JOHN MARTIN

Never say never. I made that mistake when I was five and first laid eyes on a metronome on top of Sister Bernadette’s piano in my first year at school. It was a wooden pyramid-shaped box – but I doubt I knew the pyramids existed back then, so I didn’t waste time wondering in music class if my mummy… Continue reading Just beat it

A couple of years ago I made fun of an in-law who got himself locked in the toilet. I forgot all about karma! Last week the same thing happened to me. But worse. The builders renovating our house had to rip out both our bathrooms, which meant we had to find alternative accommodation. We still spent… Continue reading Unfunny dunny

Does anyone here want a used Christmas tree? Going cheap! OK, free. I just have to work out a way to get rid of it. I remember a time when I used to recycle Christmas trees. In my bachelor days, I always gave myself permission to get an artificial tree. People who don’t remember the… Continue reading Have yourself a merry little TV aerial

Video and music site AIs are becoming increasingly accurate at guessing what else I’d like watch or listen to based on what I’ve already enjoyed. But I fear the Artificial Intelligence bots at Facebook are still on the practice tee. The other day I got a message saying “based” on my browsing history I might… Continue reading A la cart

I have marvelled for many years over Lake George, the disappearing lake near Canberra. In 1996 I commuted from Canberra to the NSW Southern Tablelands to work on the Goulburn Post and I well remember water lapping at the then single-carriage highway that skirted the lake. Then for years it was bone dry. Where had… Continue reading A fishy story