I was on the radio.

Note to self:

Sociedad is not a city is Spain - but it does means “society”* in Spanish

The UK has 60m people, not 80m (this one I realised at the time was a gaff, but being a pro…)

*That’ll teach me to base my geography on my knowledge of continental football, Real Sociedad is a club in San Sebastián.

The blooper CD of all my media appearances will be in stores by Christmas.

I was in the market for a new voice-recording tool - a Dictaphone or whatever. My ageing Sony micro-cassette recorder is over the hill and was making me look a bit old hat in client interviews. I always need a reliable and clear record of interviews, so that I can go back over the chat when I’m writing the copy.

I started looking at flash-memory options from Sony and Olympus and - having been rather put off by their price - began wondering about recording tools for my 30GB iPod. I knew I had heard add-ons were available, and having looked at a few reviews online, I plucked for the MicroMemo from XtremeMac - which also has a built in microphone. I managed to find one for £30 (inc VAT).

Just had a play and I’m delighted. The definition is fantastic and it really couldn’t be easier to use. It also syncs brilliantly with iTunes, which means I can catalogue and save my audios easily. I’ll report back if I have any complications after some serious use.

Monkey King tea, sourced from the Hunan Province in South-Eastern China, is the oldest known scented tea. Scented with jasmine blossoms, when it’s brewed it emits a heavy fragrance and its colour has a deep dark orange hue. Almost as if it has been collected from a rusty barrel.

In its dry state, however, the tea is dark green with occasional remains of the blossoms. The scent is fresh and flowery.

The heaviness of this ancient tea doesn’t really transfer to the flavour. It’s surprisingly light and relaxing. In fact it’s an excellent tea. Try drinking on a rainy Sunday afternoon (like this one), with a good film, and just maybe, a warm blanket.

I have still not decided on the header image. I quite like the photoshopped image above (it’s Tallinn, Estonia BTW), but I think something more work related - maybe a laptop or book, would be more suitable for a professional site. Ideas welcome.

I’m totally bogged down with work at the moment. The book is taking all my time and energy, so my political blog is at a near-standstill (it’s silly-season, no-one will notice). Tomorrow the Mrs. will be going to Tallinn for 6-weeks, so I’ll have plenty of time to thrust myself into my work and get things finished.

If the book does well, I’ll definitely be treating myself to a new laptop in the new year.

…a wall hanging I can appreciate.

Having previously worked in finance (I was an accountant) I’m always asked to handle the finances on each project. This is fine by me. I know what I’m doing. But having turned professional as a writer, it’s amazing how quickly you lose track of the bookkeeping and have to spend a whole day producing invoices, writing reminders, and updating your computerised records.

You see? Even someone who has worked in finance for years finds the books a nuisance…

Just a quick note to say hello and introduce the blog element of this site.

You have probably found this site via my main blog, tygerland.net, so you’re probably expecting more of the same; this probably will not be the case. Content Sq. is my personal webspace and will be an experimental area for me to try out new ideas and techniques.

As those who know me will know, I work in marketing and business development (mainly as a copywriter), so I’m often toying with possible technologies and mediums that may help businesses communicate with their respective markets. I’m also interested in online networking, and I’m currently working on a soon-to-announced project in this field.

I expect this blog to be an irregular journal of my experiences with new media and technology.

Hiring details and my Résumé will be posted in due course.