Monthly Archives: June 2013

Redemption squared

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Salut Tash Appreciators,

With the Tour de France starting in Corsica tomorrow, cycling is our starting and ending point this week:

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Courtesy of: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrk_andrsn/

Although that picture includes four world-class riders, it wasn’t taken in France, or anywhere with a particular culture of cycling. It was actually taken during the UK National Road Race last Sunday, which took place in Glasgow.

The front chap, in blue, is David Millar – Scotland’s top road cyclist. Some of you may have heard of him because of his “colourful” past as an ex-doper. He was caught, banned and almost jailed for his part in the doping culture of early 2000s. But since then, he has done more than anyone else in cycling to make/keep it clean. He always been proud of his Scottish background but Sunday seemed to have a special significance for him. You could tell that not only from his performance (which was superb) but also from the tweets he posted after the race:

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There are, as I see it, similarities between Millar and the city he was racing in: both have had a rough time and both looked like their best days were behind them. However, like Millar, Glasgow did itself proud on Sunday. The race itself was fantastic: it was well organised and well supported. But it also seems to have been good for other people too. For a start, it prompted the Council to fix the roads in the centre of town, which is a big deal for the drivers of Glasgow. Not only that, but the Council has carried on with the work and other roads are now being improved. It also got people excited about a sport which is growing in Scotland. I’ve heard stories of customers chatting about the race in shops, and if Instagram and Facebook are anything to go by, many folk who had no interest in cycling enjoyed it almost as much as the sad acts (like me) who watched it from beginning to end.

There are plenty of other things going on in the city at the moment too: the east end is more or less being re-developed for the Commonwealth Games; Strathclyde University is building what seems to be a new campus in the middle of town; and many of the huge tower blocks are being demolished to make way for more sociable social housing. If you look to the east of the country, the new forth crossing (have they picked a name for that yet?) is growing out of the depths at an impressive rate and on an impressive scale and if you look north Aberdeen seems to be booming.

We haven’t had a really positive message from TF for a few weeks now, primarily because there hasn’t seemed to be a lot to be positive about. However, that makes it all the sweeter when you look around and see things improving.

So, to the Tash. Unfortunately, Dave Millar appears to have never rocked a Tash. However, there’s a cyclist who will hopefully be on your screens for the next three weeks who does. I saw him riding in the Giro a few weeks ago and made a quick note of his name. Ladies and gents, this chap must be the happiest looking man ever to ride the Tour, Jose Perez:
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Have a fantastic weekend folks!
Keep going!
Related articles

We are still here

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Morning Tash Appreciators,

I must first apologise for this week’s TF hitting your inbox in the “old” format. Technology 1 – TF 0.  

I came across this photo this week:

It’s quite a famous one, called the Pale Blue Dot. It was taken from the Voyager 1 Spacecraft in 1990, when it was around 3.7 billion miles from home. Earth is – surprisingly enough – the pale blue dot about half way down the brown strip on the right of the photo. 

Carl Sagan was so moved by the photo that he wrote this:

“There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny world. To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we’ve ever known.” 

Within the entire universe, the chances of humans (a) coming along and (b) surviving, must have been minuscule. But we are still here. It would be a shame to waste that kind of luck by not taking full advantage of what we have around us. 

The difficulty we mere mortals have is that, as small as it is, we all sometimes feel the weight of the world on our shoulders. For most of us, this is a problem and can make things feel quite unpleasant. After all, we can’t all be as strong as this guy:

 

(that’s your Tash for this week by the way)

Thankfully, in my experience, if you have the weight of the world on your shoulders, the strain can be made manageable if you have at least one other person there to help you carry the burden. I think that’s the kind of thing that Sagan was getting at – we make the most of this Pale Blue Dot when we band together, and help each other through the harder times in life. 

I cant leave this week without saying a few words about James Gandolfini, who died this week. His portrayal of Tony Soprano was some of the most compelling television ever made. He constantly made the audience despise him and root for him all at once. For me, it was all in the eyes – they really were the window to Tony’s soul. It seems that the same could be said for Gandolfini himself:

I know I say this every week, but KEEP GOING!

