Shoot Up or Put Up

Are you diabetic and a geek? If the answer to those questions are “maybe” and “yes”, then I need your help. I’m beta testing some new features for your soaraway Shoot Up which will be going live around about the start of April, but I need victims volunteers to help test them out before they’re unleashed on an unsuspecting world.

If you fancy helping out please drop me an email (tim@shootuporputup.co.uk) and I’ll pass on the gory details!

Shelly's new motor-yacht

Just two short bloglettes today for your enjoyment. Firstly, some of you may be vaguely aware that as well as running a top quality blog, we also have a forum at http://forum.shootuporputup.co.uk. The Shoot Up forum quietly ticks along and to be harsh, but fair, not a great deal happens over there. Personally, I quite like it because I’ve configured the forum so flashing emoticons, pictures and inane signatures can’t be displayed – bliss!

Anyway, while there are infinitely better diabetes forums out there - http://www.diabetessupport.co.uk is a good example – occasionally the soaraway Shoot Up forum has a few gems of goodness. A case in point as a long running thread at http://forum.shootuporputup.co.uk/topic.php?id=2 describing how we were diagnosed with diabetes and memories of that fateful, heart-sinking day when we discovered we were a member of pancreatically-challenged club. Anyway, it’s a good read if you ignore my stupid comments about spies and stuff on the first page.

Secondly, our chum Shelly at Circle D has blatantly asked us to plug her new eBook “Living with Diabetes 24 hours a Day – A Personal Journey” which is available here. As we’re hoping that Shelly will invite us on one the yachts she’ll inevitably buy with the profits, we’re more than happy to give her said plug.

Shelly also runs Circle D and organises diabetes-related socials down in sunny Kent and she is a font of diabetes knowledge and support – so check out her site and buy her book, so she can become the colossus of the diabetes world that she richly deserves to be! Rrraaaagh!

http://circledrocks.co.uk/

I know you’ve also been waiting for weeks in eager anticipation of our latest poll results. Well, dear readers, wait no more!

Last time we asked how involved you got in diabetes politics. In other words, if you don’t like something about your diabetes care what do you do about it?

Apparently not a lot. With the majority (56%) noting that they got angry but didn’t, in fact, actually do anything about it. From this I guess we can conclude that the majority of diabetics are frustrated passive-aggressive balls of misery. Hurrah!

However, a sizeable number of firebrands actively chase their MPs, health boards and so on to try and force complacent health providers to improve their care. A smaller minority of 12% (whom I suspect is just Alison voting multiple times!) cared enough to note that they would be prepared to start riots, set fire to things and generally cause a nuisance (I suppose violent insurrection is quite a nuisance) to make changes to diabetic health provision.

Finally, the smallest minority (4%) just didn’t give a toss, evidently preferring to vegetate on their sofas instead of actively looking after their health. And, as they say, why not?

The new poll is all about how often you think about your diabetes on a daily basis. Are you obsessive compulsive about it or downright negligent? Click over to the right to register your vote!

Those results in full:

I get cross, but don’t actually do anything – 56%
I’ve written to my MP about diabetes – 28%
Rrragh! Man the barricades! -12 %
Meh, diabetes issues? Who cares? – 4%

As I write this I’m still gently suffering from my hangover resulting from the Shoot Up night out yesterday. I have a sneaking suspicion that one of the glasses of merlot I consumed was off, hence feeling slightly off-key today. However, it’s nothing a gallon of water and two paracetamol won’t cure.

Anyway, self-inflicted misery aside, yet again we had a thoroughly good turnout of Edinburgh’s pancreatically-challenged hoards. While I carefully brought my camera with me I stupidly neglected to take a single photo, so you’ll just have to take my word for it that a good time was had by all.

Given that Edinburgh-based diabetics clearly enjoy a pint or two, I’m planning the next night out for sometime in late March / early April or thereabouts. So keep an eye on events calendar down there (*points down the right of your screen*) for times and dates!

As a result of wildly popular demand, the next Shoot Up night out is scheduled for Saturday 13 February. Taking place in the heart of sunny Edinburgh, we plan to  eat food in a restaurant – to behave like civilised people [update: someone neglected to book a table in time - Valentine's weekend busy, who'da thought it? Duh! So forget the restaurant bit] – and then proceed to the pub – to behave like un-house-trained animals.

If the thought of sharing breathing space with a bunch of diabetics appeals to you (and I bet it does) then head over to our Facebook page for all the gory details:

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=270821976326&ref=ts

As always, everyone welcome – this includes partners, non-diabetics, fans of the blog, stalkers, etc. See you there!

Well, it’s that time of the month where yet again we reveal the results of the latest poll (no, we hadn’t forgotten about it, thank you). Last month we asked what you thought of your local health care provider.

In general it seems we’re all pretty content, with the vast majority of respondents noting that they thought their doctors and nurses were “On the whole not bad at all” with second place going to the utterly average health purgatory option.

However, before our health care friends become too complacent, a significant number of people chose the option of using a witch doctor in preference to a modern hospital. Good luck to ‘em!

Anyway, the latest poll has just gone up and we’re asking “How involved in diabetes politics are you?” By this we mean are you the sort of person who writes angry letters to your MP and is the first to man the ramparts with a flaming torch? Or do you prefer to shrug your shoulders to diabetic issues and slump on the sofa, PS3 controller in hand? Let us know!

