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World Mental Health Day

Saturday 5 September 2026 at 12:46
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Edited by Martin Cadwell, Sunday 6 September 2026 at 07:55

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or search for 'martin cadwell -caldwell' Take note of the position of the minus sign to eliminate caldwell returns or search for 'martin cadwell blog' in your browser. There is a space between my name and the minus sign and NO space before 'caldwell' to eliminate the name 'caldwell' in the Google listings

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Cadwell NOT Caldwell

World Mental Health Day

[ 3 minute read ]

Fact Mental Health

World Mental Health Day is on Saturday 10th October 2026

Samaritans phone 116 123 anytime 24 hour service 7 days per week for someone who listens and never judges.

It is World Mental Health Day on Saturday 10th October 2026. Make no mistake about it, I have mental health issues on a daily basis. For example: last October (2025) I fetched half a bucket of acorns for the local squirrels to save so they can eat them for Christmas Dinner, on New Years Day, Valentine's Day, and Saint Patrick's Day, and the stupid thieves are too respectful to take them. Only I would have honest squirrels in my garden! How frustrating when things don't go to plan, eh?

As an example of how I have opened myself up to honesty and taken some responsibility for my behaviour I have written about my failings in some of my posts. I have posted at least two pseudo-interviews with myself. The statements I make are true at the times of original writing - the questions I ask myself and my responses are more reflective in the present time. You can read those testimonies by searching for 'martin cadwell interview'. Or if you are logged in and on my OU Blog space you can click the tag 'interview'. Or click this link: INTERVIEW which is a link to two of my posts on the OU Blog site https://learn1.open.ac.uk/mod/oublog/view.php?user=852553&tag=interview

I have no mental health training and will not and cannot advise on any matter beyond directions on where to seek appropriate help on an individual basis. However, I may contribute in an open and general way with my ideas on how I see things might be different but as I say NOT on an individual basis.

I found that interviewing myself gave me power over something that takes me hostage and leaves me weakened. If I recognise how frustration affects me (honestly affects me) I can redirect my energy.

My kitchen is too small; I hate electric cookers; My neighbour is weird; My knee hurts and the doctors think I am unfit; I think I am unfit and feel put upon by my own laziness; Why do people keep complaining all the time? 

Everybody has some kind of gripe. I did have a website that would allow anonymous anguished cries but it somehow had to go because I suspect I presented as an influencer that might garner support against the politics of a foreign government. No matter, we live and learn.

It is hard being honest with myself but it is the only way I know to rescue myself from being held hostage by PTSD. My mental illness was forced upon me by the actions of others, whom I suspect had their own PTSD from environments they themselves did not have a hand in creating. If you like, I have vicarious mental health problems and I am apt to point a finger of blame but that history is entirely unreachable and the main characters have been hung for war crimes or otherwise assassinated. 

Opinion

All I have left are my own monsters to deal with so I have to be honest to be able to recognise them.

       'Ha Haa! Have at ye, you varlets! I shall strike you asunder. Your lies that bind me are my own concoction from the ingredients you offered me. You are discovered and measured. I have  control over the eating of the cake you gave me the recipe for, and it shall not touch my lips.'

Tags: world mental health day, have your say, mentla helath, mental helath, mental health, cake, eating, PTSD, interview
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Sweet tarts and milky tea

Thursday 12 February 2026 at 06:15
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Edited by Martin Cadwell, Sunday 22 March 2026 at 07:36

All my posts: https://learn1.open.ac.uk/mod/oublog/view.php?u=zw219551

or search for 'martin cadwell -caldwell' Take note of the position of the minus sign to eliminate caldwell returns or search for 'martin cadwell blog' in your browser.

I am not on YouTube or social media

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[ 4 minute read ]

Inedible and undrinkable

Good Crikeyness! I am forever surprised by how stupid I am. I have been trying to make a tart for over a year now. Most of the time I forget to buy the ingredients, a lot of other time is spent wondering how expensive, making this particular bake really is. On top of that, I am wowed by how unhealthy it is. 

You know when you get an idea of what you want the tart to be like; according to your own or family's preference? You just have to have a go at it. As an adult, I don't like things too sweet anymore. I still have two sugars in my tea and coffee, but I can't eat a Snickers or Mars bar. I know that the sweetness of the sugar I buy in the shops can't be too much different to the sugar that Mars buys, so I am certain they just use more of it in their chocolate snack bars than they used to. I know that, according to my friend in The Netherlands, Kelloggs Corn Flakes in the UK has more sugar than Kelloggs Corn Flakes in The Netherlands; he tries to get me to import boxes and boxes of it through The Hoek of Holland, so he can sell it to English people in his English shops in Delft. He won't call it smuggling.

I have bought the Woodapple Jam for the tart (and the butter and flour many times over) but I wanted to make the filling (woodapple jam) a bit sharper and with a hint of something else. I suggested to myself that Nestle Carnation Condensed Milk would reduce the sweetness and add a milky background that I could use as an undertone when it is mixed with the woodapple jam. 

I ran out of milk for my tea yesterday and having never gotten around to making the tart still happened to have had a tin of Condensed Milk in the cupboard. I was going to boil it in the tin for a while to make the caramel for the tart. That is the only reason anyone buys it, isn't it?

I seem to have a memory of being able to pour condensed milk from the tin , like evaporated milk. The only time I ever had to use a spoon to get it out of the tin was when it had turned to caramel. Not these days! There is so much sugar in it that you almost cannot pour it at all. Nestle knows that everyone wants to use it for cakes, tarts and sweet pies, so they have added so much sugar that many of us no longer need to boil it to turn it into a sticky caramel, except it isn't caramel and it doesn't taste like caramel (or milk). I shudder to think what would happen if I actually did boil it for an hour.

