Series: Seinfeld

What can one say about the best comedy series ever? Well, it's the best comedy series ever... duh!!!

It's not about the acting... "Kramer" is the man and "George" just gets the whole Larry David persona ("Curb your Enthusiasm" is frightening in that sense). Seinfeld is not a brilliant actor, but he makes it work... it just works. The writing is exceptional... Larry Charles, all the guys and obviously the uber-writers, the main men: Larry David and Jerry Seinfeld. The situation makes itself, no real need for brilliant acting. The theme of "nothing" is exceptional and you can only laugh. It is self-fulfilling comedy.

Then it withstood the two biggest tests of any TV series:
- After series 4, it continued to improve. To have the "Soup Nazi" episode on series 7 is an incredible example of that. It went up, it sustained quality. That is quite unique in comedy series.
- It still makes sense today although it's a "90's series".

Sheer brilliance and the end made it all worthwhile. The nihilism that has to pay. All of a sudden, all makes sense. And Seinfled, Elaine, George and Kramer do pay... they had to, there were just too good(bad)!

Series: Entourage

I finished watching series 2 a couple of days ago. Series 3 is halfway through in the US from what I know, but I will wait to get it on DVD.

This is one of those series that you start watching and you can't stop... you could probably watch it all in one day... around 25 minutes an episode, 14 episodes... perfectly feasible. How addictive is this series? A LOT.

The acting isn't fabulous, with the exception of Jeremy Piven, Kevin Connolly and Jerry Ferrara - aka Turtle or the new "Kramer" of American TV". Well, actually the acting is reasonably good; I guess I just don't like Adrian Grenier - the pretty boy. He is just too convincing which probably means he's just playing himself. Not really the stuff that would make him a great actor, but the girls probably like it. Oh, by the way, the girls on this series ROCK!!! Simply ROCK. From the stars to the not so stars, it is extremely enjoyable.

The screenplays are... how can I put it? Simple. Very, very, very simple, but they work so well. The series conquers us through form rather than substance. We are taken by the rhythm of the action and the acting and manipulated by the cameo appearances into believing "this is really a great series". It probably isn't, but we are convinced it really is when watching and isn't that makes a great TV series after all: momentum week after week, very close to inducing addictive behaviours on the spectators.

Finally, it does for LA what Las Vegas does for LV... you just want to visit it after watching. LA I know quite well and this series definitely "gets it" when it comes to the atmosphere, the pretentiousness, the absolute idolizing of people's personas/images. You gotta hate it and love it at the same time. You just have to.

Series: Las Vegas

Ok, it's one of those guilty pleasures. It doesn't have brilliant screenplays, it's not believable, but it sure is fun. A couple of things that I would say I really like:
- James Caan. What an actor. Very much THE actor of the series. The rest of the cast has a lot of ups and downs, but not this guy. Always in character.
- The girls. Oh so cute... and ... that's about it. I'm on series 3 and Flynn Boyle doesn't work for me at all.
- The action scenes are cool. They are over-the-top, but cool.
- The overall "look and feel" of the series is quite good.

And that's about it. A guilty pleasure. I will keep buying the DVDs, but it won't change the world. It just makes the rest of us that haven't been to Vegas yet, want to go to the real "sin city"... desperately.

MomCo.

A new theory I thought about today while picking up some water from the fridge in my office. I had just asked my assistant to organize my personal flights (personally settled I might add) since I couldn't do it online - needed paper tickets, etc... what if companies became full service providers to their employes on their professional but also personal needs - vacation planning, bookings, simple accounting, etc? All this while actually making some money out of it.

Granted, not all employees would be willing to pay for these services, but some would and the firm could maximize the usage of its resources - they do have downtime and ultimately arranging vacations and other employee services might well be less urgent and easily scheduled within all the diverse activities of the company.

Ok, ok... the business case might not be logic, efficiencies in the company might already be there and all that "non core business" stuff, but why not... sell services that are backoffice in nature, but would indeed become front-office when done internally for personal purposes. Who knows... heck ... it was just a 1 minute walk to the water anyway.

