It’s that time of year. The garden has had its well needed haircut. Actually it was overdue as we missed last year because the person we use had injured his hand and couldn’t wield the implements. Not that it’s a big garden. By the time we got around to finding someone else to the job … Continue reading Trimming the garden
Taking the pledge
Technology is yin and yang. In most cases it is developed for good yet can give rise to the bad. There is a continuous tension between technology and humanity in that innovation works to cover a need yet, as soon as it leaves the factory gates others have found an alternative use for it. My … Continue reading Taking the pledge
I owe it all to…
I am at that time of life now where I can look back and reflect on all I have achieved, or not. Don’t get me wrong, I have had a good life. I have been to many places, achieved many things and in many ways I have lived a charmed life. It is easy in … Continue reading I owe it all to…
Noise cancelling
When you see someone wearing headphones and tapping away at a laptop it means that they don’t want to be disturbed. The wearers are trying to ignore the world and grab a bit of peace. Not everyone recognises the signs however and insist on trying to engage the person in conversation. If you are one … Continue reading Noise cancelling
On a bus
Now I don’t often get a bus, not that I have anything against them, they just tend not to be as convenient as other forms of transport. I use the train more. This week though I found myself on one. I had gone in to Newcastle by train only to find that a meeting had … Continue reading On a bus
End of the road
I like reading Jo Nesbo’s Harry Hole books. I know they’re not real and the story lines are, at times, too gruesome and stretch the bounds of my imagination but I find myself rushing through the pages towards the end through excitement. Nesbo truly is a great writer. I’m reading ‘The Thirst’, for the second … Continue reading End of the road
Where’s your commitment?
I’ve been using Duolingo to try and learn Dutch. It’s a useful tool and allows me to practice every day. It speaks the sentences to be translated and allows me to hear the language in action. In the main I really like the application though sometimes it has the annoying habit of correcting my English … Continue reading Where’s your commitment?
Artificial stupidity
There is a thought that humans were more intelligent when we were hunter gatherers than we are today. Not as individuals but on average. The need to be able to retain huge amounts of information about what was edible and what was poisonous, what would make you feel better and what would make you sick, … Continue reading Artificial stupidity
Mobile phones in schools?
For a brief flurry, a story on the BBC website lit up my Twitter feed. It was about children using mobile phones at school and hooked us in with the headline ‘Half of parents want mobile phones banned in schools'. You can read the article here. Of course, half don’t and so once again another … Continue reading Mobile phones in schools?
The New European
I am continuing my peregrinations into the printed media. On a periodic basis, though not as regularly as I would like, I have been visiting my local newsagent or supermarket to buy a newspaper. I have not gone for the same paper, instead buying those which I have not bought before or in a … Continue reading The New European
Thoughts from a Retired Guerrilla Worker 