Who and Why

I am a chinaman. Well, thats a pretty uncomplicated label and at first glance, that may be exactly what you see. In earnest, what you see is certainly not what you get from me. I was born in Frankfurt, Germany, and learnt German and English in my youth. Both my parents are from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, and are of Chinese descent (Hokkien to be precise). They have brought me up with the same values as they would have done in their own country.

I grew up with a passion for meat (the Germans eat a lot of meat) and all things oriental (my mum and dad are both great cooks) although I have a great interest in food in general. When I was 8, my family emigrated to the UK so that their kids would get a better education and I have spent the rest of my formative life here. Having a base in Surrey, studying in West Sussex, going to university in Central London and living in South London (Camberwell to be precise), you can imagine the amount of influences that this has had on me over the thirty or so years that I have been on this planet.

So that brings me to why. Well, I am under no illusions that people out there may not be interested in what I have to say or what I do. This blog is for me and for me to record some of the things that I get upto. You see, I have quite recently had a rather important operation. For the last 18 years, I have been suffering from kidney related problems and have had to be on dialysis for the last 7 or so years. Hopefully, those days are behind me for now as I recover from a kidney transplant. This operation has given me a new lease of life and I fully intend on making the most of the free time I now have as I no longer have my dialysis commitments.

Hopefully this blog will be filled with all the thrilling things I get upto and you enjoy my ramblings!