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Author Archives: Simon
Thunk
I love the soft thunk you get when you drop the kettlebell on the grass at the end of a set.
Super Spicy
So if you buy your daughter some super spicy chicken wings at the Taiwanese chicken place whose supposedly non-spicy chicken is too spicy for you, it’s a bad idea, when you put the super spicy chicken wings into the oven … Continue reading
Posted in Food
TAR
This was great — just so full of great scenes and much less straightforward than I’d expected. After just one watch I don’t really feel I have a handle on what this film is about or trying to say. But … Continue reading
Posted in Culture, Moving Pictures
Tagged Tar
Playstation Language Settings
Nine out of ten times when I turn on the Playstation I have to change the interface language from Japanese, my daughters’ preference, to English, which is mine. Why can’t I set the preferred language at the user profile level … Continue reading
Posted in Games, Language, Life
Tagged Playstation
Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy
The first two parts of this are eclipsed by the third – a tale of coming to terms with unspoken thoughts. Continue reading
Posted in Moving Pictures
The Platonic Ideal of KFC
A roadside KFC restored my faith in the fast food gods. Continue reading
Dolphins
The early bird catches the worm, and also gets to see a dolphin up close if it’s in Bunbury. Continue reading
Mendokusai
If I want to say, internally, that something is a hassle, this is the word I reach for. Continue reading
Irma Vep Saves the Day
I had to bail on High Life but Irma Vep saved the day. Continue reading
Posted in Culture, Moving Pictures
What’s In My Ears Right Now?
Just a handful of songs that I’m listening to right now – Alvvays, Fazerdaze, and Chastity Belt. Continue reading
Posted in Music
Tagged Alvvays, Chastity Belt, Dick Diver, Fazerdaze
Writing in “Chinese”
Lovely story on Language Log about an American prisoner in Japan in the 1980s teaching themselves “Chinese” and using it to send a special message to a member of the consulate staff.
Properly Crispy
Not exactly a surprise that a Recipe Tin Eats recipe works just as promised. Continue reading
Posted in Food
Tagged Recipe Notes
Gathering Crickets
A quiter and calmer approach to playing Ghost of Tsushima. Continue reading
Posted in Culture, Games
Tagged Ghost of Tsushima
The Coffee Dilemma
A note for future me — when at work and faced with the choice between drinking instant coffee or using a couple of paper towels as a make-do coffee filter because you left the filters you bought the day before … Continue reading
Not Much of a Career
A near-miss carjacking brings a Billy Bragg classic to mind. Continue reading
Posted in Life
Tagged Billy Bragg, Fremantle
Denser Than a Hockey Puck
Will I ever learn? On a whim, I looked up the lyrics for the Malkmus song Old Jerry and the line “Art is denser than a hockey puck” is supposedly “Heart is denser than a hockey puck”. What nonsense! I’m … Continue reading
Kinkakuji Lake
I’m not a huge fan of Kinkakuji — aka, the Temple of the Golden Pavilion — because it feels a bit garish, but the grounds are lovely. Continue reading
Posted in Photographs