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Episode 117 - What Went Down in 2025, And Is 2026 Going To Be A Shit Show?
51 Plays16 days ago
Martin and Paul are back in the (brand new year) room! After a wild ride through 2025, your ex-mayors of ADHDville are throwing themselves headfirst into 2026. With no script, no plan, and absolutely zero chill, they’re here to:
✨ Review the ADHD year that was – from rejection-sensitive dysphoria and career chaos to navigating the messy, beautiful overlap of autism and ADHD.
✨ Predict the unpredictable – What’s coming in 2026? More chaos? A sweet spot of productivity? A world on fire? They’re grabbing a flask of coffee and trying to figure it out.
✨ Share the real, unfiltered chat – Getting fired over Twiglets, singing Gregorian chants in cabs, and the eternal struggle of making money with a neurodivergent brain. It’s all on the table.
Join Martin (diagnosed combined ADHD, 2013) and Paul (diagnosed combined ADHD, two years ago) in the local pub of ADHDville, The King’s Agitated Head, for laughs, tangents, solidarity, and a legendary quiz to kick the year off.
Strap in for another year of detours, distractions, and unexpected landmarks on the main road. This is ADHDville – where the chaos is part of the charm.
Subscribe for your weekly dose of neurospicy camaraderie. New episodes every Tuesday.
#ADHDville #ADHD #AdultADHD #Autism #Neurodiversity #Podcast #NewYear #2026
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Transcript
Welcome to ADHDville
00:00:00
Speaker
Back in the room. Back in the room. Hello. Back in the room. And it's a new year. It's it's ah it's a new year room. Brand new. see's got It's even got a new number.
00:00:12
Speaker
Box fresh. Right. So let's go to a place where the distractions, the landmarks and the detours are on
Meet the Hosts: Paul and Martin
00:00:19
Speaker
the main roads. Welcome yeah to EHDville. Okay.
00:00:26
Speaker
and some other people besides
00:00:48
Speaker
Hello, my
Reflecting on Past Experiences
00:00:49
Speaker
name's Paul Thompson. I was diagnosed with the combined ADH and another D again two years ago. Hello, I'm Martin Weston. I was diagnosed with the combined ADHD poo-poo platter in 2013. And we start off in the local pub in ADHDville, the King's Agitated Head, where we, the ex-mayors of ADHD, take care of business. And we're very glad that you're here with us, joining us for another year. This is our you know what this this is the third year that we've done recordings. Oh, my.
00:01:20
Speaker
Yeah, OMG. Yeah, so we started in 2024, the end of all of 2025. Now launching ourselves. Yeah, ah when we just we're just throwing ourselves into 2026 like we care in the world.
00:01:39
Speaker
luck it' nineteen nineteen nine yeah i I remember 1999. I remember the whole, you know, the Y2K bug that the planes were all out of the sky. and Yeah.
00:01:56
Speaker
And they didn't. Although I'll have to point out that's because people in the background actually... solved it and they changed things and they, and that's why a disaster didn't happen because of some IT guys in some basement somewhere.
Weather and Life Reflections
00:02:13
Speaker
ah Anyway, oh this week we're going to talk about, well, I mean, it's just going like 2025, 2026 loose chat situation. twenty twenty six loose chatpped Yeah.
00:02:27
Speaker
I've got it no script. What went down last year? What might go down this year? What we don't want to go down this year, maybe. Yeah, yeah. So, I mean, I i literally have no script for this one at all. So I'm just going to flying. Yes, I'm just going to be flying off off of my ass. um And then we do have a a just a, just a good way to kick off the ah the year. We have a a double head-to-head you quiz.
00:02:59
Speaker
Double whammy. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah, just just to kind of kick things off. um You know what? I am going to do it. I'm going to keep score. So I think last year, I think we probably ended about even, right?
00:03:15
Speaker
I think so, because I came up from the back. ah kind I was like lagging quite badly. And then are kind of like, you know, pretty much came through in the end.
00:03:28
Speaker
think so. Yeah, it was quite even. Yes, I'm going write 2026, and I'm just going write M and P, and I'm just going to keep a note for once. Okay. Let's see how we do at the end of this year.
00:03:46
Speaker
Anyway, all right, so where shall we go to sit and chat? I was thinking Park Bench, bigger place, Martin. You know, we can, like, look over onto the yonder and contemplate with a flask of coffee. All right well, let's go head into the tractor and head over to the park.
00:04:13
Speaker
Oh, there we go. Thank you. Frank it up.
00:04:30
Speaker
If it was a park anywhere near me, it would be it would have snow on it because that's what it's doing. Of course, because it's snowing where you are. I heard that Canada had recorded 52 degrees below.
00:04:46
Speaker
And you're not like on the other side of the planet from Canada. So what's the deal where you're hanging out? Well, it's not quite it's not quite that that cold. But, um yeah, it's still, I mean, it ah by British standards, it would be be pretty fucking parky.
00:05:06
Speaker
So what's the coldest against where you are? ah You know, make me Google...
00:05:16
Speaker
ive I once went to a New Year's Eve party in Hamburg yeah in about 1996, and six and it was minus 20.
00:05:28
Speaker
Okay. And that was, oh, my God. It was so cold. It felt like you felt like you were being burned. it was an odd sensation. Yeah.
00:05:40
Speaker
Anyway, yeah. I mean, like ah let me think. So sometimes it kind of gets – I mean, if you if you if you factor in the wind chill factor, it gets down to, like, minus 15, minus 20.
Creative Challenges with ADHD
00:05:53
Speaker
Oh, blimey. It could feel like serious proper Arctic. um All right. So 2025, who wants to start with with this whole whole thing? I don't know.
