Walking or How to procrastinate over a new car

I was going to the annual DSA conference, but my car decided not to work. The gearbox did not want to co-operate with the rest of the car and made screaming noises while dripping fluid everywhere. It was not well.
I took it to be repaired, but the cost of repair was too much compared to the cars value. So I now have no car. I had my car for 11 years, so it felt really sad to see it go. It held so many memories for me.

Still let's look forward and not dwell to much on the past. Turn every negative into a positive....Well here goes.

I was thinking of getting a new one soon, but cars are not my thing and I end up making no decision to change it. Now I have to make a decision. It's an interesting process to do something you just do not like doing...for me it's buying a car. No idea why I do not like it, I just do not. I like driving cars and the faster the better.
So do I buy a car now? No! I do not. I will walk and experience something new. The exercise makes me feel good. I notice the bad smells cars make, plus the noise and general aggravation they generate for people in them. I wonder how long I can go with no car....Well not quite no car, as I do have a second one which I can "borrow" if it is not being used. So I still drive, just not as much as I used to.

Off to walk to the shops now.

Reception at the House

Today was interesting. A reception was held at the House of Commons, hosted by Autism Speaks. This happens every year and is part of their activities to raise awareness. An all party Parliamentary group has been formed to help guide policy decisions. I'm please that politics are put on hold for some things.
I just love London, it's buildings and it's history. It's the second time I've been inside the House and it's soooo impressive. I recommend the tour to everyone - UK resident or not.

Russian Big Day

Nikken has a "Big Day" every year. This year over 300 people won a place to this inspiring event. The guest speaker was Claude Dalla-Palma from Switzerland, who gave a lovely account of his time in Nikken. Also new Diamond Distributors were recognised, new products and incentives were launched. It was great to see the company and the Distributors having such a great time. The few pictures here show the office team, the audience when I was speaking, Claude with a couple of Russian Distributors and our new Diamonds Alain Banon and Aline Pouchkova with Olga Fastova from marketing. For more picture click here

Fruit

I was wandering through the streets of Istanbul and saw this spectacular selection of fruit on display. It looked like REAL fruit, not the homogenised versions I see in UK supermarkets. They were different shapes, sizes and colours - just like nature intended and as I rememeber from my childhood. Growing up with Italian influence I know what a tomato should look, smell and taste like - they just do not any more :(
Later, at dinner, a local person was complaining that fruit and vegetables do not taste the same to him as they did when he was a boy. A testament to mass farming that is hitting us all over the world. As food prices go up I fear this will only get worse. Now off to a local organic farm to see what they have.

Terrific Turkey

To finish a series of events in a row I went to lovely Istanbul for the Distributors expo. It was a terrific event with around 600 people attending. This more than doubles the event held last year in June. In the pictures you can see the area outside the main hall, a line of new Silvers and our new Platinum Distributors. Turkey is an amazing place with amazing people.

Outstanding Oslo

Wow! What an amazing three days in Oslo. The convention that Morten and Sissel (with the help of others of course) put on was really great. Distributor, corporate and external speakers did extremely well.
Oslo is a pretty place, but we managed only to see the inside of the conference centre. Still, that did not matter as the energy inside made up for it. It was so good to see new and familiar people again. Frederik was a fantastic host, Brian Klemmer reinforced the mechanism to get results, "Big Al" shared tips on how to get people interested, Bob Richards was inspiring, Rick - wow!!, Greg, Chris, Rune, Arpad and Suzanna, Siri, Erik, .... the list goes on. They were all great. It's a nice feeling to think we have so many of these type of people in Nikken - the world is a better place with you guys (and gals).

Amazing Amsterdam

The tour continues to Amsterdam. Jerry continues to amaze, educate and entertain. The crowd was lively and fun as always.