A publisher, articles and ancient history
Well, it looks like I've found a publisher for my Jim Cairns study. Otford Press seem to be enthusiastic and - best of all appropriate. Meanwhile, New Politics have accepted my review of Strangio's biography of Cairns.
This Wednesday between 6pm and 7pm I'm being interviews on a RMIT student radio session (90.7fm) as the founder of Labor for Refugees. Be prepared to pitch me some difficult questions ;-)
Have been html-ising some ancient history, including an article on Magic in Roleplaying and Reality, which I wrote in 1996 for Mimesis and Reflection on the Death of Superman, which was published in Green Left Weekly in 1993. As I said, ancient history. Hopefully I'll manage to collate most of the things I've written this year in a single place!
Greylock alerted me to
this BBC article on luxuries versus necessities. The following table says it all really.
Luxuries
Make-up: $18bn
Perfumes: $15bn
Ocean cruises: $14bn
Ice-cream in Europe: $11 bn
Needs
Eliminate hunger: $19bn
Reproductive health care for all women: $12bn
Clean water for all: $10bn
Universal literacy: $5bn
The rest of the week has consisted of plodding away on my Data Security subchapter of my thesis and coding for the Tetum-Bahasa-Portuguese-English translation programme. Coding for Sesami.org is finished and ConnectIE are happy with the result. If anyone else needs a very motivated and skilled IT generalist for the short or long term you know where to find me.
Spent the weekend being quite sociable - dinner on Friday night with some friends of severina_242, some senior East Timor and military people on Saturday and Sunday all-singing and all-dancing Iranians. Whilst each event was individually very pleasant, it has also reminded me how much I really enjoy my own company - and how little of that I get.
My diet starts today. No, I'm serious. I returned from East Timor slightly thinner than usual - probably clocking in at 84kg. Now, three months back and with the festive season, I'm about 95kg. With a height of around 181 cm, this does put me in the "overweight" range and with a BMI of about 28-29 - which is far too high. Fortunately I'm one of those people who loses/gains weight quite quickly. A few weeks on a diet of complex carbohydrates, pure protein, skim milk, vitamin supplements and cycling should see me return to the more healthly level.
Je-sus. I just checked the BBC BMI site. It reckons that I should go down to about 76kg... I haven't weighed that much since, ummm, 1988... Oh well, here goes...
Update
An interesting experiment. Friend_Whoring. Join.
This Wednesday between 6pm and 7pm I'm being interviews on a RMIT student radio session (90.7fm) as the founder of Labor for Refugees. Be prepared to pitch me some difficult questions ;-)
Have been html-ising some ancient history, including an article on Magic in Roleplaying and Reality, which I wrote in 1996 for Mimesis and Reflection on the Death of Superman, which was published in Green Left Weekly in 1993. As I said, ancient history. Hopefully I'll manage to collate most of the things I've written this year in a single place!
Greylock alerted me to
this BBC article on luxuries versus necessities. The following table says it all really.
Luxuries
Make-up: $18bn
Perfumes: $15bn
Ocean cruises: $14bn
Ice-cream in Europe: $11 bn
Needs
Eliminate hunger: $19bn
Reproductive health care for all women: $12bn
Clean water for all: $10bn
Universal literacy: $5bn
The rest of the week has consisted of plodding away on my Data Security subchapter of my thesis and coding for the Tetum-Bahasa-Portuguese-English translation programme. Coding for Sesami.org is finished and ConnectIE are happy with the result. If anyone else needs a very motivated and skilled IT generalist for the short or long term you know where to find me.
Spent the weekend being quite sociable - dinner on Friday night with some friends of severina_242, some senior East Timor and military people on Saturday and Sunday all-singing and all-dancing Iranians. Whilst each event was individually very pleasant, it has also reminded me how much I really enjoy my own company - and how little of that I get.
My diet starts today. No, I'm serious. I returned from East Timor slightly thinner than usual - probably clocking in at 84kg. Now, three months back and with the festive season, I'm about 95kg. With a height of around 181 cm, this does put me in the "overweight" range and with a BMI of about 28-29 - which is far too high. Fortunately I'm one of those people who loses/gains weight quite quickly. A few weeks on a diet of complex carbohydrates, pure protein, skim milk, vitamin supplements and cycling should see me return to the more healthly level.
Je-sus. I just checked the BBC BMI site. It reckons that I should go down to about 76kg... I haven't weighed that much since, ummm, 1988... Oh well, here goes...
Update
An interesting experiment. Friend_Whoring. Join.
no subject
Luxuries Vs Needs
In the western world those luxuries, to some people, would be seen as definite needs. I think that may be because the people who "need" these things have never gone hungry, or had inadequate health care. (Generalizing there...) However, not having makeup won't kill you, but hunger does. Many Perfumes smell very bad, and have really no purpose.(unless you smell really bad, but that's what deodorant is for) All perfumes do is to try and cover your natural scent. How are you supposed to find a mate without that? (Basic instincts, mind you) Those two to things would cover clean water and food, which is essential.
The BBC article just reminded me how shallow people can be.
And thats enough babble from me for now.
Also, good luck on your diet. I hope it goes well for you. :)
Something about perfumes....
What confuses me is that people don't simply make their own.
Flower essence.
Alcohol.
Gycerol.
That's it. Total cost maybe $1 per litre.
Someone is making a lot of money for not much work.
Nota bene: Found this link
http://www.parentsoup.com/havefun/crafts/articles/0,,166506_263560,00.html?arrivalSA=1&cobrandRef=0&arrival_freqCap=1&pba=adid=6861684
Re: Something about perfumes....