00:06:08
Speaker
Well, I'll start, Martin, as soon as I've got a script. Yay. I've got a script. I'm going to start rejection-sensitive dysphoria, Martin. on that Okay. d Because i think something you can relate to. 2025 was like a continuation of the realisation that um because of our age, we've got kind of, well, for ah what I talk about me. I feel like I've been left out of like, and forgotten about, thrown onto the rubbish heap way before my time.
00:06:43
Speaker
no. In terms of being like a creative person, you know, in terms of creative direction and stuff like that. Can't get a look at it.
00:06:54
Speaker
I got a rejection letter today. Yeah. If I was from not, there was a time when I, if I got, if I try to get an interview. I would get an interview.
00:07:05
Speaker
It was almost guaranteed. Wow. was good at writing letters. My CV looks good. Blah, blah, blah. You know, worked in the right kind of places and in the right kind of town, cities, countries, blah, blah, blah. Good client list.
00:07:22
Speaker
And it was almost a guarantee that I'd get an interview. Now I can't get an interview. Mm-hmm. Yeah, i I mean, there is a general, ah I feel like know for those looking for work, there is not much out there anyway. Like it is sparse.
00:07:42
Speaker
It is sparse for everyone. but But then, as you say, if you're if you're a little bit on the experienced side, like like like we are, ah yeah, we just look expensive.
00:07:58
Speaker
Right. Yeah, because of pension contributions, I can have shenanigans. I'm not, I mean, there's a mix of anger and frustration, but it's also a bit shocking. It's like, I think of myself as being, blimey, I still feel like um've I've got my i still got my best to give, you know. don't think I've nothing i' watched that at all.
00:08:22
Speaker
You're the slightest. You aren't, mate. You aren't. No, no, no. Thanks, mate. okay It's annoying, though, isn't it? It it is. It's like, what the fuck? You know.
00:08:33
Speaker
Yeah, well, we did it, didn't we? Yes. We did ridiculous, stupid hours. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, but, yeah. But um we a we end about that now.
00:08:45
Speaker
I remember going through... working in London, i've got in a cab at two o'clock in the morning. I looked at my watch. I thought, I'm going to get home early tonight. Exactly.
00:08:57
Speaker
And thought, um holy fuck, that's not good. That's not good. Yeah. I once worked, um it was it was a pitch. It was a pitch for Sony PlayStation.
00:09:14
Speaker
um And it was, i worked all day, night, all day, all night, all day. So it was three full days and two nights just solid working at my desk, chug, chug, chug, all the way through.
00:09:35
Speaker
can't do that now. No. My eyes Yeah, yeah, yeah.
ADHD vs. Autism
00:09:43
Speaker
If I work a solid day, if I work just a solid day and I know I've got a head a headline, a deadline,
00:09:49
Speaker
a deadline so to hit, to meet. could do it, but my eyes would be bleeding afterwards.
00:10:00
Speaker
Yeah, although ah I must say, on the ah when ah when I finished that that pitch after all that time, it was you reach this you euphoric state where your brain is just kind of like...
00:10:14
Speaker
um so tired that it just kind of well mine anyway it just it just kind of goes off to this kind of lull la land but it was actually quite nice i was like oh this is so beautiful okay it's so beautiful i was so calm and it was that ever everything was grizzp was wonderful it was like a drug almost jesus it was like taking taking marijuana for you woda Okay. What about you, Marty? What what you what have you got on your on your um script for last year?
00:10:54
Speaker
Well, ah I think, well, last year was like... ah
00:11:03
Speaker
it was It was a little bit up and down. i mean, I've had worse years, but I think the last year was ah because we kind of do the podcast a lot and I'm on TikTok a lot and I'm, you know, like talking about ADHD and crap. So it's been so this is a full year of it really being like,
00:11:21
Speaker
a central thing in my life right yeah yeah so it's been you know i've met a lot of great people i chat to a lot of great people um i've you know i i i've been talking to people who have got like you know different who are bipolar or schizophrenic and there's all these kind of other like little interesting corners of the of the yeah internet so it's been quite educational I would say generally on the, on the ADHD front, it's been, it's been poking in people's, people's experiences. And also I think it's the first year that I really thought, you know what I am working.
00:12:04
Speaker
i am autistic and i i should really try and wrap my head around that and the adhd and try and see how those how i work with those two things it's complicated isn't it is's complicated it's complicated is complicated mate i've only done i didn't look into it for the first two years after my diagnosis because i didn't have the headspace for it but no no no i can't i can't i couldn't deal with it but the last four or five months i have and it's it's like yeah they there's lot of people well so-called experts say that sometimes it one autism sometimes cancels out adhd
00:12:50
Speaker
You know, they overlap each other and create all kinds of mess. Right. Because for me, it feels like you've you've you've got the autism side, which really likes structure and rerie routine and and believes that that's...
00:13:10
Speaker
that that makes for a kind of a less anxious way of life. And then you've got the ADHD, which kind of doesn't like all that structure and routine. It likes kind of its own little chaos monkey world and gets all looks for all the excitement over there. so yeah So when I find that when my autism takes over, my ADHD lets it,
00:13:34
Speaker
Yeah. That's, I, there is a little sweet spot where I will allow like all my little systems come into play and things work out and I plan things and I, and and and everything runs smoothly when either side takes over too much which it often does and it's all like it's it's i just swing from like chaos yeah no ah have to put some structure down and i try and do the structure and that fails i back to chaos but there are times or when these when when the adhd and the and in the and the autism actually work out you know what it's a bit like
00:14:15
Speaker
And you'll appreciate this. It's like siblings. It's like you and your sister, right? fight fight fight fight Fight, fight, fight, fight, fight. But occasionally you have these little times where you're both playing really well together.
00:14:32
Speaker
And it's like, oh, this is really great. It doesn't last long. It never happened. It did never happen. Oh, it never happened. i Bad analogy for you, Paul.
