Day 240: Housing

I was reading an article today about the number of empty homes in Japan.  It seems that due to the decrease in population there are 8 million empty homes and the expectation is that within 15 years up to 20% of homes will be empty.  I actually find that encouraging.  Maybe it is possible to contract the human footprint on the planet. According to projections the Japanese population could go down by 40 Million before the end of the century.  If that trend expands to other countries there is hope that humans could peak and then start to decrease.  Maybe we need to change our view of family and stop encouraging people to have children.  In view of the havoc humans are wreaking on the world maybe we should penalise rather than support large families.

Day 239: 13KM

I measured my cycle route today and the result is that I do 13 km a day that comes to 65 KM a week or 2,860 KM a year which is close to what they do in the Tour de France (admittedly in 3 weeks rather than a year).  At the moment I cross no other cyclists and a limited number of joggers during my ride but I expect that when the weather starts to improve and the sun rises earlier it may get a bit crowded at certain points.  The only regular I have identified so far is a homeless man who always seems to be taking a walk with all his stuff around 6:20am under the Pont de l'Alma. Every time I pass him I feel  I should acknowledge him with a high five.  

Day 238: U.N.

Team Dinner:

• Jambon de parme et mozzarella di bufala
• Lasagne verde
• Tiramisu

A German minister has suggested that France should give its permanent seat on the security council to the EU an idea which was immediately shot down by the French Ambassador to the US.  I think that is a big mistake.  France could have responded by accepting the idea in principle while knowing full well that the practicalities of doing it were complicated and unlikely to happen in the short term.  France could then have gained a lot of kudos from seeming generous while not having to actually do much.  This is beside the fact that the whole concept of permanent members of the security council is ridiculously outdated and will either have to change or be discarded in the near future.  I cannot imagine that India or Brazil will (or should) settle for secondary status at the UN forever.

Day 237: Expert

Why is it that people are prepared to deny the findings of certain scientists while at the same blindly accepting others.  This weekend the American government released an alarming report on climate change, the report is a scientific report based on widely accepted scientific research and studies and yet when President Trump was asked about it his response was I don't believe it.  There is no basis for this disbelief other than he doesn't like it.  I wonder if he has the same approach to medical science?  If his doctor told him he had cancer would he just say I don't believe it?  Why is it that people feel they can question climate science but not medical or physical science?  I'm not saying we should blindly accept all "scientific" findings but I feel that it shouldn't just be a matter of opinion.  If you are going to question scientific findings then you should at least expose counter arguments rather than your opinion based on your mood of the moment.  Our prosperity is partly based on the fact that we trust each other as humans to specialise in certain things.  I don't need to know everything because I can use a specialist when I need one. Doctor, Architect, Web Designer, Electrician, Lawyer I don't accept blindly what they tell me but I do recognise and use the fact that they know more about their subject than I do.  

Day 236: Deal

So the UK and the EU signed a deal to cover the transition over the next few years as they then try to negotiate a permanent deal.  However all the commentators and most British politicians are predicting this deal will not be approved by the British parliament. I understand that it was always going to be difficult to sell a comprise which by definition pleases neither side, but I feel Mrs May's negotiation tactics have not helped.  In particular, her insistence that "no deal is better than a bad deal" shows a complete misunderstanding of  politics, negotiation and the EU.  She hoped that by "threatening" a no deal she would put pressure on the EU but that was never going to work.  The EU knows exactly how bad a no deal Brexit would be for Britain and therefore recognised Mrs May's position as pure posturing.  Actually any deal with the EU, however minimal, would be better than a no deal.  What the PM should have been doing is educating the British people to the fact that any deal would be better than crashing out of the EU.  She would now be able to say that she got the best possible deal. I wonder what's the point of having professional politicians if they have no clue about the basics of their job?

