This week in pictures

The Chinese have a saying - a picture is a 1000 words. Here is this weeks major news items according to DJ Ho.

Son, we're arresting you for that bad haircut: Protestors at the Forbes CEO conference.

Show me the money! BHP announces largest profit announcement in Australian history.

Bye Bye Johnny and that comment.

How far do you think we can stretch him?: A young man protests against the evacation of the Gaza Strip in Israel.


Couldn't we have taken the ferry? Waterworld @ N'awlins

I go to the barber with 25 thou, you drop 25 hundred, I'm like yeah nigga wow: Kanye still can't afford a decent haircut despite dropping another LP.

Deez nuts! Andy Flintoff might think he's on top, but we know he ain't got balls.

Follow the leader

Is one born a leader or made a leader?

It is a question that haunts us to this very day. We have those army ads that say otherwise but in my humble opinion, its a combination of both. I think some people are natural born leaders and some become leaders as result of the environment that they grow up in.

Why all this talk about leadership? Well I just came back from a function where retired head of Australian army, Peter Cosgrove AC MC gave a talk about leadership. Sidenote: apparently, MC does not stand for master of ceremonies.

Anyways, what he was saying was that leaders share certain character traits. Their confident, have high energy levels and are emotional. And I agree with the first two this but not the part about being emotional. Some leaders are highly emotional but there are those that are cool and calculated. I think it is their ability to evoke emotion in others that sets them apart from normal people. To make others feel some kind of emotion, whether it be pride or anger, etc.

It's funny, but you can tell when someone's a leader. To me, sometimes its quite obvious. It is the people that can command respect amongst their peers. That can really influence people with their words and action. That can inspire and hold together a group of people when hell breaks loose.

I see it in the guy that plays for my basketball team. When he's on the floor, everything is cool. He's a calming influence. When he's off and I'm handling the ball, everything goes nuts. This could be a reflection of my point guard skills. More likely this guy not only is a good baller but has the ability to control the tempo of the game and is able to direct traffic. Everyone feels a lot more comfortable when he's on the floor, when he's telling peeps what to do, etc.. I see the same thing when Hoi's playing ball on Thursday. I see it in the way he influences, motivates and commands respect in the timeouts.

What really separates a leader from everyone else is their confidence. It's as simple as that. I really believe that you can't be leader without it. When I look at at the major leaders in the world, whether it be corporate, sporting, armed services, political, and criminal spheres that's what it boils down. That's what they all share in common. Sure sometimes, they may lack self confidence, but they don't show it. Because as soon as you do, you crack and everyone does as well.

So the question remains, are people born leaders or can they be made to be leaders? No matter now many leadership or management classes you take, books you read or instructions you get, it doesn't transform you into a leader. Rather it refines or improves your leadership ability. Traits like confidence and motivation - are you born with these? Arguably you gain them through life experiences, the people that you interact with, and the way that you react to these. So born aren't born with these abilities, but they are gained. Educated by the twists and turns of life and the people that they meet on these travels.

As Rakim says, " You better take a deep breath and keep followin, The leader."

Show and prove,

DJ Ho.

Man I promise, she's so self conscious
She has no idea what she's doing in college
That major that she majored in don't make no money
But she won't drop out, her parents will look at her funny
Now, tell me that ain't insecurrre
The concept of school seems so securrre
Sophmore three yearrrs aint picked a careerrr

Kanye on "All falls down"

I'm supposed to have this "talk" with my lil brother today. He's doing the HSC in about 6 weeks, but he doesn't seem to be doing much study. He's smart, and very savvy, but he doesn't seem to hit the books like it matters. I mean when you go to a breakdance tournament and then stay over at a friend's party over the weekend , not much study is going to get done. It's very unfortunate that our education system and our society place so much emphasis on these final high school exams.

My mum has tried to get through to him to "put his down and bum up" for the next two months but critizing him doesn't seem to work. So she's counting on me to have a kinda of a big brother talk to him. I think my angle is to try and motivate him, rather than critize him.

