Psychology

Everybody knows you shouldn’t only eat what you like. Whatever it is that you like best, a varied diet is better for you than just that thing, however healthy it may be. Some of the necessary things seem pointless or borderline harmful. Roughage, for example, goes right through you and you get nothing from it. There is strong evidence that some things that are mildly toxic prime your body in useful ways, not to mention that some elements that would be poisonous in large doses are vital in trace quantities....

Here’s my immediate goal: to write an easy-to-read article about the downsides of planning. The correct thing to do is to gather my facts and the points I want to make, organise them. Come to that, given that this is my personal blog, I should fit the whole thing into my priorities for this week. Instead, here I am, just writing it. Which is how I do more things than we’re told is good....

We live cheaply. By choice. I don’t talk about it, usually, because it’s difficult to say anything and walk the tightrope between people’s pity if they get the impression we have to, and them thinking we’re holier-than-thou if they don’t. But sometimes I wish I could explain, so I’m going to give it a try. When we got married, I was used to spending whatever I felt I needed and not looking too far ahead....