A lady at the post office gave me a hard time today picking up a letter to Jake, because my passport says James. (This in a land where “Sasha” is the nickname for “Alexandr”.)

Sadly, I didn’t know enough Czech to explain the etymological relationship of James and Jacob. She could have learned something.

Getting a haircut in a “foreign” country can be a really pleasant experience if all the following conditions exist.

1. You are an introvert.
2. You have a very simple hairstyle.
3. You are pretty confident that your cosmetologist is cooler than you anyway, so if she did something different it might be an improvement.

Given all the above, a great way to spend a quiet few moments.