He's going through everything that I went through in terms of worrying about the HSC, trying to figure out what uni course to take and so on. It's a really difficult time for any young person. if I look back, I didn't really have anyone to turn to except my friends (who were in a similar position) and my parents. I wished I had an older brother or a friend that was older than me to let me know it would turn out alright.

I told him, whatever course you pick, don't do law - cause we can't have 3 lawyers in the family. I steered him away from software engineering (industry downturn), enouraged him to do just do whatever he wants, though I did mention enginnerring, business/commerce, industrial design, liberal studies. I think i even said do a Music Production course (but that was more for me!).

Knoweldge is power,

DJ Ho.

We run this town

I'm in a very fortunate position at my workplace. Where I work, hundreds of fresh new uni students come in as graduates each year. I sit on the Graduate Committee and represent their views and concerns. Essentially I'm representin' - telling peeps this is what WE feel, this is what WE want (in a nice way of course), these are OUR expectations.

In many ways, the expectations and the concerns of graduates at my workplace aren't that much different to other students or graduates at other workplaces.

At the end of the day, as a uni graduate we simply want to be employed in a meaningful job. Where we are challenged, our skills utilised to the fullest extent, where we are given opportunities to grow and learn. Where the three, four, five+ that we invested into our study aren't wasted doing menial tasks.

To me, being challenged is a key factor to graduate job satisfaction and retention. You have to keep these hungry and motivated youngsters constantly engaged and challenged. If companies fail to do so, they ultimately lose their talented staff. What's the motivation to even be remotely interested in a job or to even stay if your stuck filing and photocopying all day?

When a lot of these big companies hire graduates, they wow them with glossy brochures and slick marketing and even slicker HR talk. They create certain expectations and beliefs. And then once you start working, you see that a lot of its just simply smoke and mirrors. It's time that a lot of this changed. We need REAL talk. You don't satisfy the consumer by playing up the ads. You gotta back it up with the product. As a graduate, you've also got to see through a lot this stuff as well.

I think for most graduates, pay ( that is ka-ching $$$$) is only an incidental factor. A lot of times when you first start working, you can't dictate to the market what you should pay. Most people are happy to accept simply being P.A.I.D. When faced with potential job choices, most people will take the job that best advances their career, that interests them and will challenge them. Money can only do so much. Sure making BIG Pimpin' dollars is good, but its not decisive. Its only one of a number of factors for most people.

I believe that most graduates employed now are ticking timebombs set to go off in two to three years. We live in a day and age of increasing employment mobility. Bright, young motivated people with a couple years of experience have the world at their feet. Things ain't like they used to be - there's no such thing as loyalty any more. More than ever, graduates are finding it easier to change between jobs. Between industries. Between countries. It's not that graduates are dissatisfied after two or four years. Its simply we live in era of constant change and we roll with it.

Where companies can't tell young people what to do any more because the power has shifted. The top tier and middle tier uni graduates now have greater choice who they can work for. But I also believe that companies aren't making a greater effort to hold onto their top flight graduates. Sure, you could argue that talented future leaders will always seek new opportunties. But at least give them some incentive to stay.

It is the big ass corporates that are at the greatest risk but also have the best tools needed to fight back if they want to keep us. A lot of international companies offer secondments - that is opportunties to work overseas or to work for clients after you've served a decent amount of time for usually 3 to 4 years. But this is too late. As most people decide to leave before then, this is useless. You've got to keep challenging them, constantly. Let them work overseas for you after 2 years, give them stock options or some kind of cash incentives that can't be touched for a couple of years, or let them work in a different department to increase their broader experience levels.

We are the future. It is time that corporate boards and senior management opened up and gave us an opportunity to speak. How can they expect to groom their next apprentices if they try to tell us what we want. Because we run this town.

Peace out,

DJ HO.

I'm gonna go corporate on your azz......

