So the third (and final in the series) crazy idea is clearly going to be a motorcycle adventure – after all that’s what I keep ending up dong. The question is only where? One option is the Scandinavia and Baltics trip, which is something that I have not done yet as when I was on …
Category Archives: Life
Elijah: 11 years blogging in Europe
11 years old that is – Elijah was blogging about his family’s trip around Europe. My favorite post was from Berlin: My Parents dragged me out to the country side to the 1936 Olympic Village, where they made me walk around the ruins in the hot and dry sun…. Although Elijah clearly saw this as …
Yale’s expansion is great for foreign students
Each year 5300 or so people attend Yale College – the 4 year undergraduate part of Yale University. For the 2007-8 undergraduate class, there were 19,323 applicants – and a huge porportion of them deserve to go to Yale, or a similar institution. However only 10% got offers and 7.1% make it to the first …
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Finally everywhere
Yes- Apple is finally unleashing the iPhone. No – there is no telco revolution to go with it. Oh well.
Apple: What we really need on Monday
It is a sure thing that the iPhone will be updated from Tuesday, and will even be available in a bunch of new countries, including Australia and New Zealand. I know this for sure not just because of the persistent rumours everywhere, but also as I couldn’t even follow Rowan’s advice and buy an iPhone …
The WWDC Apple show – how it got so big
It’s the annual Steve Jobs speech at the WWDC – (Word Wide Developer Conference) on Monday morning US Pacific time. While we wait for the new iPhone, Snow Leopard and a host of other rumours, check out the history of Steve’s “just one more thing..” at his WWDC speeches. That link (do check it out) …
Best before, ok afterwards – food safety
Brilliant dailymail about best-before dates. The writer, Jonathan Maitland, from the Daily Mail has written an excellent article on the supposed perils of eating food past it’s best-before date. Jonathon is someone that wields a certain flexibility on “best before” dates, figuring if he is careful (usually by cooking well) then he can eat pretty …
FIFO and relationships – not so good
The West, Perth’s only newspaper until Fairfax launches its’ much anticipated online effort, has an amusing yet sad article on the perils of working in remote mines. FIFO (Fly in, fly out) means workers get several days of constant work (say 8) followed by several (say 6) days at home. Mileage can vary – with …
What to do next? – crazy idea number 2
The next option for ludicrous post-June plans is to go for a bicycle ride. My brother and family are driving around Australia starting from July 1 and going North from Sydney. Therefore I could start from Perth around the same time and rendezvous with John and co. somewhere between Broome and Darwin. After the rendevous …
What to do next? crazy idea number 1
I’m finishing up a couple of contract at the end of June, wondering what I shall do next. Being in Colombia sure made me miss South America, and so is it purely coincidence that I came across the route for the 2009 Dakar race? That’s some pretty fun terrain on that map – I’ve been …
Motorcycle advertising we really want to see
The LTSA and ASA wouldn’t approve, but these advertisements for Bajaj motorcycles are excellent, and we are hopefully intelligent enough not to try this at home….
Departure tax going, but a bad job doesn’t help
Thank goodness. Auckland airport’s embarrassingly poor departure tax system is for the trash heap – and rightly so. For example – what can’t you see in this photo of the departure tax place next to the immigration entrance? That’s right – the price. You can’t see the price. A simple sign saying “Departure tax – …
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Showing Shorting Success – for now
Following on from the last post – I mentioned that my portfolio has been going pretty well recently: It is up 35% YT while the S&P500 is down 5.6% for the year. You can tell from the sudden drop in the green bar when I went heavily into shorting EQR – over half the value …
Making (more) money from the falling housing market
US housing prices fell 14% March 2008 on March 2007. 14% is larger than the downpayment component of many US mortgages. Would your mortgage be greater than your house value if the house fell by 14%? How about in your first year of ownership? Mortgages like this are in negative equity, and owners should, ceteris …
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US recession and Australian resurgence
A recession has a defined meaning, from the USA’s NBER, via Wikipedia A recession is a significant decline in economic activity spread across the economy, lasting more than a few months, normally visible in real GDP, real income, employment, industrial production, and wholesale-retail sales. A recession begins just after the economy reaches a peak of …
Lance Wiggs 