Guess I ought to start at the beginning…

I was born in Swansea, the last child of a family that consisted of eight children. Of course, being the youngest I was spoiled - we never had much in the way of material things, but I got all the love any child could ever want, couple that with five older brothers and an older sister who doted on me and you can see it was a good childhood for the most part. You may have noticed that the maths doesn't add up - if I had five brothers and one sister growing up, that only makes seven children… well, the other child was a sister that sadly died before I was born. She was called Joannie, and she always wanted a little sister called Sandra Dawn. Mum went on having babies until Joannie got her Sandra Dawn…

On a different note, we had a dog, Pippa, and not to put too fine a point on it, she was the best dog in the world! She loved playing, especially in the snow, and I'll always remember throwing snowballs for her. She was puzzled by snowballs, she couldn't understand what happened to them - she'd catch them in mid-flight and they would, of course, 'explode' in her mouth! She was exceptionally good at catching Frisbees too. As I said, she was the best dog in the world!

Growing up was, well, like it is for anybody. I had my share of trials and tribulations but I think I came through alright. I met Matthew's dad, Neil, when I was working in a fast food restaurant, and our relationship ended soon after Matthew was born in March 1987. I don't think I need to dwell on life as a single parent - it was hard, but Matthew was (and still is) such a joy to me that it was worth any hardship. I wouldn't have been able to look after Matthew as well as I did if my parents, Laura and Roy, hadn't helped out. Thanks, Mum and Dad!

When Matthew started school I began to take courses at a local college in the hopes of getting a decently paid job at some time in my future. The courses were mostly secretarial, which whetted my appetite for all things 'computerish'. I took a course in Computer Studies, two years of night school, which I passed with merits and distinctions. It was during these two years that I thought it might be a good idea to buy myself a computer. And the rest, as they say, is history….

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