Another day… Another country.

Yesterday, I woke up and looked out of the window to see… Praha (or Prague, as we tend to know it).

Not a very nice view of a city I’m so fond of, I have to say. Prague is where my wife and I met for the very first time. In fact, this is the very first picture I ever took of Tatiana.

Not a particularly flattering shot, really. Although it did capture the atmosphere of the old town quite well. But it’s an important shot for me. Because, the truth of the matter is, I had no idea when I took it, that less than 48 hours later I’d be back on the Charles Bridge, ring in hand, proposing to her.

Of course, my wife tries not to think about it too much. She’s been kicking herself for the past eight years because her mind went blank at the very moment I proposed. She couldn’t remember the English word for ‘nyet’ and said yes by mistake.

Sorry babe… those are the breaks!

Hehe! Actually, we went back last year and had a little reminisce (and a lot of Dom Perignon).

A beautiful place… Wonder where I’ll wake up tomorrow?

A big SEO “top o’ the mornin’ to ya.”

Yes, this weekend we Irish types celebrate St Patrick’s day. And Wednesday of next week I’ll be heading back to Mother Ireland to team up with Danny Sullivan, Chris Sherman and a whole host of search marketers for SearchMarketingWorld live in Dublin.

What else can I say, other than… Mine’s a Guinness 🙂

Damn, bugger and blast!

I don’t believe it! Another speeding ticket. Is my head full of rocks or something? Did I learn absolutely nothing, last time? And to make it worse, this time I shot a red light too.

I’m beginning to think I spend so much time flying – the only speed I know is jet speed!

There goes 60 quid and three points on my licence.

And who’s fault is it? Yeah, dumb-ass, here.

Munich? Copenhagen? Amsterdam?

This whirlwind European tour that has Thomas Bindl and I whizzing around the place can make life a little confusing.

At the beginning of the week we met in Copenhagen (Glostrup, to be precise). We were moving so quickly there wasn’t even time to call my pal Mikkel deMib Svendsen for a swift beer.

Mid afternoon, Monday, we hurtled towards the airport to try and grab an earlier flight to Vienna. We made it. And not a single glass of wine was spilled on Thomas. The fact that he’s started sitting two rows behind me now helps a lot 🙂

When we went to reclaim our cases, we almost separated again. There were flights from Munich, Amsterdam and Copenhagen all arriving at the same time. And we were both pausing to think which one we had just arrived from!

It was evening when we checked into our hotel in downtown Vienna and I was very tired. I had a snack in my room and then hit the hay as there was a very early start the next day.

At about six a.m. I was awoken by the echoing, clanging and banging of what sounded like a construction site in my bathroom.

When I checked in, I didn’t bother opening the curtains. But when I did, expecting to see the beautiful city that is Vienna… this is what I saw…

And looking down below me, sure enough, there was my own personal building site!

And so, as I cast my view to the horizon to take get a glimpse of the real beauty of Vienna… I spotted another crane!

Fortunately, I’ve been to Vienna before. But my wife hasn’t so I’ll be back again soon. Think I’ll wait until the construction work is finished though.

Czech Republic and Poland next…

Snow business like SEO business…

Been working with my buddy Thomas Bindl over the past few weeks. We’re working together on a large European project. We spent most of last week in Amsterdam and then moved on to Helsinki, Finland.

We’ve not had much snow in the UK this year. So it was nice to see the crisp white covering over the Finnish countryside. And no shortage of it downtown, either.

Unfortunately, Thomas got a covering of an entirely different colour on the plane from Amsterdam to Helsinki. I was working on my laptop and moved it just slightly on the table… just enough to knock a glass of red wine all over Thomas’ jacket and my own trousers.

Yes, there was the usual panic wiping down the laptop with anything to hand before anything else. Of course, as anyone who knows Thomas will be aware, he doesn’t wear bargain buys. Only designer labels for him. So, one suit jacket duly ruined. And one pair of suit trousers (mine) duly ruined.

As you can imagine, the presentation to our Finnish partners was very much a casual event 🙂

I really must say thanks to Thomas for a) not freaking out with me for ruining his suit and b) paying no attention to his jacket until he was assured that my laptop was safe. Now there’s a friend for you.

