Paraphysics

Everyone who has ever eaten in a curry house must have noticed that the hot hand-wipe things you get at the end of a meal go from being untouchably hot to freezing cold within two seconds. This allows you a tiny window of time in which to clean your face and hands while the thing is at a comfortable temperature.

Can anyone explain to me why this is? How can they go to below room temperature (they definitely do go below room temperature) from hotter than the sun so quickly? I understand thermodynamics enough to know how a fridge works, so if anyone can explain this in layman's terms, that'd be great..

Catholicism and vegetarianism mutually exclusive?

I was raised a Catholic - a fact that I haven't let bother me much at all for a long time. Still, I got to thinking. One thing I remember either from what mum told me or from RE lessons is the principle of transubstantiation. The short version of this idea is that when Joe Catholic receives the Eucharist (wine and wafer), he is literally ingesting the body and blood of Jesus H. Christ. Somehow, the outward appearances (and smells, tastes, other perceptions) of wafer and wine remain unchanged (I'm not writing to challenge this belief, I'm sure many people who read this will do that for me).

So, at least once a week (more when you include feast days), the devout Catholic will eat meat, or at least believe himself to be doing so. Therefore, you can't be a faithful believer in Catholicism and be a vegetarian. Or not a cannibal.

This leads me to conclude..what the fuck???

April's thang

I have man-flu. I'm not being too much of a wimp about it, although my Y-chromosome is screaming at me to start feeling sorry for myself and milk it for all it's worth! I'm not one to put everything on hold just because I'm a bit ill, I just ignore it and carry on, but I wish I had my sense of smell back. If you can't smell, you can't really taste, either..I ate a spoonful of cayenne pepper last night just to unblock my nose and experience a flavour, but I'm back in a world in which everything tastes of cardboard now. Very frustrating.

It's April now, which most people will have noticed last Wednesday. This means I have to pick another activity to try (I outlined in my first blog my intention to try a new thing every month). By my own (admittedly loose) guidelines* for working through this 12-month hobby-buffet, I need to stick with an activity for the month. I went to Yoga with my girlfriend yesterday, so I could do that again..I'm not sure how I felt about it. I enjoyed it, but whether or not I want to make it a regular thing, I don't know. It was like origami using humans! I just realised that it's totally impractical, so decision made! The class we went to is on a Sunday. Next Sunday I'm at Ellen's parent's for Easter, and the Sunday after I'm running 10k in Bristol for "fun", so I'd only manage it once more this month.

I'll have to think about this. Suggestions welcome, folks..

*GUIDELINES

For my one-a-month activities program, my rules are:

1) The activity or project should be cheap or free.

2) It should happen/be worked on regularly.

3) I have to carry on with it either until it's finished or for a calendar month, whichever comes first. I don't have to stop after a month, neither.

It's been fun, I'd recommend this everyone.