Sharing My Personal Life - Books, Podcasts, Music, Wine, Photos and Quotes

   'Living the Life you Imagine'

Personal Highlights of the Week

Hi All!..........

After a week in San Francisco I am now back in Australia.

Thanks to everyone who commented and shared my interview with Robyn Cook on Stories from the Red Couch. For those who have asked for details, here is the link to interview. 

                                         Stories from the Red Couch

Please like and share and of course, I I would love to hear your comment

In the meantime here are some of the things I personally enjoyed doing last week. 

1. Book I am reading….. 

Ikigai: The Japanese Secret to a Long and Happy Life

 – August 29, 2017 by Héctor García and Francesc Miralles

According to the Japanese, everyone has an ikigai - a reason for living. And according to the residents of the Japanese village with the world’s longest-living people, finding it is the key to a happier and longer life. Having a strong sense of ikigai - the place where passion, mission, vocation, and profession intersect - means that each day is infused with meaning. It’s the reason we get up in the morning. It’s also the reason many Japanese never really retire (in fact there’s no word in Japanese that means retire in the sense it does in English): They remain active and work at what they enjoy, because they’ve found a real purpose in life - the happiness of always being busy.

 #Ikigai

2. Podcast I am Following…

Vishen Lakhiani

Vishen Lakhiani is the founder & CEO of Mindvalley University, the company with big plans to reboot education globally to focus on transformation. Mindvalley combines media, film making, tech and real-world events to build it’s education empire with over 2 million students.

Vishen is also the author of The New York Times Best Seller “The Code of The Extraordinary Mind” which has been translated to more than 20 languages. Vishen is now working to expand Mindvalley’s presence globally with the aim to bring it’s teachers, tech and programs into 100 national schooling systems and every company in the Fortune 500 within the next few years.

 #VishenLakhiani

3. Music I am Listening to……

Rachael Yamagata

Rachael Yamagata is an American singer-songwriter and pianist from Arlington, Virginia. born to a Japanese-American father and an Italian-German mother. Husky-voiced singer, songwriter, pianist, and guitarist, Rachael was a vocalist for the Chicago, funk-fusion band, Bumpus for six years. In 2001 she left the group to pursue a solo career. Yamagata released her self-titled debut EP in October, 2002. This was followed by her first full-length album "Happenstance," which was released in June, 2004 and was one of my favourite albums when it came out. A gifted musician with a special knack for mature and thoughtful lyrics, Yamagata alternates between beautifully sad and poignant ballads and more dynamic and exciting all-out rock tunes with equal skill and conviction. Here latest hauntingly beautiful new music is called 'Porch Songs'

 #RachaelYamagata

4. Photograph that inspired me……………

This is a photograph I took at the swimming pool of The University of the Sunshine (USC) where I swim in the mornings

 #universitysunsihinecoast

5. Wine that surprised me……………..

 Lazy Lab Chardonnay, Central Valley, California, 2016

It is a perfectly balanced blend of luscious fruit and toasty oak from Central California’s central valley, north and east of the Napa/Sonoma areas. The wine is packed with flavour and rich in texture and everything a Chardonnay should be. The palate offers a rich blend of tropical fruits with hints of golden apple. A touch of oak aging provides a creamy finish, where flavours of lemon emerge. The dark straw colour tips you off to the wine, having some tones of oak and the consistent notes of toast and vanilla do come through both on the nose and on the tongue, along with aromas of pear and citrus. Concentrated flavours of apricot jam and peach preserves make this wine smooth and round on the palate, and very nicely balanced.

As it is a rich Chardonnay it is best paired with rich flavours and textures in food. So I made a pumpkin ravioli in butter sauce which complemented the jammy, toasty essence of the wine

Quote that I treasure —

“Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself”: 

- Franklin D. Roosevelt First Inaugural Address. 1933

And, as always, please give me feedback on

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What do you want more or less of?

Other suggestions? Let me know! Just send an email to [email protected].

Have a wonderful week!

Live the Life You Imagine!

- Jimmi