20th Century
What’s in a Name?
A few days ago, the Little Girl Next Door had a school friend come home when school finished at three o’clock. They happily played in the back garden and the visitor stayed for tea. A [more…]
Blog
20th Century
African Regime Gone Bad, Part Eight
While continued attempts to persuade Hutu officials to return, the RPF pressed for its own list of candidates for the posts of bourgmestres to be appointed. At grassroots level, the power-sharing principles of the Arusha [more…]
History
Elementary, my dear Watson – Cu Copper
We’ve already explored the development of the Periodic Table (a.k.a. the Periodic Table of the Elements) and picked up a few bits of basic chemistry information. The elements we have met to date have been: [more…]
20th Century
Slow Boats To Africa
Previously, in “The Sore Seated Safari”, we followed one Charles Henry Freeman and some compatriots, on a 1929 road trip from the town of Iringa, in Tanganyika, to Nairobi in Kenya. But what were they [more…]
Computing
Cnutelectronics, Part Three
Welcome back to Cnutelectronics! It comprises the same bone headed ignorance, overenthusiasm, poor research, pointy metal things as Cnuteneering and also adds the additional danger of very hot soldering irons. If you missed them here [more…]
20th Century
The Desert War – May 1943
With the Axis occupying a smaller and smaller piece of real estate in Tunisia this was the month they would have to surrender, 291,000 of them. There was no way to supply them and no [more…]
20th Century
The Flew Alone, Part Four
In May 1969 my uncle, John Alldridge, described the voyage of Allcock and Brown for the Montreal Star. This is the fourth of his reports. – Jerry F Like most cities, St. John’s, Newfoundland, has [more…]
Animals
Larry’s Diary – Week One Hundred And Eighty-Nine
Monday Good morning everyone and welcome to another week in the madness that is modern Britain! The biggest madness to arrive over the weekend was Sir Beer Korma’s idea of voting reform. Apparently, he wants [more…]
20th Century
A Scottish Tour, Part Two
Loch Ailort As we accompany my grandparents (and their caravan) on their 1956 Scottish road tour, we reach Loch Ailort, a west coast sea loch and popular tourist destination. Or do we? The location of [more…]