00:14:48
Speaker
oh I know what you mean, though. Yeah. How is it for you? yes It's like if if you're eating a raspberry at the same time as dark chocolate.
00:15:02
Speaker
Oh, nice. You think they're two polar opposites, but when you actually are chewing them together, there's sometimes like, oh, that sweet spot. Oh, yeah, that kind of bitterness and the sweetness really work together.
00:15:18
Speaker
Right. Yeah. I mean, I can see, well but what too often happens is you you get the dark chocolate and then you get a pickled onion. Yes. And then you go, this does not work together at all. This is just now horrible.
00:15:35
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Unless it's a monster munch. Monster munch crisps, chips. Yeah. Oh, yeah, yeah. Yeah.
00:15:46
Speaker
But it's an odd one, isn't it? The combined thing. And I know, because you've basically just described my life when you're talking about the the in the kind of that dynamic between the chaos and the structure. That's me in a nutshell.
00:16:02
Speaker
Right. There we go. That's me. It so is that. Yeah. Yeah. Because when I so first started looking into ADHD, I thought, well, that doesn't work out because I really like structure. Yeah.
00:16:18
Speaker
And then you work out two years down the line. Actually, that's where the autism fucking kicks in. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. It's a bastard, isn't it?
00:16:29
Speaker
It is a bastard. It's a bastard. But you say there's a sweet spot. Okay. some some sometimes Sometimes the planets align and somehow your a autism is kind of like in a really good place and it's firing on all cylinders and the ADHD is is happy to kind of like...
00:16:52
Speaker
you know, not to cause too much chaos, you know, it just wants some, some variety in the in the thing that you're doing.
00:17:02
Speaker
And then for a little, for for for a little brief moment, the clouds part and the sun streams out and the world is perfect. Angels come down. Yeah. and they hops And they, and they, and they give you a big pat on the back and they're like, fucking brilliant, mate. You are a legend. And then you get, oh, brilliant.
00:17:21
Speaker
and and never And everything works out. When they're not playing the harps, they're patting on the back. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They're going, mate,
Acceptance and Societal Changes
00:17:29
Speaker
have a beer. And you're going, cheers, Angel. This is fantastic. And, you know, and you think, how can I repeat this? this how How can I make this happen all the time? And yeah I can't.
00:17:45
Speaker
a um ah Pattern recognition is more autism, isn't it, than ADHD? I think example but pattern recognition is ADHD and autism and and and trauma.
00:17:58
Speaker
It's a trauma response as as well. so Because of hyper... because of hyper um um Hypervigilance.
00:18:09
Speaker
Hypervigilance, exactly. Yeah, yeah, yeah. eighty Yeah, a yeah, yeah, yeah. Makes sense. Yeah. yeah but but but it's So like Michael on TikTok, you know, because yeah we we we had him a guest had him as a guest way way back. His... his of autism is trying to work out how to hack his brain so that he can be optimum all the time.
00:18:38
Speaker
um by And ah he he he did various experiments all last year where he was trying to kind of work out, that you know is it a sleep thing? Is it this thing? Is it that thing?
00:18:50
Speaker
um and but may I mean less like it's like God if I knew how to make the ADHD and the and the autism play together well like all the time I would be an unstoppable um machine I'd be ruling the world yeah yeah interesting I remember for Michael because I i read his I always read his thing on on his his name on TikTok. i always read it as ah o orut autistic line
00:19:26
Speaker
But that was unusual. And it wasn't until he was on our podcast. He said, you know, it's artistically me. I know. Yeah. Yeah. He's still out there. I'm not sure whether he listens to the pod anymore, but who cares? Yeah. I sent me a message the other day. He's having a difficult time.
00:19:50
Speaker
oh yeah he's yeah yeah yeah he's got a whole bunch of kids he's got like loads of kids and they're all and they're all autistic and yeah yeah he's having a rough time it's complicated mate blimey okay um the other thing i've got is the is the podcast martin oh says he's viewing last year And um I was thinking, actually, as I was writing this, I was thinking how much more difficult, um because I had discovered my ADHD about 10 years after you.
00:20:29
Speaker
And I was thinking how much harder it would have been for me to deal with my ADHD had I not done the podcast with you. Yeah, interesting, isn't it? Because you're also in Italy as well. And as we were saying, just before we pressed pressed the the record button, that ADHD is not really a thing. It's not. Well, it is a thing, but it's not recognised. Yeah, yeah. So no one really talks about it much.
00:21:03
Speaker
Yeah, it's just not on their radar. It's only starting very recently. Very, very recently. There's a new center that is under development, new center for ADHD in Milan at the moment. um we started starting to be taken very seriously, o which is interesting.
New Year's Resolutions and Health Goals
00:21:24
Speaker
Yeah, who knows? perhaps Perhaps you should do the first Italian ADHD podcast. because Yeah, yeah. yeah Well, I want to get trained as an ADHD coach in Italy, but it's fucking expensive.
00:21:43
Speaker
Oh, yeah, yeah. im To get any kind of certifications. costs a lot of bucks. Oh, yeah. Yeah, that sucks. So, and also, I'm not sure if I've got the energy for it, you know.
00:21:56
Speaker
You know. Right. I don't know. I would like, I kind of like the idea and I don't. I'm not sure. Yeah, yeah. I hear you. Yeah, because you have to commit to people for a... Yeah, and it's not a small commitment.
00:22:12
Speaker
No, it is a big ass commitment. Like it could go you for years, you know, like, yeah. When I've done my bit, because I introduced the conversation of ADHD and autism at school level with the school teachers, you know, during meetings.
00:22:29
Speaker
And no one was talking about autism. when I said, hang on, no one was talking about autism. and And at least that, you know, just like get the ball rolling, you know, come on.
