@ Keane: It sounds like things are starting to get a little better, even though you still seem bleak. To me it feels like you're piecing the puzzle of your life together, day by day and piece by piece. You'll get there some day, and I hope that day comes sooner than you anticipate. My advice would be to just follow your dreams and be yourself, and (although it seems a cliche), don't think too much about how others regard you. People admire and respect self-confidence above anything else, anyway.
- Had a political caller at the doorstep earlier at my dad's. When I explained he was the home owner, when she asked, she immediately proceeded to ask about his political persuasion, before even consulting my own views

I'm 22 years old, and I pretty much look 22. As if that is not old enough to form legitimate political opinions, or was there some deeper notion that I'm duty to some unrecoiling familial custom in which I must vote the way my parents did? It's a small issue but it niggled me terribly and her attitude definitely lost her party my vote.