The Quiet Ripple Defines The Pond

So last night I go fishing. I paddle out beyond the reef and drop anchor. I er fish. Meantime the weather changes for the worse and there are quite large swells generally hissing by as once again I fail to catch anything. Time to go and I pull on the anchor rope but the hook would not move.

Not going anywhere

It is tricky even dangerous trying to dislodge an anchor in highish seas. If you have the anchor rope tight as the boat rises on a swell the you risk capsizing, or burning your hands as you let the rope run through,  or losing your fingers as the rope winds itself around them and snaps taught on the rise. A passing health and safety inspector advises me to untie the anchor and come back to retrieve it. This is what I do.

I worry quite a lot about the long length of rope floating around at propeller depth and first thing this morning I am up and off. The plan is to take scuba stuff and dive down to free the anchor.

Ready to rescue.

My first concern is finding it again and I spend quite some time paddling around where I thought I like had been. However suddenly I spy the yellow rope floating on the surface rather than wrapped around some poor fisherman`s propeller. Phew.

Anyway I give it a tug and the anchor frees immediately.

Damn thing

I was rather pissed by this as I had built myself up for a much more adventurous slinging of the hook.

Beijing is a smoggy place. This is an excepted truth. However I have been to Beijing I think 6 times and each time it has displayed clear blue skies and sparkling prospects.

What does this mean? My experimental data on Beijing gives the result that it is a city of pure air. This underlines the importance of large data sets. I mean if the LHC had only run for a short time the lads may have been tricked into believing that the Higgs had a mass of half a pound of tupenny rice. It is very easy to get things wrong – especially about other countries when travelling.

A little learning is a dangerous thing;
drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring:
there shallow draughts intoxicate the brain,
and drinking largely sobers us again.

Hai!!

Anyway a trip to China is always a blast. I do not actually like it there much. In comparison with Japan, the folks are loud, uncouth and lack courtesy.  But, and this is a big BUT, they are full of energy, conviction, drive and common identity. I have seen the future and it works.

One day in a life.

Get up real early and catch subway across Beijing. It is rush hour and it is impossible to get on the first 3 trains as they are totally packed. The people standing around get on the train but I do not. Subway travel is a competitive sport in Beijing.

The tube

Although I am not up to the battle, the trains are clean silent and come every minute.

I am the first at the Forbidden City.

Good Morning

Bad smog

Imperial Pussy Cat

Imperial Cherry Blossom

Thing with hole in the middle.

Get to airport, fly to Okinawa and sleep in my own bed.