Analects …

a collection of short literary or philosophical extracts

Not all ideas fit neatly into the pages of a book. When I see, hear or read something that moves me—a news story, a snippet of conversation, a musical phrase, a storyline or cityscape—I capture the thoughts it provokes by jotting them down. From art and sports—whether Wimbledon or the World Cup—to politics, love and war, all topics have the potential to spark my imagination.

 

Cherish Your Failures

Cherish Your Failures

Years ago, I attended a meeting held by The Forum Group. Their pitch was directed at those dissatisfied with their lives. For $600, you were promised a course that would turn your life around. The...

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Pudong

Pudong

“Where are we?” Laura asked. “I don’t know,” I answered in bewilderment. “But you booked the trip, remember? Our hotel was supposed to be overlooking the Bund and the Oriental Pearl Tower.” “Well, I...

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The Art of Passing an Interview

The Art of Passing an Interview

Calgary was booming. Collins Barrow, Accountants were desperately short of team leaders. Being of British heritage, the firm decided to recruit from England. They handed the task over to Pat...

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Touring GIB

Touring GIB

The Rock Hotel balanced itself precariously on its perch halfway up a hill, on Europa Road, as narrow as an alleyway. Its squat, sparkling-white structure sprawled across the hillside exuding an...

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2 Essential Lessons in Life

2 Essential Lessons in Life

The 2 essential lessons I’ve learned in life (and please don’t tell my wife) are: You cannot be an accountant if you can’t add. The difficulty of getting fired. On a cold, rainy January morning I...

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Walking the Mezquita

Walking the Mezquita

As my family negotiated the narrow, winding street, well before reaching our destination, we could hear the tumult ahead. It led us to a square overwhelmed with sightseers. This could have been any...

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Welcome Home

Welcome Home

When I was born, Dar-es-Salaam (Arabic for Haven of Peace) was an idyllic harbour on the coast of East Africa. After an absence of forty years, only a chance sojourn in Dubai and an advert in the...

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Made in Heaven

Made in Heaven

“Hon, some good news,” Laura exclaimed one day while we were dating. “All my brothers and sisters are returning to the Philippines this Christmas. If I go, what will you do?” “If they’re all coming,...

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Emil Rem Writes Headshot

Emil Rem, an eccentric accountant becomes a writer of eccentric characters, in exotic locales—each chapter taking us on a trip into his fascinating twisted world. Born to a close knit, middle class Muslim East Indian family in Dar-es-Salam, Africa in the 50’s, he is then moved to Maidenhead England at the age of five. The next twenty years are spent shuttling between England and East Africa, wearing a St. Christopher’s cross one minute and attending church, to wearing a green armband and attending Muslim religious classes in Africa the next. Moving to Canada, marrying a woman from the Philippines and having two boys only adds further texture to his stories.

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