Author Archive

He ain’t heavy… He’s my brother.

Wednesday, April 29th, 2009 Posted in Personal Lives | No Comments »

Just a little shout out to my brother who had his debut fight at CFC (Cage Fighters Championship) UK 6 on 25th April. Dave entered the ring to the song ‘Why can’t we be friends’ by War and fought against fighter Jack Mills in the Ametuer Light Heavyweight category. He managed to tap his opponent out in just 54 seconds (Win by Key Lock). He was also voted submission of the night by an independent news site. 

Well done Dave!

Dave is a member of Medway submissions, a gym based in Kent, specialising in MMA and is also an advanced Kendo competitor. As brothers we couldn’t be anymore different in our recreational interests and tastes. As kids, I was always into art and design and he was interested in military history and martial arts. And yes, we’d fight like crazy occasionally, usually spurred on by myself, which could be why he’s such a great fighter today (don’t thank me!). But seriously I respect his choices and am very proud of him!

Big Gigs

Tuesday, March 10th, 2009 Posted in Personal Lives | No Comments »

My recent foray into online shopping a few weeks ago has taken a turn for the worse. Ordering prescription glasses online obviously sounds like a great idea. There’s no hassle – No salesman sitting you down and trying to sell you a special lens coating for an additional £30 pounds for your first pair and a further £15 for your FREE second pair to be coated! Fat chance, but the spiel and demonstration is always good for a giggle. I went in to this particular store with the sole intention of acquiring a new prescription and then bolting out of the door to find a more suitable/funky pair on the WWW. But why I toyed with the sales assistants emotions for half an hour, I don’t know. 

Now, online, your choice of style is endless. And I’m looking for that certain ‘geek chic’ look. So thick black geeky looking frames are what I’m after specifically. I find a few pairs… great. I have an unusually large head so I better go for the widest pair, I think to myself! (Dimensions are provided). I enter in my prescription, part with the money and wait in anticipation. 

Two weeks later, a little package turns up. And out of which come the biggest pair of glasses I have ever seen! Seriously, they’re on par with those oversize joke glasses you can pick up in fancy dress stores!… I can’t wear these I thought?!? So I’ve spent about a week wearing them around the apartment, trying to warm to them, but to no avail. They now sit in the living room as some sort of ornament and have also become a bit of a party piece when we have friends round. My bad experience is now their joy and possibly yours! Photographic evidence below!

Big Gigs

(Note: Geek chic refers to the embracing of stereotypically unpopular “geek” characteristics such as glasses, comic books, and computer games).

The boy with the square eyes.

Thursday, November 27th, 2008 Posted in Personal Lives | No Comments »

The 22nd Leeds International Film Festival was probably the most anticipated event that I’d attend this year and I’m sad to say, has now been and gone…

The festival usually lasts two weeks, with around 15 venues taking part, and boasting a huge programme of feature films from around the world, which make up the official selection in competition. Not to mention the other categories that include fantasy/Horror, Animated films, Documentaries, Shorts and Experimental films. It’d simply be impossible to see everything the festival has to offer but I was certainly going to get my fill.

All in all, I managed to attend 38 screenings in all. Fitting in at least two films, back to back, on most nights. Then with two weekends dedicated and a few holiday days taken, where I’d cram in around 4-5 films on average (6 screenings in one day, being a personal record). Although such a habit came at a price, but ploughing on through the headaches and eye spasms brought on by the countless hours of subtitle reading… the sores brought on by overuse of the cinema seat (which you soon come to realise, aren’t the most comfortable things to sit on for any prolonged period of time)… In-spite of all that, I’d have to say that I enjoyed every second of it and the experience has only increased my thirst for all things world cinema. Leeds seems to have a sure grasp on this type of culture and its one I love being part of. 

Until next time!

A Good Year

Thursday, September 25th, 2008 Posted in Personal Lives, Travel, Work | No Comments »

As first-time blogs go, sitting deciding what to write about is quite a daunting task, for me anyway. A thousand different things come to mind. Then, trying to home in on a particular subject or event to write about, proves difficult. And I think the reason for this is that I’ve not had time to fully digest the last year that has gone by. On reflection I think back and I have to say that it has probably been one of the most eventful years of my life. Where everything seemed to move at a steady pace before, things have suddenly stepped up a notch, which is a pretty good feeling in itself.

I’ve been in Leeds for just over two years now, having relocated from Kent (My reasons? Well that’s different blog altogether, I’ll save it for another time perhaps) … But anyway, as I was saying, I’ve been in Leeds for just over two years and I’ve felt that this last year, on a personal level, has been a defining period.

This time last year I had just moved into a new apartment with a new flatmate and was warmly welcomed into his circle of friends, who are a great bunch of lads and remain some of the best and closest friends I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing.

I joined a gym (which I still frequent 3 times a week).

I was made redundant from my previous job (Bad times). But offered a job in London (Good times), which I declined due to commitments in Leeds (Good times) …. And I say good times because this decision led me to pastures new at Open Door Design, where I work with an amazing team. And where, creatively speaking, my personal and professional working abilities have improved immensely.

I went on a mini-backpacking holiday to Italy, which was a massive deal for me. Apart from being a quarter Italian myself and having a large amount relative connections to Italy, I had never been to another country without my parents in tow. Well not since a school trip to Paris at least. I’m not that well traveled by any means… But I had such a great time and have certainly felt the bite of the travel bug. We spent 9 days in Florence, Rome and Lido… moving from Hostel to Hostel, seeing all there is to see (The Duomo, Sistine Chapel and Trevi Fountain being the stand out places we visited) and seeking out some of the most amazing restaurants Italy had to offer. One of the eating highlights wasn’t what you’d expect. Not Pizza… or Pasta… or Ice Cream (Although the Ice Cream was amazing). It was a dish known as ‘Bistecca alla Fiorentina’. A Three-finger-thick raw steak (and I’m someone who likes his steak well done). It set us back 50 Euros per Kilo and we ordered 2kg’s. It was an event in itself, even for the restaurant staff. A few bottles of Chianti later we then coined the phrase “what a Bistecca to make-a”, which was sadly banded around for the remainder of the trip.

I also had the pleasure of experiencing the Team Dread Slider Jam 2008 a few months back, which gave me a little insight into the world of wakeboarding. A great weekend spent with Nick and Dean, amazing atmosphere and great people.

So that’s, new apartment, new friends, new job, holidays, wakeboarding and raw steak covered…

So far so good then… And technically the year isn’t even over. I’ve got a months worth of birthday weekends to contend with, a few gigs to go to (namely Elbow and Kings of Leon) and to top it all off I’ll be attending the Leeds Film Festival in November, for 7 full days of movie-going.

All in all its been a good year.