You know fish don't grow on trees. And they don't grow on the fishmonger's slab. They live in the deep cold ocean, and if you want to catch one you are going to have to get on a boat and sail way out on to that deep cold ocean and work like hell, and not sleep, and gut and cast the net, and haul it back in again, and sometimes those waves are so big, and the air is so cold that the salt water freezes on the cold iron of the ship. When you get back to port you have to pay off the loan on the boat.
And I think I have it bad sitting behind a desk telling office guys what an adjective is.
Friday, February 04, 2005
Monday, January 31, 2005
Don't Mess With The Fowlers
We know who you are and we know where you live.
I was thinking this evening, as I was walking to the station to catch the train home after a pretty long day at work, that my son is the most perfect thing not just in my life but in this world. He is perfect and pure and everything else is corrupted and damned. He is an angel come down from heaven.
I hadn't realised how corrputed, imperfect and 90% shit everything is until he came.
Pity The Garden is only a temporary home. The snake is out there, just waiting with his knowledge of corruption and, I guess, opportunity.
So this is how it feels to be a father.
I was thinking this evening, as I was walking to the station to catch the train home after a pretty long day at work, that my son is the most perfect thing not just in my life but in this world. He is perfect and pure and everything else is corrupted and damned. He is an angel come down from heaven.
I hadn't realised how corrputed, imperfect and 90% shit everything is until he came.
Pity The Garden is only a temporary home. The snake is out there, just waiting with his knowledge of corruption and, I guess, opportunity.
So this is how it feels to be a father.
Sunday, January 30, 2005
Plum Blossom
Just as I'm getting into my winter stride spring loams on the horizon.
The days are getting longer and this morning I found this plum blossom in a small orcahrd not far from the apartment.
I like the plum more than the cherry. It's not not as showy for a start. Those small white flowers are the first sign that even though you are still freezing your bollocks off on those early morning walks to the station, warmer days are coming.
The Earth continues to move around the sun. The seasons change. All things must pass.
They say that this spring Tokyo is going to suffer a pollen tsunami, due to the unusally long and hot summer we had last year. The city is about to dissolve in a sea of snot and tears.
The days are getting longer and this morning I found this plum blossom in a small orcahrd not far from the apartment.
I like the plum more than the cherry. It's not not as showy for a start. Those small white flowers are the first sign that even though you are still freezing your bollocks off on those early morning walks to the station, warmer days are coming.
The Earth continues to move around the sun. The seasons change. All things must pass.
They say that this spring Tokyo is going to suffer a pollen tsunami, due to the unusally long and hot summer we had last year. The city is about to dissolve in a sea of snot and tears.
Friday, January 28, 2005
Only The Mistakes Are My Own
This morning walking to work I started thinking about achievement and what achievements in my life I am proud of; the shortlist was a lot shorter than I would have liked.
What kind of achievements am I thinking of here though? The obvious public ones: climbing a mountain, publishing a book, establishing a business etc. Then there are the more private ones: err... can't think of a good example... running a marathon? no that's a public one.
Anyway, the point is that to achieve something you are proud of you need a clear vision of who you are and what you are. If you know that it gives you the direction you need. Then if you can apply dedication, commitment, persistency, consistency and hard work to the thing you love you will have a life of achievement and satisfaction.
If you don't have that self-knowledge and clarity of direction you may end up floundering around not knowing which way to go, running on the spot or treading water, which gets you nowhere.
If you are one of the lucky ones who knows their life's direction early on you can just get on with. And being young is certainly a big advantage. You can start at the bottom and learn the ropes, make mistakes, build experience and slowly climb higher and higher.
The important thing is that you have complete commitment and trust in your direction; that you know that this is what you are meant to be doing. That gives you the power and courage to keep moving even when things are hard.
What kind of achievements am I thinking of here though? The obvious public ones: climbing a mountain, publishing a book, establishing a business etc. Then there are the more private ones: err... can't think of a good example... running a marathon? no that's a public one.
Anyway, the point is that to achieve something you are proud of you need a clear vision of who you are and what you are. If you know that it gives you the direction you need. Then if you can apply dedication, commitment, persistency, consistency and hard work to the thing you love you will have a life of achievement and satisfaction.
If you don't have that self-knowledge and clarity of direction you may end up floundering around not knowing which way to go, running on the spot or treading water, which gets you nowhere.
If you are one of the lucky ones who knows their life's direction early on you can just get on with. And being young is certainly a big advantage. You can start at the bottom and learn the ropes, make mistakes, build experience and slowly climb higher and higher.
The important thing is that you have complete commitment and trust in your direction; that you know that this is what you are meant to be doing. That gives you the power and courage to keep moving even when things are hard.
Wednesday, January 26, 2005
Argentina 2002
I went to Argentina and Chile in the spring of 2002, a three week trip which took me to the end of the world. I'd always had a dream of visiting Patagonia, ever since reading the Chatwin book. But he had longer than three weeks.
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