2007 World's 50 Best Restaurants

The S.Pellegrino World's 50 Best Restaurants for 2007 has been announced. The top five are:
1 El Bulli (Spain) and World's Best Restaurant and Best in Europe
2 The Fat Duck (UK)
3 Pierre Gagnaire (France)
4 The French Laundry (USA) and Best in the Americas
5 Tetsuya's (Australia) and Best in Australasia

Number five ... Tetsuya Wakuda.
Photo: Sahlan Hayes

The other Australian restaurant in the top 50
33 Rockpool

There were also two other Australian restaurants in the top 100
71 Vue de Monde
96 Becasse

Among the best: Shannon Bennett at Vue de Monde.
Photo: Craig Abraham

Having eaten at Tetsuya's (once and quite expensive, but delicious), I should work down the list! Or up! Rockpool is always on the list, but never quite happens.

What a shame that the 'father of Australian cuisine', Cheong Liew's The Grange missed out. Still must try that one out.


Cheong Liew

**************************************
Emily is staying over (since Saturday night) until she house-sits another place later in the week. She cooked a yummy roast beef dinner tonight.

Back at work today. Hmph!

condensed TV

Reader's Digest is known for their condensed books. People actually read them if they don't have time or patience for the real book. This is a shame really, as writers go to a lot of effort in writing their books.

If people will actually read condensed books, maybe they might watch condensed TV. Those 1-2 minute recaps of the previous episode is always a good summary. What if someone didn't have time for the entire show? They could watch a whole season of a show in under 30 minutes.

****************

I had a great time in Melbourne from Tuesday night until this (Sunday) morning. It was a great footy weekend, along with catching up with friends.

On Wednesday morning, Michelle and I went to Windy Hill, the home of Essendon Football Club. We happened to bump into Matthew Lloyd (the captain) and I had a quick word with him. Then Michelle left me to go to the Anzac Day match between Collingwood and Essendon at the MCG, by myself (she didn't want to come to the game). Collingwood won by 16 points. Not a good result. I left just before the final quarter to try and beat some of the other 90,507 people leaving around the same time.


I was on level 4 but towards the bottom. It was still very high up.

On Thursday I went to my (Brisbane Lions) club's base in Melbourne and then had a long lunch at the Turf Bar with two other fanatical Lions supporters. In the evening, Michelle and I went to her friend Callie's place. I was honoured to witness a female ritual involving clothing. Not something I would wish to see again though.

On Friday I went to see my team train at the grounds opposite their hotel. It was great to see the boys fully fit and confident. Great ball skills. I had a chat to some of the players (there is a regular handful with whom I speak and maintain contact).

That night, Leah and I went to dinner at Bedis Restaurant for excellent Indian cuisine. Then we walked to Southbank to check out the foyer of the Eureka Tower, before going to Malthouse Theatre for The Receipt, a show in the Melbourne International Comedy Festival.

Saturday was the pièce de résistance. I enjoy going to the South Melbourne markets with Leah on Saturday mornings. We also checked out Great Dane Furniture which is full of furniture by Danish designers such as Hans Wegner.

Before the football game between Brisbane Lions and Carlton Blues, Leah and I met with Paul and Tim (with whom I had lunch on Thursday) for drinks before heading to the game.

It was a great game of footy too!

Afterwards, Tim, Paul and I went to the players' room (Leah went home). It was unbelievable and I had a few chats with my regular players. Not only watching a winning game, but being in contact with my players was a real highlight.

Not only that, one of the players was on my flight home this morning (passing through on the way home to Brisbane), though I didn't realise until he collected his bags.

Enough football to keep me going until round 8 in three weeks time!

football - round 5

BRISBANE LIONS 6.1 13.1 18.4 21.10 (136)
CARLTON 5.6 14.8 17.11 18.16 (124)
Goals: Brisbane: C Johnson 3 J Brown 3 J Charman 3 L Power 2 T Notting 2 A McGrath 2 J Patfull 2 R Hadley J Roe C Stiller C Begley. Carlton: K Simpson 3 L Whitnall 3 E Betts 3 B Fevola 3 C Cloke 3 A Walker M Murphy M Lappin.

Best: Brisbane: J Brown S Black L Power C Stiller T Notting J Charman C Johnson. Carlton: R Houlihan H Scotland L Whitnall M Lappin K Simpson E Betts.