TF goes “social”

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Morning Tash Appreciators,

Over the last few weeks, a couple of pals of mine have started using social networking as a tool to enhane their professional profile. Many businesses do this is a part of a cringe-worthy attempt to appeal to the “youth” but while these boys see a sound business reason to get involved they’re actually doing it because they want to be involved in conversations about things which interest them. Some of what they’ve been up to is pretty interesting. I only say “some” because I’m sick of hearing about all of the places where their blogs have been read (although the Guatemalan example was reasonably cool).

I’ve been conflicted about whether to get involved in my own way. Social networking in a professional capacity doesn’t hold much interest for me as I’ve got nothing credible to say.  Also, I don’t want to become one of those incredibly irritating, self-aggrandising type people who use facebook/twitter to post “selfies” (see below); pictures of what they had for dinner; and banal comments about there being snow/sun/rain. Example:

 

 
(this is why people don’t like Justin Beiber)

However, folk seem to occasionally get some encouragement or a laugh out of TF. So, in keeping with the spirit of Tash Appreciation, I’m going to have a bash. From next week (technology permitting) TF will have a greater online presence. Hopefully it’ll find it’s way to a few more Appreciators of the Tash.

To allay any fears about what this might involve, TF solemnly swears that the content will not fall into the same category as the garbage listed/pictured above. I’m hoping that maintaining a thin veil of anonymity will assist with that. In fact, there may not be any content. I may find that I never have anything interesting to say. However, let’s give it a go. 

So, after all that, to the Tashes.

 
I was doing a bit of research into what kind of presence the Tash already has online. It turns out, there’s tonnes out there. There are just a couple of examples I wanted to share. I daresay that among the readership of TF there are few single lads and ladies. If that’s the case, could I perhaps point you towards www.stachepassions.com? According to the website, it’s a “100% free social networking & online dating site specifically for singles with a passion for the Stache. Style is a difficult thing to pin down, but there is no doubt among Stache Passions members that there is nothing finer than a good stache.” An example of their advertising:
 

Finally, for this week, is the high water mark for Tash related websites: www.americanmustacheinstitute.org. Its got everything from a history of the American Tash to a campaign seeking tax equity for people of facial hair. There’s also a Tash Open golf tournament in September this year – you won’t want to miss that! After all…

Have a great weekend folks!

Keep going.

What’s his name?

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Good morning Tash Appreciators,

Earlier this week, I had to do google image searches for manly/macho men (don’t ask, but I swear it was legit). 

What struck me about the results of these searches was that although there were one or two familiar faces (Tom Selleck being one, obviously), there were also a whole slew of Tash toting men who weren’t named. They were simply filed under the name “manly man”.

A few examples:

Who are these men? I may simply be ignorant and these chaps are in fact as well known as Tom Selleck, but I doubt it. It’s strange that their names have been lost/forgotten but the fact that they’re proper blokes lives on. 

In classic portrayals of “real” men, such as classic westerns, the hero of the piece is often not named. He just appears, fights off a gang of lesser men and rides off into the sunset. The best example is perhaps Once Upon A Time In The West where Charles Bronson (another classic Tash) is simply listed as “Harmonica”:

 

A more recent example would be Ryan Gosling in “Drive”, where he’s simply “Driver”:

 

There’s something about these characters that appeals to men (and women?). They lack any ego whatsoever, to the extent that they have no name, but they do have a conscience and a depth of character which goes beyond simply what they are known as. 

In an age when every person has to self-publicise themselves and what they do – and when every movement must be documented on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or some other social networking website – it’s reassuring to know that, even on google, a real man can be just be a bloke, without having to provide his life story. If people like his work, great. If they don’t, then that’s fine too. 

I suppose it harks back to simpler times, but sometimes simple would be better. 

Have a great weekend folks.

Keep going!