March 18, 2022 Columns by John Connor Everything Last Week Did Come in Threes My week is never exactly easy, but it’s much harder for my family. Not only do they have to deal physically with my ever-enlarging lump of flesh, there’s also my verbal diarrhea to contend with. Then last Tuesday, it…
March 11, 2022 Columns by John Connor Can I Really Blame MS for Everything I Say? It wasn’t an argument; it was a reality check. I was happy, nay, self-indulgent. Within a day, the ol’ stand-up show that I produced at London’s Comedy Store for 30 years had gotten another booking at a countryside…
March 4, 2022 Columns by John Connor The Captain and His No. 2 There I was, swinging away in my hoist at 9 p.m., though my swinging London of the 2020s wasn’t only 60 years later, it was also a lot, lot grimmer. My carer and maybe still wife, Jane,…
February 25, 2022 Columns by John Connor Does 2 + 2 = 4, 5, or 0? Am I about to share my first conspiracy theory, even if it’s just about me? Why not? It’s all the rage, though this one may have a loose connection to a possible truth. Stick with the story, please. It…
February 18, 2022 Columns by John Connor The Supplements of Mice and Men Roll up, roll up, for all the fun of the fare! I swallow an awful lot of supplements. Have I also swallowed the barkers’ patter? I don’t think so. But I’m more than aware that if something works on…
February 11, 2022 Columns by John Connor The Big Blue Bag and a ‘Cast Away’ Bed Once upon a time, long, long ago, when I was very young, we British children would be asked, “What’s through the round window?” The line was from a TV series called “Play School.” The swinging ’60s may have…
February 4, 2022 Columns by John Connor At 64, I’m Surprised to Be Scrambling to Mount a Chariot As usual, I’ve gone for what I hope to be an intriguing headline, because you’ve got to grab a reader by any means necessary. If you’ve read this far, I’m winning! This saga goes back well over a year,…
January 28, 2022 Columns by John Connor Having My Own ‘Long Bad Friday’ In truth, my long, bad Friday started on Thursday afternoon at 5 p.m., although it seems wrong in the middle of a black, midwinter night to still call it afternoon. Still, if you live in Alaska, summer nights never…
January 21, 2022 Columns by John Connor The World According to MS Ennui Move along, move along. Nothing to read here. What a great start to a column! Last week, my worries about MS lifted as I was consumed by a glitch in my computer software. I’m pleased to report that…
January 14, 2022 Columns by John Connor This Week, MS Takes a Back Seat The vagaries of multiple sclerosis are always present, but this week, my waking hours have been consumed by something far more important. I say waking hours, but we have to discount much of that time, because I’m put to…
January 7, 2022 Columns by John Connor As Omicron Spreads, I’m Keeping My Head Down I’m pretty sure that wherever you are, you’re responding the same as we all are to the ravages of the latest Bond villain, that dastardly omicron variant of the coronavirus! OK, pipe down, Kiwis. The whole world knows the…
December 17, 2021 Columns by John Connor Santa Is Not Comin’ to Town! This is the fifth year I’m writing a Christmastime missive about how my MS journey as Santa is going since the disease mortally attacked my immune system. The trouble was that it took doctors ages…
December 10, 2021 Columns by John Connor An Interview With My Primary Carer I’ve been meaning to do this for a while. My wife, Jane, who’s also my primary MS carer, went away for a few days last week, and with absence making the heart grow fonder and all that, I…
December 3, 2021 Columns by John Connor There’s a New Primary Carer in Town Well, there’s a new carer at home, actually, but town sounds so much cooler. Like an old-time Western sheriff! My dear wife, Jane, has taken a few days off to attend an ayurvedic yoga retreat, so I’m…
November 19, 2021 Columns by John Connor My Coffee Cup Runneth Over, Plus a Darned Interruption So, where was I last week? I was in the midst of writing this column when I was felled overnight by my long-term nemesis: a urinary tract infection (UTI). As usual, I had no idea I had one…
November 5, 2021 Columns by John Connor On the Healing Powers of THC I have to admit, I’ve wheeled down the THC path a few times before. Yes, I know it’s very difficult to stay on the path when under the influence. Luckily, I’ve solved this problem by only imbibing in…
October 29, 2021 Columns by John Connor I’m Back in the Desert Without a Horse Well, that was fun. I’ve got my party hat on from a recent birthday (of course I have one, it’s my trusty trilby! See my avatar above) and have been out and about having a lot of fun.
October 22, 2021 Columns by John Connor Party on, Dude, but I’m Still Blaming the Dog! It was my birthday last Friday. No cards, please; it’s far too late. Anyway, considering the world’s supply chain disruption, I’d be well on the way to my next by the time it arrived! Just a small social…
October 15, 2021 Columns by John Connor Groundhog Day, Groundhog Day, Groundhog Day, Groundhog Day My wife, Jane, woke me up at 9 a.m., announcing, “Welcome to Groundhog Day!” Every day starts the same. Yes, I know the day always started at 6 a.m. in the film, but even 9 a.m. is a…
October 8, 2021 Columns by John Connor It’s Just One of Those MS ‘Snow Days’ “Rage, rage against the dying of the light,” Dylan Thomas wrote in his famous poem about us humans fighting, against all odds, the inevitable moment of death. Oh, yes, I went there. I’m starting with the dark and…
September 28, 2023 Columns by Benjamin Hofmeister With multiple sclerosis, don’t worry about asking stupid questions