His influence on my life is immense, just some of the interests he has introduced me to are:
Theme Parks - Seany took my sister and me to our first-ever theme park, Alton Towers. If you know me at all I don't need to explain the impact on my life this had, (if unsure just scroll through my Twitter for a minute) from getting engaged at Disneyland Paris to getting married at Disney World and everything in between, the yearly trips with Seany, Nanny & Grampy are what started everything. (Even if half the day was taken up by travel, he was not the quickest driver!)
Music - While very young I was introduced to Seany's music collection, he was a DJ at night. Thousands of vinyl records, CDs and tapes were stored in his house and we even saw Eminem live at the Bowl. Long before the days of streaming, he would always be able to predict what would be number one in the charts. That vinyl collection is now pride of place in my living room.
Animation - Mum wouldn't let me watch South Park but luckily Seany would record it on VHS off Channel 4 every Friday night so we could watch when we went around. Also helped that there was a massive back catalogue of all Disney films and lots of Hanna-Barbera compilations (care of Nanny) always available.
Video Games - I'm the only person, but I actually enjoyed playing ET on the Atari 2600. Many hours were spent with the Atari hooked up to the world's smallest TV (which had an actual dial to change the channels). Seany worked in the local shopping centre so whenever a new Playstation game came out I knew I could rely on him to pick it up for me, and every birthday I could pick a game from the Platinum Collection.
I'm going to presume most of you have worked out where this is going but some may be wondering why I am telling you this. Seany took his own life on 29th March 2017, years before he had been diagnosed with clinical depression.
During his last years, he was a completely different person, he was convinced that there must be something physically wrong with him and that it couldn't be a mental health issue. He had always lived on his own since my Nan (his Mum) passed away and, purely in my opinion with absolutely no medical knowledge on my side, towards the end, it just seemed like he couldn't cope with ageing - mixed in with massive confusion in regards to sexuality.
Some people are just not meant for this world it seems.
In the years since I know the conversation around mental health has improved but there's still plenty more to do. Mental health awareness happened but I think we need to work on solutions now that we are "aware". Also please understand the difference between looking after your mental wellness and having actual mental health issues, don't be afraid to visit a doctor or take medication.
In the years since I know the conversation around mental health has improved but there's still plenty more to do. Mental health awareness happened but I think we need to work on solutions now that we are "aware". Also please understand the difference between looking after your mental wellness and having actual mental health issues, don't be afraid to visit a doctor or take medication.
On top of this, it's extremely upsetting to see the world take massive steps backwards when it goes to LGBTQIA++ issues, another area which I believe led to his decision.
I may not have the answers but anyone reading this please know I'm here to listen to you if you need it.
So I run to keep his memory alive and to raise money for Mind, mental health is extremely underfunded in this country so the more cash we can raise for charity the more help people who need it can receive.
I may not have the answers but anyone reading this please know I'm here to listen to you if you need it.
So I run to keep his memory alive and to raise money for Mind, mental health is extremely underfunded in this country so the more cash we can raise for charity the more help people who need it can receive.