Do companies have some kind of moral or social obligation to be doing more for society? Can they do more?

You can argue companies are out to make profit. That worrying about environmental concerns, poverty, civil warfare, famine and starvation is beyond their reach.

George Soros, the self made billionare investor often said that he had to wear two hats - that when he had his corporate hat on, his sole focus was profits. His philanthropic contributions came when he donned the private citizen cap. He was like the two can't be meshed like Kobe and Shaq. I see it differently though. Companies cannot stand by and ignore what is going on in society.

At a mininum level, Corporates need to be concerned about the triple E's (the so called triple bottom line). Economics, Environmental and Ethics. But more could be done. Government instutions at the State, Federal and International level just don't have the ability or the resources to deal with these issues. Underfunding, lack of skills and manpower, and vision's shorter than a Paris Hilton skirt.

Companies need to tell shareholders that corporates cannot stand by and watch the problems plaguing society solve themselves. That we must act NOW. That we must do radical things like:

1. Implore that companies take ownership of projects of say a community project in third world country;

2. Contribute to the medical supplies of AIDS infested Africa;

3. Allow their staff paid time off to work overseas in educational programs

4. Have CEO's of top companies sacrifice a portion of their equity to donate to chartiable causes and list in that in their financial report.

Their needs to be a reallocation of resources and a change in the way we do things. Companies, CEO's that run them and the shareholders that have ownership interest cannot idly accept that their existence is only to make a profit. That they are more than an economic entity. Rather, that they are also social entities and have an obligation to make a meaningful contribution to mankind.

It's kinda random what I wrote above, but hopefully you get what I am talking about.

Peace Out,

DJ Ho.

"Throw your hands in the air like you just don't care/Let hear you scream "Oh Yeah"

The crowd goes wild, as DJ Ho spins another head banger. Cuttin' and mixin', he blends two tracks that mathematically should not go together. Juggling the beats, he switches it up. Dropping the pitch cue and then bumping up the rotation speed he creates a totally new song.

Heads are mesmerised as he scratches the verse on the vinyl, looping it over and over again. In the background, the faint beat of another track populates the air. The crossfader has moved to the middle and he unleashes the beat from the next track. Hitting the bass beat again and again, the crowd nods in sync.

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And then suddenly I wake up and realise that I'm not in front of a crowd but rather hunched over some Stanton turntables in my cousin's room.

It was cool, learning the craft of djiing, experimenting with different songs, mucking around with the pitch cues. Timing my scratches on the bass beat, trying to repeat certain phrases which I thought sounded nice. I generally had no idea what I was doing but was definently having fun. I did a couple of the behind the back scratches and then some really fast pauses, crossing my hands.

It was awesome. Djiing is quite an expensive hobby. Both turntables set my cousin back about
$750 each, plus a mixer would have been several hundred. He must have invested several grand in the records as well.

Seriously, if i could have one dream job in the world it would be to be a DJ. I probably could not be bothered putting the time into learning and finetuning the art.

but finally last night, DJ Ho got down on the decks.

Peace out,

DJ Ho.

Round 2: Fight!

Don't really feel like posting up anything long today since I've just been at work all day on a SATURDAY. I've been thinking about this for a while, but what are the top 10 video games of all time? This list isn't definitive, it's just the games that I love to play growing up.

1. Street Fighter 2: Whether it was TURBO, CE, 3, and any other version, the original was the real deal. Ahhh many wasted hours of my youth playing as Ryu or Ken and perfecting the art of the 3 hit combo. I still remember the combinations - the sweet science of the jumping heavy kick, then big sweep, or the jumping heavy punch, ducking medium punch, followed by an "R U Ken?" uppercut.

2. NBA Jam: Classic. Loved the cartoonish NBA characters and the wild dunks. What was better than dunking the ring continously until the glass shattered Shaq Attaq style? And the hot hand - "he's heating up". I still remember eagerly scanning the stats after each quarter to see if I'd reach the elusive triple double.

