On my way out, I picked up a 5G tablet computer. It’s running on Android, and one of the beauties is that I can really write with a “pen” on it. While many predecessors felt more like writing with a banana in the sand, this one is really (!) good. I also considered e-ink tablets like, for example, the “Remarkable 2”. But I had this Samsung T8 5G and the Remarkable side-by-side, and clearly, in a world of video calls, the Samsung is far more of a versatile tool - even I do like the e-ink display for reading. In terms of price, the weakness of the Euro was compensated by having no silly things, like VAT, in Hong Kong.
On a side note: I never quite understood why value creation is taxed in Germany (Value added Tax) while value destruction receives subsidies. I guess that's “Communism with German Characteristics”. Hope one day, some economist can explain this to me. Till then, I am also not planning to buy anything made in Germany, except perhaps food. That also helps them with energy conservation and deindustrialisation. I heard the plan is that the German economy will be run by 2030 on yoga teachers, civil servants and child book illustrators, like their current economic minister (seriously !). Perhaps that is also why I am not quite optimistic that I will have a 5G network available for my new toy in Germany. Wasn’t 5G killing the penguins in Antarctica? No, it caused COVID? Only Huawei 5G causes COVID, right? I am not an expert, so forgive me if I got this wrong. I would have to ask, for example, Greta Thunberg or Annalena Baerbock. But don’t know where to find them. I was too busy to go to Sharm El Sheik (by bicycle).
With this tablet computer, I can also publish blog articles on the fly, which I am trying for the first time. Please be patient should it go wrong on the first few attempts. So, I think this will also help maintain this website better and more frequently. There are big plans for the new year, and sharing some may interest others. I will move my boat to France, for example. And, given that the permit will come through one day, I will build a wood cabin on a piece of forest land. Another thing with “German characteristics” - is getting a building permit. Just try getting a permit for a solar panel in the “lands of poets and philosophers”. No, don’t. I was joking.
But I will keep you posted.