Monday, October 11, 2010

Wants

My holiday in the Philippines was a great success.
One of my favourite parts of each day is when my Word Of The Day email arrives.  Each one has a feature word, the origin of the word, other words from that same origin, one or two examples, and, tucked away down the bottom of the message, an unrelated quote.  The quote is actually the best bit, in my humble opinion.  The feature words are often too obscure to be of use in daily life, although from time to time I do work them into a blob.

Today's quote was interesting:
To be without some of the things you want is an indispensable part of happiness. - Bertrand Russell, philosopher, mathematician, author, Nobel laureate (1872-1970)
Now "Plastic" Bertrand is a smart guy.  Nobel prize, philosophy, books, mathematics, and he was a dab hand at the old "pull my finger" joke too.  But in this case, he's talking bunkum.  The list of things that I want is short but I can guarantee you that if you generous readers would pool your resources and get them for me, I'd be happy as a clam.

So if any of you have the following things just lying around, please send them to me.
  • Mazda MX5 hardtop.
  • Twelve or so 25/28mm Persian cataphracts.
  • A CD unscratcher.
  • A barbecue.
  • A fringed buckskin jacket like the one in that film with Jon Voigt that I haven't seen yet.
  • A card marked "Get out of jail free (also good for exams)".
  • A banjo and the inclination to practise.
Chip in now and put a smile on my dial.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I hope you're happy PTR. Now that you've sucked all the enjoyment of skimming your posts and then gleefully checking enraged. What am I to do now? I feel lost. Oh wait, found again. How about this: g1p1 woman awaits discharge of her and her 3 day old son Jethro. However rash has appeared on his abdomen, but otherwise appears healthy. He is afebrile and his mother is herpes simplex free. On examination, the rash is erythematous papules and vesicles surrounded by patches of erythema. Under the microscope, the pustules display numerous eosinophils. What's Jethro got and what are you gonna do about it?

PTR said...

It is plain as day to me what is going on. Jethro is suffering from symptoms. He also has some signs. I would confirm this diagnosis by doing an investigation. I would then provide him with treatment.

Too easy.

Anonymous said...

wrong. Jethro needs no further investigation. Reassure his mother and send them home.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erythema_toxicum_neonatorum

PTR said...

I can see that you own the infamous textbook "Medicine For The Fainthearted Doctor". But I don't play the game that way.

My presumptive diagnosis would be smallpox. And I would treat it by taking off and nuking the site from orbit. It's the only way to be sure.

Anonymous said...

Up to half of all newborns have this condition! I can't believe you don't know about it. Didn't you go to medical school?

Anonymous said...

Anonymous is a douche!

A fringed buckskin jacket is in the mail. You better be happy now, or at least a little bit closer to happiness.

Anonymous said...

There you go PTR, but I bet now you are longing for those salad days when I was simply enraged, but I guess somethings can't be unsaid. So I guess that's it for us. Where do we go from here? Do you miss my sweet embrace?

PTR said...

Would it be wrong to admit that I have no idea what you're talking about? You seemed to morph from Sam Peckinpah to Axl Rose in one paragraph. Maybe you should start a blog. It's the treatment of choice for disgruntled loons.