The United States of Lobster (Posted 10years late!)

There wasn't quite this much snow....!

So it's a little late but earlier this month I did the annual pilgrimage to the Sales Kick Off in Portsmouth, New Hampshire on the North East coast of the USA. It is where the entire Sales team from across the globe get together and reflect on the year past and look forward to the year ahead. This is the second time that I am making this pilgrimage and I do enjoy it.......... I still think we need to mix it up though.... I used to go to Miami for the Sales Kick Off every year before that!

Sigh.........!

So because of the crazy costs of flights if you don't stay over a Saturday night a group of 12 of us decided that we were going to spend a weekend in Boston at the end of the trip... I think i am going to tell you about Boston in another post..... Well I have to increase my post count from last year!!! I will tell you that it will be about; Food, shopping, food and more food!

I went Outlet Mall Shopping in Kittery which is in Maine with the team from APAC and OMG can they shop! The GDP of Kittery was surely double in the two days that they made incursions over the bridge into Maine! We had to come back to the hotel to drop off a full lugguage trolley of shopping because the car was full and our kind driver couldn't see out the back! I did go a little crazy and bought some socks and trainers, oh and some shoes, oh yeah and some gloves!

The Piscataqua River, which has the third fastest current in the world!

Obviously we stopped for Lunch and the good folks at Bob's Clam Hut, Kittery hit the Jackpot when 9 of us descended on them and ordered about 30 lobster rolls! They were delicious!

I'm Doing It!!!

Last year was a bad year for me on so many fronts......

I don't think I want to waste even 10 minutes of 2013 listing the reasons why, I am looking forward. I am claiming that 2013 will be a good year. I will say that if I offended you by being short, rude or just totally unresponsive; I apologise. If I stood you up on a special day or promised to be somewhere and didn't make it; I apologise. I know I promised to do things that I didn't and for those I also apologise. I hope you can all forgive me and to those who are not with us anymore I hope this reaches you. 

Moving forward, I realised that one of the things I enjoy the most is catching up with friends I have made on my 38 year journey and I want to spend time with you this year. Time is precious but we often take it for granted, let's change this. Please let me know if you want to meet up with me..... We can put it in the diary months in advance or we can be spontaneous, it's up to you.

I also fancy doing things that I have never done before or that have been a long time since..... All ideas welcome! 

I think that I have said what I need to say and I look forward to looking at this post in twelve months time and thinking to myself......" You did it!"

The first of many....?

Well the first day of 2013 has come and gone and I survived!

Happy New Year everyone! Welcome to my blog! Last year I was totally rubbish at writing this but although I don't do resolutions my goal is to regularly update it this year because I plan to have an awesome 2013 and so I want record what happens.

I spent NYE with a small group of friends and it was really nice..... Apart from losing in Dai Dee (don't ask, that's your homework!). My friend cooked an excellent spread including Eggs Benedict and Rib Eye Steaks, DELICIOUS! We played Monopoly and I lost.... Apparently because I was too stubborn. Me stubborn? Do me a favour!  Like is said, we also played Dai Dee and I lost. Even though I didn't win the games, it was nice to chill out and just be. Do you know what I mean?

Anyway, I left there at 6am and waited for a bus that was due to arrive in 22 mins for nearly an hour! I didn't realise how quickly the time had passed as I was really enjoying listening to some tunes and thinking about the year ahead. I also met a dear friend David, whom I have not seen in a long time... He was out on an early morning jog so we caught up for a few mins. I must stay in contact with him! I ended up walking to the Tube Station and got home at 0820! I slept for most of the day and then when I did wake, I had some dinner and then fell asleep again only waking to watch MoTD. I guess this is why I am up now...... Sigh.

Well, that's the first day over, now on to the next one..... Over the coming days and weeks I will bore you with what happens in my world and I welcome you to add your comments or questions. No man is an island and as such I welcome you to share in my 2013 journey.

I want to say special thank yous and Happy New Year to Paul, Bobby, Jose, Amber, Claudia and last but so not least Pat! Thank you all for the NYE invites and I look forward to catching up in 2013!

Until next time. x

A Year To Forget???

Today I have been indoors all day and have used the time to 'take stock'....... I have thought about where I was last year at this time and where I am now and it's not good reading folks....... 