Day 235: Tax

The gilets jaunes who are protesting in France are uncoordinated and do not have any specific demands.  However their concerns are around the cost of living, stagnant salaries and seemingly constant tax increases.  I don't have any miracle solutions but I think transparency and simplification would help a lot.  At present we have overs 200 different taxes and contributions in France  (Income tax, Corporation, Social security, Fuel tax, VAT, Local, Housing taxes etc ).  But ultimately all taxes are paid one way or another by citizens.  For people to make informed decisions on policies and society they need to have the required information.   I would suggest that all taxes and contributions in France be replaced by a maximum of 5 different taxes which could be:

• Income tax
• Inheritance tax
• Consumption tax (or VAT)
• Health tax
• Environmental tax

We could raise the same amount of revenue as before but each year the government would have to publish the amount raised under each category.  I'm pretty sure it would allow a much healthier debate about what is possible and what is fair.

Day 234: Fortress

Thanksgiving Menu:

• Dinde gigogne (Dinde farcie d'un canard farcie d'un faisan)
• Patate douces aux piments
• Purée
• Mais
• Haricots verts
• Pumpkin pie
• Pecan and chocolate pie

Tonight we had our slightly delayed Thanksgiving party.  I made a stuffed turduckant (a pheasant stuffed in a duck stuffed in a turkey) which was a success.  The event was very enjoyable even though we were closed off from the rest of Paris.  As our house is quite close to the Elysée our street was blocked off by riot polices using vehicles and reinforced barriers.  I had to go and collect our guests with my ID and a proof of address to allow them to get through the barriers.   I feel thee is something wrong with our democracy if our political leaders need to "protect" themselves from the people behind armored walls.  When the level of discontent and violence reaches these proportions doesn't it mean that we need to change the system significantly ?  If you are wondering how ... just read some of my old blogs.

Day 233: Punctuality

Dinner Menu:

• St Pierre aux courgettes et shi-take
• Purée  de  panais
• Salade verte
• Yaourt de brebis et kiwi

One of Fianna's friends is in a new relationship and although it is mostly good one issue is that he is often quite late to their dates (to use an American concept).  I have a lot of sympathy for her.  I find it very disrespectful to the other person to be late.  In addition I haven't noticed that people who are often late are more accepting when others are occasionally delayed.  I don't really understand what the thinking is ?  That the other person's time is not important ?  That they won't notice ?  That they have a smartphone so can keep themselves busy while waiting?  A few weeks ago I wrote about respect and I feel that punctuality is an important part of that.  Accidents and delays happen but systematic lateness shows a complete lack of thought for others and their time.  I'm very happy that my wife is rarely  (if occasionally) late.

Day 232: Thanksgiving

Today is the Thanksgiving  holiday in the US.  In general I'm not in favour of importing (or exporting) holidays from one culture to another. Halloween for example is a bit like the American grey squirrel.  Since being introduced to the UK the grey squirrel which is bigger and more aggressive has been displacing (nice way of saying eliminating) the native English Red squirrel.  In the same way I feel Halloween is supplanting Guy Fawkes night in the UK because they happen around the same time (And yet the 5th of November Holiday is much more interesting than Halloween).  But I think I would make an exception for Thanksgiving:  its a family holiday where everybody gets together for a good home cooked meal, it falls on a Thursday so you get 2 days off, its not religious and there are no specific rules or activities (other than eating and cooking).  I'm happy to start a petition suggesting the replacement of the 8th of May holiday in France with Thanksgiving.

Day 231: Fear

I usually listen to the BBC in the morning while doing my exercises and taking my cold shower (thank you waterproof earphones).  Today Frank Furedi was talking about his latest book How Fear Works: Culture of Fear in the Twenty-First Century.  We probably live in the safest and most comfortable era the world has ever seen (apart from the environmental destruction aspect) and yet  anxiety and fear are still drivers of the public mood and often of our political system.  The more our world becomes exempt of real danger the more we seem to need to fill it with manufactured threats.  The worst thing is that this is then passed on to children.  I remember going to school on my bicycle when I was 7 or 8 in York now it seems that many parents can't imagine letting their children go out alone before the age of 11 or 12. I'm not sure that over protecting our children from non existent danger is the best way to build up their resilience.  

