After much agonising I have come to a decision re headphones. Instead of the achingly cool Marshall Major III, I’m getting a pair of RHA wireless earbuds. I need to buy new earphones as mine are fraying thoroughly and I decided to give in to the Bluetooth because my phone, on which I listen to […]
Island in the rain
At around 10 our ride arrived. We had spoken to Surfer Dude, our driver from the airport, and made an agreement to take us to the Volcano National Park today. So we left in unpromising weather, lowering clouds and light, cool rain. When we got up the volcano it was still cool and grey and […]
Island in the sun
In Hilo. It was a very long journey from the Doyenne’s house to our current abode, with some panic and disruption along the way, particularly when we arrived at the airport to find that we needed to show proof of outbound travel not from the US, but from countries contiguous to the US, so our […]
Market morning in Sulphurtown
In the morning we went to the Rotorua farmer’s market, which turned out a disappointment, perhaps because it is so close to Christmas. Only about 6 stalls, of which three sold prepared food. The greengrocer’s stall was nearly out – they sold their last courgette to the person in front of us – and the […]
Hipper Auckland
I woke up before the Gentleman Friend as usual and spent the morning listening to some of the top songs of 2018 lists. It is remarkable how one falls behind with music as one grows older. Even leaving aside the 8 month period in 2005 when I was an indie music freak in Montreal, I […]
Sea change
The Kavanaugh hearing feels like a sea change; surely, decades from now, historians will mark it as another moment in the decline of the United States. It felt like everyone in the world (granted, in my limited circles) was aware of and watching with horror and disgust. The woman giving her testimony, and then the […]
Horizons
Several days without writing, for which I apologise. Work has been very intense indeed, about 500 pages of reports needing the usual heavy handed editing, to be done in a tearing hurry as usual. But the first edit of the last is now in my Drafts folder and will be sent shortly. US politics is […]
Three step day
A couple of days without posting as I was either on a futile roadtrip or working or groaning in the throes of a headache. To take these in order: 1. On Wednesday, the Gentleman Friend and I went down to Beirut to collect our passports following visa renewal. It took about 90 minutes to travel […]
What to say?
The news of John McCain’s death left me rather double-minded. I do think his vanity overcame his reputation as an upstanding man rather thoroughly, and his moral compromises were less than admirable. I remember him being feted for that famous exchange with a supporter who said she was worried Obama was Arab, and he replied […]
What happened long ago
I spent the whole day in the flat yesterday, as editing had come in (a dissertation on migration). I can’t say it felt a particularly productive day, as I was scattered and found it hard to concentrate, and I could hardly bear to think about my memory room story. That is an odd side of […]