Injuries: Brisbane: Nil. Carlton: R Jackson (broken hand).

Umpires: C Donlon M James M Head.

Official crowd: 33,598 at Telstra Dome.

What a fantastic game by the boys. It was a great night (see other post).


Begley vs Carrazzo


Browny vs O'hAilpin


Blacky and Power


Blacky - with Shermo and Rischi on standby for the ball


Begs, Shermo, Blacky, Riska and Charmo after the win

Stumpy... by name and nature

I first wrote about Stumpy on 19 February 2007, and then again on 4 April 2007.

Poor Stumpy has lost one of his four legs, but it's not a bad thing. From BBC News again.

Last Updated: Thursday, 19 April 2007, 12:57 GMT 13:57 UK

'Stumpy' now a three-legged duck

The mutation is rare but cases have been recorded elsewhere

A duck who became famous after he was born with four legs has lost one of his extra limbs.

Stumpy was born at Warrawee Duck Farm, Hampshire, in February, with an extra set of legs behind the two he moves on.

His owner Nicky Janaway, who was amazed Stumpy had thrived into adulthood, said he caught one of his extra legs, which stuck out, in his pen's fencing.

But she said it was a plus for Stumpy as, without the flailing leg, the duck could now safely roam the whole farm.

Mrs Janaway said: "He's now only got three legs and a stump which means he's Stumpy by name and stumpy by nature.

"He got the leg caught in the pen fencing. He clean snapped it but he had no idea anything had happened so he may not have had any sensation in it."

Given him freedom

Stumpy had shocked his owners when he was born on the New Forest farm with the rare mutation.

A duckling, called Jake, was born with a similar mutation in Australia in 2002, but died soon after birth.

However, Stumpy's condition earned him fame - he made the headlines and made television appearances across the globe after his birth and an online blog has been ensuring fans can follow his every move.

Stumpy had been housed in the pen as Mrs Janaway said she was fearful if he had been free to wander the farm he would have got stuck somewhere and she would not have found him.

Mrs Janaway said: "The good thing that has come out of it is that he can now roam the farm and he and his girlfriend duck Alice are harassing the others.

"It has given him his freedom - the other leg is tucked up so it has no chance of getting stuck."

And another picture

And then there were three ... the new look tri-legged Stumpy.
Photo: Reuters

Stumpy is now a bit of a celebrity. Check out Stumpy's diary.

*********************************
My blog will be on hiatus until Sunday night (29 April) as I am going to Melbourne tomorrow evening.

Yep, for the football. Two games. One on Wednesday afternoon, the Anzac Day match between Essendon and Collingwood. Another one on Saturday night, between the Brisbane Lions and Carlton.

T rex chicken

From BBC News

The closest living relative to Tyrannosaurus rex is the chicken.

The resemblance may not be immediately obvious

Protein extracted from 68 million-year-old T. rex bones has shed new light on the evolutionary link between dinosaurs and birds.

Researchers compared organic molecules preserved in the T. rex fossils with those of living animals, and found they were similar to chicken protein.

So a T rex steak would be white meat, not red.

*******************
Another busy day today, out of the house. I went to visit Devi at her house for lunch (chicken green curry) and tried to help her find out what was wrong with her cordless phone, and her broadband connection. No luck on either.

Emily is over tonight for dinner of lamb curry (tastes better the next day) and a catch up of Prison Break.

I miss the Sunday afternoon naps on the couch together with Keiser. I miss Keiser.

limbo

The position of the Catholic Church on infants who die unbaptized has been revised, yet again.

In the fifth century, it was thought that they went to hell. In the thirteenth century, they ended up in limbo.

Now there are reasons thought by the Church that they may actually go to heaven after all. But with a disclaimer

"It must be clearly acknowledged that the church does not have sure knowledge about the salvation of unbaptized infants who die,"

See - Catholic News Service of 20 April 2007

Whatever happened to admitting, "we don't know"?

***********************
Had a very busy day today, on a Saturday! I went to the new Aldi food store this morning which opened recently, right next to the local Coles supermarket. They charge for plastic bags (to encourage recycling and reusing - I brought my own), prices are cheaper (1 per cent surcharge on credit card payments, no Amex), but their fruit and vegetables come prepackaged (more packaging to landfill).

I gave the house a good clean, then went to the club to watch the Essendon vs St Kilda game (great win by the Dons). Kim came and watched two quarters, then Neil dropped by for the last quarter.