Relaxation

I haven't taken my relaxation moments too seriously lately. Mind you, I haven't worked too much, but on the other hand I don't do much apart from watching DVDs , reading and going out during the day.

Anyway, I've decided to be a bit more proactive. I do go for the cool, swanky vacations in some nice resort on in a while... but have to do something more.

Hey, how about I write more in my blog? That sounds about right.

Success (?)

Ok, so there I am on a Sunday: a World Economic Forum event. Attended a couple of things, got into an interesting conversation with the International Editor of a publication and ultimately felt good about myself and life in general.

Then I stopped... everyone kept going, but I stopped. "What the hell am I doing here? It's a Sunday. I must be the youngest guy here by five years, even ten. Is this it? Is this what success looks like?"

Just some context: I'm 29, but have worked since I was in college at 19 - full-time kind of work, not part-time. Some would say my career is meteoric, fast-track written everywhere. I somewhat don't feel reassured. On the one hand, I feel I lost part of my life... hell, I only got my weekends back at 23 ... 4 years... yes, 4 years of no real weekends. A couple of vacations, yes... but now real weekends while working. On the other hand, I go back to my initial question: "It this what success looks like? What is success?"

Well, at least my definition of success - from what I remember - included some professional success, not too much, not a lot of riches, not a lot of money, not too much glamour... just enough of everything. It did include some white picket fences, well at least a wife or a reasonably "sustainable" girlfriend, some kids maybe - I'm good with kids. Yet, nothing there... professionally meteoric? Not sure, but even if I was, none of the rest. None of the "real life" that I wanted for myself. No real safe harbour. No real home. Just very nice apartments in some exciting cities, nice hotel rooms which are more common than not. Just the life of a so-called successful professional.

So today, while everyone was going around and I had stopped, I thought about the future. What do I want to do next with my life? Professionally I'm ok for now, but my life ... the rest of it... the whole of it? What about that? Is there anything I can do, even if I wanted to?

Not sure. Really not sure. I have more questions than answers and all my pseudo-philosophy of life is really nothing more than a couple of dreams: some vivid, some not.

I feel I need to re-invent myself, do the ultimate transformation, become an agent of change for myself: people say I'm good professionally as an agent of change, for crying out loud I've been doing it for 7 years, so why not for myself?

Yet, I've been here before and the result wasn't too good. Probably the worst time of my life. "You think too much" - people used to tell me and so with time I stopped thinking. I became happier.

Well, therein lies the dilemma: to think or not to think; to change or not to change.

One day a good friend asked me as one normally does: "What do you give the man who has everything?". In a moment of true genius (or I might say so myself) I answered to my own shock: "You give him the ability to appreciate all that he already has". My friend was shocked as well.

That's it: I need to appreciate what I have and stop whining. Is that it? I sure hope it is.

Travel ranking: Flying
Well, I travel too much... actually way too much. Therefore, I decided I'm entitled as anyone else to elect the best airlines I've travelled in. I'll keep it simple and just divide it into First/Business and Economy Plus/Economy. I've also decided to talk about airports.

So here we go:

First/Business
1. Virgin Atlantic (Upper Class) - I thought a lot about who should be on top and ultimately went for the only airline that I really look forward to travelling in. Best lounge I've ever been in at Heathrow with Spa, Hairdresser, Delicatessen counter, Dining area, Games room and everything is very, very cool... courtesy of the SoHo House crowd. The overall service outside the flight is indeed completed by the limo service which is absolutely great and extremely useful. When onboard the product is great: great swanky seats, nice pjs, massage on board, great inflight entertainment (VOD, etc) and last but definitely not the least lovely flight attendants - very nice (unlike the "matron style" British Airways in-flight service), informal yet professional and yes, cute. Overall, and for the London-bound traveller, the price of BA's Business for a clear First class product. It's a shame they don't fly to more places.

