Maladroits

Do you have people in the office that play absentmindedly with their tie like David Brent does?



I have and I just can't take them seriously.

Apple Geometry

Herbert does not like it, when I'm disappointed. Obviously, yesterday's apple had been picked a week ago. Laying around does benefit this cultivar. So this morning, Herbert brought me a freshly picked specimen of his apples. I'm pleased to tell that the flavour and texture were much better.

The apple was huge (height: 80 mm, diameter: 79 mm). Usually apples loose flavour with dimension, because the major part of it is right under the skin. An apple is, roughly speaking, a ball-shaped object.

Volume of a ball:

Surface of a ball:

If we increase the dimension of a ball or apple, the surface growths with a much smaller rate than the volume. Hence, dimension does not benefit flavour - generally speaking.

A Polished Apple Without Apple-Polishing

I'm on a very low level with neither influence nor power. Nevertheless, this morning, I received this lovely looking apple from my colleague Herbert:



It grew in Herbert's garden next to the mirabelle tree. Unfortunately, Herbert does not know the cultivar. However, it was even worse that the taste could not keep up with the look. The apple's acidity was appealing, but its texture was far too ligneous. The mirebells, which I received from Herbert last year, were far better.

Pour être égoïste ou la choucroute

Supply of influenza vaccine is drying out fast here in Switzerland in the face of the approaching bird flu. Although, the vaccine can only help against the ordinary flu version. It's seems that the supply will soon be limited to the ones who actually need it (elderly or seriously ill or working with either).

But I don't mind, because I got my shot on Monday. Hehe. However, if you didn't get yours, there is still some hope. The solution is called Sauerkraut! Already James Cook used it as an effective remedy against amebiasis, scurvy and other deficiency diseases. Raw sauerkraut is an extremely healthful food and an excellent source of lactobacilli (more so than yoghurt), Vitamin C and other nutrients. Some people think it can even replace Tamiflu.

Sauerkraut is made by cutting fresh cabbage into fine strips and packing it tightly into an airtight container while mixing in a certain amount of salt. Traditionally, a stoneware crock is used and the seal is created with a piece of wet linen cloth, a board and a heavy stone. The fermentation vessel is kept at 23°C for three days, then left in cooler temperatures for eight weeks. Other vegetables, berries, spices and/or wine can be added.

Interspecific Vine

On Saturday, Gatín and I visited the Kartause Ittingen, which used to be a Carthusian monastery for several centuries. Monasteries are the ideal place for a autumnal sojourn and it was really delightful.

We used the opportunity to have dinner at the place and taste one of the Charterhouse's wines. There was one on the list called Maréchal Foch. Neither of used has ever heard of this variety. However, it was a pleasant experience.

Of course we asked the waiter about the origin of the wine. He told us that it's an old vine originated in the region of Burgundy. On Sunday, Gatín also asked his boss, who said that it's an interspecific vine cross, cultivated by a Swiss vine research institute. Two absolutely different answers ask for further investigation:

Maréchal Foch aka Kuhlmann 188.2 was developed in Alsace, France at the beginning of the twentieth century by hybridizer Eugène Kuhlmann (1858-1932). It is believed to be a cross of Goldriesling (itself a cross of Riesling and Courtiller Musque) with a Vitis riparia - Vitis rupestris cross. It ripens early and is very prone to bird injury and is resistant to fungal diseases.

Paradise

While taking this still life of random objects at Gomad Mansion™, I remembered my favourite Chinese joke:

If Eve had been Chinese, we would still live in the Garden of Eden, because a Chinese Eve would have chosen the snake.

A Question Of Style

It's definitely a blatant example of bad style, when one buys a scent because one likes the advert. However, how is the case if one not actually likes the advert, but fancies the bloke in it?

200 years ago...

...today this famous flag signal was sent off the southwestern coast of Spain:










[Translate]

This is not quite true because it was coded and looked actually more like this:

Symplegma

Kunsthaus Zürich is presenting the broad retrospective The Wild Swiss of Swiss-born artist Henry Füssli (1741-1825) - an exhibition worth visiting - not only because of what I'm telling you here:

In a corner of the show, I discovered some pictures of what I would, imho, describe as threesomes drawn in a pornographic manner. But they were not labeled as threesome drawn in a pornographic manner but as Symplegma.

I've never heard of this term and it took me quite some research to find anything at all about it. It seems to be Greek and means literally entanglements, referring usually to the "wrestling" Satyrs and Maenads popular in Hellenistic statuary groups.

Satyrs and Maenads were the male and female worshippers of Dionysus, the Greek god of mystery, wine and intoxication. We are talking here about indulging in copious amounts of violence, bloodletting, sex, self-intoxication and mutilation. This sounds really like much more fun than a simple threesome.

Tüpflischiesser

I easily get lost in dictionaries. Wikipedia is one of my major traffic consumers. I have no idea how one can visit Wikipedia without using a browser that provides such an essential feature as tabs.