It has been a year where most of my goals & dreams have remained untouched, unmet & pushed back. I have not been as successful as I wanted to be at work (sorry Boss!). Poker has been shockingly bad and I have not played any of the events that I wanted to play this year, My favourite club, The International closed down whilst I was away in Vegas, during the summer and I have properly fallen out with one of my best friends (you know who you are), but I will fix it...... Promise! My health has been on a perpetual down swing and to top it off, I am just about to lose a long standing bet with another friend and I am abso gutted about that.....! 

Anyway, I want this to be positive or at least be able to take some positives from it! I am counting down the days, hours, minutes & seconds to 2013. I know, I know, there are still 71 days of the year to go but I have to be realistic..... I am going to spend this time preparing to hit 2013 with a massive uppercut. I will have a massive upswing in 2013. My life has been in 10 year cycles and the last perfect year was 2003 (who remembers?!) and I will have that again! 

A happy me in 2003..... Sigh!

I am not going to wait for New Years to make resolutions.... I am going to start now. For me 2012 is already fading into history & 2013 is starting early! So Happy New Year everyone! 

Stimulated by unstimulating people.....

So tonight I have been watching the live stream from the English Poker Open (EPO2012) and the commentary has been rather average so I told them so....... FML Big Mistake! They have tried their best to stimulate me with talk about teeth..... Urgh! They didn't even know the legendary International when they saw my picture there...... Some commentators!

They went on to give me the rub as I have not updated this blog in nearly a year and for that I really do apologise. I have been shamed into at writing something and will try to keep it going....... Especially as I have Amanda Williams giving me the rub too!

Anyway, in your eye! From Ghana's first WSOP winner (2013)!!!!!!

Pinch Punch! The first day of the month!

Soooooo........... It would seem that this is a Bi-annual Blog and not a daily or even weekly blog....... Should I even bother say sorry?! It's not that I wouldn't mean it but I just don't know if anyone bothers to read it! Ho Hum!
I am just too lazy (actually, I am ill) to write a blog post today but I have posted something for my daily newspaper; The Hackney Poor Boy Digest, news on Travel, Technology, Business, Poker, Arts & Entertainment. Have a look, you might like it!

Hi All,



So....... It is November already!!!!!!! Happy New Month Everybody!

I must apologise to you all for my somewhat invisibility over the past few weeks.... I have been busy at work and am now going through a very bothersome bout of Flu, at least I hope it is...... Before any of you say it; I am booking an appointment with the Doc today!


I hope you are enjoying the paper. Today's edition even has a Liver Lovers club mentioned..... I will be making some enquires! My close friends will understand; See the Lonely Planet video in today's (Nov 1) edition!


My poker has really come to a standstill recently. A combination of time & money have both been a factor but I hope to get back on the HORSE soon..... (see what I did there?) Both London's Calling & The Players Championships are coming up.


Thank you to the 131 people who take the time to read through my newspaper. I will try to be less lazy with the content and am happy to give you what you want, just let me know!

Have a great week and a fantastic November!


Yours,

Hackney Poor Boy!

The Journey

Hi All,

I know, I know...! I was meant to be a better blogger this year and yet this is only my second blog post so far? Sorry!

I am out & about on 'walkabout' at the moment and I thought I should give you all an update on what's been happening so here it is. I am in Austin, Texas at the moment. I am here for work attending HITEC 2011. It is a show that I attend every year and those of you that know me also know that I always go to Vegas afterwards! Yep, I'll be winging my way on American Airlines First Class from Austin to Vegas on Friday for some WSOP madness! Can you tell I am excited?!



Airport Traffic Jam!



Anyway back to the present; I flew BA out of the newly opened LHR T5C on Saturday, it was quite nice actually..... It looked new & smelt new. So there I was sitting on my first flight of the day from London to Chicago and some bright spark decides to shut one of the runways which means a 1 hour delay in London.

When we did make it into the air, the flight was pretty uneventful. I watch three movies but don't even remember what they were! I forgot to get duty free fags too! Oh dear, I'm getting old! I got to Chicago and managed to squeeze a quick cigarette in before making my connecting flight to the 100+ degree f, Austin, where we ended up taking off late, quelle surprise!



Ballers get there!



I got to the hotel and after more than 30 mins & talk of booking me out to another hotel; I finally got keys to my room at the InterContinental Stephen F. Austin hotel. Yep, I did get an upgrade! OiOiOiOiOiOiOi!!! Why can't I get that on planes?!?!

Anyway, I was going to carry on with what has happened since I arrived here but I don't want to bore you any more than I have already & this is kind of a natural place to stop (how else am I going to increase my blog count?!). So I have changed the title to The Journey & I will be writing a few more blogs in the next few weeks but until then, be good!