2. Singapore Airlines (First and Business) - Ok, they almost came first right? An extremely good product - seat, great inflight entertainment (VOD, fabulous choice of movies) with some of the nicest flight attendants - really professional, beautiful and nice (maybe too nice sometimes). The rest is vintage Singaporean: good service at good rates with extreme efficiency and a smiley face (albeit a bit artificial at times). Not particularly overwhelmed by the quality of the lounges, but then again nothing compares to Virgin's lounges in Heathrow and in New York... ok, ok, BA's Concorde lounge in New York is quite impressive. Well, back to Singapore Airlines... very good, but not the best. Just not sufficiently exciting.

3. British Airways (First and Business) - I hesitated a lot on this one. Really a lot. Cathay is very good, Asiana is surprisingly good and Qantas is cool. BA is the "devil you know". Always very proficient, always good, extremely good product onboard - the inflight entertainment is not that good in Business... in First they sort of make up for it, but the seats really compensate for it - and ok on the ground - the lounges can be some of the best around, which doesn't say much given the current low quality of almost all lounges, and the lack of the limo service as fellow VA provides is indeed a bit embarrassing. Flight attendants are rarely nice, but always professional. All and all, it's still the great BA... very expensive, but the quality is always there... and you always know what you are getting.

Economy/Economy Plus
1. Singapore Airlines - service much brisker than in First or Business, but quite exceptional on everything else - food, inflight entertainment, in-flight service. For me the best in Economy hands down. The only one that doesn't make you feel that you are loser just because you are in the back of the plane.

2. Virgin Atlantic - good service, good in-flight entertainment. Overall, a good experience, just not tremendously special and you do feel strong "Upper Class envy" in the back... maybe because Upper Class is so damn good.

3. Southwest Airlines - if you are going in Economy, go in style. Southwest is just tremendously fun and that's about it. All the rest is low-cost carrier at its best (worst?), but it's fun, fun, fun.

THE BAD (for every class): Not one comes to mind has being totally impossible to travel in, but some are genuinely not very good. The ones that come to mind: Iberia - it's a pet hate... I admit it, but you can have one of two experiences - great or really bad - and that simply doesn't work when you need to choose an airline to travel with; America West - they are now merged with some other airline, but really, really bad... low cost at its worse... only good thing was the Brazilian flight attendant based in Phoenix (long story... 6 hours of flight to be more accurate). Air China - ok, it's not that bad, but the service is so all over the shop... could definitely learn from DrangonAir or even China Eastern;

Airports
1. Singapore International Airport, Singapore - great stores, a lot of nice spaces that actually make you feel alright, hiper-efficient security and immigration; all this makes a great airport. I never hesitate to go through it if it makes sense. The lounges are good: Singapore Airlines lounges are not exceptional, but very good nonetheless; the BA / Qantas lounges are quite exceptional; the Air France, etc, etc lounges are cool... a lesson in how to do something with high quality that is really not that expensive or overwhelming... minimalism at its best. A shame other airports are simply not that good.

2. Kuala Lumpur International Airport, Malaysia - everything is upper-spec - stores, open spaces, it actually makes you feel good. The Malaysia Airlines lounges are great, really great. It is a very efficient place that works really well. Finally, the idea of having an hotel literally in the airport is fantastic. Really enjoy it.

3. Carlsbad Airport, USA - Ok, I'm kidding... it's a shed. If you want to go to the toilet, you have to leave the "airport" and go to the shed next door. Anyway, it's very cool: a VCR (an old one) with videos on and you see the whole ground crew from check-in to security to going on-board... how cool is that. In America, I feel uncomfortable going through airports these days... a clear sign of lost freedom that I believe most people feel over there... a sign of the times we live in. Carlsbad rocks... it is small-time, sub-scale, but works. If I hadn't gone with Carlsbad and had gone with a more "scalable" Airport, it would have been Oslo... absolutely great. Munich would get a special mention for sheer efficiency and for "the airport I have spent most time in, where I've had my best on the ground and my worst on the ground experiences - summer 2005 rings a bell? - I would have to go with Heathrow, the airport I love to hate.