3. NBA Live 2005: What can I say - the realism, the 3D rendering was just amazing and best of all the ability to play as your favourite players. i could play this game all day and do those fantasy drafts again. and again until I created the perfect team.

4. Daytona: How good was this game back in the day? I haven't still conquered manual but I loved challenging a buddy to a few laps of the beginner circuit - or even better - linking up 8 cars for a race.

5. Time Crisis 2: I still play this game to this day. When I see it, it's like its calling me. I'll do anything to find a dollar and start blasting those ninja fools away. Embarrasing fact - on the selection screen where you shoot to indicate if you wanna go solo or with a teammate, I actually shot a whole round and missed, and was forced to reload.

6. Tetris: If you think SF2 or NBA jam was old skool, this is ancient. Lining up those blocks, rotatin', this game was straight gangsta on the green and black screen gameboy.

8. Mortal Kombat: The first video game to take realism to the next level with blood. How awesome were the fatalities. Simply mindblowing concept - have real fighters, digitised and then go up a notch with Mortal Kombat 2. The characters were just phenemonal - SubZero, Scorpion ("Get Over here"), and the morphin' Shang Tsung.

9. Space Invaders: Taking it back to the 80's. We used to have an Atari (I bet you new school cats diggin your Xboxes, Playstation portables have no idea) with 32 colours and it was gangsta. The only game that was worth playing was Space Invaders and it rocked. Dodgin, and weavin, this original shoot em up paved the way for the rest of the games that we know it.

10. Super Mario World: It took me about 2 years to conquer this game but it was well worth it. I wasn't feeling the old school NES editions, but when it was brought to Super Nintendo, I was all over it. The brothers Luigi and Mario stepped their game up and kept me awake on many school nights.

Honourable Mentions: Donkey Kong Land/Original, Dune 2, Zelda (ohh I love this game), The Secret of Mana. I don't mess with these new games like Counterstrike, Diablo, etc...... but back in the day, the top 10 games were the shiznit.

Peace.

DJ Ho.

It's a hard knock life...

I had a really long day today. I'm talking investment banking hours long. Too much work, not enough play. Finished working today at 10pm, then hopped down to Bridge Bar at Circuluar Quay and then onward ho to Mars Lounge. And then back to work again tomorrow morning to do some study and finish off some work.

Is this worth it in the end? I think so. At the moment, you've just got to do everything to impress. When you first start out, you have no foundation to build upon. Just gotta put your head down, bum up, go hardcore at work and make the right contacts. To be successful I think you've got to be able to work hard, act smart, show that your more capable than the next person and get along very well with people. I think that social skills are highly underrated. You could be some absolute technical gun but in my business what differentiates the good advisers is the ability to communicate that knoweldge in a way that's easily understood to the client.

Word is bond.

DJ H to the Izzo.

Igniting the debate: Size isn't everything!!!

Tall men get short shrift as husbands

By Fiona MacRae
August 17, 2005

TALL, dark and handsome is the classic description of the perfect man.But when it comes to perfect husbands, shorter men stand head and shoulders above the rest, a study has found.

Women regard taller men as excellent for a fling but see short men as better companions to settle down with.

This could explain why Nicole Kidman married Tom Cruise, who at 170.2cm is 10cm shorter than her. But she only ever dated the 190cm Steve Bing. Or why Penny Lancaster, a rangy 180cm plus, chose the shorter Rod Stewart as her husband-to-be.

So did his 183cm ex-wife, Rachel Hunter, although she only had a fling with 185cm Robbie Williams.

Researchers believe women looking for the thrill of an affair or hoping to become pregnant tend to find taller men more desirable. Their height is a sign of their masculinity and their ability to father healthy children.

"Taller men have higher social status, earn more and are at lower risk from illness," said anthropologist Dr Boguslaw Pawlowski of the University of Wroclaw in Poland.

