I'm really old, so it was in the mid to late 1980s, for work, and I'm struggling to remember the details. I had a Tandy device that fitted over the handset of a landline phone, you dialled the number and the data (from an electronic word processor) went chirping down the line. I once had to do it in a public phone booth, that was fun. Several times I was in a hotel room and had to ring reception first to explain I was going to make a data call, and please not to interrupt it.

My least favourite is when you're swimming laps and a woman in the next lane is shedding an oil slick of perfume into the water. Gag!

No idea - I assume there's a deal done with airlines, tour operators etc.

I was agonising over booking a long, complicated trip I did last year, and a friend who works organising corporate stuff told me to shut up and go to a travel agent.

A nice fellow just rattled away at his keyboard and came up with an itinerary that was cheaper than anything I'd come up with myself. No charge - they scrape from the airlines I guess - and I got a free ballpoint. After decades of planning my own travel, I am converted.

You might be interested in deer management on the Isle of Jura, in Scotland. The human population is a couple of hundred; there are 5,000 red deer. https://www.juradmg.co.uk/

Personally I applaud hunting for food. We are animals too, part of the ecosystem. Hunting just for trophies is disgusting though.

I had gone through a couple of bars before I realised it was ChocoLONELY.

Very good chocolate though.

My first computer was Tandy. 8088 chip, I think. Orange monochrome monitor. No hard drive, 2x 5.25 floppers.

That sounds just like my first PC! I bought it secondhand in 1983 or 84. It was fancy because most monitors were green, and the two floppies meant you didn't have to remove the program disk to save a file. I remember laboriously typing out the code for Eliza, the first chatbot. I had a daisy wheel printer too - the paper was fan-fold and had sprocket holes down the sides.

I agree re the vacuum, and generally avoid cordless tools due to the weight, but omg I was at a friend's house the other day and she showed me some battery-powered secateurs she'd borrowed from her sister. Next thing I'm out there pruning away - they cut through tough stems like butter! Now on my wish list.

I listen to the radio a lot. The BBC has some excellent radio on offer. My favourite is Radio 6 Music, a DAB-only station that just plays music all day. Various DJs, a bit of chat, but mostly music. No ads. Like others have said, it doesn't demand attention, you can listen or not.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC_Radio_6_Music

From the Oyokogawa water park, in October last year.

https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2026/nov/02/europe-supermarket-fridges-freezers-who-hacking-why

It's happened only twice a year since 1968, which is when the Abu Simbel temples were relocated from their original position to avoid being flooded by the Aswan dam.