Did some more cleaning before Bob arrived for a lamb curry dinner. We then walked to the club for the Brisbane Lions vs Kangaroos match. We were also joined by Nick and all had plenty of beers. What a terrible game, but it is nice to watch football with friends.

football - round 4

KANGAROOS 5.4 6.6 7.13 12.15 (87)
BRISBANE LIONS 1.6 5.9 6.13 8.15 (63)

Goals: Kangaroos: L Brown 3 D Wells 2 L Thomas C Jones D Harris D Petrie B Harvey H McIntosh J Sinclair. Brisbane Lions: S Black 2 A McGrath 2 S Harding C Johnson T Notting J Brown.

Best: Kangaroos: A Edwards H McIntosh B Rawlings D Wells G Archer. Brisbane Lions: S Black T Notting L Power A McGrath J Brennan.

Injuries: Brisbane Lions: N Lappin (quad) replaced in selected side by M Moody. Kangaroos: L Thomas (ribs).

Umpires: M Stevic C Kamolins K Nicholls.

Official crowd: 11,133 at Gold Coast Stadium.

What a terrible game to watch. It seemed that some of our players had been abducted and replaced by androids.

Blacky after a goal


Browny


Possum


Scotty


Jaz


Begs

the Simplified Spelling Society

The Simplified Spelling Society started in 1908 and has been campaigning ever since to have the English language 'updated' and based on phonetics.

According to John Gledhill, the Secretary of the SSS,

almost 4,000 English spellings make no sense. If head, said and friend were simplified down to 'hed' and 'sed' and 'frend' then kids would learn quicker.

See - Sydney Morning Herald of 18 April 2007 (Reuters report)

The SSS only has 500 members worldwide, so I'm not sure how successful their latest campaign will be.

If they have their way, we would all be spelling like 'the grate Jeter Harris'.

Kum to think ov it. This noo spelling is not a bad idear.

Wile we ar at it, how abowt getting rid of gramma and conjoogashun rools as well?

Ther ar also obsoleet letters we kan get rid ov, like X and C for a start. Now that is an eksiting thort. Alltho, we aktoolee kan't get rid of C kompleetlee, bekos we hav the 'CH' soun. But sertunlee, I am in favar of not having to inklood silent lettas in speling.

************************
It has been a frenetic week at work! Thank goodness for the weekend.

targetting the vulnerable

From Scientology Volunteer Ministers

Volunteer Minister News

Grief Counseling and Trauma Relief for Those Affected by Monday’s Shooting at Virginia Tech

With 32 dead and 29 injured, people around the US and throughout the world have been shocked by Monday’s events at Virginia Tech, the scene of the deadliest shooting incident in U.S. history.

A team of Scientology Volunteer Ministers (VMs) are in Blacksburg, VA, to provide grief counseling and trauma relief for students, family members, friends and local residents affected by the incident.

“Our team is here to help,” said the International Volunteer Ministers Consultant, who is coordinating the VM activities in the area. “Anyone needing to reach us should stop by our yellow tent. They can also contact us through the Founding Church of Scientology of Washington D.C. at (202) 797-9826 or call me on the Volunteer Ministers Hot Line at 1-800 HELP 4 YU (1-800 435-7498).”

“So many people are in shock over what occurred,” she went on to say. “That’s why, in addition to the one-on-one counseling we are providing, we are also training other volunteers so they can help as well. We’ve put out a call for any Volunteer Minister who can possibly arrange it, to come join us.”

But with people all over the world affected by this disaster, the VM team at Virginia Tech are concerned that anyone needing help be able to get what they need, no matter where they live.

The techniques the VMs use are described online. Anyone who is upset or distraught should visit the Scientology Handbook web site, learn how to apply the procedures and use them to get relief. The techniques are called “assists.” Developed by L. Ron Hubbard, founder of the Scientology religion, assists address the emotional and spiritual side of trauma, enabling the person to recover fully from injury, stress or shock.”

Anyone needing further assistance should immediately contact the Volunteer Ministers Consultant or their closest Scientology church or mission to speak to someone.

“I can’t emphasize enough the importance of getting help,” said the VM Consultant. “If you need to talk to someone, call or email me at 1-800 HELP 4 YU (1-800 435-7498) or contact me on-line. These techniques may be simple but they are enormously helpful. That’s one reason that our motto is, ‘Something CAN be done about it.’”

