Euphrosene Labon

Wanting to get one´s own way to the point of obsession and über-agression may be understandable but it is also a kind of bullying. I have had bosses whose micro-management `skills´ were very close to bullying. I left to avoid the aggro and distress - although they all eventually got their comeuppance.

I was wondering last night whether it might be a kind of mental illness. It is certainly a sign of a mind ill at ease with others, but I suppose it is whether that aggression/obsession spills over into non-empathetic behaviour. Though Brown, ex-bosses et al might not see it in quite that way.

Gloriously sunny and, because I have been feeling a little trapped, I popped out to pick up the Michael Jackson DVD. Got back to a letter saying I had defaulted on a credit card payment.

As I hadn´t received the statement - and am usually excellent at paying on time - I got the money refunded. Thanks NatWest.

But that, and a couple of other things, meant I did not even start work till later in the afternoon.

Then I discovered I had an unwelcome backdrop to all the cartoons, meaning I had to re-scan them all. And work out how I had previously done wallet prints and … more tech issues. As at time of typing, all is back to square one, with mountains of work still to do. Make that re-do.

Meanwhile, in our increasingly strange world: the Anglican Church, founded on divorce and sexual wilfulness rather than adherence to spiritual principles, continues in the same vein with marriage for homosexuals in church. What Bible do they actually subscribe to?

And the European Union wants maternity leave to be extended and paid for. So who actually will do the work at all those businesses - especially SMEs? Why should the taxpayer fund maternity leave?

Oh yes, that old chestnut about new lives funding our pensions. What pensions? People are living longer and working longer. Some of us have to work because we have no pensions worth more than a cup of coffee.

This constant sense of entitlement - with `someone else´ picking up the tab, will eventually call time on `human rights´ - even those which genuinely are worth fighting for.

Euphrosene Labon Mind Body Spirit Artist Author Writer

Euphrosene´s Gallery of Contemporary Spiritual Art & Cartoons

bullying, mental illness, Michael Jackson, cartoons

And still more changes: E*Trade will no longer trade in the UK for whatever it is I was using it for. That was last night. This morning I woke up to a website with no blog data or art gallery. I presume there was an issue with the server. (There was.)

Meanwhile: on the internet, there are various forum threads about aliens. I am beginning to think they are already here, waging a big campaign of stupidity, immorality and greed among the stupid, immoral and greedy.

A vast swathe of public servants, for a start - not only do they make sure they are paid mega moolah, but they also throw it around with reckless abandon to, mostly, the unworthy. Human rights lawyers, many of whom now seem preoccupied with compensation claims; our Navy giving food and water to Somali pirates - and letting them get away. And that is after managing to avoid rescuing the British citizens the pirates kidnapped around October last year. Bankers. Border controllers.

Those who control the money some of us pay into the public purse seem to be having the biggest laugh. Housing non-working families in lavish accommodation, paying vast amounts for every sprog produced to increase their income. It has to STOP.

Helping others doesn´t mean being taken for an endless ride. We should give just enough to cover basic needs otherwise incentive is removed. And that really is a key spiritual precept, in my belief.

Later: this must be a day (okay, okay) of rants. The truly awful Adam Crozier has been made Chief Executive of ITV. Astonishing. Truly staggering.

This ghastly sentient (in my personal opinion) seems (to me) to have coined it in while ruining the Royal Mail on just about every level.

I know ITV is on its knees, but I am not holding my breath for much of a happy end. And yes, I do have a few shares courtesy of Dad. Back to E*Trade again. Having an online account means I have not been as aware of major occurrences. Like the abysmal choice of Crozier.

Euphrosene Labon Mind Body Spirit Artist Author Writer

Euphrosene´s Gallery of Contemporary Spiritual Art & Cartoons

E*Trade, aliens, Adam Crozier, ITV, Royal Mail

Much of today was spent trying to understand vector and bitmaps. Some cards I had uploaded to a popular American greetings card company were pixellated and no matter what I did, the automatic system rejected them.

As I have been drawing a whole series of cartoons, to which will be added my new Wise El font, I wanted to see how feasible it would be to keep the fine line style (and not get the annoying message). Hence the detour and learning curve.

I think I CAN keep my original style, but will need to change how I upload - to TIFF and not JPEG for a start (too techy for me to explain why). I am also looking at possibly buying vector conversion software. (I have done too many to use an online conversion service.)

There is already an improvement using TIFF to upload and, if necessary, I could vectorise some of the artwork, though I don´t really want to lose my slightly edgy artwork either. All things I hadn´t really thought about ie realised. Seems a bit late in the day to be addressing these concerns!

Yesterday was spent forking out for art marketing, renewing subs. Today, a freelance writers´ forum I have paid a voluntary sub to, though not last year, is talking of making it obligatory.

I agree with one poster that it can feel a tad too touchy-feely, with a rather massive EQ ambiance. The camaraderie is admirable, if a little cliquey. Less admirable is the lack of journalistic balance. Anyone with even a modicum of cynicism is frequently shot down, and soon leaves or rarely participates.

Equally, some of the praise doled out to mildly serviceable articles borders on the fanatic. Or those with a PR mindset. Perhaps they hope that exaggerated flattery will attract more commissions to themselves. It sort of lowers the bar.

As I haven´t actually got any leads from it, I need to figure out why I would now pay.

Unfortunately for the owners, some of those in favour of paying to use the forum are not, in my opinion, particularly good adverts, so I have stepped away from adding anything apart from my suggestion to have an ad wall to replace the missing directory.

Maybe running out of food (being delivered tomorrow, fingers crossed) has lowered my already low threshold of tolerance for blinkered remarks.

Or having allergic dermatitis on my neck from wearing woollens that rub. At least my face and eyes have been spared, unlike last year.

Meanwhile: No matter how optimistic I try to be, `other people´ add their bit of bile to increase blood pressure and pollute any happy vibes. I was going to list them, but it only needs a swift read of the news (any newspaper, not just the right-wing varieties) to see who I would sweep off this island (and possibly planet) for regularly being life´s de-harmonisers.

Euphrosene Labon Mind Body Spirit Artist Author Writer

Euphrosene´s Gallery of Contemporary Spiritual Art & Cartoons

allergic dermatitis