00:22:41
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Come on. You have helped. um Yeah. also I will say about, um you know, like, because I will talk about New Year's resolutions because we do because we do tend to like, you know,
00:23:00
Speaker
This, you know, where are we, January? This that this will be out in January the sixth so So if you did make any New Year's resolutions, they've probably already bust any anyway. And if you're fairly sensible and seasoned ADHD, you'll be very wary of doing any New Year's resolutions anyway yes because they just set you up to fail.
00:23:30
Speaker
I think the only resolutions I've had is not had to happen any resolutions. I think that is probably your your annual New Year's but resolution. Yeah. I think um I tend to like, as I probably said last year, is i have one thing that I just try and focus on.
00:23:48
Speaker
Right. Yeah. think last year was health. Just want to like just try and focus on my health a bit more. like And that's it. Like I just just want one overarching yeah like i i idea or just something just to be looking at. and but But for 2026, mate, it's just like I feel like that the world is going fucking crazy.
00:24:15
Speaker
ah It's fucking no – it's fucking – Unbelievable. Right, right. There's this really cool thing by Barack Obama, he said couple of weeks ago. He says, it seems to me at the moment that the world is in crisis because of too many old men holding on to their seats of power for too long.
00:24:41
Speaker
Yeah. And that was bang on.
00:24:47
Speaker
Yeah. So you've got a lot going on. and so ah So I feel like 2026, I feel like is there's going to be a lot going on It's going to be a crazy thing.
00:25:01
Speaker
fucked up year. is. I'm not sad to say. general theme is like hunker down and survive. Yeah. Just get through this.
00:25:12
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Well, have you noticed my TikTok recently, I put, the TikTok I put, um, um, resist, survive, repeat.
00:25:24
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. I think, I think that's going to be my. Resist, survive, repeat. Yeah. Right. i thought i'm I'm not going to be doing so much of the fifty the resisting. I'm just going to be doing the the surviving and repeating. Yeah.
00:25:40
Speaker
repeating um Yeah, because it's like, oh, much you know isn't it too much going on um and it's going to get worse. and So fuck it all. I'm just going to fuck it all. I'm just going to like. I'm saying in terms of health, I need to start eating more healthily.
00:26:01
Speaker
um much just my my ah Just my, how can I say Gastrically, things have changed over the last year and a half.
00:26:13
Speaker
we'd like with gas getting with them acid reflux and stuff like that. and Yeah, i need to get it under control. Yeah, i I used to get that a lot, and then i i I just basically worked out what was causing it, and then I just cut those things out, and then I
Digital Age and Concentration
00:26:30
Speaker
very, very happy. I know what causes I know what causes it, but I can't. and it What causes it is mainly, well, a lot of it is um Prosecco, which I just adore, Prosecco.
00:26:41
Speaker
Right. I find it hard to resist. I think that the trick is not to cut it out, but to replace it with something else that's similar, that doesn't cause the same thing. So it's it's hard to go, to to stop.
00:27:02
Speaker
Whereas find it easier to replace it with something that is very similar. So I mean, yeah. Um, I've found actually, um, if it's cheap, it's worse. The cheaper the the wine is the worse it gets.
00:27:21
Speaker
Well, that's that's where you're going wrong then, Paul. You're just cheaping out. Yeah. Cheaping out on on their mind. Tons of fucking money on my plonk. You need to go... Yeah, exactly. You need to shell out some hard cash.
00:27:35
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Or something. We Well, we did last night, we had to love we had a meal out. was very, very nice. had a nice expensive bottle of Franciacorta, which is like an Italian version of champagne.
00:27:51
Speaker
Very nice. No acid reflux. Okay. There you go. You see, see your so your so your stomach has expensive tastes. that's Yeah.
00:28:03
Speaker
Yeah. That's what it mate. Then I had for a starter, Martin, you'll appreciate this. Beautiful starter. It was um um smoked duck with um pomegranate. Okay.
00:28:19
Speaker
and oh it's hard to just i don't think you can get it since you've got of talent kind of a um well it's not it wasn't that but it was like iceberg lettuce okay and uh what else was it oh all the raisins all right so that was amazing lovely nice that's very very nice lovely lovely oh that's nice a nice bit duck thats upon du Yeah, a smoked duck never had before. It very nice.
00:28:52
Speaker
I've never had smoked duck that I can recall. No, yeah, was very nice. The other thing I've got for 2026, Martin, is spending this time online. Oh, so nice.
00:29:05
Speaker
oh so that's not like now we We can finish the podcast. And then that's it. ah You're done. I want to like reduce by at least half the time I spend online.
00:29:20
Speaker
That's a, that's a worthy goal. Worthy goal. Yeah. I spend too There's much shit online now. It's unbelievable. Well, yeah, I mean, I tend to like concentrate on speaking to people, which is, find, is a cool, fun thing that I get a lot out of. But yeah, yeah, yeah, there's, mean, I was Googling something stupid just like just before we came onto the pod, which was like, how long has the bass number 12 been used in our
00:30:00
Speaker
numbering system, right? And I'm sitting there looking this thing up and I'm thinking, why? Why am I doing this? Why am I trying to find out how many thousands of years we've been using the D12 number base system? like stop it, Martin. Stop going down this rabbit hole.
00:30:21
Speaker
Yeah. Reverse. Beep, beep, beep. Well, that's true, isn't it? That's true, isn't it? I know what you mean. It's like, have you ever heard the someone once said that in medieval times, which is a long time, it's from medieval times, it's basically from the 5th century to the end of the 15th century, right? So it's a long time medieval, right?
00:30:42
Speaker
But they're saying, for example, in the, average medieval kind of period. If someone read a newspaper from front to back, okay, that would be equivalent of someone in medieval times of all the information that they consumed in a lifetime. Right? Right.