One assist that is very simple to learn is called the “Nerve Assist.”

When people have come through a traumatic incident like this, they often have trouble sleeping. They can be extremely tense, unable to relax. Some people even shake or experience muscle spasms. Nerve Assists help with this and are a proven way to begin any trauma relief. Instructions on how to do a Nerve Assist can be found online.

Another technique that is recommended is the Locational Assist. Shock tends to rivet an individual’s attention. The Locational Assist helps orient the person in his or her environment. The relief people experience from this process can be really dramatic—even with people who were completely grief-stricken. This is also described in the Scientology Handbook.

For those in need of grief counseling, the assist to use is “Handling a Loss.” This is online in a chapter of the Scientology Handbook called “Solutions for a Dangerous Environment.“

There is something insidious about this. I wonder if there is a catch.

*************************

Another hectic day at work.

After work, Mary and her daughter Keryl came and we went out to dinner. The local Dumpling Inn restaurant was booked out, so we went to a just opened Chinese restaurant called 2 Yummy BBQ Noodle House. The food was good, especially the salt and pepper whitebait. They also do a great Chinese roast duck and BBQ pork.

my reading list... seriously neglected

Books that I have been intending to finish reading...

Harsh Cry of the Heron by Lian Hearn

(US cover)

Final Impact World War 2.3 by John Birmingham

(US cover)

Dead Europe by Christos Tsiolkos

(Australian cover)

Adult Themes by Kate Crawford

(Australian cover)

The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins


Londonstani by Gautam Malkani


The Weather Makers by Tim Flannery


***************************************
Emily came over tonight for dinner of thick cut T-bone steak medium rare, with green beans and butternut pumpkin. She then caught up on the rest of Prison Break, except for tonight's episode.

water water everywhere

There was an interesting article in The Age (Epicure supplement) about bottled water.

"There is a difference in both taste and texture between the waters," insists Magnus Cormack McManamey, sommelier at Bourke Street's Bottega restaurant. McManamey recently introduced a water list at Bottega, which contains 11 different waters. It includes spring and mineral waters sourced underground and a rain water from Cape Grim in Tasmania - 750ml of the latter will set you back $12.

"Rain water has always been my favourite," says McManamey. "But I do enjoy informing people about the subtle differences between the different waters on our list."

So subtle that for most of us, the choice between bottled waters comes down to a far more insidious influence - marketing. Since most of us can turn on the tap and get good quality water that is safe to drink very cheaply, getting people to fork out those $12 means convincing them they're buying something more.

And

It's kind of funny, really. But there's a serious side. Apart from the fact that high-priced boutique waters provide a classic example of the privatisation of a natural resource by stealth, the boom in bottled water comes at an environmental cost. It's heavy for a start, so moving big quantities long distances just pumps out those greenhouse gases. There's also the issue of all those plastic bottles: California's Container Recycling Institute recently found that about 90 per cent of PET bottles end up as landfill.

Maybe some of us should consider filling up used bottles at the tap. And when you drink this fine tipple, swill it around your mouth, savour the delicate flavour and you'll find it tastes like water.

Water is water. In Australia, there is no advantage in drinking fancy bottled water. Many people fall for the marketing hype. Australian tap water is perfectly fine to drink.

Better to re-use a bottle and fill it with water from the tap.

Now there are millions of empty plastic bottles that end up in landfill (but hopefully consumers are wise enough to recycle them).

If I did have to buy water, it would be Fiji Water or Valvert. Just something about the taste...





(not to scale)

*******************

Work was busy today.

I want one

I want one




In urban life, there seems to be a common understanding that people tend to consciously or subconsciously become wary of strangers surrounding them. They are always balancing a certain level of privacy with others. A bookcase CAVE provides a private reading space within its form. As a seat hight is just above the floor, CAVE gives a feeling of hiding from others standing around it. Books can be stored on both sides. Therefore, CAVE can also functions as a partition of a room.

Size: W2430xH1470xD600 (CAVE)

Cost € 8 000,00

We don't always get what we want...

***************************

Emily came around after work today bearing dinner which was very yummy indeed. As I had caught up on the backlog of Prison Break episodes, I gave her the tapes to catch up before Wednesday.

