A Test For Manhood
Assume three things. Number one – you’re in a restaurant. Number two – you like your steak rare. Number three – you’re a man. So you order a rare steak and you’re really looking forward to it. The juices are flowing. You’re in the company of good friends so the craic is flowing. Ah, the smells, the atmosphere, the wine, it doesn’t get too much better than this. Then...
Read MoreWhat is That to Me or My Work?
Sherlock Holmes is one of my heroes. I’m fascinated by stories with idiosyncratic characters. When I first read A Study in Scarlet, a previously unformed notion became crystallised in my mind, specifically, from Dr Watson’s first impressions of the world’s greatest detective. His ignorance was as remarkable as his knowledge. Of contemporary literature, philosophy and politics he appeared...
Read MoreLazy Intelligence Wins Again
There’s a good article in the BBC website about how a sound sleep aids your memory and ability to learn. Sleep helps your brain by strengthening connections between nerve cells. As one of the sleep experts put it, “During the day we acquire information, but at night we sort that information.” So, while you are sleeping, your brain is active. As a lover of sleep as well as a lover of...
Read MoreHow to Be Brave
Captain Frederick Marryat (July 10, 1792 – August 9, 1848) was an English novelist, a contemporary and acquaintance of Charles Dickens, noted today as an early pioneer of the sea story. He is now known particularly for the autobiographical novel Mr Midshipman Easy and his children’s novel The Children of the New Forest. Why am I telling you this? Because it gives some context to one of the...
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