thoughts from my desk or from the road
A long long time ago, I can still remember how the music used to… no. Hang on… back up. This is not the time for whimsical Americana. I don’t care if it IS Don McLean, really I don’t. Back in early 2007 when “blogging” was “cool” (was it?), and I was often out and about,… Read more Honey, I’m home
It has a been a long time coming. No, not this entry in the blog but my decision to (perhaps) say a final farewell to Internet Explorer. IE and I have had a rocky relationship. Way back in the mists of internet time I was a devout fan of Netscape Navigator. Ah, how I missed… Read more Testing times
Hello everyone, it’s time for the (now annual) blog post. Here I am in the hotel Luxor in Turin. No, not a recreation of the pyramids as one might find in Las Vegas, but a 3* Best Western operation that has delivered me a nice room but sub-par toiletries. You might wonder why I’m in… Read more The Italian Paradox
Hello y’all from Asheville, North Carolina. Asheville is a nice town near the Smoky Mountains (they’re actually the Great Smoky Mountains, but as they’re not that high that seems hyperbole). It’s early fall, and soon the leaf chasers will be out in force to marvel at the astonishing sight of reds, oranges, auburns, ochres and… Read more Jumping Jack Flash has no Gas Gas Gas
Went to see Wanted yesterday. Angelina Jolie in Lara Croft mode again, Morgan Freeman playing Morgan Freeman and James McAvoy proving once again why he’s the hot young thing of British acting. Will there be a sequel? Could McAvoy’s Wesley Gibson be the successor to Damon’s Jason Bourne? In a word, no. Not that Wanted… Read more Wanted
It’s been a long time. I realise this. I’m sorry. But then nobody reads this so it doesn’t really matter. I’ve had a cultural week or so and thought I’d pass on a few thoughts. Last Sunday I trotted off to the Courtauld (never been before) with two of the History of Art gang to… Read more Hello Everybody
“Are you sure you want to go the whole way?”, I asked in German“Yes, absolutely. I think it would be really interesting,” she replied. “For our readers.” I was flattered, but slightly concerned. It wasn’t what I’d had in mind at all, but then maybe it would be fun. After all sitting on trains for… Read more 24: Europe
Hello boys and girls, Since we last spoke I’ve had a blazing row with a taxi driver, been trailed by a professional photographer for 24 hours, and gone to a casino with no gaming tables… It was back to Italy again a few weeks ago for a meeting – once again flying to Milan but… Read more In and out of Milan
Twice recently I’ve been lucky – nay priveliged – to travel on a train from London Blackfriars to Gatwick Airport. Both times I’ve been sitting amid or near older teenage girls (the first time they were sisters, one doing A-levels, one GCSEs and both were hilariously funny), and both times these various girls have been… Read more Sign of the Times
Have come to the fantastically Belle Epoque Grand Hotel des Iles Borromees in the tourist resort of Stresa on Lago Maggiore. Arrived Thursday morning in a taxi from Malpensa Airport. Was a bit worried that the taxi driver might baulk at taking me such a long way, but by contrast his eyes lit up at… Read more Sunshine in Stresa