BLOG BACKGROUND

I thought I might say a few things about this blog in case anybody is curious about it. I think any blogger will tell you how time-consuming blogging is and in my case I would spend an average of about 8 hours a day or more preparing posts for this blog. As a retired man I can easily afford to do that. I usually put up my posts only once a day at around 9am Queensland time (equivalent to 3pm the previous day in California time). Most of the time I spend is spent reading links sent to me by readers. I do very little reading of my own accord. Even blogs that I like to keep up with -- such as England's Sword and the Bunyip -- I log onto only occasionally. The only blog I read nearly every day is the analytical philosopher -- perhaps because he is a professional analytical philosopher while I am only an amateur one!

One reader in particular sends me so many links that he is in effect a silent partner in this blog. Because he wishes to remain anonymous (though he does have an irregular blog of his own) I get the credit for his broad reading. Around half the links I put up are in fact from him. I wish I could thank him by name here but I thank him anyway.

While I am mentioning personal things, I might also mention that my 16-year-old son Joe has just started an advanced placement course in mathematics at the University of Queensland. He is in his final year at a large private Catholic high school but is allowed to do one subject at university level. The University of Queensland is one of Australia's oldest and largest universities and is where I got my first degree. Joe actually has classes in exactly the same big old sandstone building where I first had classes exactly 40 years ago. I am pretty pleased about it all -- particularly as he is the only one in his school doing advanced placement. And he arranged it all for himself, too. I had no hand in it.

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