Those results in full:

On the whole not bad at all – 25
Neither good nor bad – health purgatory – 7
So bloody awful I may as well use a witch doctor – 7
Faultlessly brilliant. I’m in awe – 6
Needing a lot of improvement – 4

Just to massage our already massive egos (mine is somewhere in size between Jupiter and Saturn) your soaraway Shoot Up got a mention in quality diabetes periodical Sweet. I’ve reproduced a badly scanned copy below for your fun and pleasure. Some of what the article says is actually true, so enjoy.

Delicious beer, yesterday

It is with ill-disguised excitement that I’m overwhelming proud to announce your soaraway Shoot Up’s new diabetic events calendar! Woo!

Over on the right hand side of the page (and by clicking here) you can see every diabetes-related event happening in the UK, as long as:

a) we’ve been told about it
b) we’ve bothered to add it to said calendar

If you want to tell us about an event you can have a look at the guidelines (such as they are) and then drop us an email to either of us or to our fancy-pants new email address events@shootuporputup.co.uk.

If that weren’t thrilling enough (readers with a fragile disposition may need to be sitting down for the next part) then I’m also frothing at the mouth with glee to announce Shoot Up’s inaugural meet up in Edinburgh on Saturday 28th November 2009. We’re announcing it quite early so our American friends have time to organise time off work, flights, entry visas, vaccinations, quarantine, etc., etc.

So come November, not only can you have the opportunity to meet me but you can also meet my esteemed co-writer Alison who is travelling up from the wilds of England to be here. Also present will be popular guest writer Katie (aka Tim’s wife) and the non-contributing but moral-supporting Alison’s hubby. Not only that, but Tim’s pharmacist will also be there, for some reason.

We’ll be meeting from 7pm onwards in Au Bar (it’s a pub, so over 18s only – sorry youngsters) on Shandwick Place, Edinburgh, EH2 4SD and we’ll try and keep the diabetes talk to a minimum. More details can be found on our Facebook events page or you can email either of us.

All are very, very welcome, so see you there!

At the forefront of diabetes care

Well chaps, it’s that time of the month again – poll results time. Hurrah! As always, our highly scientific, balanced, bias-proof, carefully weighted survey has caught the mood – the Zeitgeist, if you will – of the diabetic community.

The majority of people answered our question “I know… a) everything about diabetes; or b) nothing about diabetes” with a). Therefore our beloved readers are either experts on diabetes, whose knowledge of chronic illness far exceeds that of the national average or they’re all pathological liars. The jury remains out.

This month, we’re quizzing you about your local health care provider – whether this is your local clinic, hospital, doctor, endocrinologist or whatever – and how good you think they are. You can give your answer to the question “My local healthcare provider is…” over on the right from the following range of possibilities:

• Faultlessly brilliant. I’m in awe
• On the whole not bad at all
• Neither good nor bad – health purgatory
• Needing a lot of improvement
• So bloody awful I may as well use a witch doctor

With regard to the last option, I have to confess I’ve never consulted a witch doctor about my diabetes. So if they are, in fact, absolutely marvellous at treating diabetes I apologise unreservedly to any witch doctor readers that might be offended by the disparaging tone of the option. Please don’t turn me into a frog.

...but who watches Big Brother?

Being modelled on a nightmarish Orwellian police state, here at your soaraway Shoot Up we monitor your every move on the site with incredible and intrusive detail. After all, there have to be some benefits to running a blog.

One of the metrics we can see is what people type into their favourite search engines to get here. Very frequently these search queries are in the form of questions such as “Do I have diabetes?” Unfortunately I can’t reply to these queries as I don’t know who typed them; so for the benefit of confused searchers, here are the answers to some of the genuine queries we’ve found on the logs:

Search query: I’m peeing a lot and tired, do I have diabetes?
Tim’s answer: Yes, yes you very well may do. Go to your friendly local sawbone and have it checked out. Oh, and welcome to the club!

Search query: I’ve got genital itching and tiredness
Tim’s answer: See above. Welcome to the club!

Search query: Can I be sacked from my job because I’m a diabetic?
Tim’s answer: Nope, diabetes is covered in the UK by The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA). You can read more about this legislation here on direct.gov.uk. You can, however, be sacked for surfing the web at work – so be careful!

Search query: Do the Brits like the NHS?
Tim’s answer: We bitch about it a lot – but in actual fact we’re secretly quite pleased to have healthcare that’s free at the point of entry.

Search query: Good places to shoot up?
Tim’s answer: Just find your nearest junkie-heroin den. That’s the best place to shoot up, man. You can score some good crack while you’re there too. Yay!

Search query: How to get funding for diabetic pump?
Tim’s answer: *sigh* if only there was an easy answer…

Search query: is dry biscuites [sic.] good for diabetics?
Tim’s answer: Unless three hundred boxes of them fall on you we’re generally fine with dry “biscuites”.

Search query: My hba1c was 6.5%
Tim’s answer: Now just stop bragging, you show off.

Search query: What happens if you accidentally put lantus in your pump
Tim’s answer: I’ve no idea – it’s probably not entirely good!

Search query: Accu-chek + [every possible product and word combination]
Tim’s answer: Hello Roche Diagnostics! Nice to see you take checking your brands on the Internet seriously. But, don’t worry, I’ve only said nice things about you. So far…

Search query: Syringe birthday cake
Tim’s answer: Wow! I want to come to that party!

Search query: insulin murder (and many variations of)
Tim’s answer: Don’t do it – you’ll never get away with it.

So there we have it – another lot of queries cleared up. If you have any more bung them in the comments below!