THE BAD: Bangalore airport... it's chaos, absolute chaos. Avoid it if you can; Atlanta - big, big and awful experiences. Difficult to leave from... but strangely enough, difficult to arrive at as well; Mumbai also comes to mind.

SAMPLE AIRLINES: Air France, Sabena, Swiss, TAP Air Portugal, Iberia, Czech Airlines, British Airways, Singapore Airlines, Aer Lingus, Virgin Atlantic, Delta Airlines, America West, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines, Malaysia Airlines, Continental Airlines, American Airlines, PGA Portugalia, SAS, Lufthansa, Asiana Airlines, Air China, China Eastern Airlines, DragonAir, Cathay Pacific, ANA, Qantas, Finnair, Air Volare, Alitalia, El Al, BMI, TWA (now extinct).

SAMPLE AIRPORTS: Lisbon, Porto, Bonn, Dusseldorf, Frankfurt, Munich, Barcelona, Ibiza, Madrid, Palma Mallorca, Paris Charles de Gaulle, Paris Orly, Dubai, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Beijing, Shanghai PuDong, Hong Kong, Manila, Denpasar-Bali, Rome, Venice, Stockholm, Oslo, Helsinki, Prague, Zurich, London Heathrow, London Gatwick, Copenhagen, Newark, New York La Guardia, New York JFK, LAX, San Francisco, Chicago, New Orleans, Seattle, San Diego, Carlsbad, San Jose, Tokyo Narita, Seoul, Atlanta, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Lima, Tel Aviv, Antigua, Barbados, Bangkok, Mumbai, Bangalore, Cape Town, Dublin, Miami.

She

When I last saw you, you were getting out of the car in London. I was on my way to the airport, indeed to my new life. That seemed... it, but it really wasn't.

Our relationship - or rather lack of it - is the most mysterious I've ever had. I simply don't get it. Why did I like you so much... better yet, why do I miss you so much?

You are undoubtedly comparable to a cat - sometimes very close, sometimes so, so distant.

I remember vividly what you were wearing when I last saw you: jeans, denim jacket, tennis shoes... the cool casual look. Gorgeous as always. You still don't believe me when I tell you are incredibly cute, do you?

I remember your intrinsic beauty - the one you might feel you don't have... but believe me you do - but I also remember something else: the last two times we met, I felt that you were abandoning yourself in me more... not totally, but more. Was it because I was leaving or was it because that was where our pseudo-relationship was taking us?

Probably, I will never know.

A real huge kiss from far, far away and... I do miss you!

Sometimes...

Sometimes, just sometimes... I wish I was a bit less self-centered. On the one hand, it helps me cope with life, keep a happy spirit and move on, but it has really made me reasonably insensitive to whatever happens around me.

Not sure I really want to write more on this post... sorry for that.

Note: I thought about posting this a long time ago and always hesitated - finally did on Sep 14th. Don't really know why it took me so long. As for my "hopeful" wish, let's just say it didn't materialize ... and that's actually good, since I've dramatically changed my opinion on the "cool, distant girl"... Wait a sec, I think I actually like her.

The hours that did follow

Well, well… you’ve come a long way mate.

Two girls: one sexy from here to kingdom come, moving like there was no tomorrow, distant… but sexy distant… most probably following the "cool, yet distant" standard; the other girl… prissy, cute … Christian… wow.

Who do you go for?

Well, I have to say the day started with me going for the former, but something happened. I changed my mind somehow when I started talking to the second girl. She just… made me feel better.

I had one of those strange moments where everything stood still, like nothing was around us. This happened in the middle of a club with loud music that made our conversation oh so much more difficult! Yet, it was all so still. My heart went at its normal speed as if I got immersed in a feeling of re-assurance, of … belonging. That was it: I belonged there … in that moment… with that person. I don’t know, maybe I saw too much into that moment, into that conversation. It has happened before after all… but what if this time it’s different?

