Appointments in the Land without Watches
Bright-eyed and bushy-tailed this past Tuesday morning, I had an orthodontist appointment. Keep in mind one of my curious third-world quirks. This is Bolivia, yet somehow even though I’m surrounded by Latina Barbies with extremely glittery layers of makeup, I only usually bother with ironing and makeup for business meetings and special events. I’ve used starch perhaps twice in the past year… when I was an intern/PA/student in the States I could easily go through a can or two of spray starch each month. I did my nails (bitten as they were) even when I knew...
Read MoreThe Queen and the TARDIS
According to Outpost Gallifrey, the Chelsea Flower Show in the U.K. is featuring a display of the “Garden in Time”, created by a Cardiff landscaper. In the display, two separate gardens, one in the style of the 1960s and one in a modern design, are separated by a TARDIS. Queen Elizabeth II was touring the show and asked her guide, “Why is there a TARDIS there?” Reasons for Loving this Story: The Queen is familiar with the TARDIS! I wonder if she knows that in the Doctor’s universe, Queen Victoria was infected by a werewolf, and that the trait has...
Read MoreThe British-Butt Spider
Nicholas came running up to the third floor yesterday to pant, “Lorien! Where’s your camera?! There’s a spider with the British flag on its butt!” That’s a statement that’ll get me running down the stairs. After, of course, I ask whether or not it’s yet been killed. “Not until we’ve got photographic evidence!”, Nicholas replied. The spider didn’t quite have a Union Jack plastered across its bum, but I can see just what Nicholas was going on about: Google says that it’s a type of Redback spider, which is related to the Brown and Black...
Read MoreTwo Reasons Why I Love the Comfy U.S./U.K. Dichotomy
1) The Queen and the Wanna-Be Cowboy: Much hullabaloo has been made of the Queen’s recent visit to the United States. As I think her quite fabulous and have confidence in the uniquely American bend to British-rooted traditions, I am enjoying the hullabaloo. Especially this little bit: Apparently President Bush (#2) came quite close to implying that Her Majesty Elizabeth II had visited America 200 years ago. This is a simple enough verbal error, and his method of making up the matter was perfectly American: he winked at the Queen of the United...
Read MoreThe Japanese Failure of Gun Control
Itcho Ito, the mayor of Nagasaki, Japan, was shot and killed by a member of the Yakuza. Japan has the most strict form of gun control that exists in the “democratic” portion of the world. This is an example of how the law-abiding populace is not effectively protected by gun control, because criminals will find alternative routes to reaching their chosen goal. Meanwhile, yes, gun crime is low in Japan. This is what is sacrificed (quotes from Dave Kopel’s article in the Asia-Pacific Law Review, 1993): In practice, the special law for weapons...
Read MoreAbout Lorien
I vote as a libertarian constitutionalist influenced by Hayek and Burke, and I think as an anarchist guided by the biblical principles of liberty. My government is strictly bound by the U.S. Constitution. I have fenced foil in a diaper-suit and run for political office in a skirt-suit, but my shoes were always fabulous. Both dreadful politics and inspiring design are likely to make me teary. and yes. I’m a tshirt ninja.
Find Lorien!