They say that kids have a different perspective on time. Rewards (or punishments) have to appear in close connection to whatever has been done or the kid won't be able to associate cause with effect.
But what about the rest of us?
Many of us lead a destructive lifestyle. We eat too much, exercise too little and some of us insist on smoking as well. Why? Well, the negative effects aren't immediately apparent.
Some of us ignore safety while driving. Speeds are too high, margin between vehicles too short. Generosity is not the first word that comes to mind on the E4 motorway. Why is this? Well, in all likelihood the risky driver won't directly cause a crash on this particular day. So, he seems to think, let's worry about tomorrow when that day comes.
As a society, we know pretty well by now that our lifestyle is not sustainable. In a matter of a generation or two we're in for pretty drastic changes. Now, will any politician talk straight about climate change in next year's general election? About not flying unless necessary. About choosing local produce at the supermarket. About that car of ours. Hardly a vote-winner.
So, how grown-up are we in fact?
2009-06-28
2009-05-28
legally yours
A funny thing happened on the way home. I was pleasantly surprised by our bus driver. We got a smooth ride, very professional indeed. A conscientious, planned style behind the wheel. And not only that - it was perfectly legal. Imagine that! Speed limits where adhered to all the way. I had given up on that ever happening on an SL bus. This guy should have a medal and he could certainly teach his colleagues a thing or two. Oh, and one more thing. We did arrive on time.
2009-04-21
with love from Luleå
Somewhere in a unique land of fear, yearning, death and love, writer-director-actor Staffan Westerberg has done it again. With Selma och Ågust at Stadsteatern, this remarkable man together with a capable ensemble of actors and musicians once again captures our imagination, dancing along the abyss from the women's restroom at the Nobel Banquet to the nursing home where nothing matters any more (and, as if that wasn't enough, they're serving pancake tomorrow - "don't mention that dish!"). Smiles and tears and standing ovations. Theater simply doesn't get any better than this.
2009-03-23
tilt
The Earth's axis is tilted roughly 23° from the orbital plane. That's why we have seasons. Beginning last Friday, the northern hemisphere tips toward the Sun. More daylight, more warmth, more mosquitoes.
Parts of the landscape are pretty tilted as well. My cottage happens to be situated in a slope, an observation which reoccurs whenever I have to pull the lawn mover around. Or, indeed, at spring time. Snow turns into water and - ever since Newton - water (as well as an apple) ends up at the bottom of hills - having first flown by my house of course.
Consequently, spring is the time of year when the mind is tilted towards warmer activities including shoveling around parts of the garden into its rightful positions after being relocated by an improvised creek which once again decided to materialize on that tilted land of mine.
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Parts of the landscape are pretty tilted as well. My cottage happens to be situated in a slope, an observation which reoccurs whenever I have to pull the lawn mover around. Or, indeed, at spring time. Snow turns into water and - ever since Newton - water (as well as an apple) ends up at the bottom of hills - having first flown by my house of course.
Consequently, spring is the time of year when the mind is tilted towards warmer activities including shoveling around parts of the garden into its rightful positions after being relocated by an improvised creek which once again decided to materialize on that tilted land of mine.
2009-02-28
radio douze points
It's all in the assumptions. Public service television assumes that they have to chase viewer ratings just like commercial channels.
So they take a classic music event like the EuroSong qualification, Melodifestivalen, and chop it up into bits and pieces. Away goes the orchestra. And so we find ourselves, week after week, left with a ragout of first chances, phone votes, second chances, sing-back, duels, infantile hosts and international jury selections.
No, I'm not saying music was necessarily better in the old days. I'm saying there's a lot of good music today which disappears in this chaotic format. Fortunately, radio has been invented.
others bloggar technorati
So they take a classic music event like the EuroSong qualification, Melodifestivalen, and chop it up into bits and pieces. Away goes the orchestra. And so we find ourselves, week after week, left with a ragout of first chances, phone votes, second chances, sing-back, duels, infantile hosts and international jury selections.
No, I'm not saying music was necessarily better in the old days. I'm saying there's a lot of good music today which disappears in this chaotic format. Fortunately, radio has been invented.
2009-01-09
life after a date
Got my first camera back in October 2000. I was heading for my second Italian vacation and didn't want to come back empty-handed again. Photography seemed technically complex and just too difficult so I hadn't developed (!) an interest before.