I sure hope so.

The hours that did not follow

We met at 3 pm or around that time anyway… Little was I to know that at 6 pm I would not be back at the hotel, but having drinks with her at some half-built club in the middle of town.

In the middle of high-rising buildings and next to a lovely green park, I looked at her. That’s when I finally got it. I was in love… maybe love is not a good word… maybe some sort of word with passion in it would have described it better. It was also when I realised she did have someone already… he was not there, but it was as if he was. She wasn’t too clear about him… about their relationship. There was definitely some tension when she talked about him… was it an open door for me? Was it me just wanting it to be an open door? Probably I will never know.

Between the drinks, her friends (and her boyfriend’s friends), I got some time alone with her. I hesitated for a second, but looking into her eyes, I just lost all self-control. “How about dinner? Do you want to have dinner?”. I stopped. Surely I had gone too far. “Yes, I just need to go home first. Is that ok?”

After a couple of comments on dancing, I asked her “Do you want to dance… or do you want to go for dinner?”. “Dinner” – she answered.

There was I, in a cab with her… I tried to avoid looking, but somehow couldn’t. We ended up in this really nice restaurant… I was almost kneeling… how ironic. Her conversation with a child that was next to us was so amazing that for a while I must have lost track of where I was, which country I was in.

“Shall we go to this bar right next door?” The answer was obvious… I will never forget the number that got us in… 57. She laughed… I looked a fool… long story.

The light of candles illuminated her face like I hadn’t seen it before. It gave it a sense of beauty that was surely different. I had lost it totally. I think she noticed, but just continued being herself and that made it worse, so much worse.

On the way out to get a cab, she asked me again if I wanted to go out somewhere and today I’m sure my answer was wrong… later on at my hotel, I looked at the night outside and thought “How dumb can one be?”.

I am not sure things would have been different, but at least I could have tried to hold her. I could have tried to dance with her… a couple more minutes or hours… I wouldn’t have finished the evening by just saying “Tell you boyfriend he is a lucky bastard. And I am very precise about those two words.”

I could have told her other things: that I hadn’t felt like that for a long time; that she was so special that every other decision in my life at that stage would just have to wait for her “say so”.

How do you tell a girl that you love her on the exact same day you have met her? Do you wait for midnight so it’s a new day? Do you hold it off altogether?

Why aren’t things simpler and more direct? Why don’t people just fall in love and understand that they are supposed to spend the rest of their lives together?

I can’t help but laugh. There is something definitely weird about me and the way I relate to the world. The relationships I have had in the last few years seem to happen because I don’t worry too much… when I do seem to worry, things never work out.

Well, therein lies the answer.

Lost, just lost, but I would have told her so many things… maybe this was for the best… maybe this way I still have a chance… maybe I just need to get some distance.

Again, clueless… I should just stop wondering and getting on with… that thing… life?!

Yeah, that sounds about right. Just get on with it.

Bday

It's my birthday... I just thought I would share that.

"You are so beautiful"

"You are so beautiful ... and I love you. I just don't like you any more."

This is a phrase from one of my current favourite TV series. It illustrates something I feel more and more: the disillusionment with women that I meet.

I have realised that I get most attracted to women with the following three characteristics:
- They are beautiful... some of them even gorgeous.
- They are intelligent... very sharp.
- They are real... let's just say... they are not very nice or better yet they like "playing games".

The problem is not with these women, but with me. Why do I get attracted to them? Why don't I get attracted to women that are actually nice... nice people?

Not sure. One might think it was masochism or just low self-esteem. I don't think it's either. My self-esteem is doing reasonably well and I don't think masochism is my thing.

Last night I went out with a friend and every time I go out with this guy, I know I will drink too much and by some strange reason end up meeting reasonably strange girls. It probably has to do with the clubs or house parties for that matter that we end up going to.

This was no different. Same old, same old... mind you, it was a good evening - I even got a special mixed CD from my favourite R&B and Hip-Hop DJ (long story) - the problem is that I miss something. I miss being genuinely surprised... getting enchanted by some girl... surprising myself in the process... surprising myself because I'm not attracted to the same old things.