Day 230: Upwork

Dinner Menu:

• Risotto aux fruits de mer
• Plateau de fromages
• Carré de chocolat 88%

Today at work I needed to find some people who could help me make some telephone research and some data mining on the internet.  I used a website called Upwork and within a few hours I had found all the help I needed for a reasonable cost. 1 in Ukraine, 1 in Tunisia and 1 in Toulouse.  I find it great that I can access talent from the whole world, I had offers from India, Pakistan, the Philippines, the UK, Indonesia, Haiti, Serbia, Morocco, Slovenia and France.  This is when the internet comes into its own.  Whatever the downsides of the internet especially in respect to social interactions, news and  democracy, I think it's great from a professional point of view.  I have given jobs and taken jobs from all over the world through Upwork and I haven't yet found a negative side.

Day 229: Greed

Carlos Ghosn the chairman of Nissan has been arrested in Japan for Financial misconduct.  Here is a man whas has been paid over €10 Million per year over 5 to 10 years and yet he is being accused of using company assets for private purposes and under reporting his compensation to his shareholders.  I cannot understand why someone would who has already made a fortune would bother to cut a some corners to add a few million to an already massive amount.  Is it really that important to have 100 Million rather than 50 Million?  Although I have never been in favour of punitive taxation on the wealthy, when I see such greed I cannot help but feel that our present system needs to be completely rethought..  A good start would be for all countries to adopt the Finish system where everybody's tax and income information is published every year.  

Day 228: Mushrooms

Dinner Menu:

• Salade de Betterave
• Boeuf bourguignon
• Yaourt de brebis et banane

My Dad recently mentioned on his blog that he had downloaded a mushroom app on his phone.  You take a photo of the mushroom you find in the woods and the app tells you what it is and if it is edible.  I remember going mushroom hunting with my parents as a teenager with varying degrees of enthusiasm depending on the weather and the quality of the book I was reading.  I'm pretty sure my level of interest would have been enhanced if smartphones and mushroom apps had been available 40 years ago.  I wonder what it is about screen based information that makes people want to interact with them.  I'm pretty sure that you could teach children most of the knowledge they acquire in their present school environment in half the time and half the effort if it was done through appropriate apps.  That would free up the rest of the time for social interaction, physical activity and creativity.  (also if smartphones were a compulsory school subject maybe children would reject them on principle!)

Day 227: Protests

Dinner Menu:

• Wok de joues de raies et nouilles de riz aux curry vert
• Carré de chocolat noir 88%

Today I went to have a drink with my friend Guy around 4 o'clock.  The Place de la Concorde was blocked by demonstrators as part of the Gilets Jaunes mouvement in France. They are protesting against the cost of Diesel and Petrol because they have often chosen to live in remote areas and are therefore dependent on their car.  I don't have much sympathy for the movement but I don't have a problem with the fact they are demonstrating.  Actually I wish the government would just let them demonstrate without involving the police.  The whole thing would be much less dramatic if we just ignored it. It should be possible to adapt our activities for a day or two to slightly more challenging driving conditions (or even better not drive at all).   

Day 226: Funeral

Dinner Menu:

• Risotto aux chanterelles
• Salade de betterave et concombre
• Yaourt de brebis et banane plantain

I saw a scene in a series recently where one of the characters dies and leaves detailed instructions on how she wants her funeral to be conducted.  I'm ambivalent about this.  On the one hand I guess its nice for the mourners not to have to think about things but on the other hand it feels like the person is trying to control things even after their death.  Here is an example of what my funeral requests might look like.

1. I would like to be disposed of in the most ecologically neutral way possible (greenburialcouncil.org)
2. No headstone. If you need a place to remember me... go to my blog
3. If you have a ceremony please avoid any mention of god
4. If you choose to play music here are some candidates (5 extra points for telling me the artist/movie of each) : 
• Nights in White Satin
• I Am a Rock
• Hasta Siempre
• Farewell Cheyenne
• Frédéric
5. Speeches: avoid pathos at all cost, use humour
6. Food & drink : plenty
7. Dress code: Informal, no ties, avoid black!
8. Feel free to ignore and overturn all my requests

Day 225 : Massage

Occasionally Fianna likes to have a professional massage at home in the evening.  She has a masseuse who lives in the South of France but occasionally comes up to Paris.  In general I don't mind as it doesn't really affect me , but occasionally I am confronted with the opposite to the one I have in the morning (Sleep).  Today I had a long day full of meetings and I was looking forward to having an early night, but as it is a massage day, which takes place in our bedroom, it seems that I'll have to wait till 10PM to be able to get to bed. What we need is a shared massage room in our building a bit like they have shared laundry rooms in the US.   Actually the ideal would a shared massage/laundry room for all buildings in cities.  It would save space and improve marital bliss.

