Halmahera is the largest of the Spice Islands. In contexts involving foreign exploitation of spices, the term Spice Islands sometimes refers only to the five tiny clove-growing islands that lie off the western coast of Halmahera.

I had Tom over yesterday, and we chatted about this and that.

Rowan, like most teenagers on the internet, wasn’t after fame or money, though he made a decent amount — at one point $10,000 a month and more, he said. What Rowan wanted was clout. On the internet, clout is a social currency that can be used to obtain just about anything. Rack up enough while you’re young, and doors everywhere begin to open.

Next unto whom goeth the blacke guard and kitchinree