Something little known about me #1

I once auditioned for host of a cooking show (this was about two years before Jamie Oliver came on the scene). It was a series that the producers were hoping to sell to cable.

I was really good too.

In the end, the producers decided that someone older was more usual, and that I was too young for the audience, even though I had flair.

Hmmm... an almost career in television.

*********************

Spent most of the day out from 9am to 9pm, most of that time on the highway. Went with Bob to the football game in Sydney between the Sydney Swans and Brisbane Lions. It was a good but disappointing game.

football - round 3

SYDNEY 5.3 7.6 8.10 13.18 (96)
BRISBANE 4.3 7.4 10.8 10.9 (69)
Goals: Sydney: B Hall 4 M O'Loughlin 3 T Schmidt 2 A Schneider B Mathews R O'Keefe L Barry. Brisbane: J Brown 3 A McGrath 3 J Patfull C Begley B Fixter S Harding.
Best: Sydney: B Hall A Schneider A Buchanan N Fosdike D Jolly. Brisbane: A McGrath J Brown L Power S Black B Fixter.

Umpires: B Allen C Kamolins S Meredith.
Official crowd: 24,854 at the SCG.

After leading for three of the quarters, the Swans were just too good. I also counted only 14 Lions supporters in the crowd, meaning that we were also outnumbered by 24,840 in the sea of red and white.


Moods


Jed


Browny


Joel P


Red

Now for my photos


Ben with the ball


Browny


Woody


Ben


a hostile crowd (Sydney Swans home game)

Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely

There is an article in the latest issue (April 2007) of The Monthly (an Australian independent journal of ideas) about how our prime minister has made a mockery of due process to build up his concentration of power.

“In some ways, John Howard is one of the least conservative prime ministers to occupy the Lodge. He is not a stickler for due process. Unlike his political hero, Sir Robert Menzies, he is not steeped in the great traditions of individual liberty inherited from the English legal system. Although he honoured the ‘progressive spirit of the Enlightenment’ in his 2006 Australia Day address, he is quick to ditch its key precepts when it suits.”

In “The Lone Ranger”, Walkley-winning journalist Brian Toohey looks at the ways in which the prime minister has acted outside the boundaries of the Westminster principle while in office, sidelining the public service and abandoning due process. He examines the cases of water policy, the Iraq war and David Hicks; and, in particular, Australia’s extravagant and extraordinary defence spending under Howard, including the controversial $16-billion acquisition of Joint Strike Fighter planes.

“Is there something sinister about Howard’s expansion of governmental power? Not in the sense that a would-be dictator lurks behind his reassuringly dull facade. Yet to flagrantly disregard long-established safeguards against abuses of power is no way for the leader of a government, whether conservative or liberal, to behave.”

A very interesting read indeed.


throw him out at the next election...

**********************

Today was a pretty lazy day (something I learnt from Keiser to value). Sue D came over to watch the Essendon vs Carlton game on TV. I even made sausage rolls using puff pastry and organic sausages.

It was a real roller coaster ride of a game. Carlton was behind by a huge margin and came back to win the game by the smallest of margins.

the end of history is history

More from Francis Fukuyama. He has published another article in relation to his 1992 book, The End of History and the Last Man (which followed his article in The National Interest).

In his latest article, he writes

To be sure, the desire to live in a modern society and to be free of tyranny is universal, or nearly so. This is demonstrated by the efforts of millions of people each year to move from the developing to the developed world, where they hope to find the political stability, job opportunities, health care, and education that they lack at home.

But this is different from saying that there is a universal desire to live in a liberal society – that is, a political order characterized by a sphere of individual rights and the rule of law. The desire to live in a liberal democracy is, indeed, something acquired over time, often as a byproduct of successful modernization.

Moreover, the desire to live in a modern liberal democracy does not translate necessarily into an ability to actually do so. The Bush administration seems to have assumed in its approach to post-Saddam Iraq that both democracy and a market economy were default conditions to which societies would revert once oppressive tyranny was removed, rather than a series of complex, interdependent institutions that had to be painstakingly built over time.

Long before you have a liberal democracy, you have to have a functioning state (something that never disappeared in Germany or Japan after they were defeated in World War II). This is something that cannot be taken for granted in countries like Iraq.