Day 224: Language

My Dad left for Luxembourg today after spending a few days with us.  He mentioned that his friend and colleague from the Ecole Ermesinde is now considering starting a new school which would have as a distinctive feature the early teaching of languages.  It sounds like a great idea.  I don't know the details but I feel learning multiple languages through immersion at the earliest age is immensely helpful to developing children's capacities and understanding.  If you learn a language through immersion and at a young enough age you don't just learn a communication tool you acquire a slightly different way of thinking.  Just imagine if all French school children had to learn arabic (for example) from the age of  5 to 9.  I can't think of a better way to integrate people than to recognize who they are through their language.   

Day 223: Remembrance

Dinner Menu:

• Coucou de Rennes à la crème et aux girolles au romertopf 
• Gnocchi
• Salade verte

We had few days of remembrance this weekend.  Over 15 millions people died in WW1 for no discernible reason or gain to anyone.  Our President tried to draw a distinction between patriotism (good thing) and nationalism (bad thing) but I cannot say that I am convinced.  As far as I am concerned they are two sides of the same coin neither of which are helpful. I do find it quite hypocritical for these 70 leaders to get together in memory of the end of the war when a lot of them stand for exactly the things that caused the war in the first place.  The world spends 2 Trillion $ a year on "defense"  which is 10 times more than is spent on development throughout the world.  An interesting objective for the UN Sustainable goals would be to reverse that proportion.

Day 222: Umbrellas

Today was a fasting day ... But as you may have seen in my Dad's blog (Dedalus) I am suffering from a tooth infection which requires antibiotics.  As you have to eat when you take antibiotics my fasting day was incomplete.

Semi-fasting day:

• Petit déjeuner: Oeuf poché et toast
• Déjeuner: Pas de d'antibiotiques à prendre
• Diner: Tomate et cottage cheese

Winter is finally upon us. The days are shorter, the temperature has dropped and the rain has arrived which allows me to talk about a little know urban health hazard: Umbrellas!  I cannot understand why umbrellas are still legal when they both impractical and dangerous.  As soon as it starts to rain pedestrians open their umbrellas thus producing a forest of hazardous ribs situated exactly at eye level for someone who happens to be 6'2".  It's a miracle that I still have the full use of both my eyes.  In addition to the public safety aspect, why would you want to lug around a cumbersome piece of equipment, on the off chance that it might rain, when you could much more easily carry a foldable rain hat that would fit in a bag or coat pocket.   In view of the upcoming Brexit and considering the umbrella is a quintessential British product I think we should ban all sale of umbrellas in Europe on national security grounds.  

Day 221: Respect

Dinner Menu:

• Fillets de bar aux courgettes et fenouil
• Pommes de terre en robes des champs
• Tarte à la rhubarbe

Today my Dad arrived for a 4 day visit.  He will be sleeping in the flat we have next door which we often rent on AirBnB.  As it happens we had some guests who left that day after a 4 day stay.  When I went into the flat to prepare it for my Dad I was shocked at the state it was in.  The people had left their trash everywhere and smoked heavily (even though it is clearly indicated the flat is no-smoking).  I don't understand what goes through these people's mind?  I cannot imagine that they treat their own houses like that so what is it about travelling that encourages people to be slobs.  If there is one over riding principle which we should all live by and that we should teach our children from the youngest age it is :

Do onto others as you would have them do onto you

This is attributed to Jesus Christ and as far as I'm concerned it is probably the best rule ever to have come out of a religion.  It's a simple rule that anyone can understand and it covers everything.  Once you have agreed to that principle all other rules become unnecessary.  Murder, Theft, Rape, Lies, Insults, Cheating are all covered by that one principle.  If you put that as sentence as article 1 of the Civil Code you could probably get rid of most of the rest of the articles.

