Ordinary Thunderstorms

I'm a big William Boyd fan and was not disappointed by his latest book 'Ordinary Thunderstands'. It was a classic thriller / murder conspiracy novel where the central character gets caught up in stuff he doesn't understand. However what I particularly liked was the London setting Most of the action takes place in modern day Chelsea and Rotherhithe and other sections around the river.

It's certainly not his best book (Any Human Heart is my favourite) If it proves to be successful I imagine he could write a sequel. Recommended.

Long Fu Girls Weekend

A couple of weekends ago we had our Long Fu girls reunion, where girls from the same orphanage all got togther. This time it was the 10th year and we held it in Liverpool, where one of the families lives. (Pam, Les, Olivia and Josie)

I've not been to Liverpool for many years and was really impressed with it. It has really smartened up, but still has a lot of character. As ever, it was great to see the girls again who are now in senior school. Can't believe how tall they are. Thanks to Pam and Les for organising it. I think we brought good luck to the city as against the odds, Liverpool beat Man U.

In Paris For Supper

Am making a quick visit to Paris for workshop today. Took the Eurostar yesterday - only 2 hours 15 min and arrived in time for supper. I've forgotten how great French food can be: soupe a l'oignon, magret de canard, tarte tatin. All classics. All fantastic. It's even OK to eat out on your own. Must get back into French cooking when I get home.

Olive Picking in November

Have just arranged time off to go olive picking in Italy at the end of the November. There's about 50 olive trees that need picking and I've enlisted the help of a few friends to help me out...with the promise of lots of trips to the local restaurants. I've also managed to get a couple of locals to help me out, who will have the experience and equipment to know what they're doing.

We'll then take then to the olive oil mill just outside the town. My very own olive oil! How exciting.

Campervan vs Tipi?

This is the big debate we're having re accommodation at Glastonbury. Tipi is more expensive, but closer to the action. Campervan is quieter but a bit of a trek. Need to decide soon.

Last Sunday's Sketchmob

On Sunday morning a crowd of us met in the Turbine Hall of Tate Modern with the sole intention of sketching. I found it quite a challenging brief. The space is huge, there are lots of long perspectives and it gets very busy. In the end I managed to sketch a view of St Paul's from the 4th floor.

What I really enjoyed was looking at other people's sketches at the end and getting inspiration from their amazing work

Next sketchmob is in November. Click here for details.

Another Sign That The Recession is Over

On Sunday, Glastonbury tickets sold out within 12 hours. Last year it took weeks. It may be because 2010 will be the 40th anniversary, but I also think its because people are feeling more upbeat about next year.

Thanks to help from our friends Pete and Teresa, I'm pretty sure we've got tickets. We've not received confirmation yet, but I think they're booked. No acts have been announced yet, but I'm sure it'll be fantastic.

Miserable Irish Taxi Drivers

I've been travelling to Dublin quite regularly over the past few weeks and everytime I get into a taxi I brace myself for the non-stop moaning of the taxi drivers. They usually complain about the number of other taxi drivers that are on the road nowadays, how long they have to wait and how little money they're making. And of course, they blame the foreigners. I used to look forward to chatting to the drivers in Dublin who used to be cheerful chaps. It's not the case any more.

Today one of the taxi driver unions was on strike, blocking the centre of Dublin. Can't imagine it would do their cause any good or that they'll get much sympathy.

Hamburgers in Hamburg

Am just back from some market research in Hamburg where we were exploring the world of hamburgers. Nobody mentioned the fact that the origin of hamburgers was the city of Hamburg. (ie the American immigrants who came from Hamburg).Maybe its because they're so ubiquitous that nobody made the connection.

Anyway....Hamburg is a really nice city. Definitely worth a visit

Really Good Book

I really enjoyed Zoe Heller's 'The Believers' which I've almost finished. It's about a dysfunctional New York family. Not a lot happens, but the characters are very engaging. Her previous book was 'Notes On a Scandal' which was also fabulous and was made into an excellent film (Cate Blanchett and Judy Dench). I'm sure I remember Zoe Heller writing for the Sunday Times magazine? She's obviously a real talent.

Next Sketchmob

The next sketchmob will take place on Sunday 11 October at 11.00 at Tate Modern. Bring some drawing stuff.

Christmas is Here

I'm sure I saw Christmas cards for sale in Paperchase....on September 21st.

