Funfare for the Common Man

‘A Pang is more conspicuous in Spring. In contrast with the things that sing.’ (Emily Dickinson) If you’re one of my loyal, devoted readers who has been with us since the beginning, then you’ll know how much I love a good rant . If you’ve only read me a little, then be warned: I really love a good rant. Typically, most of my grumbling falls into one of these categories: * people and the idiotic things they do: I’m a misanthrope * technology and what a pain in the ass it is: I’m a Luddite * bad customer service and being wronged in restaurants: I love boycotting places (a recurring theme in these pages: I hold grudges) I don’t have statistics for this and I don’t even think there’s a way of checking, but if I were to do a text analysis of all my posts over the years, one of the most common phrases would have to be ‘one of my biggest pet hates/pet peeves/bugbears is…’ followed by a threat to one day put together an entire post comprising all of my pet hates. The p...

It just hit me the other day – I’m a sucker for waxing nostalgic and maudlin reminiscing – when I was trying to remember the last time I wrote a post (nearly 5 months ago), it dawned on me that the 10 year anniversary of me starting my blogging ‘career’ ( editor’s note : we can’t come up with a better word) was fast approaching. It was actually 4 February 2009 that the Layman’s Guide to International Relations was launched , to minor fanfare, and it ran for some 2 years before being reincarnated right here as Funfare for the Common Man. ( editor’s update : this was post was mainly written late January 2019 – it’s now no longer ‘fast approaching’ but has instead come and gone.) It’s about quality over quantity, however. Those 2 years were pretty fun and epic, at least for me. (I’ve mentioned this before – why the blog name change? Why the switch to a new title and format? It’s all there in the archive, but I will only say this – my original choice of title, The Thoughtful ...

“The world is what it is. Men who are nothing, who allow themselves to become nothing, have no place in it.” (VS Naipaul,  A Bend in the River ) “Writing is a form of therapy; sometimes I wonder how all those who do not write, compose or paint can manage to escape the madness, the melancholia, the panic and fear which is inherent in the human situation.” (Graham Greene,  Ways of Escape ) This is sort of a ‘bonus’ post in my series of ‘Reflections on reading’, prompted by the death of a literary giant. Also in this post: to re-read books? Or is life too short? Also, as a teaser: I talk about my time as a human guinea pig. And, the beauty of reading and what you learn when you have limited choice and no expectations. And other writers whose death impacted me. And why it hasn’t had the same impact when musicians or actors or other celebrities say goodbye. Obituaries are one genre I have yet to delve into though I’ve long been a ‘fan’ of them, if th...

“Having a child is to show an absolute accord with mankind. If I have a child, it's as though I'm saying: I was born and have tasted life and declare it so good that is merits being duplicated.” (Milan Kundera, Farewell Waltz ) How many times have I mentioned something along the lines of ‘this is a far cry from the kind of crap I used to write about!’? Well, here we go again: when I started this blog in 2009, I never thought it would one day turn into a post on children – my own children, in fact (or rather, child). Before going any further, have a look at this article: Why all parents need sabbaticals from their families   Okay, so I am getting ahead of myself. My daughter is not even 6 months old, so I certainly don’t need a sabbatical at all just yet, though I am in the midst of a brief one as my wife and daughter have just gone to Vienna for a week on their own. I’m not sure what to do with myself. Before crossing that Rubicon, I’d like to sh...