Day 220: Trip

Dinner Menu:

• Agneau au curry rouge
• Riz basmati
• Yaourt de brebis

Fianna has been away for 6 days in Malaysia for work, but she's back tomorrow.  Despite being quite busy and having had Theo and Eliot for company for the week I'm very much looking forward to having my wife back.   Although I have the capacity to be keep myself busy when I'm alone I think that fundamentally I'm made to be married.  I enjoy sharing the dinner I've made, listening to Fianna's day in the evening, going shopping with her and being pulled out of my rut from time to time.  Marriage for me has only upsides I cannot think of any aspect of being single which I miss.  In everyday life (and considering our vows)  I take it for granted that Fianna will always be there with me so it's nice that her occasional Asia trip gently reminds me that I have found someone who suits me perfectly for which I am extremely thankful.

Day 219: Early

In a short period of time I seem to have trained myself to wake up when I need to but without meaning to.  As I mentioned a few days ago I am now waking up a few minutes before my alarm goes at 6AM to go for my bike ride.  I think its a combination of the physical activity and the regularity of my wake up time.  But this morning I had to go to London which meant that if I was to do my morning ride I would have to get up at 5 rather than 6.  I put my alarm for 5 AM and this morning I woke up at 4:55. So now I have trained myself to wake up before my alarm even early in the morning.  I regret that its taken me 56 years to discover this capacity.  Not only does it feel good to get up early in the morning and have a full day, it feels even better to be independent of technology.  I'm going to test my wake up capacity on weekends to see if I can move the time and still reliably wake up.  

Day 218:Electorate

So 2 years after electing Trump to the white house the electorate has returned a democratic chamber and through local referendums has reestablished the right to vote for ex-felons and legalized marijuana for recreational or medicinal use in a further 3 states bringing the total to 33 (out of 50).  I'm not sure how that makes sense.  On the one hand the world population seems to be increasingly socially liberal (admittedly to varying degrees) and yet at the same time we have an expanding number of unpleasant, illiberal, nationalist (if not down right racist) governments.  The US, Brazil, Russia, China, Italy, the Philippines. Hungary, Israel, Poland, Turkey even India to a certain extent have different varieties of regimes with authoritarian or nationalistic tendencies. The problem is that in elections a big part of the electorate votes for a person or a party without having a clear idea of the actual policies that will be implemented.  At least in ballot initiatives people are actually voting on the issue rather than a person.  Maybe technology will allow us to go back to an updated version of the original direct democracy of Athens.   If secure internet voting can be developed then why not just let all laws be decided directly by the people?  

Day 217: Croissants

Today was a fasting day

As I now get home from my morning ride at around 7AM, I occasionally buy croissants and petits pains au chocolat for breakfast for the family.  I say occasionally because  a) I don't usually do it on a fasting day and b) my local boulangerie opens around 7 which means they are not always ready when I get back from my ride.  I wonder if there is an opportunity here to revolutionise the French bread market.  If there was an App which allowed me to have freshly delivered baguette and viennoiseries every morning I think I would sign up. In England when I was a boy they use to deliver fresh milk every morning, maybe the new internet delivery economy can bring that concept back ?  

Day 216: Manichaean

Dinner Menu:

• Gnocchi à la crème et aux chanterelles à pieds jaunes
• Salade verte
• Carré de chocolat noir

I have been following the US midterm elections in the hope that the American electorate will come to its senses and put a firm brake on the nationalism and populism incarnated by their current President.  One of the things that I find interesting is that the election is not so much about actual policies or proposals but about people's world view.  This election is a fight between Love and Hate.   On the right we have a constant flow of insults and hate for all sorts of targets (Immigrants, Jews, Blacks, Women, Muslims, Elites, Media) and on the left its all about acceptance of these same categories and more broadly caring about others and the environment. If politics becomes a fight between Good and Evil it makes it exciting and important. The worrying thing is that the fight seems so evenly balanced.  I wonder when the good guys will win?

Day 215: Bike

Today was a fasting day.

