okay... so this entry is a bit of a sequel to the March 07 entry titled "characters of my new york". I just wanted to quickly mention two guys who totally made my day.
So every morning I get out of the subway station at chambers street which is right next to Wall street and the downtown Path station. For those of you who aren't familiar with NY the Path is the train which brings people between New Jersey and Manhattan. As you can imagine during rush hour its packed. So each morning I walk through thousands of people with their head down and with little patience because of the crush of people. For the last few months, in the middle of this has stood one guy handing out fliers. Ordinarily this would cause most New Yorkers to tell him where to stick his fliers but this guy has charm. His priority seems to be to say in his most infectious, joyful voice, GOOOOOD MORNING to each passer by. I've walked past him some mornings and he hasn't been actively handing out his fliers, despite them being in his hands. He seems just genuinely happy, and enjoying wishing everyone a good morning. Its really an incredible experience each morning watching everyone receive their joyful good morning message from him, and then visibly change and seem more happy and excited (and perhaps a little bewildered). Anyway, that guy makes my morning.
The second guy is a homeless guy who stands out the front of the convenience store near my apartment. Rather than begging he acts as a door man, opening the door to the convenience store for customers, wishing them a good afternoon, and politely saying if they have any small change on the way out he'd appreciate it. If not, then don't worry. When I first met this guys I was sceptical, it seemed like a very good idea to get people who obviously would have change to give him some. But he's always extraordinarily polite, and has friendly nicknames for all his regulars. Today he made my afternoon. Its friday, I went to pick up a six pack, and on the way in he was having a flamboyant discussion with a customer. Apparently, he'd watched McCain and Obama's nomination acceptance speeches on TV at his shelter, and was having an enjoyable (and intelligent and well supported) discussion on the election, the economy, and US foreign policy. Watching this was incredible, he seemed so chuffed with himself that his excitement rubbed of on me. Totally made my afternoon..
anyway.. only in new york.
Mykonos was where I remember spending a significant family holiday as a child, and its changed a fair bit since then. More nightclubs and backbackers, but that didn't seem to diminish its magic. The weather was perfect, our accomodation ( 
Following a week relaxing in Mykonos we caught the ferry to the island of Santorini (via the island of Naxos). Santorini was also an increadible experience. The island is a crescent shape surounding clear blue water and a small, active volcano. The apartment we chose was an ancient tradional villa built into the cliffside. The photo below is steph sitting on our porch enjoying the view while drinking a wonderful bottle of Beaujolais (thank you Mr. & Mrs. Smith).
Okay... it's been a while. To summarise, ... anniversary ... rugby... bike riding... camping...
The final night of the conference was a black tie awards dinner, where American Express awarded its highest performers (not me). I wore a real bow tie (i.e not a clip on), and I tied it myself. Totally James Bond (ish). The photo below is myself and my boss Carl Rae, with Leslie and Margeax two NY sales managers who were seated at our table.
On the second day of our visit we ventured out of dubai to a desert resort called "Bab Al Shams". Where we rode camels, ate indian food, and enjoyed the sun.
