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A few mornings ago I took this off our balcony.

Roberto Saviano wrote a book about the Camorra – the Neopoltan Mafia. So they say they’re going to kill him by Christmas. That was a bit dumb of them really, because it’s the main reason I bought the book, and I suspect it’s the main reason it’s a best seller. It hasn’t arrived yet, but I see it’s getting very mixed reviews on Amazon. I get the impression from the…

For some time now, my son’s been having dental treatment to straighten his teeth and correct a severe under-bite. First he had a thingamy to wear at night to pull his jaw forwards. Then he had to wear it during the day, too, which caused rows. Once he grew up enough to wear it properly, his jaw gradually slid into place. Then he had traditional braces to straightent he teeth…

After my friend missed the ferry, we had a furry of looking up transport firms on the web. There’s a ferry from Tenerife on Tuesday. Plan B: she could leave here on Monday, spend the night on Tenerife, and get the ferry Tuesday night. Plan C: or get up hideously early on Tuesday and get through in one, 20-hour day. Or… All these ferries are much more expensive than the…

My friend came over from El Hierro for the weekend. So I got my long translation job done last week, tidied up the guest room, and did some cooking in advance. She arrived Saturday lunchtime, and the fun started. We got home at about 1:30 am and carried on drinking. It must have been around that time that I said, “You think you’re weird? One of my best friends is…

Following the problems in the sub-prime lending market in America and the run on Northern Rock in the UK, uncertainty has now hit Japan. In the last 7 days Origami Bank has folded, Sumo Bank has gone belly up and Bonsai Bank announced plans to cut some of its branches. Yesterday, it was announced that Karaoke Bank is up for sale and will likely go for a song while today…