sitting and writing

I think that these kind of chairs - often found in class rooms around here (but for some reason nearly unheard of in Finland) - are just awesome. A perfect union of sitting and writing.

morning routine

In the morning my wife often makes her curly hair a little bit less curly with this sort of hair straightener. One of these mornings she noticed that she can also use it for ironing the collar of her shirt. Those looks! That efficiency!

Dukes

I recently learned this great expression "put your dukes up" which means: raise your fists, prepare to fight (yes, has come in handy on a daily basis). Then - not long afterwards - I learned that John Wayne was called the Duke.

Knob

Why are the Americans so obsessed with having knobs on their doors while handles are far more functional? How, for example, are you supposed to open a door when you have just put lotion on your hands and you don't want to get the knob all greasy?

This is not the first time I've clashed with American doors.