Joe Armstrong
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joethehuman.bsky.social
Joe Armstrong
@joethehuman.bsky.social
17 followers 18 following 56 posts
Writer, songwriter, memoirist, author of Joe the Human Substack

https://joearmstrong.substack.com/
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0C71Q2XK7?binding=paperback&ref=dbs_dp_rwt_sb_pc_tpbk
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joethehuman.bsky.social
Fruit. Coffee. A back that finally works again.
And a Trumpian world that feels dangerously unmoored.
#PayingAttention #PersonalEssay #SubstackWriter #Humanist #WritingLife
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
Paying Attention in Unsettled Times
Fruit, a healing back — and the world on edge
open.substack.com
January 23, 2026 at 7:20 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Not fearful — more shocked. More concerned that we’re repeating mistakes we already paid dearly to learn.

I wrote about memory, power, and why history keeps knocking when we refuse to answer.
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#Trump #Putin #Ukraine #greenland #Israel #Gaza #peacesong #history
War, Peace, and Preparation
On peace, power, preparation, and responsibility in personal and global conflict, and asking what it means to remain human in an age of dehumanizing power.
open.substack.com
January 16, 2026 at 7:08 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Other people's opinions of us are none of our business. New free substack out on freeing ourselves from what other people think.
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#Authenticity #PersonalGrowth #Boundaries #Conscience #SelfTrust #EmotionalFreedom #LifeLessons #OwnYourPower #Adulting
Other People’s Opinions Are None of My Business
A hard-won lesson in adulthood, authenticity, and quiet liberation
open.substack.com
January 9, 2026 at 6:42 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Chosen family can change everything.
A personal essay on gratitude, loss, and finding love.
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#ChosenFamily #AdoptedFamily #AdoptedMother #AdoptedFather #Love #Marriage #Ireland #Humanist
The Woman Who Became My Mother
My chosen family, gratitude, and love
open.substack.com
December 19, 2025 at 7:40 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
New Substack up today: storms outside, storms inside — but also some hope.
We’ve released an acoustic version of our It’s a Wonderful Life-inspired song.
IMRO featured it in their New Music Playlist.
Have a read or listen:
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#ItsAWonderfulLife #Hope #ChristmasSong
Blue Skies, Leaden Skies — and a Song That Saved Me
On back pain, despair, unexpected hope — and It’s a Wonderful Life.
open.substack.com
December 9, 2025 at 7:31 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Listen to an amazing conversation with singer-songwriter The Rayne. Going blind in childhood. Losing his mum. Both he and his dad feeling lost. And finding his way through music to meaning, friendship and love.

open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#TheRayne #BlindArtist #Resilience #Songwriting #Leeds
World Exclusive: The Riveting, Personal Story of The Rayne
Interweaved with his songs
open.substack.com
December 1, 2025 at 9:33 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
New Substack: solitude, storms, songwriting, backache, Trim Castle, and the joy of finally meeting Andrea Patron in person.
Acoustic Christmas track out 1 Dec! 🎄
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#Songwriting #friendship #backache #Ireland #TrimCastle #AcousticMusic
When the Missus Is Away
Solitude, Friendship, and Me Bloody Back!
open.substack.com
November 21, 2025 at 10:46 AM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Ever thank yourself? We often forget the most powerful act of gratitude — being grateful for who we’ve become.
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#gratitude #self-acceptance #PersonalGrowth #authenticity #memoir #Ireland #JoeArmstrong #inspiration
Thank Yourself: The Gratitude We Forget
Why the hardest — and most freeing — act of gratitude may be towards yourself
open.substack.com
November 6, 2025 at 7:08 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Ever frozen mid-speech—even when you knew every word?
My new Substack: When the Mind Goes Blank — how I went from childhood stage fright to speaking with calm and courage.
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#PublicSpeaking #Anxiety #Resilience
When the Mind Goes Blank: From Stage Fright to Standing Tall
What stage fright taught me about fear, memory, and finding my voice again.
open.substack.com
October 31, 2025 at 7:26 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Meet the digger and the dog! A humorous tale of trust, toil, and unexpected inspiration. Read or listen to my latest Substack: open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#writing #trust #gardening #homeprojects #humour #reflection #toastmasters #lifeinireland #storytelling
October 25, 2025 at 11:32 AM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Another round with my old frenemy: my back!

From Paris to Wicklow to the gym, it’s a story of pain, humour, and gratitude.

Me and Me Back! — new free Substack post: open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#IrishHumour #HealingJourney #Gratitude #BackPain
October 17, 2025 at 2:30 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Disillusionment is losing our illusions. Disappointment is losing our false appointments with ourselves.

But maybe “good enough” is the quiet grace left behind.