00:31:03
Speaker
Which is insane. And I often think that my mind is completely overloaded with stuff that I don't need to... I'm going to i'm going to i'm going to challenge that.
00:31:15
Speaker
Only because... um what they did have was really good. They had really good memory for things. So what they could really what they could remember back, I mean, like they would, yeah. so you think about all the all the all these all this all the all the sagas and the long stories and the that kind of go back. Yeah, but saying the same thing.
00:31:43
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. I'm saying the same thing. I suppose what you're talking about is external information. you know Right. Brain capacity for absorbing stuff.
00:31:56
Speaker
They could remember a lot more. But also...
Career Challenges and Meaningful Work
00:32:00
Speaker
The communities were smaller and they would know. So even though there wasn't a newspaper to read, but they would know everyone and what they were doing and what everyone's habits were.
00:32:13
Speaker
right yeah so like they had a lot of information that they would still consume. But i think it was it was a different kind and they had different brains. Exactly.
00:32:29
Speaker
back then whereas now we're like you know i've got fucking you know can't concentrate on anything for more than like 10 seconds exactly it's this is like i don't know even for me i think it's changed definitely the last 10 years for me where i seem to be so much more easily distracted by stuff that i don't really know need to know about you know right Yeah. Also, I found that I can't read anymore.
00:32:58
Speaker
My brain has forgotten how to read. i can totally understand that. like yeah Like a book. Yeah. So something that was chunky. like like um Obviously, obviously i can I can read chunks of information, but I find yeah that i that if I pick up a book, I struggle to get through it. that just habit, though?
00:33:23
Speaker
It's a much, I think it's, I think it's like a sort of a, a muscle memory thing, a skill that I, that I could get back. Yes, exactly.
00:33:34
Speaker
But it's kind of, yeah, Jesus Christ. book I almost had the same thing this week. I wanted to order some books of, um, of online.
00:33:46
Speaker
Um, have you read anything by Alan Watts? um what he he did the watchman series and no no that's uh neil gaiman not no uh alan was is a philosopher and seriously into taoism okay and but also a philosopher in general not necessarily with taoism all right um yeah anyway I wanted to order three books by him, including his autobiography. And I just thought, no, won't read them.
00:34:23
Speaker
because And I've also got like a pile of other books that I haven't read yet that I've ordered and not read. And I want to get back into the habit, as you say, of you know, that muscle memory of reading books again. Yeah.
00:34:40
Speaker
Yeah. so And that isolation, you know, just being with your book. Mm-hmm. And not thinking, oh, if I click on this button, I can see what's on YouTube at the moment moment or click on that button and see what happens in the, I don't know, ah what's going on you know, in Venezuela or whatever. Right, right.
00:35:02
Speaker
Yeah. no Don't want to know. Don't want to know. Don't care. Go away. Exactly. Exactly. um All right. ah but I mean, okay, so what what else have you got about 2025? I'm just staring at the clock. twenty twenty 2025? I've got – well, I gave up teaching at school this year, which is a bit of shame, and I miss it.
00:35:27
Speaker
um But I did – I was actually met up with an ex-colleague of mine. she's still She's still teaching. Wow. And she said, oh, the students have been asking asking after me. love God, I was really touched by that.
00:35:44
Speaker
was really, really cool. miss I do miss the students, definitely. Professor Pauli Polio. What happened to Prof. Thompson?
00:35:55
Speaker
Prof. Thompson ravioli lasagna. hum Yeah. So that was a big one that happened last year, and i I think I won't go back into teaching again.
00:36:07
Speaker
But it wasn't i do I did really, really glad that I did it. It's not a thing for my autism. It did nothing. You know, when you get those things that, oh, top 20 jobs that are good for people with autism, teaching at school is not one of them.
00:36:26
Speaker
It is so wrong. Right. Yeah, it didn't didn't work work out for you. and i've i've I mean, I've i've i've i've said that. you know um like So if if I look forward to 2026, part of that surviving is trying to make some money.
00:36:44
Speaker
Trying to make some bloody money, Paul. Right. Exactly. like and i've got plans and i have ideas like teaching were water color to to the old ladies in the rich village next next to me, you know, that can make money. i've i've i've i've I've seen that it can, but, you know, like, am I am i doing it?
00:37:13
Speaker
No. So, like, that's... You've got to want to do it. i I do. I've just... um You know, like, once... I think I said this the last week. Like, once the ball starts to roll...
00:37:27
Speaker
Yeah, I can do it. Like if I put ads out there and someone phoned up and said, oh, yeah, right I want to text me or whatever and said, yeah, they they they want to sign up I just need one person to sign up for something or to yeah commission a portrait of their pet or whatever it is.
00:37:46
Speaker
i'll just need one person. And then I'll go, brilliant, right, I will build this, I'll build this, I'll build this, i will I will rent out a place, I will whatever it is, right, I will make the magic happen. I just need a carrot that I can see in front of me, not not a fictitious one.
00:38:08
Speaker
It has to be carrot. It has to be exactly a carrot, a classic bunny, but a Bugs Bunny orange carrot. Yeah. What about turning?
00:38:19
Speaker
No. okay. It has to be a classic carrot. ah Anyway, so keep my my next year, ah survive and try and, for God's sake, make some money. Try and get some income stream coming in somewhere.
00:38:38
Speaker
which It's not good being idle, is it? you know Also, I think when you when you want to make money and you can't, and yeah as as you said at the beginning, like when you get a a ri yeah you apply for something and you need get slapped back down, after while it just kind of goes, I i can't, I can't.
00:38:58
Speaker
Why can't I just get something? It used to be easy. As it as as you said, it used to be easier. you When I was younger, it was easier. It's difficult now. It's so difficult.
00:39:11
Speaker
I can't do it.
Playful Transitions and Reflections
00:39:12
Speaker
and Anyway. All right. and a Oh, blimey. Clunks. Hang on. What's going on?