And just look at the snow in the airport for our return flights. Brrrrr…

Copenhagen and Vienna next.

My dearest friend, Ed Harwood.

February is a bad month for me. Since my buddy Ed Harwood was killed on his motorcycle a few years ago, and the fact that we shared our birthday to the minute (him being the oldest 🙂 it sends me a bit nuts because he’s not around.

In a bit of a less sober moment, I tried to post something that I’d found out of the blue. An old cassette, when it was my birthday a week or so back. And then I spent so much time trying to delete it!

Anyway, I’ll post it now.

Back in the day, when radio ran on steam, I asked Ed if he’d pretend to be a listener to one of my radio programmes so that I could get an (as live) promo (in-house advert) for my Sunday program recorded (as I’d forgotten to make it).

We started just after we came back from the pub (it was an afterthought) and thought it would take about 15 minutes… And we used cartridges for jingles and vinyl for music… Imagine!

The following day, the commercial producer found the remnant of our little drunken effort and made this tape (warning! This contains very, very strong language. Even if you are a friend, please don’t listen if you’re offended by bad language. Please, please.This is why I had to think twice about posting it. I am Irish, y’know! And before you ask… It’s 1982)

Frank from Blaydon!

A new model SEM firm…

Today, I sold my share of McKenna-Direct back to my great buddy, Paul McKenna. It’s been a funny old time with us both being so busy that the online business was just a background thing. However, I’m paid handsomely, McKenna-Direct has a huge affiliate program now (try it, now that the downloads are going to be there for international orders).

And why I did I sell… ? Was I hypnotized? No, now that I’ve started a new company, with a huge international client in there, I just don’t have the time to do “private stuff” anymore.

I love Paul, he and I have been great friends for over 25 years now. Nothing changes there. But I need the working capital to cover the four new hires (amongst everything else) that I have to take on.

All of a sudden, life seems a little less dull than just going from airport-to-airport without knowing the final outcome!!!

I swore I’d never start a new company… But, y’know what? It’s pretty exciting!

Eight years on…

So, it’s eight years since my wife and I were married on the seafront at Larnica, Cyprus. How we haven’t killed each other by now, I’ll never know.

We just couldn’t be more different!

However, I love her dearly, she may be difficult at times, but anybody who can put up with me for eight years deserves a medal or some kind of humanitarian recognition.

I decided that, even though eight years is no special deal at all for a wedding anniversary, at least she should be rewarded for me leaving her on her own for more than 20 weeks last year. Not that she complained that much. But that’s probably because she had to spend so much time with the landscape gardener out in the back. Must be the case, because the phone was so rarely answered when I rang home…

So, I came up with a wonderful idea. I’d take her to London with me as I had to attend a special round table event with my buddy Jim Sterne. And then as a special treat, take her to a west end show. But not just any show… Oh no.

The round table event was last Thursday (the day of our anniversary) but we agreed that we’d have the official anniversary celebration on the Friday. She was happy with that, but was wracking her brains trying to imagine where I was taking her.

Anyway, as a quick aside, she and I traditionally go to a Greek restaurant for our anniversary (being married in Cyprus, and all) but they’ve closed our favourite place down (not the we helped keep it open only going there once a year!).

So, this year I had to come up with something new. Well… I know a little Russian place in London which is just so, so cool. And we’d never been together. Believe me this is the real deal (my wife would spot a fake restaurant a mile away). So, I booked us a table and we drank *real* Russian vodka and ate *real* Russian food. The vodka helped me to build up to the next surprise I had for Tatjana.

I explained to her that with it being our anniversary and knowing what was expected of me, I had responded to an email I received. I told her that the email promised that the product could add a full, three extra inches to my manhood. That’ll excite her, I thought…

Somehow, can’t think why, the thought of a four inch penis still seemed to be very amusing to her…

As a build up to our big Friday night out, I took Tatjana to The British Museum, as a culture-vulture she loves looking at old things (could be the reason she married me, actually!).