As I said, I have two sugars in my tea. I don't put sugar in my tea if I use Nestle Carnation Condensed Milk instead of real milk. It really is that sweet. In fact, I have to have a weaker tea than I like, because otherwise, to lighten it I have to use too much sweetened condensed milk, which makes my tea either too weak or too sweet. What is going on?

I looked up Nestle Condensed Milk and discovered that right from the late 1800s it has always been sweetened. I am pretty sure I used to be able to drink it from the tin when I was younger.

Today, I completely opened the tin to get at the milk and one level(ish) tablespoon was enough to lighten my tea; and it was too much sweetness - more than two sugars it seems.

Interestingly though, it doesn't seem to have a lot of lactose in it; at least my body doesn't think so.Bear that in mind lactose intolerant people but don't take my word for it.

I cannot think of anything I can use condensed milk for these days other than in tea or coffee. Weird. I am going to have to experiment with evaporated milk - which does have significant lactose in it. 

Hmmm... If I really believed that we might be attacked by aliens and need to hide underground for a hundred years, I might consider that bags of sugar might get wet, so I could buy thousands of tins of sticky sweet milk, I suppose.

I think a 20cm tart using woodapple jam, butter and evaporated milk and other flavours (ginger, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, lemons) would cost me over £5 just for the ingredients. It really is a fools errand to try to make it. No wonder people buy ready made addictive rubbish from supermarkets. 

If only manufacturers would stop putting sugar in stuff, the price would come down, and we could all decide how sweet we want something  - Double Win!

Another one: Mulberry Molasses - waaaay too sweet! Yet, they don't add sugar to it. I can't use it for anything! Ah! maybe a walnut and lime cake with a hint of rum.

I know sugar is a good preservative but I do wish I could just buy tinned fruit without sugar. Pick the pears, cook 'em and put them in tins; same with apples (apple sauce without the sugar), damsons (they turn mushy); and bananas (also mushy).

Tags: tinned fruit, sugar, sweet, cake, tart, pie, food and drink, mulberry molasses
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World Mental Health Day

Wednesday 8 October 2025 at 10:22
Visible to anyone in the world
Edited by Martin Cadwell, Saturday 5 September 2026 at 12:34

All my posts: https://learn1.open.ac.uk/mod/oublog/view.php?u=zw219551

or search for 'martin cadwell -caldwell' to eliminate caldwell returns (take note of the position of the minus sign) or 'martin cadwell blog' in your browser.

I am not on YouTube or social media

silhouette of a female face in profile  four stylised people facing each other. One is red.  Mental Health

[ 2 Minute read ]

THIS POST HAS SUBSTANTIALLY CHANGED SINCE ITS FIRST PUBLICATION DUE TO THE FORCED CLOSURE OF MY WEBSITE WHERE LINKS WENT TO. THIS POST HAS BEEN UPDATED AND EDITED ON 5TH SEPTEMBER 2026

World Mental Health Day

is on Saturday 10th October 2026

Samaritans phone 116 123 anytime 24 hour service 7 days per week for someone who listens

It is World Mental Health Day on Saturday 10th October 2026. Make no mistake about it, I have mental health issues on a daily basis. For example: last October (2025) I fetched half a bucket of acorns for the local squirrels to save so they can eat them for Christmas Dinner, on New Years Day, Valentine's Day, and Saint Patrick's Day, and the stupid thieves are too respectful to take them. Only I would have honest squirrels in my garden! How frustrating when things don't go to plan, eh?

As an example of how I have opened myself up to honesty and taken some responsibility for my behaviour I have written about my failings in some of my posts. I have posted at least two pseudo-interviews with myself. The statements I make are true at the times of original writing - the questions I ask myself and my responses are more reflective in the present time. You can read those testimonies by searching for 'martin cadwell interview'. Or if you are logged in and on my OU Blog space you can click the tag 'interview'. Or click this link: INTERVIEW which is a link to two of my posts on the OU Blog site https://learn1.open.ac.uk/mod/oublog/view.php?user=852553&tag=interview

I have no mental health training and will not and cannot advise on any matter beyond directions on where to seek appropriate help on an individual basis. However, I may contribute in an open and general way with my ideas on how I see things might be different but as I say NOT on an individual basis.

I found that interviewing myself gave me power over something that takes me hostage and leaves me weakened. If I recognise how frustration affects me (honestly affects me) I can redirect my energy.

My kitchen is too small; I hate electric cookers; My neighbour is weird; My knee hurts and the doctors think I am unfit; I think I am unfit and feel put upon by my own laziness; Why do people keep complaining all the time? 

Everybody has some kind of gripe. I did have a website that would allow anonymous anguished cries but it somehow had to go because I suspect I presented as an influencer that might garner support against the politics of a foreign government. No matter, we live and learn.

It is hard being honest with myself but it is the only way I know to rescue myself from being held hostage by PTSD. My mental illness was forced upon me by the actions of others, whom I suspect had their own PTSD from environments they themselves did not have a hand in creating. If you like, I have vicarious mental health problems and I am apt to point a finger of blame but that history is entirely unreachable and the main characters have been hung for war crimes or otherwise assassinated. 

All I have left are my own monsters to deal with so I have to be honest to be able to recognise them. 'Ha Haa! Have at ye, you varlets! I shall strike you asunder. Your lies that bind me are my own concoction from the ingredients you offered me. You are discovered and measured. I have  control over the eating of the cake you gave me for the recipe for, and it shall not touch my lips.'

Tags: world mental health day, have your say, mentla helath, mental helath, cake, eating, PTSD
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