Lucky coincidence #1: Enter the era of digital photography.
Now that did seem a whole lot simpler although quite costly. You don't want to know what I paid for my first equipment, a point-and-shoot with a memory capacity of 64 megabytes. So I finally decided to have a go at the photogenic hobby. My mindset was that of a beginner and rightfully so. I was aiming to document family, vacations, the cottage, ordinary stuff. Printed copies and created albums. No need for a computer just to look at my photos. Oh no. I superimposed dates on all my photos to keep track of them. Worked like a charm.
My interest grew. I paid another fortune for a few additional memory sticks, began traveling extensively within Sweden and spent lots of time snapping photos. In early 2005 my camera was literally worn out. It had served me well but after more than 10000 shots under all sorts of conditions the quality began to fade and it really sounded tired. Or maybe I was beginning to require more? Probably a bit of both. So I got myself another compact. Still a simple model (mind you, a lot cheaper after 4+ years). After all, I was just a beginner.
Together with a couple of friends I began photo-walking through Stockholm and the idea came up to somehow showcase the results of our efforts.
Lucky coincidence #2: Blogs were emerging as a simple yet powerful medium.
And so pixels was born in October 2005. Now I had a mission. I should learn more about my home town, write, snap photos and present them on a regular basis together with our team. A great way to improve my skills while having fun. Some folks asked about that superimposed date. But it stayed. After all, I was still a beginner so it didn't matter.
Another 10000+ photos later I'm into my ninth year of photography. Someone noted that I'm not exactly a beginner anymore. She did have a point. Now, what I don't know about photography could fill a library. I never attended a course, never read a book on the topic. I haven't even tried using a system camera, let alone owned one. But I like to play with light and colours, angles and movement. I'd like to learn how to take more artistic photos. I no longer confine the results of my excursions to the private album. I enjoy publishing photos on the web, getting feedback and new insight.
This year I want to take the next step. Start experimenting with slightly more sophisticated equipment. Reaching out to a wider audience. Oh, and that superimposed date? Would you mind if I skipped it? In fact, I did on January 1.
Lucky coincidence #1: Enter the era of digital photography.
Now that did seem a whole lot simpler although quite costly. You don't want to know what I paid for my first equipment, a point-and-shoot with a memory capacity of 64 megabytes. So I finally decided to have a go at the photogenic hobby. My mindset was that of a beginner and rightfully so. I was aiming to document family, vacations, the cottage, ordinary stuff. Printed copies and created albums. No need for a computer just to look at my photos. Oh no. I superimposed dates on all my photos to keep track of them. Worked like a charm.
My interest grew. I paid another fortune for a few additional memory sticks, began traveling extensively within Sweden and spent lots of time snapping photos. In early 2005 my camera was literally worn out. It had served me well but after more than 10000 shots under all sorts of conditions the quality began to fade and it really sounded tired. Or maybe I was beginning to require more? Probably a bit of both. So I got myself another compact. Still a simple model (mind you, a lot cheaper after 4+ years). After all, I was just a beginner.
Together with a couple of friends I began photo-walking through Stockholm and the idea came up to somehow showcase the results of our efforts.
Lucky coincidence #2: Blogs were emerging as a simple yet powerful medium.
And so pixels was born in October 2005. Now I had a mission. I should learn more about my home town, write, snap photos and present them on a regular basis together with our team. A great way to improve my skills while having fun. Some folks asked about that superimposed date. But it stayed. After all, I was still a beginner so it didn't matter.
Another 10000+ photos later I'm into my ninth year of photography. Someone noted that I'm not exactly a beginner anymore. She did have a point. Now, what I don't know about photography could fill a library. I never attended a course, never read a book on the topic. I haven't even tried using a system camera, let alone owned one. But I like to play with light and colours, angles and movement. I'd like to learn how to take more artistic photos. I no longer confine the results of my excursions to the private album. I enjoy publishing photos on the web, getting feedback and new insight.
This year I want to take the next step. Start experimenting with slightly more sophisticated equipment. Reaching out to a wider audience. Oh, and that superimposed date? Would you mind if I skipped it? In fact, I did on January 1.
