ThePickards
standards, accessibility, and ranting and general stuff by the web chemist

Imagine being told “you’re going to die!”.
Not a pleasant thought, is it? And yet, that’s the reality of life. You are going to die. Possibly those of us who don’t suffer from thanatophobia don’t think about it very often, but it’s something which is acknowledged whether or not you like it. Which is why it’s [...]

Read: You’re Going To Die »

I came across a post today on the Goldfish’s site called Believing in Belief, where she talks about the Richard Dawkins book The God Delusion and her own ideas on faith.
I just had to post something in response to that for two reasons — firstly because her stance seemed remarkably similar to mine, and secondly [...]

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I watched something on television about Stephen Fry the other weekend. Apparently it was his 50th birthday, which came as a bit of a surprise because while I might possibly have guessed that he was in his forties, he certainly doesn’t look 50 to me. But it says he’s fifty on the official Stephen Fry [...]

Read: But I want to be Stephen Fry’s mate too… »

I went to a book-signing in Waterstones in Newcastle yesterday. It was, as you may possibly have speculated from the title of this post, a book signing done by Christopher Brookmyre. He’s written a number of books that are generally classed as ‘Crime fiction’, but that’s too simplistic a view: you’ve really got to stir [...]

Read: Christopher Brookmyre’s Book Signing »

I see the grey within and the grey without
While from inside swells a silent shout
I fear, I dread, I do confess
That eternal boundless emptiness
And here upon this long cold shore
‘Midst scattered people, I feel it more
That all through life, through all the rain
We feel the mournful aching pain
Our days tick by and then are spent
The [...]

Read: The Thanataphobe’s Lament »

This ties in to some extent with my previous thoughts on my thanatophobia, or at least it does in my mind anyway.
There are two main views of consciousness. One, Cartesian duality, suggests that the mind is a separate and non-physical construct which influences the brain. In this case, the mind could easily be considered to [...]

Read: Life, Death, Thanatophobia and/or Free Will »

Okay, it’s time to come clean. I’m mentally ill. Well, I’m thanatophobic, anyway. I’ll let you make up your own mind as to how unhinged that actually is. So what is it, then?
A true medical diagnosis, this fear is characterized by an abnormal or irrational fear of death. This fear is often debilitating.Wikipedia
I’ll just point [...]

Read: Living with thanatophobia »