If you write a blog, I highly recommend the Windows Live Writer. I’ve used RandyRants as a offline blogging software before, but WLW includes so many other nice features. It’s easier to upload images and format things exactly how you want to.

You can also include maps and aerial photos from local.live.com.

Here’s the neighborhood I grew up in in San Diego. Rene Drive (and Rene Court). Two miles to the south is Mexico.

We lived just outside the culdesac, but that is where we played baseball as small children. Here in England, we live on a street where traffic never stops long enough for us to even want to let the kids out.

When I first saw Google Earth, I was amazed how I could see all the places I’ve lived even while sitting in rural Oxfordshire. Every year, the images get better and the maps more accurate. Windows Live maps seem to be even clearer.

I sometimes wonder if people look down on me because I don’t wear cufflinks.

I work in the investment banking market. Everyone, I’m not exaggerating, wears cufflinks. This dawned on me about a month ago and I’ve been looking at everyone’s wrists since then. Of course, I’m only talking about men-so I hope they don’t think something is up.

I started asking around about this. One of my colleagues told me, “If you want to work in the City, you gotta wear cufflinks.” I work in the City. I don’t.

I don’t see the purpose of cufflinks. It seems like a superfluous bit of jewellery that men have taken to wearing. I don’t like that. I’m all for looking good. I’m for taking showers, combing hair, ironing shirts, and shining shoes, but I don’t get wearing a bit of metal that replaces buttons as being that cool.