Today I asked my mother what I was like as a baby/toddler. Now, this was very interesting to hear:

- You were an easy child.
- How ’bout in grocery stores?
- You behaved, yes.
- That’s not what I recall…
- Oh yeah, you did scream and crawl on the floor when you didn’t get candy! I had already forgotten.
- I hadn’t… I remember the time when you disappeared and I was so scared.
- You used to run around the store and hide behind clothes when we went looking for you!
- Hahahhahaha!!

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It’s been a busy month. New projects, brands and contracts. Just to name few components from the equation. It has not been an easy year, that’s for sure. We expanded our Momotaro Jeans representation to South-East Asia and with that myself, Maxwell and Jeci Chao moved to Malaysia. Needless to say such change required drastic changes in terms of our processes. It’s now been almost a year and I couldn’t be happier with the current arrangement and effort from our team in Finland in managing the day to day operations while I have focused on building the “big picture”. We’ve found a balance I’m terms of roles and delegation of duties and having had another great year, it’s safe to say we’re doing something right.

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It was this day 1 year ago at 7.38 pm when a little soldier was born and we named him Maxwell. It has been but a mere year since you entered our lives and turned everything upside down. Our lives suddenly had a new meaning, new coordinates for the journey.

Although year is a short time in a young man’s life, it has been this year that has taught you and us so much. But just remember that life is a storm, my young friend. You will bask in the sunlight one moment, be shattered on the rocks the next. What makes you a man is what you do when that storm comes. You must look into that storm and shout as you did in Rome. Do your worst, for I will do mine! Then the fates will know you as we know you.

It will be a long fruitful journey my son, but have no fear. Your mother and I will look after you and make sure you get the best of every step. Happy birthday my son.

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I was just about to post a cool video on the blog when I realized this is actually our post number one thousand. Crazy isn’t it? Time flies while you are having fun and last thousand posts have gone by like a wind. Semi-epic moment like this gives a good reason to reflect on the recent past and what’s going on with NDH. First off, I believe everyone can realize that the frequency of postings has greatly decreased in the past 6 months. Not something I am really proud of, pretty much the other way round. Being that I am an avid writer, I feel as if I have not been able to really match my own expectations. Well on the flip side we’ve kept busy, which is of course good thing. We’ve expanded our Momotaro Jeans representation to South-East Asia, where my family and I are staying for the time being. My associate(s) have kept things running on the home front and it’s all good. We’ve gotten much love from across the world and I couldn’t be happier. We’ve made new friends and learned a lot and in the end that’s what it’s all about.

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Hand writing is almost like a form of art on its own. Each and every individual has his/her own style of writing and one’s handwriting is very difficult if not impossible to copy. The modern technology with most text typed instead of hand written, this art form is on the verge of extinction. Well perhaps not that bad, but I can see that hand writing is losing importance by the day with more and more schools, even elementary ones are furnishing their students with notebooks. Personally I only own one pen, a space pen which I got as a gift when I was a kid. Yes, it’s one of those pens that works in space due to the pressurized ink capsule. That said, all my notes are in my iPhone or Mac and the only papers I see are the ones I have to sign. But for me it’s been just natural. I guess it’s a good thing people can read my text typed instead of being hand written. I’m not a doctor just yet, but I sure have doctor’s hand writing. Oh the irony, I was still told back in university that I won’t pass the exams because of my hand writing. Few years later I’m a published author and doing my PhD, and my hand writing is still as horrible if not worse than before.

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In the old days children managed with wooden cars, ragdolls and a cardboard box which they turned into a pirate ship. The household appliances were very simple, you had to wash your dishes and clothes by hand and chop wood for the fireplace to keep the cottage warm in the winter. Now kids’ toys are walking and talking and games have cyber spatial dimensions and complex story lines. Everything is designed to be easy-to-use and practical. This leaves a little room to think and act in a completely different way.

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I happened to find a beautiful piece of music by Yann Tiersen, animated by Aidan Gibbons. It’s called Comptine d’un autre été: l’après midi which translates to “Rhyme of another summer: afternoon”. I fell in love with it… I don’t know why, but I cried when I listened to it. It didn’t raise memories of any kind, it was just the music. Listening to the wonderful sound of my favorite instrument that I have played for ten years and hearing it play a melancholic melody immediately resonated in my heart. It stroke a chord in me, a minor toned chord. I hope you like it, too.

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…and times were hard. Not that the times are that bad, the last month has not been the easiest but it’s a matter of getting the most of even the hard times and appreciate the entire journey. But I can see light at the end of the tunnel, sunshine after the rain and all that. On the note of ups and downs, our site was down last night, we’ve over grown from our current server environment (which is not a bad thing of course) and need to relocate to perhaps a dedicated server. The plan is already there and should there be more downtime, we’ll get the updates across as soon as possible.

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First off, happy Midsummer to you and yours. Or as they say in Finland, hauskaa juhannusta. Midsummer 2011 is here already, we’re already past the solstice and the day in Finland is at its longest. I would have probably missed the entire holiday unless people wished me happy midsummer. Since this is not such a big deal in Malaysia it comes as no surprise that we are not lighting up bonfires or anything like that.

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With majority of businesses at some point you have to rely on third parties for this and that services. Hosting is just one of those things that’s much easier handled by someone else. When something happens on that third party’s side it’s like all hell breaks loose for a moment. How do you solve these matters? Stay cool (as cool as you can), make few phone calls and do what you can on your side to solve the issue. Even if it takes your entire Saturday.

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