…the sound of the ocean at night…

…the colour green – in so many different shades…

…Db – D flat that is…

…touching clothes in shops…

…the smell of Jasmine in nature…

…the warm sunshine on my face…

And some newly discovered ones:

…the amazing sight of rain hitting the surface of the sea from below…

…mango fruit…

…the feeling of making someone’s day really special…

Plenty more to be found.

Random things for the moment:

I saw this in a club in Manchester - 

Much more to come – when I can find the time of course!

As I gazed out of the window and looked at the surroundings (although not impressive or inspiring awe in any way) I distinctly remember the feeling of a complete blank canvas being before me. I didn’t really have any expectations or any definite plan other than to find somewhere to sleep that night and what the local beer was going to taste like. After dumping my stuff I headed out to have a look around. Then I had the second occurrence of a feeling that it quite amazing. I had this feeling that I knew I was going to be there, that I would call it home. There was nothing really awesome to see, just the crowded streets and busy roads with millions of scooters. The weird thing was that I celebrated this feeling with what actually was the last time I had a MacDonald’s – that was 7 years ago now and I’m still proud of that! I ended up finding my feet and staying there for quite a long time.

So what’s the point to all this? I guess its an event in my life that I always remember and always think about when something new comes up. Expectations are a natural circumstance of any event, you can try and not think about it but you always will. With a bit of introspection, I find you can train yourself to switch it off and actually approach new situations without any preconceptions as to the what, where, when why etc. What you have is in effect, a complete blank canvas in which to create your own phenomenology. Sometimes that can’t always be the case as turning off your brain in certain situations is impossible and lets face it, sometimes against your personality. However, that doesn’t mean to say that when there are too many variables to consider and your pre-conceptions are limited due to the lack of experience, it actually is possible.

The here and now shapes what we do and how we experience life. By dragging too many of our preconceived thoughts and experiences, are we actually creating our environment based on what we already know – or think we know? A always precedes B, water is always wet and the sky is always blue. Being hot does not make you sleep well, all women act the same and all men are bastards. Really? I certainly don’t think so. Things can change, people can change. The idea about the canvas being blank allows you to really start again, fresh and from the beginning. Its like experiencing snow for the first time or the feeling of being totally comfortable with who you are in a crowded room.

There’s nothing to spoil what you are about to experience or make things happen the way you completely expect them to happen. Everything happens in a new way and because of it, you become a new person free from everything that you once were. No barriers, no negative thoughts, no dissonance just a complete new experience.

Letting go and feeling something happen around you that you’re not in control of is totally liberating. When was the last time you experienced something for the first time? Everyday – you just have to let it all happen.

Everyday gets that little bit closer though and that little bit more exciting. There’s so much to achieve now and so many possibilities that all the waiting and heartache was worth it.

Things to look forward to right now:

• Turkey: Finally going to make it there for fun and sights. The best thing about this is that I’ll be able to see it from a Turkish perspective
• London Calling: not in the way I used to dread but in a far more exciting way
• The Far East: Calling me yet again but a great time to catch up with everybody and enjoy the sunshine.
• The Business Case: Mum’s the word and not word up!

So much to do that’s there not enough hours in the day!

Tally ho.

Two thousand and ten was quite an eventful year. In fact, it was the most eventful year since I came back from abroad I guess. The most notable thing about 2010 was how quickly it went by. One minute it was May and the next we’re having the Christmas party! One minute I was in Australia and the next I was moving cities. New job and a new life in a new city as well as a month off with a bit of travel.

One thing that reflects the past year is all the new people that I’ve met. There’s been some great friends I’ve made in some great places of the world and I’m happy to have taken chances to reap the benefits. I’m not a great believer in fate as I think it removes all control I have over my life. The things that happen are a consequence of the choices that I’ve made and fate implies that all my choices are made for me. If this were the case then out of all the millions and millions of possible outcomes open to me in my life, a predefined path has always, and always will, exist. Sorry but I don’t believe that. I see something in my life that I believe is the right thing and I go for it.

I’ve never been one of those people who has been afraid of change. Change is the only way we can make ourselves better and achieve what we desire. This is where I start to get a little contradictory in my beliefs. I do believe that everyone has a destiny to fulfil. This is of course subjective to every person and is not always the achievement of enlightenment, becoming a multi-millionaire or  composing a symphony. Everyone has something that they all aspire to be or do. There is a point at which we reach the one thing that we’ve always wanted and I believe this is the point of destiny.

Not everyone is the same and we all have our different goals. Some set the bar higher than others and this is what creates the richness and diversity of human beings. Finding your destiny is about a life journey. Taking chances. Trying something new. Experiencing as much as you can. This is where I feel my destiny lies. I come from a family of travellers so this is partly in my blood. But the same family is also one who are not afraid to move around and almost be a little nomadic. The older I get, the more comfortable I get with doing this and that is what makes things so exciting.