"They also have better reproductive success."

However, the benefits quickly wear off, along with the initial attraction.
Evolutionary psychologist Nick Neave said: "You don't want to be surrounded by these guys all the time.

"The guys who are real leaders of the pack tend to not be very nice people. You don't want them around kids, they can be violent and leave you for someone else," Dr Neave said.

"If they are very handsome and very desirable there will be lots of other women competing for their attention.

"For a short-term relationship, you want somebody you are sexually attracted to, they don't have to be the best to get on with."

The scientists also looked at how women's fertility affected their choice of mate. They found that at the time of the month when women are most fertile, they were more attracted to taller men.

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So Tim and Ashby, you still got game cause "Women regard you as better for a fling" and have "better reproductive success" hahaha. But what about for the generic short Asian male? Well I don't know how true this study is, since I know a lot of tall males in relationships with shorties (no pun intended).

Oh how the mighty have fallen

Ouch. My left knee is killing me. The impact of pavement to knee joint for 14km has left me in a bit of pain. I'm finding it hard to walk up and down stairs atm, in fact I think I twisted my muscles. My mum who's a qualified nurse with 20 years experience, ignored my cries of pain and basically laughed it off (thanks mum!).

When I actually rolled up my trouser leg, I could see her eyes widen at the swollen knee cap and then she began this tirade of why I shouldn't have run the City 2 Surf. Bascially I shot back: "I told you I was in pain, why didn't you come have a look at it?". After work, I'll go to physio but hopefully it ain't nothing too bad.

I probably aggravated it before and after the race. Commonsense suggests that you don't do the following:

1. Run for 35 mins the day before the race. For the first time ever.
2. Don't get a free massage from a hot female therapist when its on offer after the race.
3. Despite feeling a lot of pain the next day, bend down and help a colleague fix up the shelving cabinent underneath their desk.
4. Run to get the elevator before it closes
5. Walk 15 mins to go to some crappy sale after work, at a place with steep steps.

Last night, I think I was getting a bit dramatic and thinking about basketball players that get serious knee injuries. Due to the state that I am in, I obviously can't play basketball this week. I've lost my explosiveness and my first step ( I can hear you say what explosiveness/first step have you got?).


The race itself


It was very chilly when I got to the City at 8am. Luckily I had on my sweats on which I stripped off before the race started. We gathered in College St for the back of the pack. All I could see ahead of me was a sea of people that stretched as far as the eye could see. I proud to say I completed the race. All 14km baby! I probably ran about 2/3, and walked about 1/3. It was way too hard to be running whilst in the "Back of the Pack". Half the time your just dodging people and saying "excuse me" as you squeeze through the gaps.

I would have run it better had I been with other people that were also running. I was compeitive until I reached the first drink station and I gasped at the dude handing out the drinks - how far til the finish line? Only hear the guy laughing, we're only at the start of the race son, only 10km to go.! At that point I knew I was screwed! PLus the effect of running the day before, was getting to my aching legs. So I decided to keep pushing along and walked up Heartbreak Hill. It was killer - a hill 2 km high.

I gotta admit though, I did stop and chat to people along the way. Then I heard a voice cry out "Ho!" and turned sideways to see Rahul and Ed running. So we jogged the rest of the way, with Ed dropping off in the last 3km but me and Rahul kept the pace up.

I felt like the Incredible Hulk, gaining strength with each additional step. The adrenalin was pumping and I felt my legs muscles twitching like hell. But I ignored the signs of the body breaking down and broke through that pain threshold, pushing myself. The sign for 2km came up and I gave R the sign "2". We pushed ourselves even harder, with me leading the way. I just kept saying to myself that I wouldn't stop running til I reached the very end.

And the finish line couldn't come soon enough. When Bondi Beach came up - it was an awesome sight - except the finish line was still a fair way away! By that time, Rahul had dropped off in the last 500m, but like the energizer bunny, I kept going. In what seemed like an eternity, I reached the time gates and felt estatic. I HAD FINALLY DONE IT - 14KM in less than 2 hours! It's a fantastic personal achievement and I'll be back again next year, in the HSBC start trying
to beat my time.