We were looking at the bust below and she looked at me and said: Michael, who is that? But I swear… she said it like it was maybe some guy I used to hang out with!

The British Museum is a wonderful place conjuring visions form the very distant past…

In the so contrasting environment of its new, 2000 updated image…

So, what about the west end show? Well, you guys in the States won’t know anything about this, as you were never inflicted by the most fatuous Euro-Disco band of all time, known as Boney M. However, in Europe/UK they were big. But In Russia… They were enormous. Totally huge!

And in London, they’re doing a Abba, Mama Mia type show featuring the hits of Boney M. And it’s named after their first hit: Daddy Cool.

So, purely for my wife whom I love so much, I prepared myself for a night of trite music pap, the type of which makes me head for the toilet bowl.

It was… FANTASTIC! One of the most feel good shows I’ve seen in the west end for years. Seriously, even though the lyrics are about as meaningful as the cat sat on the mat and some of the tunes are pure kindergarten, it is a great show. Absolute escapism. Try it!

And then… I decided to treat myself and take my wife to one of my favourite eateries in London, the Brasserie in the very posh Covent Garden Hotel. Now wait for this… Having spent two hours listening to Boney M… I went to the bar at the brasserie and bumped into former Sex Pistols manager, Malcolm McClaren whom I’d not seen for many a long year.

All in all… a great anniversary weekend. Thanks T – you’re very special. And here’s my favourite picture that I took of you in 2006 – it was your birthday, and what a session that was 🙂 XXX

I launched my new brand today.

Let me be the… last, to wish you happy new year!

Sorry, my new year best wishes are very late. How was your new year celebration? Mine was not good at all.

First of all, I was heading back to Mother Russia, as I did last year. But… yes, there’s always that BUT! I hadn’t noticed that my Russian visa had expired and I had no time at all to renew it.

So, not wishing to let my wife down, I booked the best room I could get on Princes Street, Edinburgh (pure fluke that I got it) for the biggest New year Party of all, the Edinburgh Hogmanay. That should be good, I thought. Two hundred thousand people singing Auld Lang Syne at midnight, bagpipes, fireworks and my favourite sound: champagne corks popping!

The room I got had a spectacular view of the gorge and the castle.

If you want to know what’s going on in the spherical thing below, I’ll show you soon.

The fact that, when I arrived in Edinburgh, I realized (told by a 12 year old when I was at the traffic lights) I had flat rear tyre, and that I drove around the city for 90 minutes before finding a parking space in the Omni Centre, was not a good sign.

Having paid an extortionate extra fee for a room with a view over the gorge and of the castle, I realized exactly what I’d done wrong. Come 4.30 am with people still arriving into the hotel and Princes Street full of pissed people and Hot Dog stands getting in place… I’d have paid a fortune just to get a back-room in the place!

So, come new years eve, Princes Street, perhaps one of the busiest high streets in the UK is empty!

However, the sound stage is looking good. And I’m looking forward to former Geordie school chum of mine, Neil Tenant of the Pet Shop Boys belting it out in the evening (The Fratellis are also playing, so I’m now, very excited!).

And what was going on in the spherical thing?

Kids, bouncing up and down to the ceiling. That’s what!

I LOVE this place. Edinburgh is only a two hour drive from my home and it is beautiful, beautiful, beautiful!

New Years eve, my wife and I dressed in our finest and went to eat in Edinburgh’s finest. The last time my wife and I were at No 3 Royal Terrace, Edinburgh I was with my great friend Ralph Tegtmeir and his business partner, Dirk. And what a laid back, relaxing time we had.

This time, my wife picked an argument with me. A whole load of shit happened. And when we got to Princes Street from the restaurant, we were told that the celebrations were cancelled!

My wife and I went to the hotel bar where the argument over… whatever it was, I can’t remember now, only got worse and I threatened to throw my wife out of the window if she didn’t shut the fuck up.

I then had a sudden instant reminder that she is a Russian adversary that I’d rather not encounter too often, physically, verbally or otherwise.

Testicles are precious. You only get two to last you a lifetime.

By now, my limp is hardly noticeable.

All the best for 2007, dear friends.