MIND OVER MATTER, SWIMMING AND FUNDING HEALTHY ACTIVITIES...

London has been extremely cold during the past few weeks. Sometimes the weather bites like a hyena’s teeth wading through your bones. Part of the upsurge of this abnormal ice cold madness is the winds. It is no surprise hearing a tornado swept through Kigali, Rwanda a few days ago. Our earth has freaky weather moods.  TV climate experts said gales drifting from the Arctic Circle, Iceland and Siberia brought this very cold London spell.

Tanzanian mountain climber, Wilfred Moshi was the third African to conquer the tough gruelling Mount Everest in May 2012. A perfect  example of mind winning over matter. Pic courtesy of Wilfred Moshi Blog....

 Many years ago I was walking through a chilly, snow filled Copenhagen after a late night gig.  I passed through Istedgade, an interesting part of the city. Nowadays Istedgade is slightly different. I saw a group of men chattering and drinking.  They did not look Danish.

Istedgade. 

Pic courtsey of Panoramio...

A few days later I strolled through the same area with a Tanzanian friend who was living in Copenhagen for a long time.

“Who are those people?” I wondered.

“Eskimos,” he said quietly.

IS MR MICHELIN REALLY PUSHING A PRAM AND WHY?

So... what is Michelin?

 Michelin is one of the most known tyre brands launched in France towards the end of the 19^th century. According to Wikipedia, Michelin’s revenue was worth 17.89 billion Euros three years ago. Alongside Bridgestone (created in Japan in 1931) the two are the biggest manufacturers of this commodity in the world.

I have always found the image of Michelin funny. A tough smiling guy with rubbery valleys of muscles.  For the business and advertising student a remarkable lesson to humorous branding. No wonder Michelin tyres have been around since 1888. 

So... I was in the Gym and saw this chap who reminds me of Mr Michelin. There are all sorts of body builders. Some aim to be like legendary Arnold Schwarzenegger (pictured), winner of numerous international trophies including Mr Olympia in the 1970’s.

 By the way it is not true he was just muscles and no brains. Otherwise how would Mr Schwarzenegger become such a highly paid Hollywood actor and eventual Governor of California? And how would he win votes with a foreign accent (Austrian- German) in the USA? You tell me.

 Lifting weights and taking whatever stuff that accentuates and builds muscles, is therefore, just one side of the coin. Majority bodybuilders want to feel and look good. Looking good means thinking clever, as we shall see.  Let us agree to call him Josephat.

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LONDON 2012 OLYMPICS BUILD UP MEANS A LOT OF THINGS

It is not only animals who are normally on heat. 

Trees too. No, that is a joke.

Cars. Yes, that is true. Cars and machines heat up. And so do big towns.   Since 2005 when London was chosen to host 2012 Olympic Games – the fourth largest city in the world has been on fire. Just a day after the announcement was made in Singapore, terrorists struck London with suicide bombers that left 52 dead. That was July 7^th, 2005. 

The would be suicide bombers caught on police cameras, moments before causing their brutal carnage. Pic courtesy of Martin Frost. Ws

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WHY ARE HEART ATTACKS KILLING YOUNG PEOPLE SO MUCH TODAY?

 Sport is one of the best expressions of human capacity and failings. Or like famous Greek philosopher, Plato (above)  once wrote: “You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.”

Last weekend Italian footballer, Piermario Morosini (pictured below) collapsed on the pitch and died. 

Praised by his team mates at Livorno club, Morosini was a remarkable athlete. Although he was orphaned at 17 (plus a disabled brother who committed suicide) the mid-fielder had a “burning zeal” to succeed. Aged only 25, both parents dead plus two disabled siblings to take care of? That is a lot of stress. 25 years is, however, too early for death; there is a tendency for younger people- especially males to experience heart attacks in our times. <--more--!>