Our flight back from upstate NY after our camping trip was not free of incident. For one thing, I got captured by the local news.

Today I picked up the appropriate soundtrack for the fast-approaching long weekend of drinking in the Catskill mountains with Courtney’s family. John Barleycorn Must Die is an ancient song which has a number of well-established interpretations. Most obviously, though, it’s a song about barley and the drinks one can make from it – beer and [...]

It’s very good for homesickness. I can see all the locations. I know Jason Taylor’s route to school. I remembered that he would have attended the Hill School (it’s called Upton upon Severn Comprehensive in the novel), and not Hanley Castle until he was older.
I’m amused at the way Mitchell has turned place names from [...]

Or is it actually the nadir of laziness? Depends on whether you approve of idleness, I suppose.
What exactly would Bertrand Russell have made of pre-prepared beans on toast?
Courtesy of the Guardian.

Recent Japanese research suggests that kissing lessens the production of histamines, hence alleviating hayfever. I’m not joking.
Sadly the article doesn’t explain how you convince your partner to indulge you in a 30 minute kissing session when you’re dribbling goo from four of the openings on your face.

There’s an awful lot of pollen in Davis. The air is disgustingly fecund right now, and my hayfever is the worst it’s ever been. Clarityn, my antihistamine of choice, is unable to stem the flow of phlegm. I can actually feel the sting of the pollen as it blows into my engorged eyeballs.
Now I have [...]

I’m looking forward to Dominik Moll’s new movie, Lemming. The American trailer isn’t ready yet, so here’s the French one. It looks sexy, creepy and absurd all at once.
Philip French, of the Observer, made it his movie of the week. I hope we get it at my place of employment.