00:39:23
Speaker
Done with the clunking. Finish the clunking. Okay. All right. Should we so yeah contribut move on to other business?
00:39:34
Speaker
Let's move. ah Let's. um Well. ah ah do we yeah let's rate let's rate 20 to 25. let's rate it i was looking at this earlier it's a tricky one yeah i'm gonna rate mine don't we hang on hang on hang on hang on I have to... I've got to get back into the... No, no, no. I have to play the banjo... That tape music......that you love so much. All right, so are you are you ready? um Here we go. Here we go.
00:40:10
Speaker
Here we go. Is it a dopamine hit or is it a burnout thing? 2025. Is it? Lovely. Was it a dopamine hit or was it a burnout thing?
00:40:22
Speaker
The whole year. The whole year. Okay. Okay. Dopamine. going to give I'll give them five. both my scores again okay five Okay.
00:40:35
Speaker
Right down the middle. i was thinking about a couple of hours ago, this. Right. Right down the middle for both. it was ups and downs, Martin. Okay. All the way through the year, some hard downs and some big ups, some good stuff happened. Yeah, dopamine five, burnout five.
00:40:58
Speaker
Okay, I'm going to go it was It was quite an interesting and good year, I think. But I think i would give it like a five. But the burnout thing has been quite brutal.
00:41:16
Speaker
I think I have really struggled. thes I'm going to say like it's it's it's it's been it's been a seven. So for me, this year has been an overall downward,
00:41:29
Speaker
downward um trajectory overall okay it's been a struggle it's been a fucking struggle yeah it's been hard but for me for me financially it's been a freaking nightmare this year yeah so i'm hoping 2026 is gonna be i'm just gonna ignore the shit going on and i'm just gonna try and focus on me and getting some notwithstanding the shit notwithstanding the fan and the shit coming together in close pro proximity
00:42:10
Speaker
All right. um I think ah we can do, let's just kind of, ah let's just do let's just do the the the the double-headed quiz.
00:42:21
Speaker
um ah yeah i so I still haven't done a music thing for the quiz, so I'm just going to kind of, I'll just set the keyboard behind me. I'm just going to hit a few notes and say quiz. All right.
00:42:37
Speaker
It's the quiz! That's good enough. That's good enough.
Quiz and Personal Anecdotes
00:42:44
Speaker
um i might just have that as my as the sting as fu for the whole thing.
00:42:50
Speaker
fine um All right. So who's going to go first? i think i think we should toss a coin. Just toss. Yeah. um Heads. Heads. I'll go heads.
00:43:01
Speaker
All right. Here we go. Heads will go first. All right. Here we go. who It is heads. You go first. Oh, okay. It's always heads first.
00:43:13
Speaker
Heads is best. right see Okay. Wow, Martin. Yes. we We've known each other for 40 years, correct? have. Yeah. We've done a podcast for over 2.4 years, right? No, it's like 1.2.
00:43:29
Speaker
two point four years well no these like one point No, it's 2.4. Well, we've done we we we we started in October 2024, did all 2025. All right, it's over two and a half, two years, over two years we've done a podcast.
00:43:49
Speaker
Anyway, yes, sure. so But my provocation, Martin, is how well do you really think you know me? hardly all. I'm going to give you a series of things that happened to me, right? Right.
00:44:06
Speaker
And based on the fact that I've told you a lot of stuff about me. So evil. But the stuff I don't know that I've ever told you. oh my God.
00:44:19
Speaker
And so going to give you three things. and he's got guess which one isn't true All right. About me. Okay, you ready? Yeah. Yeah. As soon I'll ever be.
00:44:32
Speaker
Because as I say, I repeat, some things I don't know if I've told you. all right. So here we go First one. All right. Here we go. You ready? Yeah. Yeah.
00:44:43
Speaker
Princess Anne once waved to me from her limousine. Okay. Yeah. And I didn't wave back. ye bastard. You bastard.
00:44:55
Speaker
right Yes, you just did the Nazi salute. well well well what but What did you do? Nothing. Nothing. You just blanked her. Nothing. blanked her.
00:45:06
Speaker
i was in Tom Report Road. Right. Okay. Yeah. Okay. Two. Oh, yes. Yeah.
00:45:18
Speaker
Two. I once got fired from the job as a line worker constructing circuit boards because of my continuing assistance on having a regular supply of crisps whilst constructing the circuit boards.
00:45:34
Speaker
Okay. Right? Yeah. Yeah. Three, I was once auditioned to become a Blue Peter presenter.
00:45:45
Speaker
Oh, come on. Blue Peter is a children's TV show. Yeah. If you don't already. Still going. It's been going for about 40 years, I think.
00:45:59
Speaker
Jesus Christ. Now, be careful, Martin. I'll just say that. spend Which one you choose. Okay, here we go. It's maybe not as obvious as you think. Here we go, right.
00:46:10
Speaker
ah So this is my best guess, right? Princess Anne wave and you just ghosted her. Yeah. Happened. I think that's that is in the bag, right? Okay.
00:46:23
Speaker
Because you remember it or because of I've... Have I ever told you any of these? I have a vague recollection. i mean, we're going back into the mists of time about you saying something about Princess Anne.
00:46:39
Speaker
I don't know what it was, but it but ah a little ah little but little brain cell went, ooh, I remember something, Princess Anne. and So I think then that's fine. I think um you getting fired or a circuit-making job because you wanted to have crisps while while you're soldering circuit boards.
00:47:07
Speaker
It does not feel like you. But the Blue Peter Presenter audition, I think, um' I'm just going be making making shit up at this point, I reckon you somehow...
00:47:23
Speaker
I don't know, it was like some sort of BBC open day where you went in and you could do a like a little fake be ah Beyond Blue Peter thing. So addition yeah, like a sort of little fun thing where kids coming along and do.
