With the coming presidential elections on everyones mind in the US, I thought I would take a look at the political landscape and see what each of the parties (large and small alike) were actually about. The result of that investigation was a dazzling array of platform statements and programs, all wrapped up in hyperbolic [...]
Thursday Thirteen #36 - Things I Have Been Doing
I have been absent from TT for a while due to all sorts of reasons. Chief amongst these was our move from the UK back to the US.
Having had our year in London doing the big-city thing, we are now comfortably ensconced in a nice old house in the Southern US, renovating and repairing.
So here, [...]
Thirteen Books On My Reading List
This my is edition #36 of the Thursday Thirteen silliness. Enjoy!
I have something of a book problem. No sooner had I divested myself of the last thousand or so volumes of the library I had built haphazardly over the last decade or so than I began building another one. This one is, so far, a [...]
Thirteen Things That Are Wrong With Libertarianism
Yes, right libertarianism (or more correctly, propertarianism) is becoming more popular with those in I.T. and the “new economy” types, but I, for one, am not impressed.
As J.K. Galbraith said, “…[the libertarian] is engaged in one of man’s oldest exercises in moral philosophy; that is, the search for a superior moral justification for selfishness“.
Regardless of [...]
Thirteen Things I Have “Shortened” My Life For
A couple of days a go, I came across a list, from Esquire magazine of 60 Things Worth Shortening Your Life For.
I have realized that there are certain items on that list that I can say, yes, are worth “shortening” your life for. Of course, done in moderation, not as a constant lifestyle, none of [...]
13 Things I Discovered About Paris
Edition #33 - Our first foray into France, to the capital, Paris, was a resounding success. I cannot remember ever having quite so much fun on a holiday.
I wrote up my first impressions of the trip here, and will be posting more on the long-term changes in my thinking because of the trip (it was [...]
Thirteen Things I Thought I Knew About England
Edition #32. Last week I wrote about things that I had discovered that the British (at least in London and Essex) had misunderstood about America.
This week, in the spirit of fairness, I turn the tables and look at thirteen of my own misconceptions about Britain and the Britons. Now that I have been disabused [...]
Thirteen Things I Do With My Time
Episode #29 - There was some discussion last week about how many RSS feeds I read, and whether or not I could have a life outside of reading them.
So, to allay any fears that I am some sort of hermit (though I do have those tendencies sometimes), I thought perhaps I would share some of [...]
Thirteen Lessons In A Year
I began working on this site on February 14, 2006, a year and a day ago (and almost a decade to the day from my first web site). In that time I have spewed a fair number of words into the aether. I have also learned a lot of lessons along the way.
In honor of [...]
Thirteen Steps Forward
As I work my way through the 101 in 1001 project, I am keeping track of my progress on an individual page for each task. However, I have made a lot of progress in the first month (out of about 32) of the project.
Here are thirteen things I have done this month to come closer [...]
Thirteen Things To Do On My Website
I spend quite a bit of time working on this site. Too much, some people might say, but then again we all have our hobbies don’t we? Over time it has grown closer and closer to what I originally envisioned it would be, and certain bits and pieces of it have become favorites of mine.
I [...]
Thirteen (Fun) Obscure Words
I like words quite a bit, as if you couldn’t tell from me having this site and all. I especially like obscure, obtuse, abandoned words. Words that are too specific or odd to be commonly used (or known). I sort of collect them, you might say.
Here are thirteen gems from the vaults - thirteen words [...]
Thirteen Jobs I Have Had
According to some experts, people in my generation will switch careers, not just jobs, seven times in their working life. I seem to be a bit ahead of the curve:
Fast-food flunkie.
Fast-food assistant manager.
Saw operator at a slaughterhouse.
Construction worker.
Dish washer.
Prep cook.
Sous Chef.
FDA sub-contract analytic field scientist.
Delivery driver.
[...]
These are the ramblings of 