Anyway, not a lot of closure on this post... sorry for that. Hopefully I'll get there some other day.

"So... do you have a girlfriend?"

"So... do you have a girlfriend?"
"No, not at this moment."
"Well, then I will have to take care of that. I will get you a nice girl."
I laughed.
"Why are you laughing?"
"Well, knowing your track-record, I am just worried that you will actually achieve it."

Taken out of context, this conversation that took place somewhere in Asia might actually be interpreted as something very very different. It was actually a nice conversation with a very nice lady that I have had the chance to work with in the last few years.

The thing is that it made me think of where I'm headed. I have become successful at a tender age (or at least I like to think so) and the real challenges ahead - in the short-term at least - look to be of a personal nature, not really professional.

Life is going well in general, but we can always have the discussion around women. What if I'm not really intended to find the woman of my life in the next few years... what if (worst-case scenario) I will never find the right one?

I guess I have just learned one very important thing about myself: I have changed so much I barely recognise the things that used to be fundamental... the things I used to live for. Is that bad?

No idea. I guess I will just have to figure it out as I go along.

The Reply

I've been waiting for this reply for the past week. Nothing... not an email... nothing. It's quite strange, because all my personal life (or almost all of it) seems to have been put on hold.

Of course it's an email from a girl... a woman, rather. What else could it be?

Still, I'm waiting... patiently... desperately.

I don't know how much longer I'll wait. I just know I'll have to state a deadline... something. I can't just be on hold for weeks and weeks, can I?

Maybe I can... maybe I don't want to... or maybe I do.

I'll just have to find out... won't I?

Copenhagen

There is such a thing as "love at first sight"... well, not really love, but "passion at first sight". It happens with girls, special icons and with cities... My experience in Copenhagen was exactly that. After Sweden, Finland and Norway, this was the Scandinavian country I was missing... and it was truly an exceptional experience.

First of all, I was lucky enough to choose a cool hotel, the Skt. Petri. After talking to the incredibly nice concierge/receptionist at the hotel, I was told there were 2 or 3 clubs that were quite hip in Copenhagen and I ended up going to one of them: Nasa. She was kind enough to put me on the guest list and the experience was quite good: lovely space, beautiful women and very good hip-hop music. The DJ could have been better, but nothing is perfect.

The concierge also told me that, strangely enough, one of the coolest bars in town was actually the "Bar Rouge" at the hotel. I thought it was "please spend some more money with us" propaganda, but she was totally right. What a place! Cool music (very good DJ), incredible bar staff in terms of cocktails and service and the women... well, the women were... how can I put it? ... exceptional.

At this stage one would ask: Why is this guy so obsessed with women? Well, first I'm heterosexual and at the moment I'm single, so that would be a good enough reason, but it's more than that: I have this strong belief that women are the single most exceptional work of art that we men have been given the possibility to see here on Earth. That's probably why I prefer cool bars to museums, women to statues or paintings. When you have the real thing, why would you go for a copy.

Well, I have to admit it, I like quite a lot of paintings and sculptures, but I'm just trying to make a point here.

"And the point is?"

The point is that by some wish of God, Denmark has been blessed with some of the most beautiful women in the world. Next to the Czech Republic and Slovakia, probably the most beautiful in Europe (on an average basis of course :-) ). Why? We will never know... but for a strange tourist like me, definitely well worth another visit.

The art of seduction

I have been reading this book for a few years now (yes, years) called the "Art of Seduction", it's mostly and historical characterization of different types of seducers and although I love the book, I have never been able to finish it.

The book defines nine types of seducers: the siren, the ideal lover, etc. After having read the beginning now two times, I believe I'm sort of a natural, ie, a child-like seducer. At least, I would like to think so... :-) Strangely enough, the book just reminds me of how typified our whole society has been come. Let me explain: we all believe there are seducers and "losers". We all believe there are leaders and followers. We all believe that someone has to win and someone has to lose.

