The miracle of rain is that it happens at all – drinking water just falls from the sky. It supports all life on this planet, and literally falls fall from the sky! That’s amazing. Yeah, I know it’s all down to evaporation and condensation, but even that’s pretty incredible. (sorry to get all sciency) The […]
Forgetting and Remembering
I find I’m forgetting a lot lately. And I’ve been thinking a lot about how to expand my memory, in part to recapture some of what I lost after the stroke. A couple of years ago, when I had a reliable memory, I wrote about Remembering and Forgetting; the difference between intending to remember, and […]
Puppy has Sharp Teeth
It’s hardly groundbreaking news for anyone who owns a puppy (or is owned by one), but they have sharp teeth. They chew rocks, and twigs, and the skulls of things they dig up in the garden. Their beds and blankets. Empty packets and bottles they find in the recycling bin. And those sharp teeth work […]
Decisions Big and Small
Lately, I’ve been finding that I’m wiped out by about lunchtime. Sometimes I get as far as mid-afternoon. I put it down to all the decisions I’m making. It’s like all the small decisions take just as much brain space as the big. I start out fine, but as the day goes on, I get […]
It’s Not All Just Dumb Luck
I admit it. In fact, I proudly declare it. I am a “bleeding heart liberal.” It’s probably because I grew up poor. The seemingly dumb luck of it. I mentioned in the dedication to Holistic Personal Finance that my mother saved the one and two cent pieces for herself. She saved the 5c for me. […]
I’m Losing My Mind (I think)
I think as well as rats (of the flying and furry kind) we are infested with mischievous pixies. Either that or I’m losing my mind. I can never find a pair of glasses when I need one, and I have about eight pairs of readers for just such an emergency. And I would swear that […]
The Cost of Money
Wealth is worth more than the cost of money. Wealth is an abundance of something, whether that’s time, money or physical wellbeing. And the relationship between them is illustrated below. I used this illustration in Holistic Personal Finance to illustrate the limitations of the cost of money. When you’re earning extra money, you generally end […]
Let Sleeping Dogs Lie
Something I’ve learned since becoming a dog owner again is that it’s best to let sleeping dogs lie. When they’re sleeping they are quiet. They’re not taring around with the last roll of toilet paper or teething that squeaky toy like a demon. Or getting under your feet when you’re tidying or playing tug of […]
Taking Pleasure Where You Find it
Taking pleasure is largely a matter of choice. Sometimes the things that bring you pleasure are the things you have to work for. According to the Cambridge Dictionary, pleasure is enjoyment, happiness, or satisfaction, or something that gives this [feeling]. This week, we’ve been taking pleasure as we’ve prepared to welcome a new dog into […]
Stop and Smell the Roses
In September last year, I wrote about tiny little things. How spending the smallest of increments of time on the smallest of inconsequential matters (like stopping to smell the roses) might help you feel a little bit more in control. It does for me at any rate. I recently came across an old post by […]
This Will Pass (at some point)
I’m having one of those days when I look at all the “bad” shit happening all around me, and I ask, “what’s the point?” That’s not an actual literal translation of what I’m thinking. There’s another word in there that polite company won’t appreciate. It’s a word that make me glad my mother’s not alive […]
The Three Wise Monkeys
Have you heard of the three wise monkeys? Hear no evil See no evil Speak no evil In the modern west, it’s often used in the sense of ignoring something morally wrong. But in the original Japanese context, it’s about not doing or being morally wrong. The other day, I heard a dramatic political statement, […]