2010 was a year that I got my search for destiny back on track. The start of the year was painful, the middle of the year was confusing but the end of the year has been awesome. The new people I have met are special and I know that this will be a new stepping stone in my story.

Its good to feel excited again. One thing that brought this to my attention was re-reading my first interview. Hopefully many more to come but here I can share a little as its sometimes good to celebrate your successes:

http://www.insidermedia.com/productsandservices/archive/ybi/october_2010/instant_returns_/index.html

I can remember the last time I did this was at Uni. We all decided to have a bet and see who could grow the best ‘tache in a week. The funny thing was that we all went the whole week with a beard (no-one wanted to just shave and leave the moustache) and then have a shave on the morning of the parade. I can remember having a shave to leave the ‘tache and being totally horrified. “There’s no way I’m going out of the house looking like this” I thought. The best part was that everyone had the same thought and shaved completely. There was only Andy P with his proud as Larry moustache looking like a total tit. And we all laughed.

So this time I’m older and have that ‘couldn’t give a crap what people think’ attitude so I’m going for it. However, I’m not just ready to bear the ‘tache just yet so I’m growing the beard…for now. Then the ‘tache will appear.

This will be a weekly update with how stoopid I look with a ‘tache. Enjoy

I’ve moved into my apartment and been without Broadband for nearly 3 weeks now. The upshot is I’m finding it just a wee bit difficult. Being without my blog or my work and my other online business is proving to be a struggle.

Still, I’ve been watching a lot of movies recently – including an entire catalogue of Muay Thai – and the across-the-road pub is proving a real winner. There’s always a million things to do and Leeds does kick ass for being able to just being able to do something fun and interesting.

Living in Leeds city centre does rock the caskills…now if only I could get online…

‘Orangutan’ – Noun
/ɔˈræŋʊˌtæn, oʊˈræŋ-, əˈræŋ-/

…a large, long-armed anthropoid ape, Pongo pygmaeus, of arboreal habits, inhabiting Borneo and Sumatra: an endangered species.
(Taken from Dictionary.com)

There’s a reason for this and it’s all about Borneo. After last year I noticed that my list of places to go seemed to dwindle to just one place, Costa Rica. I’ve always had a long list of places I really wanted to visit but for some reason they all disappeared and got forgotten about. Not sure why. So whilst thinking about my next destination and always long awaited holiday, there was one place that sprang to mind. Borneo! Yes, I remember that place and all the reasons I wanted to go there. Hmm now its all coming back. I love the jungle and being around such beauty. And all the life! Walking thorough all the rainforests and up Kinabalu to see the beauty of South East Asia.

Costa Rica has not been removed from my list of places to go, hell no sir! However, this trip is definitely on the back burner as my brother in law has requested me to wait until 2013. Fair enough as this will make a big difference in the fun to be had. Japan was awesome so if Costa Rica is anything like that then it will be well worth the wait. Since that is a couple of years off I’ve promoted Borneo up to the next target.

Borneo seems to be quite expensive that’s for sure and a lot more than I anticipated. Does that put me off? Hell no sir! However, it does mean that I’ll need to tap into my travel network and dig some people up for the trip. Most likely it will require making some new travel buddies but that is what makes it more exciting. Rainforest, mountains, Orangutan’s, sunshine, stunning natural beauty and beaches. Enough said.

Now that Borneo shall soon be off the travel list, I’ve decided to make the list out in full so I’ve got a record of where the places actually are. So in no particular order:

• Costa Rica
• Namibia
• Brazil (aiming for the 2014 World Cup)
• Philippines
• Japan (again)
• China (again)
• Bolivia
• Madagascar
• Hawaii
• Finland
• Mongolia
• Turkey

Just about a top 10 but quite a distinguished list nonetheless. I only know of the dates for two of the destinations so the rest will all be a wishlist for now. Although, I always achieve my travel wishlist!

Happy holidays

The decision was made quicker that I had initially thought and I found it easy to say goodbye. Not that I didn’t love it but that it was time to move on. It won’t be long until I move into my city apartment where I won’t actually need my car much, apart from the weekend bit of fun and trips down to Notts et al. Another bright light is that I’ll at least have the MX5 to play around in on the odd weekends.

So now the plan is forming for a new set of wheels. I’m thinking big this time and something to satisfy my needs as a red blooded man who likes cars. Hmm, the list is long and distinguished but for some reason I’m swaying towards a Nissan 350z. Don’t know why but thinking it would be a lot of fun. Other thoughts include Focus RS, TT, S2000, Skyline or perhaps Civic Type R or Golf GTi. I even saw an M3 on the market for £10k recently. So, with all that in mind I’m thinking of at least 250 – 300 bhp to play with. Now that would be muchos funnus!

City apartment with weekend rocket…hmm many exciting things ahead.

Fancy a spin?