This will hurt me...

Pipe and brick. Skills Tasmania HQ, the corner of Bathurst and Campbell Street. September 2013. As you know, the Internet is a wonderful place filled with the rich and varied treasures of the world holds (and RSS feeds.) The following are some things that I've had a look at in the last week. I call this: a Compendium of Click-throughs for Monday Morning... What Happy People Do Differently. Smaller animals perceive time as if it is passing in slow motion. How Poverty Taxes the Brain : “The condition of poverty imposed a mental burden akin to losing 13 IQ points, or comparable to the cognitive difference that’s been observed between chronic alcoholics and normal adults”. The reasons for preserving biodiversity are becoming more widely understood... "George MacKerron and Susana Mourato from University College London and the London School of Economics recently looked at the relationship between happiness and nature. They found that people are happier in all outdoor env...

The walls have ears eyes. Warwick Street, North Hobart. July 2013. As you know, the Internet is a wonderful place filled with the rich and varied treasures of the world holds (and RSS feeds.) The following are some things that I've had a look at in the last week. I call this: a Compendium of Click-throughs for Monday Morning... What happens when melting snow on the Mutnovsky volcano in Kamchatka, Russia, meets lava? Big bang theory: how did dinosaurs have sex? How to give money away... In praise of cynicism. Why is Australia the happiest place on Earth? Bright Nights, Big Problems: Why we should turn off the lights and appreciate the dark . The Frankfurt School at War: The Marxists Who Explained the Nazis to Washington. A Malcolm Turnbull comeback would not be good news for the left. Competition, “autonomy” and schools. Australians seem to be getting dumber – but does it matter?

I’m not aware of any such services in the building! Mayfair Plaza car park, Sandy Bay. December 2011. Three books finished this week, a Russian, Hungarian and American walked into a bar authors all represented. First up is A Russian Affair by Anton Chekhov, a collection of five short stories all about love. Writing in the nineteenth century, Chekhov has a reputation for mastery of the short story form, so I was really looking forward to reading it. As a collection, A Russian Affair gives us a fair insight into Chekhov’s style, which has aged remarkably well and combines both an ease to with real emotional depth. Obviously, it represents a small sample of what Chekhov has to offer, but if you’re after a taste of his work, you could do far worse than this exploration of the emotional complexities of love. Recommended, especially if you are keen on quality short fiction. Second up is Detective Story by Hungarian Nobel Laureate (and author of one of my favourite books , Fatel...

Laneway. Just off Russell Street, Sandy Bay. November 2011. Theme Thursday today brings a lot of promise. TOMORROW, you see. There is always TOMORROW. TOMORROW offers all the opportunities in the world. Whatever happens today, TOMORROW awaits. TOMORROW it might not rain. TOMORROW I might stay dry. TOMORROW I will start losing weight. TOMORROW I will get myself fit. TOMORROW I educate myself, smarten up, tart up and address all of those niggly little things that have constrained me up to this point. TOMORROW I will quit drinking so much coffee. TOMORROW I stop eating all that junk. TOMORROW I will tidy up my desk and finish up that work that’s been hanging around for weeks. TOMORROW I will walk more upright, look people in the eye and tackle everything with 110 percent. TOMORROW I will be more attractive to the opposite sex, smell better, smile better, run faster, leap higher, swim further and sing in a more harmonious voice. TOMORROW I will be a more generous tipper, lover, brother, h...

It's raining again. Princes Street, Sandy Bay. October 2011. Yes, we know that that Internet is a wonderful place filled with all the rich and varied treasures that the world holds (as well a videos of fellows and horses in uncomfortable poses). The following are some things that I've had a look at in the last few week. I call this: a Compendium of Click-throughs for Monday Morning ... The ever-reliable Ben Goldacre explains why so much of what is reported in the mainstream media on "science" is rubbish ... A website full of pictures of women looking dissatisfied in bed ... A listening party from NPR with three members of Wilco to discuss their (magnificent) new album... A fantastic article on my favourite vegetable from the Smithsonian magazine, How the Potato Changed the World ... Four charts that explain what Wall Street protesters are angry about ... A great interview from The Guardian with Jarvis Cocker about the state of music today. I agree with his comment,...

All in all it’s just another… something or other. A brick wall. New Town Road, New Town. April 2011. Crikey Moses, it’s Sunday again, and I’m stuck for another Sunday Top Five. As such, I turn to the trusty old CIA world fact book for advice… First up, the TOP Five Countries Expenditure As A Percentage Of Gross Domestic Product (Where GDP Is Calculated On An Exchange Rate Basis, That Is, Not In Terms Of Purchasing Power Parity) ! Iraq: 8.55% Jordan: 8.60% Qatar: 10.00% Saudi Arabia: 10.05% Oman: 11.40%

Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair! St Johns Park, December 2010. Quite why this aged care institution (I think) locks its guests in a tower, I am unsure. One assumes that they must get rowdy as the X-Mas season creeps up upon us. Henry and I have been working on a draft letter the Satan Claws Father Christmas over the weekend, but we cannot quite get the tone right. We are finding it difficult to strike the precise balance between worthy, pious, and grateful; and the extremely long list of expensive and ostentatious that we want this year. Maybe we should try the Great Pumpkin instead? If there is one thing that you can say about our desires, they're " sincere ".