Peace out,

DJ HO.

Runnin' Runnin': City 2 Surf

Heart Pounding.

Heavy breathing.

Ipod blaring Pharrell's voice in my head.

The little voice keeps saying: I can do this, I can do this.
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Went for a light run today as my warmup for City 2 Surf. It should be interesting since I haven't done much training at all. I can see myself collapsing about midway, or dying after running up HeartBreak Hill.

Today was quite good. Woke up at 7.30am, tried to simulate the conditions by going for a run at 8am in only my t-shirt and shorts. I ran for about 20 minutes, came back to the house, had a breather and a cool drink and hit the pavement again. All up I ran about 35 mins on smooth jogging pace. I was conscious about not overexerting myself before race day but I felt good afterwards and could have done more.

My plan is to run in 20 minute blocks and stop for a breather. We'll see how that goes, but ultimately I'd like to aim for 100 - 120 minutes, being my first time and all. I'm at the back of the pack so I'll prolly be dodging prams and gorilla suits at the start, then the rest of the crowd.

Fitness is something that I desperately need to work on post City 2 Surf. There's not much of a chance to get out these days, but I'm thinking maybe during my lunch breaks at work, I'll go for a jog to Opera House or do some laps of Hyde Park. And mix it up with basketball at lunch, and if I feel like it some volleyball or netball.

Mixing hip hop into the workplace

Workplace cultures are dynamic because it is representative of the behaviours of the employees that work there, the policies and procedures, the influence of senior management and so on. If one of the factors of workplace culture is the behaviour of their employees, can an employee influence it if he or she is down with hip hop? Because hip hop is a lifestyle - you live it and breathe it. So much that it's been exhibited in my working environment by your truly.

Case in point:

1. I've been bopping my head to the Roots CD which is constantly playing on my computer, so much so that everytime this chick walks past my desk she mockingly imitates me.

2. Emails being sent around are usually ended with "Peace out", "1" or more commonly "word is born".

3. I'm supposed to host this work lunch, and in a conversation with a co-worker who is the co-host and she was saying "maybe we shouldn't be ending our speeches with 'Fo Shizzle', 'Yo Mama', '1', etc....

4. Walking to work the other day, I heard them blaring TQ's 'Westside' from a bar. So when the line "To my peoples if you with me - where you at/Throw your dubs in the air - and wave 'em like you just don't care", what did yours truly do? I threw up a dub as I walked past. There were a few strange onlookers, but I don't care - wesside fo life!

5. Teaching this chick at work all the gangsta hand signs from the simple Westside 'W', Eastcoast 'E', the crown for the Latin Kings, and the Crips 'C'. Don't they say that 80% of communication is visual?

6. Rocking up to work on mufti day looking like some character from OZ. Decked out in my baggy grey jeans, Yellow Timbo's, black leather jacket, and shirt emblazoned with 'semi automatic'.

7. Most people have a copy of some publication that their reading on their desk, eg. like Financial Review, BRW, Cosmo, 9 to 5. I've got a copy of the Source with Ja Rule on the cover. Represent y'all!

8. A lot of people swap CD's at work to listen to.

Colleague: "what are you listening to?.
Me: "Can I interest you in Common? Kanye West? Jay-Z ? The Roots? Maybe Raekwon's 'Only Built for Cuban Linx Niggaz'? The Wu Tang Clan?".
Colleague: "Maybe I'll pass."

9. And of course when I'm going home, I do the whole gangsta fist bump. What did you expect?

Very subtley, I am introducing the key elements of hip hop into my workplace. From showing DVD's of my brother breakdancing (breaking), hosting a work function (MC'in), telling everyone my nickname and the fact that I love going to DJ tournaments (DJ'in) and of course explaining to people the art of urban expression - (graffiti). I know that people like KRS-1 have said that there are additional elements of hip hop but look we have to start somewhere, and I'm doing my best. It ain't easy to change a workplace culture or being a hip hop workplace pioneer :P

Peace out.

