There’s bean some progress

I’ve been enjoying drawing lately. It started out when I tried to create some original art to illustrate episodes of Japan Podshow. As the series has progressed so I’ve spent a little more time on the pictures. It was inevitable in a way that I would find myself drawing elephants again – something I’ve done […]

Hope at the Hilton

Last night I was very fortunate to be able to attend the 10th annual charity gala event in aid of Hope Japan, a non-governmental aid agency that works to provide safe drinking water to families in third world countries. It was held at the Hilton Hotel in Shinjuku – part of Hope at the Hilton […]

Picking it up again

Another of my favourites from Tokyo – the little pink-hat girl rides high above the crowds (Shibuya’s Hachiko crossing). Posts / pages, pages / posts… Ah, the complexities of the English language. Apologies to those of you who received an ‘About the Tame’ post via my feed, my mistake when attempting to transfer some of […]

Coldplay Live

It was around 8.55am when I got an email from my friend and teacher Nami. Would I like to go and see Coldplay perform live at Saitama Super Stadium tonight? She’d got a couple of tickets for 3500 yen each – almost a third of the normal price. With telephone conversation calls going on until […]

Budding potential

The past few days have been tremendously exciting. Having made the decision to actively pursue my passion, which centres around podcasting but has various attachments (podcasting alone not being a sustainable business), I’ve found myself becoming increasingly excited. For the first time in a long time I can feel that passion, that excitement that comes […]

Purpose

My sister Jessie (left) and I, age: quite young Personally, I’m yet to feel the effects of the global economic slowdown. I’ve not been made redundant, my salary has not been cut, overtime is still allowed. But I can feel it’s just around the corner. Local redundancies are being announced on a daily basis, and […]

Brandon Steep hit the shelves at HMV Japan

It’s so good to see your friends doing well. The Kirk family have been good friends of mine for about 20 years. My trip to Islay (Scotland) to visit them 17 years ago was probably my first ever ‘big’ trip somewhere by myself. Later, they were kind enough to let me live with them for […]

It’s only getting better

As of this week, I’m pretty much working seven days a week. It’s part of the self-imposed six month debt-repayment and moving-house program, which is due for completion on the 5th of March 2009. It’s step one of many steps in our Grand Masterplan, some goals of which include the paying off of all family […]

Our first professional engagement as a couple

The lack of broadband at home has finally driven me out to an Internet cafe. I would just use our iPhone, but it’s a bit tedious when it comes to long texts, and also I needed to use Skype …although now I’m here I find that you’re not allowed to talk in this place. Oh […]

My coaching course

I’m now in week 5 of my 12-week coaching course with TSI. Initially, I’ll admit I was pretty sceptical, but my friends and I had talked about coaching a little, and I figured it was at least worth a try. Nothing to lose, right? So, I signed up for a free coaching session with the […]

Sophie Mei in the semi-final of Britain’s Got Talent

Shout out to all those TV owners resident in the UK: On Monday night at 9pm on ITV1, Sophie Mei, daughter of a good friend of mine here in Sheffield, will be one of 8 performers in the first live semi-final of Britain’s Got Talent. She’s made it through to the final 40 – out […]

We Did It! Graduation Ceremony (No.1)

Our teachers will not be able to come to our graduation ceremony at the end of July as they will be in Japan. Not wanting to miss out on such an important occasion, they decided that in our last ever lesson with them, they put on a special Japanese graduation ceremony for us. This act […]

My Life Purpose

One benefit of committing the story of one’s life to a blog powered by Google, hosted by some other company and then sent to you by email (and then burnt to DVD) is that when one turns 90, the chances are there will still be a copy of it somewhere. Why should that be important? […]

Total Success Institute

Great day today. Got that video submitted to the competition – I’ve had that lingering on my to do list for several months now. Then, it was wedding planning. Phone calls made, meetings arranged, all very exciting! Following that it was congrats to my *Twinkle*, who in the month of March saw sales in excess […]

Father’s efforts finally pay off, netting £1.6 million

Hurrah for my father! In 1990 my dad took up a headship at Staunton-on-Wye Primary school. The school was in long-term decline – there were only 28 pupils, and the local education authority was about to close it down.  When Peter came riding along on his trusty steed (old green Volvo) he declared that the […]

Time for a new book

This morning, whilst attempting to do more than 15 press-ups next in the park, I finally finished listening to the 13-hour audiobook version of Steven Covey’s The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People. It’s been a great listen, and I can understand why it has been received so well since its publication in 1989. Naturally, […]