Borough Market Breakfast

Yesterday I had a cappuccino and a croissant in a small cafe just by Borough Market. It cost £4-95. I know that there's supposed to be a food revolution in the UK, with Borough Market the epicentre, but this was a bit steep.

Post Workshop Depression

Have just finished a 2 day training workshop for a big new client - the first in a series of sessions. I always find that I go through a range of emotions when undertaking these sessions.
Anxiety - in advance of the workshop: will it go well? am I prepared for it? will the delegates be nice?
Relief - the evening its all over: thank goodness it wasn't a disaster, glad the client / delegates are happy
Depression - the day after, I always feel incredibly flat, even if its gone well. It may be a combination of fatigue, stress, or simply feeling low after the high of an intense group experience.

The day after ie today, I always find it hard to move onto the next thing and end up doing menial, distracting stuff. Hence - this blog post in the middle of the afternoon, when I should be doing something more meaningful instead. Must resist the temptation of playing on the Wii.

Trevor Flynn's Sketchmob

Last night I went to my first ever Sketchmob event, organised by Trevor Flynn of Drawing at Work. About 15 of us gathered at the steps of British Musuem with our pencils and sketchpads and went to draw whatever we found interesting in one of the galleries. We all shared our sketches afterwards and Trevor gave us guidance and feedback. We all went for a drink afterwards. A lovely way to spend a Thursday evening.

Trevor's got a number of sessions lined up for the rest of the year - at the Tate, in Soho, where we'll work on different skills. I'm by no means an artist, but it certainly ignited an enthusiasm for the subject and I'm looking forward to future events.

I'm sure Sketchmobs are going to take off big time. Remember - you heard it here first!

Big School

Mae started at her senior school last week. New uniform, new classmates, new books, her own locker. All very exciting and feels incredibly grown up.

She even gets up early (never been know before) and looks forward to walking to school.

Summer Books

Didn't do that much reading over the Summer. However the book I really enjoyed was Stieg Larsson's the Girl With the Dragon Tattoo. Virtually everyone I know has read it. Nicely drawn characters as well as great plot

I also read books based in Italy. Really loved The Talented Mr Ripley. Can't remember the film very well, but the book is a real period piece. Very stylish. Want to watch the film again. I also liked Somerset Maugham's Up At the Villa, set in Florence. Short, pithy. Can be read in a couple of hours. Perfect escapism for a quiet evening in.

Back to Work, Back to Reality

After a final weekend in Tuscany, the laptop's on, I've dusted down my post-it notes and I need to sound sensible in meetings. The biggest challenge over the past few days has been to learn the lyrics to 'Viva La Vida' which we played non-stop on the car's cd. Didn't quite crack it (If I could rule the world...etc, etc) although Mae and Bev are word perfect.

Quite a nice re-entry into the working world. Took a train from Arezzo to Montreaux via Milan and am staying in the very posh Trois Coronnes hotel in Vevey - view over lake Geneva, posh toiletries, fluffy dressing gowns and chocolates on the pillow, etc. Will be here from a few days.

Had a quite kip in my room this evening, dreamt of bruschetta and tagliatelle. Dinner with client in a hour's time. Need to snap out of it....

Busy August

Have been on holiday for a lot of August and deliberately chose to keep away from my computer as much as possible. Spent a week in Scotland at Glenuig, on the western coast of Scotland. The most beautiful part of the British Isles I've ever visited - lochs, lovely remote islands, mountains. Went seakayaking which was great. Shame about the midges and the unpredictable weather.

Also went to Italy to spend a week in the blistering heat of Tuscany. What a contrast. Our house is looking really nice. Am so pleased with it and feel fortunate to be able to go there.

Now need to get back into work mode which is always tough, but have a got a busy few weeks ahead.

Coldplay In St Louis

I know they're not everyone's cup of tea, but Coldplay put on a great show at the Verizon amphitheatre on a hot sweaty evening last Friday. They worked really hard to build a rapport with the audience, twice performing on tiny platforms amongst the crowd of 20 000 and continuing to chat with them between songs. I also loved seeing all the big yellow balloons they projected into the crowd during their performance of Yellow.

Coldplay are on a big US tour and strangely I felt quite proud to see a very British band 'conquering' America. They even gave away free CDs to everyone on the way out which was a really nice gesture.