Read my new Substack here:
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#Reflections #Parenting #Disappointment #Imperfection
From Illusion to Disappointment: Learning to Live Without Perfection
On losing our illusions, sacking ourselves as perfect parents, and hoping for “good enough”
open.substack.com
October 10, 2025 at 5:53 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Some dates never leave us. Some lessons fade too quickly.
This Substack is about memory, faith and doubt, and the choices that shape our future — inspired by fathers, history, and the fleeting nature of life.
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
Fathers, faith, and fleeting lives
Chance, choice, and the futures we create
open.substack.com
September 21, 2025 at 7:18 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Why do anything? From air and water to love, belonging, and self-actualisation, our lives are a constant balancing act of needs. In my latest Substack, I explore Maslow’s hierarchy and how it plays out in daily life, relationships, and choices.
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#Motivation #Purpose
Why Do Anything?
From Maslow’s pyramid to Johnny Cash’s ‘empire of dirt’
open.substack.com
September 12, 2025 at 6:00 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Bob Rees was many things: sailor, engineer, critic of religion, jazz lover — and above all, a humanist who lived his values. I’ve written a reflection on his life and humanism. Free to read. #Humanism #BobRees #SecularHumanism #HAI
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
Closer to God in a Storm at Sea
Reflections on the life and humanism of Bob Rees (12 June 1936 — 5 August 2025)
open.substack.com
September 3, 2025 at 6:05 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
I write about the intoxicating power of laughter, the genius of Michael McIntyre, and Flann O'Brien.
#writerslife #Laughter #Comedy #Comedian #Toastmasters #PublicSpeaking #MichaelMcIntyre #FlannOBrien #AtSwimTwoBirds #Seminary #Funny #Humour #Humor #MichaelMcIntyre
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
A Substack in Search of a Smile
Finding Laughter on the Page
open.substack.com
August 29, 2025 at 4:38 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Two days after my cousin’s funeral, another relative was in ICU. By week’s end, we’d faced grief, relief, and even a £1,500 car hire bill. Life is fragile. Here’s what it taught me…
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
Hope and Despair in One Week: What a Family Emergency Taught Me
How grief, an unexpected hospital dash, and even a car rental dispute reminded me that hope and darkness walk side by side.
open.substack.com
August 23, 2025 at 12:06 AM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Death will come. Sometimes it gives warning; sometimes it doesn’t.

7 lessons I’ve learned about living before dying:
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
Seven Things Life Has Taught Me (So Far)
How to Live a Happy Life
open.substack.com
August 14, 2025 at 6:41 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Woke at 4am, brain in catastrophe mode.
Skulls, death dates, fear, injustice…and hope!
New Substack: Now Is a Good Now
Thoughts on mortality, messiness, and the daily rituals that help us hold it all.
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
#writing #mortality #journalpractice #reflection #hope #substack
At 4am, the Mind Roars
Catastrophic Thinking Tamed
open.substack.com
August 6, 2025 at 4:23 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Midnight mattress visitors, Mourne views, and a farewell to a dear friend — all in a day. Our maiden campervan voyage took a few unexpected turns…
Have a read, and let me know if you’ve had your own midnight visitors!
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
Maiden Voyage, Midnight Visitors, and Mourning a Friend
A weekend of firsts, nerves, and a special farewell
open.substack.com
July 16, 2025 at 10:32 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Chainsaws, Campers, and Comrades — my latest Substack is live.
Up at 4am sawing trees, saying goodbye to our beloved caravan, and raising a glass to a dear friend and songwriting partner, Robin Lawley. A week of shredded branches and shredded emotions.
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
Chainsaws, Campers, and Comrades
A dawn chorus of sweat, sawdust, and songs for lost friends
open.substack.com
July 4, 2025 at 6:50 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
🚴‍♂️✂️🌀 From cycling and gardening to pottery and exams—progress matters more than perfection.
Small steps, not flawless leaps, move us forward. Process — Not Perfection. Imperfection rocks!
#ProgressNotPerfection #Substack #PersonalGrowth #ImperfectlyForward
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
Process — Not Perfection
Why stepping forward—imperfectly—is better than standing still
open.substack.com
June 12, 2025 at 3:13 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
God spelled backwards is... 🐶
This week on the blog: hare chases, songwriting breakthroughs, dead rooks (yes, really), and the joyful mischief of my dog, Paddy.
#DogLife #BorderCollie #SongwritingInspiration #NatureMoments #SubstackWriters #MindfulnessWithADog
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
God Spelled Backwards
How a Border Collie, a Hare, and a Dead Rook Remind Me to Play, Create, and Listen
open.substack.com
June 6, 2025 at 3:51 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
Just back from Tuscany—with COVID in my lungs and rooks in my trees.
Now isolated, feverish, and going slightly mad from the noise.
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
Caws and COVID
How I returned from Tuscany to viral fog, sticky eyes—and a rook invasion
open.substack.com
May 30, 2025 at 3:29 PM
joethehuman.bsky.social
This week I hit the red zone—literally and emotionally.
A spiking heart rate, a missing music score, and a crash course in MuseScore4... not quite the life I imagined!
#BeginAgain #HeartHealth #NeverTooLate #Cycling #SongwritingLife
open.substack.com/pub/joearmst...
Feeling Blue, Learning Anew
Begin Again
open.substack.com
May 16, 2025 at 6:52 PM