Shoemaker Catches Elves
When he got into the lift, his watch said it was seven o’clock, but it was still on Hungarian time and they were an hour ahead. He liked...
Thrownaway Lines from a Lifetime Ago
In an instant, the faintest liquorice whiff of hot tar carries me back more than forty years to a half-completed housing estate outside...
A Slight Disturbance
We’d all like to leave a ripple on the pond. Some people make a big splash by doing great things. They make discoveries or invent clever...


Weirdo Alert
I’m dipping my toe in the wider online community and the water feels cold and unfamiliar. I know it will be alright once I’m in and...


How to Be Happy - A Window in Words
Every now and again, when I’m trawling through some dusty bookshop shelves, I'm drawn to a volume, not because the content is uplifting,...


Dangers of the Vernacular Vortex
In a dusty village in Northern India, I ran into a man with a secret weapon. He came from somewhere in the south of England and hinted...













