Barking Carnival

In the current era of stock market swoons, subprime mortgage crises and overextended consumers, I am pleased to note that I am a veritable paragon in the area of personal finance. I am an eager savings contributor and credit card interest despiser. My kids’ electronic game and cell phone technology consistently lags that […]

Ah, Paris. The City of Light. One of the most popular tourist destinations in the world. Gay Paree does get slapped around a bit in this recent article. Link. It notes that around a dozen Japanese tourists a year need psychological treatment when the cold reality of Paris clashes with […]

Thailand is a favorite Asian destination for many westerners and is appropriately nicknamed “The Land of Smiles”. The people there are amazingly happy and friendly as a rule. But it is also true that a smile – or at least an inscrutable variation thereof - is a culturally appropriate reaction to a wide […]

“Malaysia” is a proper noun – specifically, the name of a country in Southeast Asia. The word is spoken firmly and in a declarative tone. This is noted up front simply to distinguish it from the similar-sounding “malaise….yeah?” phrase uttered in querulous tones by Longhorn fans watching a Greg Davis-designed offense.
Malaysia is divided […]

My temporary home of Singapore is the first country to be explored in the Lonely Longhorn series. It is an island, a city, and a country all in one. If shown this undersized country’s outline on a Rorschach test, your first instinct might be to describe it as an amoeba with leprosy. […]

Come on, now. Did you really think there would be such a thing as a college football perspective from Asia?!? Ha!!! As a Longhorn living the expat life in Singapore, I can confirm that Asia is truly an American sports sensory deprivation chamber. Only with ubiquitous cheesy soft rock tunes on […]