DJ HO.

Knowing the world in which we live

The Norwegian diplomat Charung Gollar was asked to present
The UN with a graphic showing the main problems in the world in 2004.
He presented a set of 8 pictures entitled "The power of stars" and was applauded for the simplicity of his idea.
In spite of having no pretension at all, his work was presented to participate to the Nobel Price of Politic Marketing.
Attached are the 8 pictures presented. Click on each of the pictures to view them properly - you really need to read the captions which are too small unless you click on the pic. Trust me its worth it.

Columbia

EUROPE

BURKINA FASO

SOMALIA

USA

ANGOLA

CHINA

It's so important to know the world in which we live. A lot of times we just focus on who we are, what our problems are, and not the world around us. Many of us are bright talented young people with so much drive and ambition. We should be channeling that into worthy causes. We can make a difference in this world but it all starts with us first becoming aware of the problems plaguing our society.

Peace.

DJ HO.

Da Pratt

Normally I don't put pictures of old white men (i prefer athletic black men :P) on my blog but gotta give props to Da Pratt aka Richard Pratt, CEO of VISY Industries. I just come home from a Meet The CEO function at UNSW where they kinda interviewed him in front of a large audience. This dude is king of the papers, or more correctly the cardboard kingpin. The owner of the largest privately held packaging, paper and recyling biz.

What was really cool about this dude, was that even though a large part of the success of his empire is due to him and he's worth billions, he was so humble and down to earth. He kept saying his success was due to the best machines that he bought, the opportunites that he gave people, the talent around him. Rarely did he say it was "me, me, me".

I walked away feeling inspired and motivated. Not to be like him but took away his reasons for his success. He kept it simple. It's about persistence and determination. Talent can only get you so far, but it was sticking to what he knew best and persisting. And taking risks.

It's very hard these days for us uni folks to actually be like that though. We get trained to analyse. Critique. Break a problem down. At the end of this higher learning process, we become conservative and unwilling to take risks. What's really lacking for most of us is the creativity and the risk taking - the hallmarks of entrepreneurs.

Also, I got to show him some love for his priorities. It was family first and then business second. Everything else comes after that (although he did fail to mention a few marital indiscretions...). No matter how successful you are, you've got to keep it in perspective - because in this trife life, all the money in the world can't buy you love.

And the look on his face when the interviewer asked him about the recent price fixing scandals? Priceless. He had this smirk on his face and I knew what was up and so did half the audience.

I really dig his approach to people - he looks after them like they're his la familia. If they're sick, he'll take care of them til the day they die. If they've got money problems, he'll loan em money. It might not be the most commerical thing to do but his from the old skool era - when we used to care about the people that worked for you.

This man is different to most kingpins. He actually does care about society - he has views about population growth, contributed $3million to water desalination, and preaches corporate social responsibility. I'm down with that - a man that gives back to society - not because it makes him look good, but he genuinely cares about the world around him.

PEACE.

Like a candle in the wind

Sometimes it takes a tragic event for you to realise how lucky you really are.

That we should give thanks and praise for every moment that we walk on this earth.

That we should live every day as our last. Nothing should be taken for granted.

We always hear these words of wisdom but usually we ignore them.

We think we're too young, that we've still got a whole life ahead of us.

Something bad did happen. And its kinda made me take stock of where I am in life, what I am here for.

Sadly, someone that I knew passed away last week.

It was hard on most people because it was so sudden. And the man wasn't that old. A sudden heart attack. And just like that, he was taken from the world.

When I found out, I was in a state of shock. For a few minutes I just couldn't think properly.

All I know is I owe this man.

And now he's gone.

