Author Archives: xty

Is your ladder leaning against the right wall?

This is a question that should be asked daily. Once you are focused on the rungs, it can be hard to remember what is at the top. I remember two somewhat related stories from a strange series (strange mostly because … Continue reading

Posted in I AM FINALLY AWAKE, LIFE, RANDOM | 70 Comments

Cooperation innate and key to survival? Who’d of thunk it …

Well, me, for one. And I sure took a lot of heat (and vitriol and even metaphoric urine) for mentioning it at the Swamp: humans tend to be naturally cooperative. Or so argues Paul Robinson in Pirates, Prisoners and Lepers. I … Continue reading

Posted in ECONOMICS, LIFE | 109 Comments

So you want me to eat a potato?

Food has been much on my mind lately, as I seem to be dwindling away. It used to be that I had to be careful not to swell like a giant pumpkin, and adding pounds was as easy as looking … Continue reading

Posted in LIFE | 117 Comments

For goodness sake, Mr Dickens, make up your mind!

One of my favourite cartoons: Which in a round about way leads me to this, also one of my favourite cartoons, from Randall Munroe: That really sums up my experience at the Swamp. I still have trouble with insomnia, but … Continue reading

Posted in LIFE | 78 Comments

I have become uncomfortably numb … and the whirlwind continues …

It has been a whirlwind indeed, and I have not had time to sort my thoughts, let alone my pictures, such as they are. We are (or probably were by the time anyone is reading this [anyone? At least realism … Continue reading

Posted in LIFE | 136 Comments

Happy Canada Day … or Dominion Day … or excuse to party day …

A bit like the Queen’s birthday [Queen Victoria, that is, no getting all modern around here!] which we celebrate on a day that is specifically, by statute, never her actual birthday, May 24th, Canada day is a holiday dedicated to outdoor eating … Continue reading

Posted in LIFE | 115 Comments

If being current on modern currency isn’t your cup of tea … how about a slice of ancient constitutional history?

It worked for my grand-pa Bertie, and it works for me, on occasion. And this year is one of those occasions. Nicholas Vincent on the Magna Carta Did an 800-year old piece of parchment really change the world? Nicholas Vincent … Continue reading

Posted in LIFE, RANDOM | 106 Comments

He does call them fanatics and someone goes to jail …

Bitcoins, they just won’t go away … unless they were mean’t to be in your wallet .. I do find bitcoins an intriguing approach to currency, but have a great deal of trouble taking them seriously. I think owning gold … Continue reading

Posted in ECONOMICS | Comments Off on He does call them fanatics and someone goes to jail …

And she was …

It was a sweet send off and now … we rest in peace.

Posted in LIFE | 3 Comments

Good Morning

I couldn’t seem to comment even on my own blog! I have banned myself without knowing it. But here was yesterday, and it went surprisingly well. And here she is, from the patio of the club house. What a nice change. … Continue reading

Posted in LIFE | 140 Comments