Batteries that last for 6000 years (or more)

Being the sort of chap that spends most of his time a long way behind the current news, I have only recently encountered Diamond Batteries. Annoyingly, I first encountered the topic on Facebook in a post that, surprisingly for Facebook, was only slightly apocryphal.

Natural Justice

Being in the habit of asking controversial questions, I am prepared to ask another.

At what point, if ever, should a crime be, if not forgiven, then annulled?

Drink the Local Beer!

The most popular drink in the world, apparently, is water. This is hardly surprising. Next on the list is a bit harder to decide and depends a lot on which oracle you consult. It does seem though that the top five is made up of water, coffee, tea, juice and beer.

God IV - the Final Fisking

A little while back, I commented on God, gods and religiosity in a small piece on this blog. Much to my astonishment, at least one person saw fit to read the damn thing all the way to the end. My correspondent replied in some detail with a fisking of godlike proportions and, being the magnanimous chap that I am, I published her reply. With, of course, my own fisking.

Screaming like Goku

People say strange things to me. I think it's just me, but you never know. I told of a person who recently said to me "I can't sell my car, it smells like fish" and just today someone said to that "I have small birds in my chimney". I'm still not sure whether that was a metaphor.

The Great Train Robbery (Japanese Style)

Occasionally I stumble across a factoid or news article so delicious that I feel compelled to tuck it away for further contemplation. The basic idea is that I might blog about it later - generally I don't, but I might. One such incident that I tucked away was a series of news articles on the great train robbery (or actually robberies) that took place in Japan late in 2015 and early in 2016.

Same-Sex Marriage

In Australia at present, the topic of same-sex marriage (SSM) has been much on the agenda, partly because we have a plebiscite on the way, but also because it has been a cri de cœur of the virtue signalling left in most of the rest of the world. We here in Australia will not be left behind when it comes to signalling our virtue.

I can’t sell my car, it smells like fish

“Have you got one of the new company cars?” I said.

“No.” she said

“Why not?” I said

“I can’t sell my car, it smells like fish.” She said.

My Grammar and helping Uncle Jack

My grandmother was the eldest of three children, the other two being a boy (Jack) and a girl (Mary). So we have one of those rare cases where my blog contains a kernel of truth. For clarity, I'll say that a colonel of truth is quite a different matter and involves an especially honest military officer and if my blog contained one he would be called Colonel Bailey, but I digress.

Writing at the Pub

In recent times I have been slightly nomadic in my circumstances. My employment has not required a fixed abode and I have had no special desire to settle down while I am still so young, so I have taken to living in various AirBNB accommodations over the last year. That is when I am not employing the strategy of staying-with-friends-until-they-aren’t-friends-anymore. An economical strategy, but one that tends to quickly reduce the number of persons that can reasonably be considered friends.

Exploring the Universe for Diversity

In March 1972, the space probe Pioneer 10 was launched from Cape Canaveral in Florida with the objective of exploring the solar system past the orbit of Mars and into the asteroid belt. Later, a further objective of making a pass-by of Jupiter was added.

Peak Hour Terror: Surviving the Bus Crash

Yesterday started as any normal day. An early start, coffee, toast and I made my way to the bus stop for my usual ride to work. In a few short minutes though, my delusions of peace and calm were shattered by the terrifying sound of a collision between my bus and a 4WD.

The Child of the Father

I am not one for maudlin introspection on this blog (I save it for drunken evenings) and felt a little uneasy about posting the eulogy to my father last week. Nonetheless I am going to beg your indulgence one more time. I promise to get back to buses, faeces, Belgians or politics in my next post.

Eulogy for my Father

Eulogy for DW “Bill” Curran
Delivered 08 July 2017
John Cooper Methodist Hall, Benalla

North Sydney! This bus is North Sydney!

I have, on occasion, commented in the past about my adventures on buses and have ruminated on the process of catching a bus and buying tickets for a bus in Sydney.

I am, once again, able to interact daily with the Sydney bus service and I must say that I have noticed that the bus drivers seem more willing to converse with their passengers. I suspect they have had some sort of civility training or perhaps they have been sued. Who can tell.

