Across the world, in every country, on every continent, at any time of day, there is one thing we all do that is the perfect window into our psyche: we drive.

Driving a car has become so ubiquitous that it’s hard to imagine a world where cars didn’t exist at all, say, the 19th century for the most part, or a world where cars were the gadget which was touted to replace the horse and carriage but nobody really believed it, say, the turn of the 20th century. That’s recent enough to still have people alive today who were alive then, although the chances of them remembering any of the early days of motoring are slim to none.

Continue reading “The mean driver” →

The following is not meant to denigrate my origins in any way. I don’t hate where I’m from, I don’t love it either. It’s one of those things upon which I had absolutely no influence, so it leaves me indifferent. Of course, there’s always the possibility that my soul and God were sitting at a desk in space (or heaven, on a cloud or other very comfortable water droplet formations) and planned out my birth in intricate detail, in which case I take it all back, and I say I’m very proud to be where I’m from. I’ll be damned if I ever admit of having made mistakes in my antenatal form…

Continue reading “The Problem With Where I’m From” →

People are fascinating. I don’t mean this in a condescending, scientist-observing-rats kind of way, I mean it sincerely. Although that’s exactly what a rat observing scientist would say to make it seem that he’s not enjoying sticking electrodes in areas of those rat’s bodies that did not evolve in an electrode-accommodating fashion. I don’t know, I’ll let history decide. Because, obviously, this is exactly what historians will be preoccupied with in the future.

I say people are fascinating because I try to observe them more and more and learn about them as much as I can, and this in turn has led me to some very interesting learnings. I realise this may seem like a worthwhile intellectual endeavour, I assure you it’s not. I want to learn about what makes people tick as part of my metamorphosis into the ultimate life form: the Grumpy Old Man.

Continue reading “The Grumpy Old Man” →