00:47:40
Speaker
But so I think it would be you were never did circuit board work. Although all the crisps were a central part of your life.
00:47:53
Speaker
That's incorrect. i it was I never auditioned to become a Blue Peter presenter because I was offered to and didn't go. What do you mean you were offered to?
00:48:06
Speaker
I was offered to audition for Blue Peter. And you didn't go? When was this? It was um it's about the year we went to New York. It was that year.
00:48:20
Speaker
Okay. About 2002. So you, Paul, with no TV experience whatsoever? Because my ain't the wife of my boss worked for the BBC and she thought I was well up for it.
00:48:44
Speaker
I'll tell you, mate, ever regret ah do ever regret not going to that interview? I do. I should have gone. Yeah.
00:48:55
Speaker
But, yeah, it was true that I was once fired as a line worker in constructing circuit boards because was eating twiglets.
00:49:07
Speaker
I love this. love Okay. That was his for starters, Martin. We'll wait for the next one. kid i bite This is... this is this this is i mean that This has already been the best quiz round, like that little bit there.
00:49:27
Speaker
Jesus Christ. It's bit too early. Now I've got more. Okay. Okay. Are you ready? One of these is... is of madeup i once soiled myself at school okay handed my mother the soil underwear wrapped in the Daily Mail opinion section.
00:49:50
Speaker
Perfect. Yeah. Okay. Two. I once sang in Gregorian chant style in the back of a London cab whilst on my way to an interview for a job in Covent Garden.
00:50:06
Speaker
Okay. Okay. Yeah. Okay. Or I once ran a cross-country
00:50:16
Speaker
competition event, okay, for the school team, and I took a wrong turn, ended up so off track that I had to stop off at a nearby farm and make a call to rescue me.
00:50:31
Speaker
Oh, God. Okay. um All right. Right, so... ah Soil Pants, Guerrero Enchant, or or off off Off Track on a cross-country competition?
00:50:47
Speaker
Sold Yourself, yes. Absolutely. but mean, there's... That one's in the bag. Right. Actually, it was in the Daily Mail.
00:51:00
Speaker
In the Daily Mail. And I can't think of of of a more proper for it. proper place but ah the grid The Gregorian chant in the back of a cab sounds like sounds like Sounds like vocal stimming. Sounds like you were going to a job interview and you were nervous and somehow the Gregorian chant was like calming you down.
00:51:27
Speaker
that feels like a very ADHD thing thing to do. and the long So that just means that the long-distance country run, they got lost. in you Although that sounds like you as well, Paul, to be honest. Yeah.
00:51:41
Speaker
that I did put a lot of effort into it, so they did sound genuine, things that I'd do, no matter how weird they were. Right. But i i am gonna goinnna go long I am going to go to go with C as the false one. correct, Martin.
00:52:01
Speaker
that's correct I did sing Gregorian chant because I was told that it was a good exercise to do before an interview. And I seem to remember you saying that once.
00:52:12
Speaker
An interview technique. Yeah. i I vaguely remember you saying it. Okay. So one, one, one. So we're drawing. Yeah. Okay. So it's all on the last one. Okay. Okay. You ready? Yes.
00:52:28
Speaker
I once shopped for sexy underwear with Madonna at Agent Provocateur in Mayfair. you you what You shopped for... once shopped for sexy underwear with Madonna at Agent Provocateur, it's a fancy underwear brand, in Mayfair.
00:52:49
Speaker
Okay. Okay. Two, once had a regular lunchtime appointment with a mafia boss. Right.
00:53:02
Speaker
Jesus Christ. yeah Three, I once trained with the British National Surf Team off the coast of Cornwall.
00:53:14
Speaker
Good Lord.
00:53:19
Speaker
you know pull
00:53:23
Speaker
So sexy aunt away with Madonna, lunchtime appointment with a mafia boss, or surfing with the national surf team off the coast of Cornwall.
00:53:35
Speaker
Can i ask whether, is this mad Madonna the the singer? now That we all know. That one.
00:53:48
Speaker
Oh, God. I mean, that it's because the thing is, is that the weird world of working in the advertising in industry sometimes means that these crazy little scenarios happen.
00:54:00
Speaker
Yeah. um Let's have an appointment with a boss. ah couldler You know, what it's this like such a, feel like that you did surf in Cornwall cornwe with the surfing team, I feel like that's fairly safe because I seem to remember you did have a little period of getting into surfing um briefly, I think. So I'm going to go with a Madonna seems like to to too big, too, too, yeah, seems too fabulous.
00:54:40
Speaker
And you're wrong, Martin. Oh, what? What?
00:54:46
Speaker
I did once shop for sexy underwear with Madonna at Gibraltar. I did once have a regular lunchtime appointment with a mafia boss.
00:54:58
Speaker
And I didn't train with them with the team off the Cosa Coole, but I was in the sea at the same time with the team. LAUGHTER
00:55:09
Speaker
So hang on. So just going back to the whole Madomacy. All kind of true. Right. But just tell me about the... How did you end up?
00:55:22
Speaker
Well, I wasn't shopping for her. We were in a tiny, tiny little shop at the same time. so I was kind of with her as she was shopping for underwear, as I was too. Right.
00:55:36
Speaker
Right.
00:55:39
Speaker
Oh, I see. wasn't like I was giving her suggestions. All right. You were just shopping her. was with her. in I was, you know, wasn't accompanying her.
00:55:50
Speaker
Oh, right. Yeah. You're so cheeky. Sneaky. Sneaky. Sneaky cheeky. Okay. Wow.
00:56:02
Speaker
That was something. i thought
00:56:06
Speaker
I feel like my... I've more of i've got a load world of these for another quiz. All right. need to filter them. Okay, you know what? Because I thought, I thought, shit, because my quiz is just is just boring. is now boring.
