Can a modern country have a monarch? As an American I am inclined to think the entire notion absurd, and quaint. On the other hand, from my slowly accumulating readings and reflections on state and society – there is a place for exceptional individuals in the state. The founders of this country carefully divided governance [...]
In the kitchen this morning, to make breakfast. Had a small amount of diced salami and bacon (both very nice) left over from dinner last night. Simple to fold that into an omelet. Started gathering and preparing the needed bits. In the kitchen, my mind is always wandering. Reflecting on a book I am reading. [...]
Self-judgment is always tricky. Some bits took me a long time to figure out. Whenever I go into a new situation, I expect to find someone much smarter. It never seems to work out that way. Often I find folk as-smart, but never (yet) anyone I thought clearly smarter. (Worse, I tend to over-estimate the [...]
This is simple programming problem. Tune out if this is not your thing. Started writing a simple cxi (for CGI-like Xml Interchange, perhaps) program as suggested in a prior scripting-oriented article. Pretty straight-forward coding (with some added clever notions that occurred to me later), right up until I got stuck on how to get the [...]
Cooking is a sort of minor hobby. Started back in high school. On one hand my mother was an indifferent cook, so I quickly learned to do better. On the other hand participation in Track and Cross Country meant I had an enormous metabolism. Learned how to make cookies, breads, and large quantities of absolutely [...]
When I was growing up my parents were usually a bit short of money. Much of what we bought was second hand. Some things we made instead of buying. Often things that broke were repaired rather than replaced. That history means I tend to buy things that I expect to last, and tend to try [...]
Sometimes simple things bother me…. In a dense urban environment, in cold climates, why are sidewalks at street level? Warm air rises. Walkways elevated above baffled entrances (to keep out the wind) should be warmer than exposed sidewalks, and always dry. Elevated walkways across city streets can only improve the flow of traffic. Given the [...]
There is a television series called “Lost”. In passing I have noted some who seem quite taken by the series. Naturally this made me somewhat curious. When an obvious opportunity appeared, I set my TiVo to record the series. After watching a few episodes, I wanted all the characters to die. Figured it would improve [...]