Monthly Archives: March 2020

Non-fiction: 5 (YTD 17) The Almost Nearly Perfect People: Behind the Myth of Scandinavia’s Utopia, by Michael Booth 1493, by Charles C. Mann Strategic Europe, ed. Jan Techau Red Notice, by Bill Browder An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes … Continue reading →

Mon, 16:05: The fatal hike that became a Nazi propaganda coup https://t.co/QLTscZPpDP Fascinating long read from a few years back. Mon, 17:11: Why are Germany and Austria’s coronavirus death rates so low? https://t.co/NQ1MchTQ9Q “The real mystery is not why… https://t.co/XZVtIBElPd … Continue reading →

My two trips in October 2005 were to the Netherlands, where unfortunately I had a car accident on the ouskirts of The Hague – nobody hurt, but I was pretty shaken and the other car was a write-off – and … Continue reading →

Sun, 16:05: Putting Lipstick on a Bigotry https://t.co/rOvIMFILku Nick Timothy’s book caustically reviewed by @garvanwalshe. Sun, 20:46: https://t.co/CApF0bVZK3 German state finance minister Thomas Sch�fer found dead Crumbs. Sun, 20:48: RT @emmafreud: OH MY DAYS THE MATT SMITH SAID YES. He’s … Continue reading →

Second paragraph of third chapter: Because I am interested in Colón, I bought a copy of the translation when I spotted it in a used-book store. Part of a series the Italian state published to honor the five hundredth anniversary … Continue reading →

So, we're on our tenth day of lockdown here – it started at noon on Wednesday 18th, and here we are at the end of the first full week under new conditions. And it has just been announced that the … Continue reading →

Thu, 12:56: RT @wadds: New blog. The public relations industry has lost one of its foremost scholars and practitioners. Remembering Dr Roger Hayes, a t… Thu, 13:23: RT @russelldavies63: HELLO FAITHFUL VIEWER. This is me, on Twitter. Ready to livestream … Continue reading →

Current Excession, by Iain M. Banks An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations, by Adam Smith The Winged Man, by E. Mayne Hull Last books finished Ragged Alice, by Gareth A. Powell The Survival of … Continue reading →

Wed, 12:56: A last great thread from @pmdfoster before he leaves the @Telegraph. https://t.co/IBVicXzHDj Wed, 14:34: RT @bbcdoctorwho: Incoming transmission. #MessageFromTheDoctor #DoctorWho https://t.co/WRTROxWRQy Wed, 16:05: Rose The Prequel coming to Doctor Who fans ahead of fan rewatch https://t.co/UaIm9yJLA8 Hooray! Wed, … Continue reading →

Another video from our #LockdowninOudHeverlee – this time looking at the local ponds and park.

Tue, 12:30: Tremendous. “The insanity of a market led economy that only thought about profit for the last decade has left milli… https://t.co/VpvNUbIY70 Tue, 15:22: RT @EU2020HR: A great step for #EU2020HR! EU Ministers reached a political agreement on opening … Continue reading →

Second paragraph of third chapter: Myra Shumway had not been telling the truth when she described herself to Doc Ansell as a newspaper correspondent For the past five years she had been a "dip." If you don't know what that … Continue reading →

Mon, 15:27: RT @DarranMarshall: Deputy First Minister Michelle O’Neill in tears in the Assembly as she is told by @JimAllister that one of his constitu… Mon, 17:32: North Macedonia’s President Signs NATO Accession Document https://t.co/3uz4Ogll2C Congratulations to North Macedoni… https://t.co/tYrwo9m8I8 … Continue reading →

I both started and ended the month in Macedonia, visiting Slovenia and Serbia (including the Vojvodina) in between (I may also have taken in Kosovo at the start of the month – my notes are not clear). Most interesting for … Continue reading →

Sun, 12:56: RT @MaxCCurtis: Fandom, let’s. Together, we can write the impossible story where Sara Kingdom and Mike Yates meet – ONE TWEET each at a tim… Sun, 14:48: RT @GoshDarnMyLife: Y’all need to put that shit right the fuck … Continue reading →

