Work is trying to show they care about their staff, so they've got this new 'health-check' system on the company web. Basically it asks a bunch of health related questions and then suggests ways you can improve your life.

So, partly for the entertainment value, I filled it all in. The good news is that my 'health age' (whatever one of them is) is the same as my actual age. Still apparently I could be 11 years younger if I followed their advice. Along with the usual "lose some weight", "get some exercise" stuff that seems to be everywhere these days was a new one "consider getting a life partner" because people with 'life partners' live longer!.

I'm 40, shy, I guess pretty unattractive and have never had a date, so where do this system think I'm going to get this "life partner"? It's not as if they're on sale at the local supermarket I half expected it to say "I've added your details to a dating site" or "there's a girl on the fifth floor you may like"

I didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Even the bloody computers are telling me to get a girlfriend now! If only they could tell me how, or tell me what's wrong with me so I can fix it. I'm against the idea of arranged marriages, but there are times where, for me, they seem like a really good idea! Mind you, I'd still have to get over my shyness to talk to the poor girl after we're married so maybe it's unfair to subject her to a life of silence .