What if it was all wrong? What if it was all much more grey than we think?

"But it is" - you would tell me. I would agree and would even say most people would agree with both of us, but we seem to forget it when we create these images of people. When we revere the front cover of Fortune or Time. When we believe in heroes.

We seem to look at other people forgetting the basis on which we live our own life. It is never too happy or too sad. Never too perfect or too imperfect. So why should Bill Gates' life (just an example) be clearer than ours? Why should he not abide by the laws that bound us all to our "normal" lives?

I would dare say that no matter how rich, how heroic someone has been, he has to face the "gravity" of every-day life (on his/her terms) or has several people have once written: "Gravity always wins".

Girls / Women

Well, I give up. I have had extraordinary advise from men and women alike and still don't get it. How does one show interest in a girl?

"You have to show interest, but not too much." or "You shouldn't show any initial interest. Just keep a distance and then go for it." or "You should show total commitment to the girl"...

Guys (and gals), your advice sucks. It doesn't make any sense. You guys (and gals) contradict each other all the time and I am guessing you are not doing it on purpose, so why doesn't it make sense?

Well, I believe - and this is theoretical, so please don't mind me - that your advice is based on specific situations of your own lives. The way you met your girlfriend / boyfriend, etc.

The thing is - and I know this will come as shock - people are different. I am different, most of the girls I get interested in are different (or at least they seem to be) and then you go into the "I'm not really sure method 3 will work. Nor method 1 or 2..." Real life demands real situations, real reactions and I will continue my (with low success) approach to relations... a ad-hoc one... one "made to measure"... typically shocking, most of the times very different, but at least MY approach.

I do hope you will stay as my friends after this ;-)

Hantuchova

Ok, I am a tennis fan. And as most male tennis fans, female tennis transcends the ability to play tennis... yes, I love watching it at times because it's played by women for crying out loud. Some pretty beautiful, others not really. I believe Daniela Hantuchova is the most beautiful of them all these days (in my honest opinion). Long gone are the days of Sabatini ... and I have to say I am one of those "I don't get why Kournikova was such a big deal" kind of guy.

Hantuchova is more interesting than the typical tennis player for several reasons:
- She is extremely beautiful.
- She is technically, one of the best tennis players around with strong all round game and incredible groundstrokes.
- She has problems... some of them strangely public, like her potential anorexic issues and her lack of mental grounding to just become one of the top 5 in the world on an ongoing basis.

Maybe this will seem a bad comparison, and I do apologise to Daniela if I'm not being fair with this, but she illustrates the mess in which we live today. The mess of having a beautiful, talented professional, who has indeed become a star, but cannot live within the boundaries defined by modern life society.

If one does exceptionally well, one is expected to do even better... if one is beautiful, one is expected to become even more beautiful. Indeed, we are becoming Lemmings... following each other without any sense of direction or belief. The strange question I have is: who are they (we?) following? Who are the leaders? Are they as clueless as the followers? If they are, everyone's in big trouble.

So... and just to finish this: Daniela, you are fabulous, you look great, you play incredibly well... just relax and enjoy life and tennis. I am pretty sure you will "kick some butt" along the way, but more important, you'll enjoy yourself (or seem to enjoy yourself) much more.

Travelling

I have now travelled to 30 countries (this is my 30th) in my life and to 10 new ones since I joined the company I have been working for in the last two years.

I know the difference between Economy classes (for short-haul flights) of some airlines and even better the differences between the Business classes (for long-haul flights) of many more. I know a lot of lounges, way too well some Airports in Europe and this is scary. Why?

I feel I've lost some sense of grounding and home... If home is where I spend most of my time (although not too much or indeed many weekends these days) it would be London... if it were to be where my incredible family and my great friends are, it would be Lisbon... if it were to be where my Heart is... well, let's just say my Heart is somewhere between two cities... maybe on an airplane somewhere (and no... it has nothing to do with air-hostesses) just trying to decided where to be.