Recent content by Southwheel

My old man once said “never buy a house that you can‘t afford on only one salary.” Even if both parties are employed. Good advice, especially in a world where layoffs and other livelihood damage can be unanticipated. And his son (me) says — if you can manage it, get rid of all debts...

Regarding the reclining of airline seats — the bigger problem is the reduction in seat pitch over the last few decades. Years ago in economy it used to be 34 inches (even up to 36) but now most airlines are in the 31-32 inch range, and budget airlines have shrunk that even further, to 28-30...

Very much a double-edged sword. There may be value in learning about potential risks (which don’t necessarily translate to actual events anyway), but there’s also the risk of insurance coverage (and premiums) becoming tied to the data as well.

It’s not restricted to AusPost. Every time I see a 0.8% surcharge on ANY card usage including debit or EFTPOS, such as at the osteopath, restaurant, or other provided service, it makes my blood boil. So one has to carry cash, or else pay more. Now they want people not to carry cash? If they...

Yet another sign that flying with this “budget” carrier is perhaps unwise; it’s bad enough their seat pitch is so much lower than competitors (which isn’t great these days, and discriminates against tall folks — you might be able to help your girth, but you can’t help your height) — simply for...

Any shouted call or response that is laced with profanity is destined to signify a loss of moral high ground, to say nothing of poor vocabulary. There’s no value in insults. However, freedom of speech is the cornerstone of democracy, even if one doesn’t like what is said, one must defend that...

Polypharmacy, often the result of prescription cascades (eg one drug given to counteract the side effects of another, but which generates its own problems requiring a third drug, and so on) is often the result of overdiagnosis and shifting of goalposts as to “what’s normal.” While there is...

The greatest umpire of all time. Quirky, unfailingly fair, and loved by all. I’ll never forget going to the Old Trafford match between England and West Indies where he actually stopped play for good light — sun reflecting off the glass pavilion and dazzling the batsman. RIP Dickie and thanks...

The problem here is that the driver was not multitasking (nobody actually can, what they do is rapid task-switching.). She might have thought she was multitasking but in fact was focusing on matters other than her driving, and occasionally switching her attention back to the latter. On a...

Whose money is it anyway? The banks are there to provide a service of safekeeping. They are not there to police how you spend it. I understand that transactions over 10K have to be reported, that’s the same everywhere, but the nature of the distribution itself shouldn’t be.

Like all those in positions of representative government, councillors should be kept to the maximum necessary to serve effectively. They should also remember they are there to serve even those who did not vote for them. They may want to do what’s best for their community, but they are not...

Magnesium glycinate supplements might help. My grandfather would suffer from these until he stuck a horseshoe magnet at the foot of his bed, but if there’s any scientific evidence out there proving such a trick works I’m not aware of it. However, the magnesium is valid.

The minister’s sloth is a boring sloth

Hi all Hello everyone, my name is Jim, and I’m from Warrandyte, Victoria. I’m 65, a (mostly) retired scientist and occasional novelist. Thank you Sethia for the welcome!