The End of History was never linked to a specifically American model of social or political organization. Following Alexandre Kojève, the Russian-French philosopher who inspired my original argument, I believe that the European Union more accurately reflects what the world will look like at the end of history than the contemporary United States. The EU’s attempt to transcend sovereignty and traditional power politics by establishing a transnational rule of law is much more in line with a “post-historical” world than the Americans’ continuing belief in God, national sovereignty, and their military.

Finally, I never linked the global emergence of democracy to American agency, and particularly not to the exercise of American military power. Democratic transitions need to be driven by societies that want democracy, and since the latter requires institutions, it is usually a fairly long and drawn out process.

Outside powers like the US can often help in this process by the example they set as politically and economically successful societies. They can also provide funding, advice, technical assistance, and yes, occasionally military force to help the process along. But coercive regime change was never the key to democratic transition.

Fukuyama's critique of Bush's Iraq policy is well, incredible.

He seems to have acknowledged that the American model of 'liberal democracy' is not necessarily ideal.

Rest of article - here

*********************

It was only a four day work week, but it has seemed like a long week at work.

geriatric fish must be allowed to live

From National Geographic

Century-Old Fish Caught in Alaska

Photograph by Karna McKinney, NOAA Fisheries/AP

April 6, 2007—A handful of Christians preparing rockfish as part of their traditional fish dinner this Good Friday might be feasting on one of the oldest creatures ever to live in Alaskan waters.

Commercial fishers in the Bering Sea recently hauled in the female shortraker rockfish seen above, which scientists say was between 90 and 115 years old. Researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) used growth rings in the fish's ear bone, or otolith, to make their age estimate.

NOAA scientists also found that the fish's advanced years had yet to take a toll on its reproductive abilities.

"The belly was large," NOAA researcher Paul Spencer told the Associated Press. "The ovaries were full of developing embryos."

A Seattle, Washington-based ship caught the 44-inch-long (112-centimeter-long), 60-pound (27-kilogram) fish while trawling for pollock at about 2,100 feet (640 meters) below the surface. The massive mama was among ten shortrakers pulled from the depths along with roughly 75 tons of the smaller commercially fished species.

The fish's age and size both approach the maximum known limits for shortrakers. The largest on record measured 47 inches (119 centimeters) long, and the oldest ever caught was 157 years.

—Victoria Jaggard

What a shame to kill and eat a fish that has lived for so long.

************************

Nothing much happening. Tonight I'm watching the new Casino Royale which Neil has lent me. A bloody good film.

a bus riding cat

From the UK

Mystery cat takes regular bus to the shops
Last updated at 17:08pm on 9th April 2007

Bus drivers have nicknamed a white cat Macavity after it has started using the No 331 several mornings a week.

The feline, which has a purple collar, gets onto the busy Walsall to Wolverhampton bus at the same stop most mornings - he then jumps off at the next stop 400m down the road, near a fish and chip shop.


The cat, nicknamed Macavity, has one blue eye and one green eye

The cat was nicknamed Macavity after the mystery cat in T.S Elliot's poem. He gets on the bus in front of a row of 1950s semi-detached houses and jumps off at a row of shops down the road which include a fish and chip shop.

Driver Bill Khunkhun, 49, who first saw the cat jumping from the bus in January, said: "It is really odd, the first time I saw the cat jumping off the bus with a group of passengers. I hadn't seen it get on which was a bit confusing.

"The next day I pulled up on Churchill Road to let a couple of passengers on. As soon as I opened the doors the cat ran towards the bus, jumped on and ran under one of the seats, I don't think any of the passengers noticed.

"Because I had seen it jump off the day before I carried on driving and sure enough when I stopped just down the road he jumped off - I don't know why he would catch the bus but he seems to like it. I told some of the other drivers on this route and they have seen him too."

Since January, when the cat first caught the bus he has done it two or three times a week and always gets on and off at the same stops.

Passenger, Paul Brennan, 19, who catches the 331 to work, said: "I first noticed the cat a few weeks ago. At first I thought it had been accompanied by its owner but after the first stop it became quite clear he was on his own.

"He sat at the front of the bus, waited patiently for the next stop and then got off. It was was quite strange at first but now it just seems normal. I suppose he is the perfect passenger really - he sits quietly, minds his own business and then gets off."

Keiser would have loved this story.

**********************

Wasn't feeling too well at work, but stayed there all day as there were a few things to complete and meetings to attend.

Tonight, Emily came over and I made a roast pork belly for dinner. We also caught up on some more of Prison Break.