However, yesterday I started on Wikipedia with Modular Arithmetic just to learn at the end that the Concise Oxford Dictionary defines Tautology in a tautological manner:

The Concise Oxford Dictionary defines tautology as "the saying of the same thing twice over in different words". In the spirit of pedantry, it should be noted that this statement is itself tautological; by using the word "same", it is already implied that the thing has a plural value, so there is no need for the word "twice". It could also be argued that the word "over" is redundant in this context. The definition could instead read "the saying of something twice in different words" or "the saying of the same thing in different words".

The B Word

There are some indications that not everyone at Chateau Mac is living in perfect harmony 24/7. Unfortunately, this has some implications on Mr.Mac's hair style.

I'm begging you, Ms.Mac, to spare some minutes of your valuable time, no matter what, to take care of your loving husband's hair. I just don't like to work with someone who looks like a banker.

Mixed Feelings

I work in the defence (speak arms) business. The term business is a bit of a euphemism in our case, because hardly anyone is ordering our overpriced equipment anymore. Therefore, my caring employer lays off 211 devoted employees this year and it does not look like the end of it. This seems like bad news.

Yesterday, the Human Security Centre announced the launch of the 2005 Human Security Report War and Peace in the 21st Century, which documents a dramatic, decline in the number of wars, genocides and human rights abuse over the past decade. This seems like good news.

Scottman Thomas Carlyle said that the real use of gunpowder is to make all men tall. This seems like true.

My Wish List

The temperatures are dropping. Hence, it's time to think about the wish list for Christmas. This year, I'm very modest by choosing only one item:



This is Koga's Aeroblade, which is based on a design study by Spyker. You have to be fast, is you want to give it to me. Only 50 bikes will be produced for just 12000 Euro per item.

My Holy Grail

This evening, I made a really delicious Wähe with fresh Boskoop. This apple is one of the best for cooking. It brings out its flavour best in December. However, the acidulous freshness of the freshly picket ones is not to be sneezed at - as my Wähe has shown.

Yet, there supposed to be an even better apple for cooking. It's called Coulon Reinette. Unfortunately, I've never seen nor tasted one of these.

I'll Drop My Pants In Front Of A Lady

Maybe this is just too much information, however, there is a nasty rasher on the inside of my left thigh just next to my private parts. This rasher is nagging me since about a month, it's especially itching when I sweat (I just spent a fortnight in Malaysia!).

Luckily, I've got a dermatologist to deal with such phenomenas. It's a posh group practice called Causa Dermis. I went to this place some years ago, because a friend of mine forced me to. I had a nasty spot on my forehead, which was bleeding all the time. It just would not heal. The spot turned out to be a basal cell carcinoma *)

This morning, I called to get an appointment. My physician seems to be on a beauty cruise (this weird place offers also botox lunches!). If I want to have an appointment in the foreseeable future, I'll have to go to a female physician. This means, I'll have to drop my pants in front of a lady. I'm a bloody boofta. I'm not used to this. Can a leopard change his spots?

*) Side story: At that time, I needed new passport photos. I need them in the dozens for my work. I went to the company photographer for a session and received a pack of photographs on the next day. Obviously, they thought that the spot is a pimple and photoshopped it away. Hence, I travel with a manipulated photo in my passport.

Feeling Down

Only a few hours after arriving in Switzerland, I learned that Depeche Mode will honour Switzerland by coming to Zürich on their Playing The Angel tour (28.3.2006). Unfortunately, I also learned that it's sold out. Emotional roller coaster Sunday.

Stretching Out

I’m stretching out my old carcass for the fifth time this year at KLIA’s Golden Lounge. But I’m not complaining, because this means that I’m only a twelve hours flight away from my beloved Gatín.

If everything had turned out as scheduled, I would do this in two weeks time. But again, things turned out differently. Hence, I’m heading home again.

We changed our flights yesterday, just minutes before our caring boss let call to command that we must change our flights immediately in order to come home. Get mind readers a salary raise or a dismissal?

Better to Stay a Bit Longer

My caring employer announced yesterday that it is going to get rid of 112 of its devoted employees. That is the second time this year an sums up to 20% of the work force. All participants of the program are supposed to be informed until the end of November. I reckon, it's better to stay in Malaysia until then - the Swiss maxim Weit vom Geschütz gibt alte Krieger applies, even though we were firing this week in Malaysia.

Sailing Break

I’m back in Lumut (Malaysia) since about a week. This is - so far - the fourth time this year. The hotel gave me a room from were I can unfortunately see right to the work at the shipyard:



I have to go to the balcony to see the place were I intend to spend some time this weekend in order to recover from the sailing and trial activities:

Imperilled Brest

Archery is history since the naval Battle of Lepanto on 7 October 1571. The Christians had embarked arquebusiers and musketeers. The Ottomans opposed them with the traditional Turkish weapon, the composite bow. It was their loss. Turkish casualties totaled 30'000 out of 60'000 men engaged. It was the end of naval archers, because it was a life's work to master the necessary skills and an entire generation was wiped out during the battle.*

Tigresa is either stubborn or had a window seat during history lectures. She's spending the weekend practising Archery. I just hope that her devotion does not as so far as cutting off or burning out her right breast.

* see Keegan, John: A History of Warfare, page 337.