Monthly Archives: March 2004

Whats does your personality rate from 1-10? by morning_prayer Your first full name Your personality rates a 12 your best quality is youre intelligent your worst quality is I dont know…nothing? this is because you were born this way Created … Continue reading →

Mouth ulcers. Probably brought on by combined stress of the weekend meeting and drinking unfamiliar brands of coffee. I find the best thing is to rinse my mouth out with tea tree oil. Must try and get hold of some.

Highlights from Board meeting: Mark Eyskens re Benelux, and my reply that I felt uneasy talking about the Benelux in front of him and Wim Kok. Wes Clark rowing behind my analysis that the troop reduction int he Balkans was … Continue reading →

Reading Two Books at Once? Combine Them. For example: Of Stupid White Mice and Men searing indictment of the vast albino mouse conspiracy that controls America. Three Musketeers in a Boat Genteel sail upriver with armed Frenchmen. Amongst the Women’s … Continue reading →

OK, so of the four main parties here: one set me up for a meeting with their deputy leader which was very entertaining and enlightening one set me up for a meeting with their director of elections, who pulled out … Continue reading →

I’m sitting at a borrowed computer in the parliament buildings in Stormont, looking down the avenue past the sttue of Edward Carson making rude gestures to the south, in the midst of meeting politicians here to talk about my elections … Continue reading →

http://www.angelfire.com/extreme4/kiddofspeed/ It’s an extraordinary story, with photographs that will linger for a long time. And yet, when I think of the town of Kozarac (memorably described by Carl Bildt – scroll halfway down) whose ruins I used to know well … Continue reading →

It seems that president Saakashvili’s coalition has won all 150 seats that were up for grabs in yesterday’s election. That’s pretty impressive in a proportional system. (OK, so the threshold was a rather high 7%, but even so…)

14) The Master by TH White A while back Ansible quoted an unintentionally humorous passage from this novel: “Look,” said the practical Judy. “Do you approve of being spanked?” “No, I don’t.” “Well, then.” “Well, then what?” “If you can’t … Continue reading →

Congrats to and on organising this afternoon’s event. Good to see and again, and also to meet , amd . I think this makes me the first person who was there to blog the event! Off for dinner with Dept … Continue reading →

I’m with Kip Manley. (Thanks to William for the link.)

13) Kushiel’s Avatar, by Jacqueline Carey The third and last in the hugely entertaining trilogy by Jacqueline Carey, after her earlier Kushiel’s Dart and Kushiel’s Chosen, set in a medieval world strangely different from ours, but not so different as … Continue reading →

Our number two man in Tbilisi got his story published on the Observer web site. That will help raise the profile of the Ajara problem with the international community; we’re starting of course from a very low base… But I … Continue reading →

Safely arrived in Dublin, using terminal in my mother’s office, and I still can’t access our work email externally. And the famous Serbia report is actually going to be published within the next couple of hours. So I’ve taken the … Continue reading →

I got home eventually to find Anne upstairs reading bedtime stories to F, helped by U. For the first time ever I can recall, U indicated clearly that she wanted to come downstairs with me when I set off to … Continue reading →

My shaving gel is practically finished. And I’m about to go travelling for five days and was wondering how I would find time and opportunity to buy a new container of it in a strange city – not that I … Continue reading →

from both and : What’s the last thing you ate? beefburgers, beans, peas and reheated pasta with pesto What’s your favourite cheese? dolce latte What’s your favourite fish? tuna – not tinned but in decent-sized steaks What’s your favourite fruit? … Continue reading →

First time I’ve tried this: Economic Left/Right: -0.88 Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: -4.62 Disappointed not to be further left. But I’m getting old… Not too far from Mozart.

I just got one of those fake degree spams, you know: no degree = no job = no money get an instant university degree = higher salary no required tests, classes, books, or interviews! get a Bachelors, Masters, MBA, and … Continue reading →

Well, this afternoon we had the president of a small African state (though not one that has gained international recognition, which makes it less impressive) meeting my colleagues at one end of the office, and me meeting some of the … Continue reading →

Subject: Tonight’s movie at the OSCE has been changed… Dear All, Please be advised that tonight’s originally scheduled film, “The Terrorist,” has been canceled and that the somewhat more lighthearted movie, “Lost in Translation,” will be shown in its place. … Continue reading →

I just shook hands with the Prime Minister of New South Wales, who was visiting a colleague. And then an advisor to the Prime Minister of Kosovo dropped in for a quick chat. Now I’m going for lunch. On my … Continue reading →

William Mayne, author of such great children’s books as Earthfasts and A Swarm in May, is on trial for raping his fans in the 1960s and 70s. Horrible. [Later edit:] He’s pleaded guilty to 11 counts of indecent assault, in … Continue reading →

Up early to see if at least I can get the Serbia paper out the door today. I see there’ve been two policemen killed in Kosovo overnight; it just goes on… To a more cheerful topic, I hope. I’m going … Continue reading →

Back to find email working again and large parts of the new Kosovo paper on my desk. Now to try and clear it this evening… A real shame to be in Budapest for such a short time. Had good meetings … Continue reading →

Here in Budapest for a seminar this afternoon, and hoping to work on some stuff by remote control this morning – but office webmail is disabled. Well, I did at least save some of it to my laptop yesterday, so … Continue reading →

Ex-Queen Juliana of the Netherlands died yesterday morning at the age of 94; this morning her eighth great-grandchild was born. My family lived in the Netherlands for a year in 1979-80, just at the time when Juliana abdicated in favour … Continue reading →

Going through my late aunt’s genealogy papers, and cross-checking them against the internet, I’ve discovered that the glamorous Colonel Ninian Beall was my 7xgreat grandfather. There seem to be a whole clutch of ancestors who were active in politics in … Continue reading →

Feeling very virtuous, and also a little tired, as I managed my first bike ride of the year. Not that I got very far, only to the Doode Bemde nature reserve, then the villages of Neerijse and Korbeek-Dijle, with much … Continue reading →

12) Chance Witness: An Outsider’s Life in Politics, by Matthew Parris. I have a certain sense of loyalty to Clare College, Cambridge, where I spent five mostly happy years between 1986 and 1991, and part of that includes following the … Continue reading →