Happy anniversary

Married eleven years today. Together for thirteen. Thank you, Husband.

Goodbye Twitter

I deactivated my main Twitter account today, after renaming it, downloading my data, and taking one of my existing spare accounts and setting it to the old name in order to preserve my "brand" (ugh). In early 2017 I did something similar with another Twitter account. That time though I didn't ignore the siren song, … Continue reading Goodbye Twitter →

It’s just not funny anymore

I recently navel-gazed about what it means to be funny. While I do believe in free speech, there has to be a limit on speaking freely when it hurts other people. The recent news about James Gunn and Roseanne Barr reminded me that I have some pretty twisted jokes on this site, some of which … Continue reading It’s just not funny anymore →

What it means to be funny

I spend a lot of time on Twitter, for better or worse. It has negatively affected the volume of content I produce for this website in any event. Twitter is a cesspool and a goldmine rolled into one. I can barely scroll fast enough through American politics, only to be caught by surprise by an … Continue reading What it means to be funny →

On violence in South Africa

Last year on Facebook, I engaged in a discussion with a friend about the fact that violent acts seem to be the norm to make people notice things, in place of that time-worn cliché of "rational discussion". While my response does refer directly to South Africa, in hindsight it could apply elsewhere. Here it is, … Continue reading On violence in South Africa →

What Would You Do?

Many years ago, my family was on holiday at a cottage owned by an uncle. It was a seaside cottage, with no electricity. Light was provided by paraffin lamps, and cooking was done with bottled gas plugged into a gas oven. One evening, my brother and I, both recovering from chicken pox, were comparing our … Continue reading What Would You Do? →

14 August

Two vastly different reasons for remembering the date today, and both have resonance. 14 August 1989: (Picture credit: Alex Jay on Twitter, but I'm not sure where he got it from, because it's a photo of a frame from a public television broadcast.) State President PW Botha, the second-last apartheid-era leader of South Africa, the … Continue reading 14 August →

Become less ignorant

(Originally posted on Facebook.) Trigger warning: swearing and homosexuality. So much hate and anger stem from ignorance. The difference between ignorance and stupidity is that with ignorance you can learn, change your mind, and not rely on confirmation bias to continue thinking a certain way. I've just read a sampling of comments on a Facebook … Continue reading Become less ignorant →

Professionalism doesn’t mean a collared shirt and tie

Being professional means treating your customers and colleagues with the respect you think you deserve in return.