This morning I came up with what seemed to me a very clear way to decide whether we should buy the fixer upper flat. This was: to imagine oneself living in it, doing the days of day to day life, and then considering whether it was right. If not, to consider it as an investment […]
Incentives for childbearing
Shared by a Facebook friend who works in Silicon Valley: Someone told me once that becoming a mother can make you a better employee because it increases your ability to prioritise what is important and manage your time. I think there is some truth in that. – Lauren Freeman, some other woman who works in […]
Camels in the sea
Read a fascinating article today about seafaring camels in Kutch. I wonder if there are some in Badin, where my family has some lands but where I’ve never been.
Grumble
Seriously annoyed that Mantel’s The Mirror and the Light was not shortlisted for the Booker. Made significantly worse by the fact that all but one of the shortlisted authors are American or joint-US. I was amongst those who were genuinely upset when the Booker opened up to the US, fearing that it would swamped by […]
Oh no
Distressingly, the flat the GF and I most wanted to see – the owners have disappeared. No longer on the market? Hard to say, but there is another similar flat in the same building with a higher list price, which is making me wonder if the owners are quietly disentangling from the dealer we have […]
Loose ends
A number of loose ends tied up today, around work, which was a relief. And a return to following my life improvement plan, with less faffing and more doing things that actually matter. My study of raags is going particularly well, although I remain as unmusical as a sundried turnip.
Golden hours
I have taken to moving to the balcony around 6 or 6.30 every evening. It’s the time when the light is rose-coloured over the Gold Horn and Seraglio Point, and the sea takes on a deep, glowing blue. It is one of my favourite times of day – this is a cliche for anyone who […]
Flooding
Karachi is flooded. There are some truly remarkable images and videos online: of shipping containers floating down Bandar Road as the Urdu-speaking videographer morosely invites Imran Khan to take his place on it. A fire engine going down a quiet Defence street, its lights on and sirens blaring, sending waves that push open gates of […]
City of blood and roses
Two years ago and a day, we arrived in Beirut. This morning I woke to the news of the cataclysmic explosion in the city, heard in northern Israel, which has devastated so much of it. Had it been two years ago, the GF and would have been waiting outside one of the destroyed hospitals, hoping […]
A minor correction
The night before this Eid is not, technically chaand raat, which means ‘moon night’, referring to the sighting of the new moon, which one sees before the other Eid. This Eid takes place on the 10th of the month, so the moon is heading towards fullness, but I still think of it as chaand raat, […]