2008-12-21
new proven effect
Coca Cola Light appeared some 25+ years ago and is still with us. During all these years it has been constantly reinvented. Whenever you buy a can, be sure to notice that this is in fact a new, improved recipe. Even the name changes. Light, Diet, Zero, yada-yada. Coca Cola is one of the most successful brands in our time. Why the company would tarnish its reputation with this constant experimenting is beyond me.
The conservative Swedish moderate party has decided to ditch most of its traditional views. Instead they have started to "listen". Out of this listening comes a mainstream political agenda, designed to win elections. Yesterday's convictions didn't bring about success so let's get ourselves some new ones instead.
"Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others" (Groucho Marx)
Which brings me to my toothpaste. I'm relying on an old brand which has been around forever. Well, for ages at least. No, not my tube. The brand. Please pay attention. On my current tube I read "new proven effect". Whether it's a good or bad effect, who proved it and why this vintage brand would need new effects at all isn't immediately clear to me but I'm sure there's a lot of marketing communication theory behind this kind of blurb.
So, what's all this about then? Change we can believe in?
The conservative Swedish moderate party has decided to ditch most of its traditional views. Instead they have started to "listen". Out of this listening comes a mainstream political agenda, designed to win elections. Yesterday's convictions didn't bring about success so let's get ourselves some new ones instead.
"Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others" (Groucho Marx)
Which brings me to my toothpaste. I'm relying on an old brand which has been around forever. Well, for ages at least. No, not my tube. The brand. Please pay attention. On my current tube I read "new proven effect". Whether it's a good or bad effect, who proved it and why this vintage brand would need new effects at all isn't immediately clear to me but I'm sure there's a lot of marketing communication theory behind this kind of blurb.
So, what's all this about then? Change we can believe in?
2008-11-21
stop wasting my money
Why on earth is Stockholm City Council the main sponsor of our local philharmonic orchestra? Their mandate is about health care and public transportation for well over a million residents. OK. We've got good health care and good public transportation but there are so many in need in this city, so many holes to pour additional money into.
Don't get me wrong. I appreciate the local philharmonics. In fact, I'm a regular visitor at their concerts and have been for a quarter of a century. But let me pay for my own tickets and concentrate on your core business, dear city council.
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Don't get me wrong. I appreciate the local philharmonics. In fact, I'm a regular visitor at their concerts and have been for a quarter of a century. But let me pay for my own tickets and concentrate on your core business, dear city council.
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2008-10-13
too much of a good thing
When we bought the cottage some 40+ years back it was basically an old apple garden. We were told that no one had taken care of it for decades and so it looked. So half of the trees were cut down and the rest were given the responsibility to decorate the premises.
Now, back to the future.
I suppose these trees are approaching the age of a hundred years but they don't show any signs of fading away. Granted, the "decorating" functionality is limited. But they do produce apples. Good apples. Lots of apples. Ridiculous amounts of apples, in fact. So friends and neighbors get their share, we eat apple cake as often as we can and fail miserably at consuming this fruit, most of which ends up being disposed of among other garden waste. Animals, big and small, can look forward to their standard cuisine during the winter.
Bon appetit.
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Now, back to the future.
I suppose these trees are approaching the age of a hundred years but they don't show any signs of fading away. Granted, the "decorating" functionality is limited. But they do produce apples. Good apples. Lots of apples. Ridiculous amounts of apples, in fact. So friends and neighbors get their share, we eat apple cake as often as we can and fail miserably at consuming this fruit, most of which ends up being disposed of among other garden waste. Animals, big and small, can look forward to their standard cuisine during the winter.
Bon appetit.
others bloggar technorati
2008-09-02
packing one's belongings, to be continued
Why does packing take so long? Assembling some everyday things for the kind of domestic trip I've done so many times. No kids, no animals, no nothing. Just my stuff. Some clothes, some music to go, something to read. How difficult can it be? I spend a week thinking about it. A day preparing for it. And finally another day actually doing it. The packing. And at eleven pm the darn suitcase is still not ready. Camera batteries not yet charged. Do I bring the umbrella or not? Oh, probably. But it doesn't fit in the briefcase (well it does but not with my laptop in it) so I'd have to stove it away in the big one. Which obviously won't be around when I actually need the umbrella. Gah! And it's so boring. I'll do some blogging instead.
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