So 2 weeks ago I started my early morning cycling routine.  through no fault of my own I have missed a few mornings.  First I had a flat tire.  Then someone stole a part of my saddle which meant I couldn't use it.  And on Friday my rear tire was flat again.  Aside from the cost (not huge but a bit too regular) the main difficulty I had was finding the time to get the bike repaired and taking it to the workshop without being able to ride it.  But it seems the internet has an answer to everything these days. There are 3 companies in Paris which operate mobile bicycle workshops, you reserve your time slot on an App and somebody turns up with a mini workshop on a tricycle to fix you bike.   I think its a great concept.  This is an example of what I mean by smart-growth rather than de-growth.  Here is a new service which adds to the growth of the economy (people are being paid for the service) while having a minimal impact on the environment and encouraging others to do the same by using their bikes. Its an ideal outcome.  And you socialise with the mechanic rather than just dropping off your bike at a shop.

Day 214: Technology

Dinner Menu:

• Boudin noir aux pommes et porto
• Purée de pommes de terres
• Salade verte
• Carré de chocolat noir 82%

A few weeks ago I mentioned that Fianna and I's different sleep patterns might be putting undue stress on our marriage.  Thankfully I have found a technological solution to bring back matrimonial bliss.  It seems that among my stock of discarded electronic items I had a pair of wireless earphones which are waterproof (this was not why I originally bought them).   So I can now listen to the radio in the shower at 7 AM while my wife sleeps on undisturbed.   If we extrapolate this simple example to the wider world we can assume that technology (or human ingenuity) could probably solve most of our environmental problems... As long as we have the (political) will!  

Day 213: Difference

Dinner Menu:

• Filets de colin aux courgettes et poivrons
• Carottes à la crème
• Yaourt de brebis et banane naine

My Dad wrote an interesting blog today about Difference. It made me wonder why humans are often so set on imposing rules and norms on others.  I can understand why we need some basic rules in society to regulate our interactions (no violence, no theft, stop at red lights, etc)  But so many demands seem to be about uniformity, about imposing a certain way of doing things, or of being, on others.  So often success in education and society is based on conformity. Maybe we should be teaching and celebrating difference from the start.  To start with we should get rid of all rote learning (nothing to do with the fact that I was really bad at it at school 😉 ).  

Day 212: Doctor

Today was a fasting day.

I went to the doctor this week.  Fianna organise a preventive visit for me in order that I could get a prescription for a colonoscopy (considering my age and parental antecedent).  The doctor was quite thorough and was happy to prescribe the procedure (which costs around €2,000).  I know that this is a cost to social security and to insurance rather than to me but still I felt I should explore options.  I explained that last year I had quite a few cameras and X-rays examining my insides and I would have thought they would have noticed if I had anything in my colon to worry about.  After some debate we decided that I would do the less precise but much cheaper diagnostic test of my stool.  Since I was there the doctor also suggested I do a series of blood analyses and she took my blood pressure.  I don't have the results of my blood samples yet but it seems my blood pressure is slightly too high (although I have since bought my own blood pressure machine which indicates I'm fine).  Clearly our medical system in Western Europe is amazing in its quality and universality, but this does come at a cost.  In France we spend over €200 billion on our health system.   That's  more than the total amount we raise in income tax.   Maybe we should at least make it visible.  Every year Social Security could send you an health report which would detail how much "medical services" you consumed in the year and a ranking of which decile you are in compared to the rest of the population. Then we could start having a reward system.  If you are in the bottom 10% 3 years in a row you get a pension bonus or a free holiday.  The first step to responsibility is visibility.

Day 211: 6 AM

6 AM. that's the time I get up since I decided to cycle for 50 mins every morning.  Although I use an alarm (Suzanne by Leonard Cohen) I can feel that it will soon become normal to wake up early.  I can imagine my parents thinking its a miracle considering I found it quite difficult to wake up during most of my teenage years (I remember asking my mother, much to her distress, to throw a glass of cold water on my face in the morning to get me up).  But at this stage of my life I find that my new routine is automatically making me tired in the evening.  So I now easily go to sleep between 10 and 11 PM instead of close to midnight.  I'm assuming that this is good for my health, despite having been to the doctor a few days ago and finding out that my blood pressure is slightly higher than it should be.  I believe getting up early is one of the simple pleasures in life. Today was a bank holiday (so no alarm) and yet I woke up naturally at 6 AM, as it was a bit too early for the rest of the family I went back to sleep until 7:30 when I got up and went for a bike ride.  I am now a convert to the early morning ... my next challenge is converting my wife! Oy vey!