Before, you are wise, after, you are wise. In between, you are otherwise.
A friend of mine is sick and asked me to do some shopping for her. One of the items on the list was zucchini. So I bought some of this: I know this as brinjal, or eggplant, but also that it has other names. It turns out, she actually wanted this: This I know as Continue reading The mysterious zucchini
I generally avoid labels. Words are the icebergs of reality, freezing us in limited conceptions of a far greater non-conceptual reality, and all that. I recently bought three spinach and feta pies at a farm stall. However, I didn t look at each one individually, and someone had slipped a steak and kidney pie into the Continue reading Icebergs and maps
Image from Wikimedia Commons African Language Wikipedias It s Wikimania 2025 here in Nairobi, so time for an update to the African language Wikipedia stats, which I last reported on at 2024 Wiki Indaba in October 2024. Here is the full list of all African languages with more than 1,000 articles, as well as additional South Continue reading August 2025 African language Wikipedia update
I learned to play two new abstract games in 2024. The first was shogi, Japanese chess. Perhaps that ll be the subject of another post. The second is Tak. Tak was inspired by a novel by Patrik Rothfuss. A few years later, a game designer contacted the author and they collaborated to create the game in Continue reading A game of Tak
Image from Wikimedia Commons African Language Wikipedias I m at the 2024 Wiki Indaba, and it s been inspiring to see the progress in the African Wikimedia space. I was at the very first Wiki Indaba, back in 2014, and the event has grown dramatically, with many first-time attendees. This has encouraged me to update my annual Continue reading October 2024 African language Wikipedia update
It was the 1st of February, the night of the Imagine Dragons concert in Cape Town, with heavy traffic and multiple road closures. I was due to catch the late-night KLM flight. Giving myself ample time, I took a while to find an e-hailing vehicle, eventually giving up on Bolt, my normal first choice, and Continue reading An encounter with an Uber driver
The mood in South Africa is more gloomy than usual, so it s pleasant that the 2023 World Press Freedom Index provides some good news. South Africa s ranking has improved markedly from last time I wrote about it, in those distant pre-COVID days of 2019, when South Africa had dropped 3 places in the rankings to Continue reading South Africa in the 2023 World Press Freedom Index
I ve been hosting my server with a Danish company, Asergo, since 2006. Back then they were called Easyspeedy. It hasn t all been plain sailing, but things got much better over time, and in particular since they rebranded from Easyspeedy to Asergo in 2017, it s been a fairly flawless experience. There were some customer service issues Continue reading From Asergo to Gandi in six days
It s Wikimania 2022 and, being a hybrid event, Cape Town hosted its own get-together. I took the opportunity to take a long overdue look at the state of the South African language Wikipedias. I include all eleven official languages, with the exception of English. Afrikaans 104,335 (95,700 on 18 January 2021) articles 190 (210) active Continue reading South African language Wikipedias Wikimania…
My usual week is pretty relaxed, perhaps a tennis ball flying at my nether regions being the event most responsible for any surge in adrenaline. This week upped the ante a little. 1) Driving to Blouberg along Koeberg Road, I see a cat haring across the oncoming traffic. There s an island between the two directions Continue reading Adrenaline