Cooking
Ophiocordyceps unilateralis
Yes, there are two paths you can go by. But in the long run there’s still time to change which road you’re on. – Lao Tzu There exists in nature a particularly blasphemous little organism [more…]
Hobbies
19th Century
A Bear’s Diary – Part 24
December 1st, 1810. We have crossed the Equator again, in the opposite direction. Our polar bears Boris and Beaivi must be the first of their kind to have ventured into the Southern Hemisphere, if only [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 17
Ferdinand Marcos having been deposed and his People Power successor Corazon Aquino having failed to control the country, an election was due in May 1992. In which, fortunately, no one from the Aquino clan wanted [more…]
19th Century
A Bear’s Diary – Part 23
November 15th, 1810. We have just crossed the Equator. Only one sailor on board, Misha, has been in the southern hemisphere before. He told us that it is customary for those who ‘cross the line’ [more…]
Arts
Postcard from Lille, Part 16
I’m thoroughly enjoying life in Davao City on one of the Southernmost islands of the Philippine archipelago, Mindanao. It is election time and our candidates are (General) Fidel Ramos for president and Rodrigo Duterte for [more…]
20th Century
An Afternoon at the Sammy Miller Motorcycle Museum
Although we moved from Yorkshire to the South Coast 38 years ago and despite living only two miles from his premises in New Milton, I had only once previously visited Sammy Miller’s wonderful motorcycle museum [more…]
19th Century
A Bear’s Diary – Part 22
October 12th, 1810 (September 30th O.S.). We sail on, occupied by many small repairs necessary after the storm. Damaged blocks have to be replaced, and lashings that have worked loose need remaking. Yet all in [more…]
Hobbies
Owning a Shotgun
A puffin on here has written a series on firearms and their technology up to the 20th century, but what about owning a firearm in the modern day in the UK? What are the laws [more…]
19th Century
A Bear’s Diary – Part 21
August 28th, 1810 (August 16th O.S.). Finally we are through the strait between Asia and America. After our long sojourn in a region where the chart shows only pictures of sea monsters, we are again [more…]