This will hurt me...

Dude looks like he's wearing a truss! Argyle Street, Hobart. February 2011. Stuff . Sometimes it seems to me that the world has been reduced to people wanting stuff , people getting stuff , people wanting more stuff , people getting more stuff , people getting rid of stuff , people complaining about stuff , people bragging about stuff , people needing stuff . Were people always like this? Was there always this much stuff ? Was there always such a focus on stuff ?

A bacon and egg roll and we’ll just wait and see what happens. Campbell Street, Hobart. January 2011. History – and historical memory – can be an odd business. It is hard to get a sense when you are in the present of the true historical magnitude of the events taking place around you. Conversely, it’s nigh on impossible to comprehend truly the importance of events that happened with the distance of time between you and it/them, removed as you are from the proper context. That does not stop us from trying of course. You may have seen the (most recent) attempt to tally up the views (and scores) of British historians along a set of criteria and deduce the “best” President of the United States . It is an interesting exercise, and makes for some great arguments (you can read all about it here), but ultimately it strikes me as being a bit of a futile exercise. While I will confess to be an FDR fan, I really couldn’t tell you if he was really X percent superior to (say) Grover Cleveland; or ...

People heading home. Collins Street as seen from Campbell Street, Hobart. September 2010. In a rush so here's 20 questions! Were you born early, late or right on time? You would have to ask my mother about that. Chicken pox? Twice! Aged five and again aged 14. Good times… Allergic to bees? No. I have been stung and while it hurt, it went away reasonable quickly. How about strawberries? No. I can eat ‘em all day. Hereditary illness? Not yet, although there are a few predispositions there. Have you ever been in a car accident? Nothing important. We went through a fence once. That was funny. How much do you smoke? Smoking is for losers. How much do you drink? The odd cider now and then. Is your cholesterol normal? Who knows?!? One hopes… Have you ever run a marathon? Christ no. No good for the knees. And feet. And legs. And back. And heart. How many x-ray's have you had (not including dentist)? A few. Couldn’t tell you. Do you watch what you eat? I try and practice balance, but I ...