad is really quite pernicious; it mimics a child abuse raid and the accusation is cruelty to a jar of Marmite, as it is taken into care.  As a great life-long lover of Marmite, it leaves me with a dilemma.  This advertisement trivialises the actual circumstance surrounding child abuse, and the opening shots can be mistaken as an actual Social Services intervention.  At the very least it is in extremely bad taste, at worst it is playing into the fantasies of paedophiles .  

The other ad which is really dangerous, is for one of the toilet cleaners - a man calls with a hard hat and overalls to fix something; the woman lets him in the house without asking for his ID.  He fixes whatever it is and then asks to use her loo; thought bubble comes out of her head of whether it is clean enough.  He uses loo and leaves with big seductive smiles all round.

This is just a mirror of how con-men really work!  Turn up in overalls or uniform, get access to your house, use the 'facilities', either rob straight away or make a plan to come back later!

It is very irresponsible advertising and I wonder who is really monitoring these ads and what tests they have to pass? 

Stopping to think.....

The new high speed rail link is now going to cost 80 billion, will take 20 years and will rip up a lot of countryside.  It makes no sense economically, environmentally or ethically.  And there is no guarantee that the costs won't go up again.

Lets think in a whole new way about what might just make people happier, less stressed and healthier.  All the community projects, that in the long ago past brought people together, preserved cultural traditions, contained anti-social behaviour and integrated all ages and abilities have virtually disappeared.  The arts are marginalised, or seen as a luxury, and dismissed as non-essential in schools.

Just one billion (leaving 79 billion for hospitals, community projects, care home overhaul, and schools), would allow us to employ all the actors and artists as community arts workers, or to train them as arts therapists, and encourage new skills for people leaving school with few prospects.  The arts revolution could train all teachers in basic arts and provide space for art studios, drama and dance workshops, comprehensive music resources and performance spaces. 

Foolish dreaming?  Well maybe dreams are worth pondering, and sometimes they might just be realised

Transformation

I have at last moved to where I intended - Stratford-upon-Avon.  I have already lived here twice, for eight years and two years, and before setting off on new journeys.  Perhaps in the olden days I would have been the female equivalent of a journeyman.  But more about nomadic life and touring in another blog.  

Now I am here to stay, in a tiny rented terraced house in the middle of the town.  The theatre and the beautiful river with its old willow trees are six minutes from my doorstep.  The surrounding countryside makes for stimulating walks and nothing much has changed.  Maybe there are some new developments on the outskirts and road systems that do not always make sense, but essentially the core of Stratford is here: its merchants, travellers, inns, markets, river-craft and of course entertainment.

I have learned something about creating environments, and this undersized dwelling and diminutive garden is slowly being changed into a set worthy of A Midsummer Night's Dream.  As the picture shows I am experimenting with drapes, fabrics and garlands.  Please see my Facebook Sue Jennings to see the continuing story of the transformations.  They grow lovelier by the day!

Time to play

Following my recent trip to Malaysia, and an opportunity to go into deep jungle, it was again time for reflection on the Temiar people.  How much they can contribute to our way of thinking about both children and older people.

The Temiars are child-centred, and children are encouraged to develop their spontaneous play, and dancing and singing.  It was noticeable that the further away from outside contact, the greater the playfulness.  Although all the tribal groups in Malaysia, including the Temiars, have cause to be anxious with the encroachment on their land and the destruction of the rain forest, there was variation.  It was possible to observe greater child focus and attachment in the more remote settings, and greater irritability in the accessible communities.

Older Temiars are respected because they have lived longer!  They hold the stories, and traditional crafts that are demonstrated to the younger generation.  Older people are listened to, and the views are heard and shared.

For the Temiars, both the very young and the very old, carry the wisdom for health and healing.

Community Creativity

I am really inspired by the bursts of creativity I am encountering at the moment.  From the Hip Hop class taking place at Gabriela's dance school in Karpenisi, Greece, to the wonderful murals at the Robert Cole Centre for children with special needs in Comanesti, Romania.  The Hip Hop class integrates children of all ages and stages, some with developmental needs, and parents can join in too.  I heard one boy say that he loved Hip Hop because it wasn't sissy like ballet!

The Robert Cole Centre is truly inspirational and caters for children and teenagers with complex and multiple needs.  They encourage all the arts in their educational and therapeutic programmes.  And this recent mural is just one example of their dedicated work, (and play!).

I have just given a talk on Radio Karpenisi about the importance of creativity and the development of the brain, and it's significance even during pregnancy.  If we had more creativity and the arts in schools and communities, there would be less need for Dramatherapists and Play Therapists.  It gives examples of creative approaches to therapy with many  different populations, and institutions.  You can hear the hour long broadcast on your computer from Sue Jennings Facebook page.

Encourage your playful brain and do something creative today!

Healing Romania

When a country calls to you you have to keep going back!  I have been living and working in Romania for 12 years and I cannot stay away.  Partly it is the people (why do they get such a bad press - I don't recognise the headlines in the tabloids), partly it is the amazing landscape.

However I am always impressed how Romania is puling itself out of the morass of the communist times.  The scandal of the orphanages has meant that a lot of repair work has to be done: social workers have more training in attachment work, large institutions have closed down and smaller group homes have been created; the wider world is much more aware and continues to send teams of professionals to do training, develop projects and generally raise awareness of rights and needs of children and adults with disabilities, people in long-stay psychiatric hospitals, and older people, especially those with dementia.

There is still a lot more to be done, and Romanians are very willing to learn!  You can always join me for a volunteers week (or more) together with training.

Rather than condemn Romanians, for the few who run scams (as they do in every counry), think about helping to heal the landscape, and its people who suffered horrendously for so many years.

What sort of cat?

I do not understand my attraction to cats.  I don't mean that I am attracted to them, not in the least.  But cats are attracted to me.  They seek me out and rub against my legs, and if I am seated will leap or climb or sidle onto my lap and purr, noisily.

They make a perfect circle on my knees and would just stay there, if I had the stamina, for hours on end.  My daughter has four cats, all related, and they live next door.  They are loved and cherished and cuddled and taken up to bed.  So why do they choose to seek me out when I do not even welcome them?

My mother believed I had an aversion to cats because she found one curled up on my face when I was asleep in my cot.  I was less than a year old.  However I am not convinced.  Apparently I was not distressed and did not call out.  Cats have climbed in and on my bed occasionally and half asleep I have welcomed the warmth and the soothing purring, even if I have not sought it out.

In the olden days of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, it was possible to get tickets for amazing productions, by sleeping out all night in the queue, (that will be the subject of another blog as it is a long story!); and the years that I was pregnant there, the theatre cat would come and sleep on my bump!  It was quite extraordinary that she would seek me out even amongst an untidy crowd of people, and find her way on to me.  It felt very comfortable as the cat purred and the baby moved, and everyone was quite relaxed.

Strange creatures, cats