17th Century
To Be a Pilgrim
A friend of mine had worked for many years as a replica “Plimoth Pilgrim” at the replica “Plimoth Plantation” in Massachusetts. I went on a visit and observed this strange way of life. For my [more…]
Blog
Fiction
Joe Malone, Part Eight
Vanessa Bixby put down her wine glass and rested her pert behind against the stool edge. “I’m sorry Joe. I’m quite worried about him, I really am. Still no call or message. Sometimes he’s been gone [more…]
Computing
Civil Contingencies: Preparing for Internet Shutdown and Censorship with Mesh Networks
We have entered the most fraught political and social climate I have yet experienced in my lifetime. Having discussed this with several GPers in person it is clear we need to start seriously considering contingency [more…]
19th Century
A Bear’s Diary – Part 16
November 16th, 1809 (November 4th O.S). This morning a gorgeously attired equerry from the palace cantered up to our tumbledown shack on a shining black horse to deliver a wafer of thick cream-coloured pasteboard with [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 10
Previously I mentioned my ‘backs and forwards’ between the north of England across the Atlantic to North America. You may recall the ‘drink the air fare’ mile high club. These happened between the Pan Am [more…]
Arts
Roger Ackroyd’s Question Time Review
Question Time 4th April 2019 A date that has gone down in literary history. “[Winston Smith wrote] in small clumsy letters: April 4th 1984 He sat back. A sense of complete helplessness had descended upon [more…]
Arts
Going Postal with Question Time
Graphic EJ – Updated by Sam. Fiona Bruce presents an hour of topical debate from Dulwich in South London. On the panel: Jeremy Wright MP, secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport, conservative; [more…]
Arts
Inside the Neolithic Mind
This is a rather niche book, but I know there are (at least) a few Puffins keen on archaeology, so I thought it might be of interest. It explores, as the subtitle says, ‘consciousness, cosmos [more…]
Economics
Counterfeiting Money Is a Crime, Whether by the Fed or A Private Individual
A few years ago, shortly after the 2008 subprime lending disaster, the Fed sent a public relations team around the country to conduct supposedly “educational sessions” about how the Fed works and the wonderful things [more…]