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A Naturalist’s Diary – Feb 2026.

Autocorrect, that lurking banana skin of the keyboard, tried to title this A Naturist’s Diary. But given that it’s been –20°C some nights and the snow flirting with my kneecaps, I assure you: no naturists are involved. And no, this isn’t a promo for any of my books or photos either. It’s a Naturalist’s Diary about wild rabbits.

For several years I’ve been watching the wild rabbits (technically cottontail hares) that wander into our garden. The first one, many summers ago, we named Woomba Wabbit.

Woomba Wabbit
Woomba Wabbit

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In Search of Mr. Beta

Part 1. Mr. Beta

Calculating beta with Yahoo’s monthly 5-year adjusted price history

Right. Warnings first. This is the most geekish post I’ve ever placed here. If you’re not into stocks, ETFs and weird things like “beta”, “Sortino ratios” and “up-market captures,” or how many angels dance on the head of a pin, skip this one. It’s not as entertaining as my writing posts, or my stories of Johnny Depp or the story of the Philosophers’ Party or the Cat Who Ate Only Chicken. Not even close. And if you think it’s investment advice, it’s not. It’s purely my musings on some nerdish stuff that might, at best, amuse other nerds.

With that out the way, let’s start.

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The Strangest Tale: Trim and the Map of Australia

This sculpture, by Mark Richards, now stands in Euston Station, London UK. There are similar statues in Australia: Sydney, Port Lincoln and Adelaide; and again in the UK in Lincolnshire. Photographer not known to me.

Today I want to plug someone else’s book – a marvelous little book that’s about 225 years old. I stumbled on it by chance, I don’t even know how anymore. It’s my favourite read of 2024 so far, and I’m overwhelmed by the story and the charm of it all.

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