Dithyramb

All roads lead to...

...ROME!!!

ORBIS - The Stanford Geospatial Network Model of the Roman World. Using modern technology to understand premodern history.

Why people lie...

...an exceedingly interesting question. This topic is covered by the well-renown professor of psychology and behavioral economics at Duke University, Dan Ariely in an article in  WSJ - Why we lie

I'm currently reading his fascinating, highly original and thought-provoking book Predicably Irrational. His WSJ article on lying covers some of the themes of his new book, which I'm also looking forward to reading, entitled The Honest Truth about Dishonesty: How we lie to everyone - especially ourselves

Kyle Bass on the European economic crisis

via Amit Ghate

 

Cabin trip photos

Early morning mist in the valley

My brothers new booth before we started staining

 
...in progress...

 

From the back

  Misty valley

Spartacus has gone to the Elysion fields

Andy whitfield who played Spartacus in the series Spartacus has died of lymphoma

Akrasia

The ancient problem ...weakness of the will...I can't resist...Dark chocolate with chocolate mousse...total chocolate overload....Resistance is futile...as the Borg saying goes!

Bounty II

Today I went to see the ship that was used in the 1962 movie "Mutiny on the Bounty" with Marlon Brandon. The ship was anchored in the Oslo Harbour.

The ship is about 1/3 larger than the original and has some exceedingly beautiful lines as she lay still in the water. The ship was also feautured in the movies Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest and Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. It's hard to fathom that these ships appear so much bigger in movies than they actually were. I remember when I was young and first saw a replica of Francis Drake's The Golden Hind at St Mary Overie Dock and thought how exceedingly brave and courageous these men were to circumnavigate the world in such a tiny, yet astonisighly beautiful ship.

 

Hysterically funny...

Pictures taken at Sognsvann

Today I was testing out my new hiking shoes. I had initially thought about taking a walk around Maridalsvannet, but since it has only been 2 weeks since my cast came off (I broke my ankle on the 28th of May in a paintball-war) I decided to take a shorter trip. Sognsvann is a scenic little lake in Oslo. One thing that I really love about Oslo is that most of the city's territory is actually forests and lakes. So, yes,...whe are still within the capital of Norway...

So, I've been enjoying a sunny afternoon. Afterwards I met up with friends and family and had a picnic inn Slottsparken.

I'm feeling fine and my ankle I think is healing nicely, although it is a bit frustrating that I can only walk at a slow pace...but a slow pace is excellent for enjoying nature on a bright sunshiny day!

 

Pictures of a flowery downtown Oslo

These are some photos that I took walking in downtown Oslo earlier today.

The Henrik Ibsen statue outside the Ibsen Museum

Outside the Town Hall

...and in most buildings flowers are put into every nook and cranny...

Spikersuppa

 

Oslo Domkirke


  Youngstorget

Flower in the Crannied Wall

Alfred Lord Tennyson, (1809-1892)

                                Flower in the crannied wall,
                                I pluck you out of the crannies,
                                I hold you here, root and all, in my hand,
                                Little flower -but if I could understand
                                What you are, root and all, and all in all,
                                I should know what God and man is.