00:56:22
Speaker
mike was in double
00:56:26
Speaker
So I feel we've got more. ah think what I'm going to do is is I'm going to write mine because I really like that format.
00:56:41
Speaker
So I'm going to do mine for or next week's because – Right. Because because i was thinking i thought I was thinking Martin's probably got tons of stuff. Right.
00:56:52
Speaker
I like this. This is fun. So I'm going to... um'm i'm i will say that you've won this quiz, right? Okay. And I'm going to... I'm going to put down you the... I'm just going to put you down as a win.
00:57:12
Speaker
Yeah. So there you go. you are You've got the one there. um and I will... do the similar thing next week come on yeah all right perfect that was fantastic i i am i am blown away blown away mate that was that was you know we've got up to we've got up to you know shenanigans in our past right yeah no i've got i've got stories um
00:57:48
Speaker
Okay, all right. Fuck it. Let's get in the tractor. Fuck Let's make our way over to Alexander's TV.
00:58:05
Speaker
Oh, my Lord.
00:58:07
Speaker
I'm still recovering after that. ah all right so um All right. So, alex so um ah yeah, so I've got a little. um So she's just written some ah notes. So last week we were talking about about cars and ah and and and driving.
00:58:31
Speaker
um And she loves driving. Driving in car. driving in her car beeppe booop bobiepe bebi She says the amount... I'm sure it it isn't. um And the amount, she says, the amount of freedom it gives me is unmatched.
00:58:51
Speaker
it also It also relaxes me. I'm quite nervous with other people driving. I can relax only with a very, very, very few people in the car.
00:59:02
Speaker
So, you know, like... them Right. in um You know how some some drivers, ah when you're in the passenger seat, just kind of you eight freak you the fuck out?
00:59:16
Speaker
Yes, yes, yeah. Yeah, yeah. I had to stop the car and ask the people in the car to please stop giving me instructions on what roads to take.
00:59:32
Speaker
Because everyone was giving me instructions to go left and and they were changing their minds and but and I was going out of my mind. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I think I can, um I think, um yeah.
00:59:45
Speaker
She also says that she she also agrees and says it and says and says Italians are are so bad at the driving.
00:59:56
Speaker
God, yeah. And Greeks are quite bad too, apparently. Yeah.
01:00:03
Speaker
But there you go. Ah, so yeah. Thank you, Alexandra. um While we're here, um ah so if anyone, as anyone knows, if they listen to the pod, if you actually listen to the pod all all the time and and you and you comment on so on stuff or or on or I know that you listen to all the time, then you then we give you an official ADHD podcast um
01:00:34
Speaker
job title on the on the ADHD town count council um and then your name goes at the end of the podcast in in d the quote in the in the credits and to join our little current um town council um my my brother Andrew who who who does listen to all of the podcasts although he doesn't always comment but he he he's definitely there watching so um so uh so he he he is now on the council and he is uh with the job title of minister of photography so fantastic we need the congratulation congratulations andrew for your just what we needed we do need a minister of photography
01:01:24
Speaker
So, ah you know, and were like yeah because like Paul, you know, like when we do decide to kind of try and get our mayorship back, we are probably going to need, you know, like ah some, you know, ah paparazzi to follow us around and take photos and stuff.
01:01:42
Speaker
could happen this year, actually. It could do.
Next Week's Topic: ADHD and Dreams
01:01:45
Speaker
It could do I kind of feel like, you know what, 2026, think we we should. I think that that could happen. I think we we we should go into another um election. Well, we should contend mayor's ship election and we should get our titles back.
01:02:05
Speaker
We should start going. for the election know like uh mickey rourke you heard this today he's just't just done a go fund me because he hasn't paid the rent on his los angeles apartment for years and he's is trying to get he's got he's on a go fund me to raise 50 grand to pay for his rent in los angeles jesus name jesus dude Fucking hell.
01:02:34
Speaker
Yeah. You know what? We have a so, all right. Jesus, dude. Right. ah So we we should talk about what we're going to talk about next week.
Closing and Gratitude
01:02:45
Speaker
Yeah. And oh fucking hell. Whose turn is it? It's your is your turn. Oh, Jesus Christ. I'm going to have to quickly go back back to my to my ah finder list of things that um I know what um'm I'm going to do This might be an odd odd one.
01:03:10
Speaker
I don't know whether there's anything in it, but we'll see. ADHD. Hang on, hang on, hang on, hang on.
01:03:19
Speaker
I'm just going to pause this very quickly.
01:03:24
Speaker
All right. All right. i' found found the list. I think we're going to do ADHD and dreams. Lovely. So what what's the link between ADHD and how do they affect your life?
01:03:39
Speaker
And how do they not affect your life? And do we dream did did do we dream differently? Do we dream enough? do we Right, or do we dream too much?
01:03:51
Speaker
um i Sounds like an in interesting thing. Right, so that just leaves me to click over onto this page here so I can read what supposed to be saying.
01:04:03
Speaker
and say that ADHDville is delivered fresh every Tuesday to all purveyors of fine podcasts, please subscribe to the pod and rate us most um most, most, most 2026 and so not 2025. And feel free to correspond at will in the comments. But wait, there's more if you wish to see our beautiful, beautiful faces and sunny forth to the YouTubes and the TikToks. And you can also pick up a quill and email us at ADHDville at gmo.com. But the meantime, fucking kind yourself this year.
01:04:34
Speaker
And I beseech you fellow APHs deans this year. This year too. Fare thee well with gladness apart. D'aw. D'aw. There, says the mayor.
01:04:45
Speaker
There, says the mayor. That's that. That's that.
01:05:02
Speaker
I'm going to have to come up with something good. Yeah, I'm curious. It's curious in hell.