Fabulous Faecal Facts

Some time ago I worked with a chap that was in the habit of advising me of the details of his bowel movements. He spoke with a rather posh British accent that I was reliably informed was a ‘Sandhurst accent’ and indeed he had been an officer in the British military. He sounded quite a lot like Trevor Bailey, the former English cricketer and sometime commentator.

On occasion, in this very proper accent, he would stand upright and loudly announce; “It’s time for my 2 o’clock poo!” He would then pivot  in a military fashion and depart in the direction of the men’s room. On his return he would usually make some further comment, usually along the lines of everything having “come out splendidly” but occasionally a more graphic description of the process along the lines of “I’ve just passed a bowel movement the exact size and shape of a coconut. Extraordinary!”

I Lost my Phone in Japan

LERK [CC BY-SA 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) or CC BY-SA 2.1 jp (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.1/jp/deed.en)], via Wikimedia Commons

So I was back in Japan again last week and I am pleased to report that it is still quite Japanese. I live in mortal fear of Japan becoming westernised in some way and my first check is to see how westernised it has become while I was away. I can report that the westernisation continues to encroach but it’s having a hard time of it.

Blockchain: It’s the end of the world as we know it (and I feel fine)

Photo One

There’s been a lot of hype around blockchain and associated technologies recently and in case you were wondering, it is entirely warranted. Blockchain is going to change everything. The change will be as big as anything we’ve seen since about 1989 and if you can get on board quickly, so much the better for you.

An email I sent to my Boss today

For those of you who weren't already aware, I am slightly miffed to report that I am working once again. My employer, with some justification, has elected to employ me as a contractor, hoping I suspect that I will do something vaguely useful, but also aware that as a contractor it will be much simpler to terminate my services in the event that I either i. fail to do something useful or ii. do something so outrageous that they can no longer employ me without damaging their own reputation.

Profoundly Deaf and Composing Classical Western Music in Japan

Back in the dark days of 2001, just a few short days after the World Trade Centre attack, Time Magazine published a touching story about a Japanese composer who had lost his hearing just at the time he was beginning to be recognized. Momoru Samuragochi was born in Hiroshima in 1963 to parents who where both hibakusha or atomic bomb survivors. Hibakusha and their children have suffered terrible discrimination in Japan and there is little doubt that Samuragochi would have also suffered because of this. Among other things, he had no classical music training at all despite being a prodigious talent from an early age and possessing 'perfect pitch' - the ability to determine a note without reference.

The Perils of Speaking Unpopular Truth

Several months ago, I wrote a post about Virtuous Authoritarians that mentioned Islam in passing, then last December I wrote a post highlighting the overrepresentation of Islamic groups in the Global Terrorism Database and finally, about two weeks ago I wrote a longish post on the difficulty of even suggesting that there is a problem with Islam. This is the sum total of my writings on Islam but nonetheless punishment is being meted out for my recklessness.

Letter to an Anti Trump Campaigner

Dear Anti-Trump Campaigner

I’d like you to calm down for a minute or two. Take a deep breath, put down the placard and think about what you are doing. I’d like you to read this little epistle. I’ll make it as short as I can, but I want to make sure that I get three key points across to you. Three things I’d like you to think about.

We Need to Talk About Islam

Over the last few months, I have had an occasional exchange with a faithful reader on the subject of Christianity specifically and religiosity more generally and I am in fact working on yet another response to said faithful reader (soon, I promise!). Our discussion has been good humoured and thoughtful and conducted with mutual respect. That’s the way it ought to be. I can disagree with the opinion held by a person, but once I attack the person themselves or begin to appeal to emotion rather than logic, I lose all relevance.

Bourke Street Attack

A few days ago there was a tragic incident in Melbourne where a disturbed man drove a car at high speed through parts of the city including the Bourke Street Mall. The end result was that 5 people were killed and more than 20 injured, not counting the trauma suffered by those not physically injured. The dead included a 3 month old baby and a 10 year old girl.

Donald Trump is not my President

In case you have been in the bath for the last eighteen months, I should begin by noting that the US Presidential election took place on November 8th and was won by Donald Trump, the Republican candidate. It was probably the most unexpected election win of modern times and in the immediate aftermath, there was quite some angst on the part of the losing Democratic Party that included a trending hashtag on twitter that proclaimed #notmypresident, presumably in an attempt to dissociate the poster from the President Elect.