There are times when I'm so driven. That I want to achieve so much. There are some days where I just work crazy hours. And then I think, what am I doing this for? Do I really want to create this work stress for myself?

Life is short. And what's really sad is that its taken an event like this to make me realise this. Better late than never I guess.

Peace.

Rest In Peace - No ID.

Love is...

How beautiful love can be
On the streets love is hard to see
It's a place I got to be
Loving you is loving me
How beautiful love can be
On the streets love is hard to see
Gotta reach that frequency
Loving you is loving me

- Common on "Love is....."

Over the past couple of months, I keep bumping into an old friend, Richard from back in the Primary School era. Way back in the day. We started reminincing about what people were up to now and just straight catching up. Richard is one of the dudes that if you saw him you think he was some hard ass mutha. Dressed in his beanie and hoodie every morning, with the "I don't give a ...." tude., he's a guy that most people from school just simply avoid. And it doesn't help that he just ignores everyone.

Anyways, the point of this is that we started talking about girlfriends and he was saying that "I'm too hard to have a girlfriend." I tried to explain to him what love is but its kinda difficult when -

a) your on a crowded peak hour train

b) a person refuses to listen

And no, I didn't use the "loving you is loving me" line from Common!. So until I bump into him again and explain it, here is my explanation of love from a boyfriend/girlfriend perspective. Having been in a relationship for nearly 4.5 years, I think I have some idea or at least should.

Love is waking up in the morning knowing that there is someone else out there that loves you.

Love is arguing with someone until your blue in the face, conceding but still believing that your right.

Love is knowing everything about that other person, including their deepest and darkest secrets, their fears and what upsets them the most.

Its about doing things for someone, without any rational reason and giving up something that you treasure for that other person.

Its deciding to miss that interview because your sick and needed to be taken home. And then somehow manging to turn up slightly late.

It's about driving 1 hour to some remote location to take you home.

Love is having someone that is like your best friend, someone that you want to be around 24/7.

It's having someone that buys you random presents when you prolly don't deserve it having missed their own birthday.

It's about being able to simply be yourself around that person.

There is no real definition about love is. I've tried to describe it but it's very hard in words. Even harder if your a man that chooses to be "hard" like Richard. Sometimes you just need to open up or that right person might come along and make you realise how beautiful love can be.

As men we were taught to hold it in
That's why we don't know how 'til we're older men
If love is a place I'ma go again
At least now, now I know to go within
At time it can take ya for a spin
Heartbreak hotel then you're home again

it's heating up

Just caught wind of this deal: Antonie Walker, James Posey, and Jason Williams to the Heat. And all Miami gave up as Eddie Jones? They made off like thieves! I'm not sure how the team will mesh together seeing that Walk is a bit of a hog and likes chucking up 3's but in terms of talent, that's an awesome trade.

James Posey should be good, bringing his defensive ability. But its a really weird combination that the Heat will have. They could have too many people that want the ball and I'm not sure if 'Toine will be happy being the third cog in the wheel.

It the R to the, double O to the T S

I've actually got a lot of things to do at the moment, but right now I feel compelled to write this. Those big clients can wait whilst I profess my appreciation for The Roots concert that I went to last Saturday.

The Roots crew are just so talented. Musically they are just off the hook - mixing live instruments (electric guitars, drums, keyboard), Black Thought's vocals as well as some awesome female RNB licks. I've seen them before at the Hordern Pavillion, but this was much better in a more intimate atmosphere at the Enmore theatre.

What I like to do at the concerts is at one point in the night to just close my eyes, zone out and simply listen to the music. Only the last couple of times that I've done that I've managed to inhale some second hand weed lingering in the air!!! I told a friend to do the same thing and she also commented on the sticky green wafting at the metro. And what was also cool was when the Roots switched it up and played some ODB tribute tracks like Shimmy Shimmy Ya and some classic Nas Illmatic.

In short, the concert was the shiznit.

BTW how did everyone else find the Roots crew?