This is writing

These days, the only "me-time" I get is after 1am. Which is saying something, given that I live alone. And that I'm on the bus at 6.30.

The only way I eventually get to sleep is two shots of rum, drunk with determination and in quick succession, straight from the jigger in the dim-lit pantry while the warm breeze teases the Blackwood by the window.

[promised]

[had promised myself something good would happen.

I had promised myself something good would happen.
I had promised myself something good would happen.
I had promised myself something good would happen.
I had promised myself something good would happen.
I had promised myself something good would happen.
I had promised myself something good would happen.

I had promised myself something good would happen.
I had promised myself something good would happen.
I had promised myself something good]

A book for the bath

I don't know why more people don't own baths, or take them.

Baths are the business. The problem, though, is not which cocktail to take in with you, or even how long to loll about.

The problem is which book to take in.

Bath books need to be a bit like airport novels: easy to read, with plenty of break points, but well written, engaging, entertaining, intriguing.

Recently, I solved this dilemma with a little number I bought earlier in the year, at City Lights.

Ladies of the Field is a delight. Others of my acquaintance were disappointed by the lack of backstory it contains, and the broad brushstroke approach to what could most certainly have been piercing, true-to-life encounters with dead pioneers of the field.

And to be fair, the book most definitely tends more toward feminist yarns than historically accurate biography, and I'd have to describe the chapters as "vignettes" of Victorian lady archaeologists. If you're hungry for facts, dates and times, this isn't the book for you.

If, however, you're more interested in being inspired by ripping tales of women who dug shit up in "olden" times, before motorised transport, Thinsulate or malaria drugs, and you want to read about it all in the bath, then trust me: this is the book for you.

Calling all Hipsters...

I literally couldn't believe the obvious targeting when I saw this on the ABC News homepage, so I thought I'd better document it here for posterity. 

Let me paraphrase this message for you:

Like news? Like Instagram? Like being a dork because it's hot right now? Follow us, first-world slacktivists!*

*If you're thinking, Geez, that's a bit harsh, you wouldn't be the first person to say so. I've heard it before.