I got the new animated reconstruction of The Macra Terror (the last complete Doctor Who story shown before I was born, all of whose episodes have been lost) a few weeks ago, and finally got around to watching it last … Continue reading →

Sat, 20:30: “Code name Cromer. ‘70s or 80s, depending on the dating protocol.” #SaveTheDay Sat, 20:32: “Are you his companions?” “His companions?!?!” “Well, they get younger all the time…” #SaveTheDay Sat, 20:32: RT @walktothestars: “What are you going to do? … Continue reading →

Second pargraph of third chapter: When you are the child of someone such as he, there are things that are expected that may not be expected of someone of a more lowly persuasion. And so it was with I. I … Continue reading →

Fri, 18:37: RT @haveigotnews: Live scenes as coronavirus forces retired doctors back into work: https://t.co/MK6uTvSc5M Fri, 18:52: August 2005 books https://t.co/yGUNkyAooz Fri, 19:00: RT @mattholehouse: Keynes on paying for the war: “We threw good housekeeping to the winds. But we … Continue reading →

The major event of August 2005 was my first Worldcon, Interaction in Glasgow. I had a whale of a time, met many people who I had previously known only online, shared a room with Alaskan writer David Marusek, spoke on … Continue reading →

Thu, 12:56: RT @harriet1marsden: Ok Twitter, you’ve somehow tricked the person you fancy into coming over right before lockdown. You are now in enforce… Thu, 18:06: Thursday reading https://t.co/y4ieGzWr45 Thu, 19:37: #LockdowninOudHeverlee 1: St Anne’s Church https://t.co/He54CnQMEQ via @YouTube Fri, … Continue reading →

Current Red Notice, by Bill Browder Ragged Alice, by Gareth A. Powell Last books finished 1493, by Charles C. Mann Fleet of Knives, by Gareth A. Powell Babayaga, by Toby Barlow Atlas Alone, by Emma Newman Strategic Europe, ed. Jan … Continue reading →

Wed, 12:00: “Stately, plump Buck Mulligan came from the stairhead, bearing a bowl of lather on which a mirror and a razor lay c… https://t.co/LqpvNZVebg Wed, 13:00: RT @pmdfoster: Brexiteer fury/denial on this is interesting, but not surprising. But as … Continue reading →

Second paragraph of third chapter: The Danes do seem to have an uncommon facility to get on with each other regardless of age, class or outlook. Egality comes easily to them. One of my most cherished memories of this inclusiveness … Continue reading →

Tue, 12:01: RT @SkyNews: Coronavirus: Laura Ashley set to become first retail casualty of crisis https://t.co/FXAg1OXT6I Tue, 12:56: RT @gnuman1979: Quarantine day 6. https://t.co/er652Oy3Ki Tue, 13:11: RT @DaveClark_AFP: And after Macron urged us to turn to culture in our confinement, … Continue reading →

Mon, 12:37: RT @DirkMaggs: Words cannot express how much many of us in the entertainment business owe to Roy Hudd, whose death has just been announced.… Mon, 15:55: RT @leon___williams: Podcast fans! Stuck at home? Teleworking? @IFAD‘s new podcast series: … Continue reading →

The wars of the 1640s, which are taught in England as the Engish Civil War, began in Ireland in 1641, when a co-ordinated rebellion by Catholic aristocrats and peasants established control over a large part of the island. Many of … Continue reading →

The grim news of July 2005 was the 7/7 bombings in London, in which 56 people died, including the bombers themselves (and a friend of a friend). It's weird to think that this was actually the first Islamist terror attack … Continue reading →

Sun, 12:56: Sword-fighting Films – Robin Hood https://t.co/ermEnJdA1f A quick guide. Sun, 18:09: Doctor Who, Series 12 (or 38), 2020 https://t.co/P9B6fy3nZy Sun, 20:15: ISIS tells terrorists to steer clear of coronavirus-stricken Europe https://t.co/HFUUhzf8Fr There’s always a silver lining. Sun, 20:40: … Continue reading →