Terrible day. Sat here in front of the screen working on one task from morning until now. And it isn’t finished. No time to fix the wordpress, no time for a proper lunch. Tomorrow had better be a nice day. The most interesting thing that happened to me today is the dream that woke me [...]

The end of an era. Today I had to replace my Nordica kettle. Not that it was particularly expensive or exclusive. In fact, it was cheap and ordinary and this is exactly why it was so painful to fork out a lot of money for a new kettle. But the old Nordica gave almost eight [...]

It has been a crazy couple of weeks. First preparing for the new term of lectures and then actually teaching them. At least the first two weeks have passed without a glitch, but not without exhausting me. So there is a lot of news, but I think that it is best for me to vent [...]

I noticed the following on failblog: Apart from other thoughts, this also made me think about the strange subtle differences between American and British English. Do you say “Scott Kelly has got a small dick” or “Scott Kelly has a small dick”? Have you got any opinion, or do you have any opinion? The first [...]

About two weeks ago I acquired an Android phone. I really dislike phones — people seem to have no manners when it comes to their phones. There are two things that cheeses me off especially: Talking on a phone while driving — dangerous and rude. Checking your phone when having a conversation with someone — [...]

Setting aside the question of whether I can and will finally build a house, it is fun to design and plan. And the fun starts with the …ugh… philosophical underpinnings of what a house is, or should be. If you are going to spend any serious amount of money, it is worth making it special. [...]

When I was visiting Pieter and Ronel this week, they put an idea into my head that has not left it since. I think…perhaps…maybe…that I should build a house. I am still considering the possibility of entertaining possibly thinking about this. Why so shy? It is a very big deal. It will cost, today, perhaps [...]

I had a very nice dinner at Pieter and Ronel’s. It has been quite a long time since I saw them last, and took along a bottle of good champagne and some champagne truffles to celebrate my new status, degree-wise. We had a very nice evening and talked a lot about the usual and the [...]

Today I visited the optometrist. In fact, I already paid them a visit about two weeks ago and received a stern lecture on the use of contact lenses. Since that visit I laid of caffeine and sugar — not too difficult. Today I found out that my sight has been stable since the last checkup [...]

My last full day in Finland.  Tonight I stay over at the Hansens, and tomorrow morning I take the 10:20 bus to the long-distance busstation, the 11:20 bus to Helsinki, a 17:00 flight to Zurich, a 22:40 flight to Johannesburg, and a 13:00 flight to Cape Town.  My brother picks me up and I’ll probably [...]