Walkaway, a book review of sorts

I'm a little late to the party of those who've read Cory Doctorow's book, Walkaway, but heck, why should that stop me from expressing my opinion, right? OK, so i won't take long with this then. The story is set about 50 years in our North American (Toronto, Akron and Gary feature in the novel) …

Coffeeneuring Challenge 2018

Ironically, I didn't finish my Challenge last year -- despite being on a bike tour! -- because of inadvertent non-wheeled traffic for most of the Challenge time. I did muster on with the caffeination during my ride. Coffeeneuring 2018 rules -- over 7 weeks, to 7 different locales on rides of at least 2 miles …

TCM Kongress Rothenburg 2018

This year i went to the nicest conference ever -- the TCM Kongress at Rothenburg ob der Tauber, on the river, in southern Bavaria. The setting was insanely lovely -- a fairy tale town, where I kept expecting to trip over Sleeping Beauty or the Seven Dwarves, angry fairies or magical spindles.   There were hundreds …

Signs to Live By

Mostly from China, where there are many amusing signs to be found.

Taking Fashion another Step Backwards

The biggest adverse condition i face here in SE Asia is the scorching SUNLIGHT. Well, also dogs chasing my bike and potentially biting me or causing me to crash. I know that i'm not just being a wuss, as  lots of patients with dog bites would come to the Mae Tao Clinic. And just what …

And she’s off!

OK, so i arrived on Saturday, and bought a 2ndhand bike on Sunday afternoon. Had work done to it, bought things like panniers saddlebags etc, then took off on Wed morning. I'm vaguely going south, and rode about 48km 80km out of Bangkok today to Samut Samutsongkhram. The good news is only one breakdown, and one dog …

my father, Ed

Born Edgar Franklin Flanagan, acquired Francis as a communion name, then shaved this mouthful down to Ed. He became father to me and my sister when he was in his mid-twenties. This isn't a real portrait of him, but only a small list of fragments, the tesserae of a mosaic. He was always my standard for …

Where Our Wild Selves Live

A New Year's Resolution. We all need more Nature in our lives. All cultures, at their most human moments, find glory in the most inhuman rhythms of sunrises, sunsets, wild storms, mountain vistas, desert scenes, beaches, green forests & jungles, the world of flowers & bugs & fierce lions & tigers & bears! We all do, certainly …