This is the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks The moment This photo was taken by Robert Clark from the window of his studio in Brooklyn. Quote of the Day “At most 5,000 vehicles will be built. Because there are … Continue reading →

Place de la République Striking new artwork celebrating a lovely local village square. Quote of the Day Susan Sontag once observed that “great writers are either husbands or lovers”. Husbands, in her telling, are reliable, intelligible and decent. Lovers are … Continue reading →

Non-potable Quote of the Day “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” William Faulkner Musical alternative to the morning’s radio news Alison Krauss & Union Station | Dimming Of The Day Link Long Read of the Day ‘Empire’s … Continue reading →

The decisive moment Well, a provençal moment anyway. Quote of the Day ”The best people possess a feeling for beauty, the courage to take risks, the discipline to tell the truth, the capacity for sacrifice. Ironically, their virtues make them … Continue reading →

Bart gets a facelift Seen in an Arles street yesterday. With “No More War” scrawled on his forehead. Wonder what Homer would think. Quote of the Day ”In this world of sin and sorrow there is always something to be … Continue reading →

Burren View One of my favourite photographs. It’s taken from the northern shore of Galway Bay looking south to the ‘moonscape’ of the Burren in Co Clare. Quote of the Day ”The English hoard words like misers; the Irish spend … Continue reading →

Gold Coast Where we’re headed this weekend. Quote of the Day ”Puritanism. The haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy.” H.L. Mencken Musical alternative to the morning’s radio news The Grateful Dead | Brokedown Palace (Live at Carter-Finley Stadium; … Continue reading →

Poppy farming A reminder of what the garden was like before the Great Drought. Quote of the Day ”Outside of a dog, a book is man’s best friend. Inside of a dog it’s too dark to read.” Groucho Marx Musical … Continue reading →

Big Skies A view of Brancaster beach that is almost painterly. Quote of the Day ”Successful investing is anticipating the anticipations of others.” John Maynard Keynes (I think he also likened betting on the stock market to judging a beauty … Continue reading →

Mugshot I was brooding about Keynes the other day (because of something I’m writing) and suddenly looked at the mug on my desk, and there he was, courtesy of a David Low cartoon in the New Statesman of 1932! Quote … Continue reading →

Come on in A hibiscus flower seen on an evening walk. And a bee who accepted the invitation and covered itself in pollen! Quote of the Day ”The political problem of mankind is to combine three things: economic efficiency, social … Continue reading →

Holy Smoke! Nice juxtaposition on a Donegal beach. Quote of the Day ”A man’s dying is more the survivors’ affair than his own.” Thomas Mann Musical alternative to the morning’s radio news Paul Simon | Graceland Link Triggered by a … Continue reading →

Skydriver I love this picture and often wondered if it was a fake. So I asked Claude to do some research. Here’s what it found: The photo is genuine, not a spoof or composite. It’s real — a real girder, … Continue reading →

Ludwig’s ghost Ascension Burial Ground in Cambridge. In a nice coincidence, Frank Ramsey, the young genius who, as a teenager, first translated Wittgenstein’s Tractatus, is buried nearby. Quote of the Day ”When you become famous, being famous becomes your profession.” … Continue reading →

Wistfulness Quote of the Day ”War is only a cowardly escape from the problems of peace.” Thomas Mann Musical alternative to the morning’s radio news Alison Krauss | Down To The River To Pray Link Long Read of the Day … Continue reading →

Flying Saucer A light suspended from the ceiling over a dining table. Quote of the Day ”Fashion is the performance of leisure.” Thorstein Veblen Musical alternative to the morning’s radio news Richard Wagner | Prelude to Lohengrin | Simon Rattle … Continue reading →

Airstreamed surrealism This is a photograph of something that is both real and surreal. It’s of the reflections in the side of a beautiful Airstream food truck at Knepp, shot in bright sunshine with minimal post-processing. Quote of the Day … Continue reading →

Benjamin We spent a couple of glorious days at Knepp last week which meant, among other things, discovering that rabbits on the estate seemed relatively relaxed about having humans nearby. This chap spent much of his time nibbling near where … Continue reading →

Beached! The Law Faculty building in Cambridge. Designed (wouldn’t you guess) by Norman Foster, who also designed the Terminal building at Stansted airport. But it always reminds me of a beached cruise liner. Quote of the Day ”If you want … Continue reading →

Who do you think your are? Sitting quietly by myself in the garden of the Orchard in Grantchester yesterday, I was joined by this teenage Jackdaw, who gave me a hard stare. So I stared back and he kindly posed … Continue reading →

Bike park… …well, maybe not. Quote of the Day ”Civilisation is a thin film across an ocean of chaos”. Werner Herzog  Musical alternative to the morning’s radio news Ry Cooder and David Lindley | Jesus on the Mainline Link My … Continue reading →

Non-musical chairs I keep thinking that I must do something about these aged chairs, which have stood outside through wind, hail and rain for many years. There’s something touching about their quiet endurance, and now I need to make amends. … Continue reading →

The art of conversation What French cafes are for. Quote of the Day ”Republicans want smaller government for the same reason crooks want fewer cops; it’s easier to get away with murder. James Carville Musical alternative to the morning’s radio … Continue reading →

I Protest A lone demonstrator outside the old Chinese Embassy in London in the winter of 2014. Quote of the Day The first step in AI enterprise deployment was giving everyone Copilot, which mostly failed and is continuing to fail. … Continue reading →

Norman Conquest 2.0 The British Museum in Bloomsbury, seen on a rainy afternoon a while back (when Britain still could make the rains run on time). From today it’s the temporary home of the Bayeux Tapestry which depicts events leading … Continue reading →

PHEW! WHAT A SCORCHER! As the front page of British tabloids used to put it. Quote of the Day ”When people are least sure, they are often most dogmatic.” John Kenneth Galbraith Musical alternative to the morning’s radio news Cavatina … Continue reading →

A rose by any name… … is still ravishing. Just noticed these as I was sitting at the table, with my favourite picture (HCB’s Rue Mouffetard) in the background. Quote of the Day ” We don’t love qualities, we love … Continue reading →

Street scene, London Snatched in true Cartier-Bresson style. And in B&W too. Quotes of the Day The American republic celebrated its so-called 250th birthday on Saturday. Here are two excerpts from speeches marking the occasion. First, Trump, speaking in Dakota … Continue reading →

The Beeline Imagine how attractive these flowers would look if you were a bee. According to the invaluable Plantnet app, it’s Verbascum chaixii ViLL. Which is ‘Nettle leaved Mullein’ to the rest of us. Quote of the Day ”The only … Continue reading →

Fuchsia I think this is still my favourite flower. If you’re ever in Kerry at this time of the year you can drive down country lanes where the hedgerows appear to consist of little else. Quote of the Day ”If … Continue reading →