I thank Eleanor for sending me the above photo which she headed, “You’re on my tea bag!” You may have to zoom in to understand.
When I first saw it I expected that they had used my more famous line. This is number two and they left out a word.
Shoes. Greeting cards. Paintings. T-shirts. And probably some others I don’t know of or have forgotten. And now tea bags. My immortality is assured.
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Among the sites I check each afternoon is Steve Early’s The Log of SPARTINA. On Monday he uploaded a wonderfully conceived and written post, ‘Do Not Disturb’. At present it is at the top. If you go there—and you should—and it isn’t top, scroll down until you find it. It will be the best thing you will read today.
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I read less online than I used to, particularly newspapers. Having declared myself a Trump-free Zone speeds up the process. Mostly I read headings and move on.
I completely stopped reading the NEW ZEALAND HERALD several months ago because it was filled with silly pap. However, interested in New Zealand’s perspective on the America’s Cup, I went there a few days ago and was pleasantly surprised to find the site completely and attractively redesigned and with content actually of interest, including this article explaining that the AC Final will not be between NZ and the USA, but between Kiwis and Aussies.
It is amazing how two nations with a combined population of around 25 million—there are only 4.5 million New Zealanders—can so dominate the highest levels of this kind of sailing, though not surprising because that has been the case for many years.
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Those of you who paid attention in English class will recognize my paraphrase of one of John Milton’s most famous poems. For those of you who didn't, click here. If you do, Steve Early's post will be the second best thing you read today.
Many of you wrote affirming my sanity after the last entry. I appreciate the vote of confidence. Sometimes I do wonder myself.
I posted that entry one evening, changed my mind the next morning and deleted the ‘wasting your time’ part, changed my mind again, as nut cases do, and, after eliminating one sentence, uploaded it again the following evening.
I have been called mad so often that if I weren’t from time to time I would begin to wonder if I were doing my job right. For those of you who haven’t read the introduction to the main site, my job is to go to the edge of human experience and send back reports. Despite the long hours, poor pay and lack of retirement plan, I’ve been at it for decades. Which of course is strong evidence that I am a nut case.
Those of you who have read the lists page on the main site—immodestly, there is some good stuff there—will know that I have addressed these assertions in two of the quotes I have used in front of my books.
No excellent soul is exempt from a mixture of madness.
—Aristotle
“You are mad,” shouted Angus, who had learned to cherish his own limitations as a sure proof of sanity.
—from VOSS by Patrick White
