Over coffee we were discussing how to respond to a referee report and I commented to Yuji, “You’re much nicer than I am.” Yuji being so nice, I pretty much expected him to protest, “Oh, no, that’s not true!” He didn’t say anything, however, because one must not contradict the professor.

[2 June 2017]

The Kiwis (as they happily call themselves) are great at slang. A sauvignon blanc is a sav, a pavlova is a pav, and a holiday house a bach. What a friendly place to spend two weeks.

But do you know what’s missing? They have no nicknames for the two great halves of their country: just stodgy “North Island” and “South Island”.

[5 December 2017]