The Paralympics in Brazil start next week. Yesterday afternoon though, my body seemed to be embracing the sporting spirit a bit early, and in its own ridiculous way.

I was working away on the sofa when I started having a ‘ticcing fit’.…

For a few minutes I lay on my back, studying a small corner of sky that the van’s floppy thermal blind had revealed. It wasn’t giving much away, just a steady non-committal grey.

The noises outside were more revealing: no patter of rain on the roof, only the comforting racket of Fat Sister making tea outside.…

During the night the rain battered the tent so hard that several times I felt a fine mist on my skin. But by the time I was properly awake the rain had cleared. I pulled myself out into the grey morning and sat and watched Glastonbury get going.…

The hotel we’re staying in here in Toronto is very luxurious. It even has a swimming pool and a spa. Rachel and I have managed to get into the lovely routine of going for a morning swim.

After this morning’s swim we sat for a while in the jacuzzi at the side of the pool.…

After six weeks of touring I’ve got a few days off before we head to Gloucester this weekend. Technically they’re not days off because I’ll be doing some work for the children’s organisation I used to help manage. I went in today and was really excited to see everyone – I’ve been missing the place a lot.…

A couple of weeks ago I had a ‘ticcing fit’ in the hallway of the castle that left a nasty impression on me.

During the fit my arm pressed against a hot radiator pipe. Because I couldn’t move I quickly found myself with a horrible big burn.…

Late last night we got back to our hotel after an amazing performance of Backstage in Biscuit Land in Norwich, our biggest audience to date. I was seriously tired but happy too. Innes helped me get to bed and I fell asleep quickly.…

I’ve just been to the toilet.

To be able to do this safely I need a number of aids. Some of these are permanent and stay in the bathroom, like the grab rail and the emergency alarm. Others are things I need to replace regularly – for example the kneepads that protect me when I move onto the floor to pull up my knickers – or the leggings I wear so I don’t have to worry about fastenings – or the panty liners to help when I don’t make it to the toilet in time.…

Leftwing Idiot discovered something that clearly puzzled and disturbed him earlier this week. We’ve spent the last few days together in Galway for the incredible Creative Connections conference. I was feeling pretty under the weather for most of the time and, as always, this resulted in more ‘ticcing fits’ and less energy.…

Several times a day my tics intensify dramatically – I call these episodes ‘ticcing fits’ because they look seizure-like and need similar management. They have a number of distinct elements any or all of which may happen during any given fit.…