What You See Is What You Get...

...is the title of the autobiography of Lord Sugar of Clapton, Alan Sugar. I've just finished reading this book and it has to have been the most satisfying read I've had in such a long time. He truly is an entrepreneur, having started making a return at an early age; he does say that no-one should call themselves an entrepreneur but leave that to others.

The directness he portrays in television is certainly there, but one gets to understand why it's there. He can't stand bulll shitters and likes to cut through the weeds quickly. He may be bluff and gruff with some but his friendship and loyalty to others, including his staff, is evident. His model is there to follow although it would be better to say his example is.

I learnt much from his story. In fact. much more than from any of the so-called 'leaders' I've seen on stage, many of whom proved to be duplicitous and wanted only to make money from me and others. He is not a lying con-man others have proven whilst professing to be a friend. He will have stood on toes but did so honestly, his aims being clear to all.

If you're young and and have the desire to make a success of your business and life, you can't do much worse than read this book as an inspirational tool. Leave the other guff on the shelves - this man has actually done stuff, not just written books on it.

Tuna Gremolato

Don't worry - I shan't post many recipes! This is tasty, colourful and very healthy.

4 tuna steaks
Juice of 2 lemons
2 tsp paprika
2 tbsp soy sauce
salt and freshly ground black pepper

for the gremolata


2 large red peppers
large bunch flat parsley, finely chopped
1/2 small red onion, peeled and finely chopped
finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely grated

for the garnish


lemon wedges

Place the steaks in a shallow, non reactive dish in a single layer. Mix together the lemon juice, paprika and soy sauce and season well. Spoon this over the steaks, cover and leave to marinate 15 - 20 mins.

Meanwhile, make the gremolata. Place the peppers under a hot grill, turning often until blackened and blistered. Remove from the grill and place in a plastic bag for 10 minutes. When cool enough to handle, carefully peel off the skin, saving any juices from the peppers in a bowl. De-seed and finely chop the peppers and add to the bowl with the parsley, red onion, lemon zest and juice and garlic. Season well and toss to combine.

Heat a non-stick ridged griddle pan until very hot. Add the fish and cook on each side for 3-4 minutes or until just cooked through. Serve immediately with the gremolata spooned over and garnish with lemon wedges.

Father's Day

I was reading all the Father's Day posts, and started to wonder about having a Dad. And then I thought that I'd never thought that before, smiled to myself, stopped wondering and typed this.


I hope I do a good job.

A familiar and idyllic scene

And then England--southern England, probably the sleekest landscape in the 
world. It is difficult when you pass that way, especially when you are 
peacefully recovering from sea-sickness with the plush cushions of a boat-train 
carriage under your bum, to believe that anything is really happening anywhere. 
Earthquakes in Japan, famines in China, revolutions in Mexico? Don't worry, the 
milk will be on the doorstep tomorrow morning, the New Statesman will come out 
on Friday. The industrial towns were far away, a smudge of smoke and misery 
hidden by the curve of the earth's surface. Down here it was still the England I 
had known in my childhood: the railway-cuttings smothered in wild flowers, the 
deep meadows where the great shining horses browse and meditate, the slow-moving 
streams bordered by willows, the green bosoms of the elms, the larkspurs in the 
cottage gardens; and then the huge peaceful wilderness of outer London, the 
barges on the miry river, the familiar streets, the posters telling of cricket 
matches and Royal weddings, the men in bowler hats, the pigeons in Trafalgar 
Square, the red buses, the blue policemen--all sleeping the deep, deep sleep of 
England, from which I sometimes fear that we shall never wake till we are jerked 
out of it by the roar of bombs. 

This is the last paragraph of George Orwell's 'Homage to Catalonia' (1938) in which he records his time spent in the Spanish Civil War. This is his return to his home country as he finally leaves the war behind the him; a familiar feeling for this and. I'm sure, and many modern counterparts.

It was referred to on Broadcasting House on Radio 4 this morning, by a gentleman who said he would much rather be reading this in the cowslips on the South Downs than using a computer. And I could picture myself doing the same with a well worn Penguin copy of this :)

Octonauts

A little boy called Isaac (less than five years and 3 feet) asked me yesterday on one of the tours what kind of submarine was HMS ALLIANCE. Having answered his question to my satisfaction and, thankfully his, we moved on. Later on we met again in the cafe and his gran, him and I had another quick chat. Out of that conversation came the subject of Octonauts, of which I was competely ignorant. I've done my research and am now less so, and I'd like to introduce them to you.

Ladies and gentlemen, The Octonauts!

On Youtube

And the BBC

A Saturday at the Museum

Guiding on HMS ALLIANCE today and the visitors were out in force - and that can't be bad for the Museum. It's always fun taking the full trips (25 people) through the boat, talking about the technology, having fun with  the visitors and talking to the kids. Halfway through the boat having seen the accommodation  and after running the depth charge recording, one lady said I don't understand why men want to be come submariners. I had to respond that some didn't want to but 'Drafty' thought they might.

The other (older) guides are always worth listening to. One was on HMS TIPTOE, which was used in the film Murphy's War starring Peter O'Toole. The boat came in to HMS DOLPHIN to pay off, only for the crew to see a load of paint on the jetty with which they had to paint ship throughout. Only then did they find out what they were to do and moved across to the dockyard. Boats and ships alongside got their meals via 'muck in a truck' and when the director saw the quality of the food, he told the boat to cancel their order, and arranged for food to be delivered from a restaurant.

On another occasion (and another boat), they undertook firings of the Mk23 torpedo off Norway. Having fired many practice shots it came to firing a live shot and it was this one that decided to turn back on the boat. They did manage to get it to cut away from the boat and headed off to the bottom of the fjord.

George Burgess was another guide today. He was a Chief Petty Officer at HMS St George when it was sited at Eastney, home of Fraser Gunnery Range. HMS St George was where Senior Rates who had been selected for promotion went for the officer 'training' for 9 months. These were known as SD (Special Duties List) officers Judging by the beastings, survival training, escape and evasion it seemed more like a halfway house to special forces training.... HMS St George later moved to BRNC Dartmouth to become St George Division, before being totally subsumed into the college proper and SDs joined the junior trainee divisions but undertaking separate training - the so-called transition.

Skype for Beginners

My old friends Jim and Craig both asked me on Facebook what Skype might be.

Well, boys, at it's simplest very simply Skype is a way of being able to talk to people across 'tinternet for free if they both have Skype and a microphone.

There are other things that can be done with it:

One can 'chat' in text a la IM or FB Chat.
By loading your account with some pennies, it's possible to call phones in the UK and when calling abroad, at much cheaper rates than.
With a live call/chat,  files can be transferred.
One can subscribe to a Skype In number so that it s possible to be contacted anywhere in the world on one number.
Craig may find the conference call facility useful - that's not to say Jim doesn't only have one friend or colleague :)

I hope that's a simple but sufficient description for Skype newbies.

I would recommend Skype to anybody - it's a really useful tool, which, if on an unlimited data tariff, can even be used on mobile phones, thus circumventing phone charges. It's simple to download and set up.

Skype me at petechilcott

www.skype.com