Sources of Inspiration | My Bookcase

It's slightly odd to cite a bookcase as a source of inspiration, but mine is one of only four pieces of furniture I own, so it’s 25% of the stuff that surrounds me while I work.

There it sits, in the corner, holding almost all of the possessions I once dragged in a suitcase to London - or rather, piled in the back of my sister's car.

The desk is plain black, the bedside table is plain black, the bed is just a bed. The bookcase (also plain black - good old Ikea!) is the only item that holds anything of colour, significance, and interest. It's where I collect my Oyster card from in the morning and where I throw my change every night.

The items that line its shelves, that balance precariously on top, I see almost every day. A constant reminder that I should finally watch that film, read that book once again, bin those old copies of Esquire, and find an accountant.

Some of these items have sentimental value. Most are just bits and piece I’ve picked up along the way, forever telling myself that on a ‘rainy day’ I’ll sort through them and decide what to do.

While waiting for that rainy day that never happens, they’ll sit there, gathering dust and trickling memories through my mind.

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In the pictures:

- Cubitts' glasses cloth: such a fantastic piece of artwork, produced just to clean glasses. This immaculate attention to detail is why I like the Cubitts brand and it's a constant reminder of how blogging introduces you to a wealth of new people, brands, and ideas.

- Chocolate from the DMZ: this chocolate is made in a collaborative factory located between North and South Korea. Bizarre for me to have it, I know. I still haven't eaten any, for some reason the chocolate just seems better to own.

- The Trip: one of my favourite TV series. Perfectly crafted, perfectly cited, perfectly filmed. I was lucky enough last year to visit Bolton Priory for a hotel review. And no, I didn't attempt to run across the stepping stones.

Sources of Inspiration | Live and Let Die

Johnson: There are two ways to disable a crocodile, you know.

Bond: I don't suppose you'd care to share that information with me?

Johnson: One way is to jam a pencil in the depression hole behind his eyes.

Bond: And the other?

Johnson: The other's twice as simple. You just put your hand in his mouth and pull his teeth out.

There's nothing people like more than someone quoting lines from a movie before they're said on screen. When I do it, I can tell from the stern frowns and the shaking heads that everyone is glad I did.

I don't know why, some films just stick in my mind. And not just the odd quote, the entire movie, almost from beginning to end.

It's hard to imagine that something you can remember that well doesn't have an influence on you.

Live and Let Die is one of those films. Although short of knowing how to disable a crocodile, I'm really not sure how.

Not only is it a memorable film for me, it's also one of the best Bond movies of all time - up there with Goldeneye, The Living Daylights, and From Russia With Love. And, it achieves this with Roger Moore as Bond. Unbelievable.

Why is it so good?

Well, you have the exotic locations - New York, New Orleans, the Louisiana Swamps, and the Caribbean. You have the ingenious ways to try and kill Bond - a snake in the bath, a murdered limo driver, the shark. You have the use of overblown stereotypes - a Louisiana hick, a Harlem pimp, a Caribbean voodoo curse.

Then, of course, you have the standard James Bond fashion parade. Well-tailored suits, perhaps a little too long in the collar, and the black turtleneck for sneaking about in.

And, let's not forget the bad guys underground base, built under a haunted Caribbean graveyard, with a submarine ready to ship heroin to the States. Standard.

All this, just to dominate the American drugs trade. The guy already owns a Caribbean island, has a seat on the UN, and owns a chain of restaurants. What more does he want?!

There are a host of other personal favourites in the movie. Those, for whatever reason, have left their line-grabbing imprint on me.

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“Hey man, for twenty bucks I'd take you to a Ku Klux Klan cookout!”

First up, the Harlem Taxi Driver. This guy takes Bond to his (supposed) death twice, once in Harlem and once in New Orleans. Those sideburns, that taxi. Classic.

“I once had a nasty turn in a booth”

The Fillet of Soul restaurants, that Dr. Kananga plans to offer up free heroin through, serve up live music, pool, and burger and fries for under a dollar. Puts the likes of Byron to shame.

“Lesson number four: Follow the scarecrows”

If I ever visit the Caribbean, I will never trust a scarecrow with a coconut for a head. CCTV for eyes, a pistol in it’s mouth - pure evil genius.

“You picked the wrong parish to haul ass through, boy. Nobody cuts and runs on Sheriff JW Pepper. And that's him speakin' that, by the bye!”

Just like the CIA’s Jack Wade, here’s a character so ‘good’ they used him twice. A fat ball of Deep South stereotypes. A clueless, klutz of a racist, who spits tobacco, and shoots rabid dogs in his spare time, his brother-in-law Billy Bob owns the fastest boat on the river. That said, he does manage to catch up with Bond where the bad-guys fail.

“My regards to Baron Samedi, man - right between the eyes”

A genuine spirit of voodoo, Baron Samedi is a top-hat wearing, cane-carrying, nine-foot tall man who appears to ceremonially kill the enemies of Dr. Kananga, and can also be found playing the flute in the local graveyard.

Even after Bond kills him - with extreme ease, involving a sword fight and a coffin full of snakes - the ending makes it clear that he’s not entirely dead. Perhaps because Bond didn’t take the advice of the man who shares his hairbrush, Quarrel Junior.

Each of these scenes, each of these lines, and more, stay with me - for good or bad. Taxis in New York, coconuts, and soul food restaurants just wouldn’t spark the same thoughts each and every time I see them.

It's something I can’t undo and this, along with all the other films I can remember line-after-line from, has to alter my outlook on life, my perception of sights, sounds, and events, and the reason I do what I do.

If only my parents could have sat me in front of concertos, discussion on advanced mathematics, or the plays of Shakespeare. Who knows where I would have ended up! Probably sneaking off halfway through to watch endless repeats of James Bond movies and Simpsons episodes, so I doubt anything would have changed.

Sources of Inspiration | BBC News Magazine

While writing a piece for Buckets and Spades on the fabulous Shinola watches, I started thinking of all of the places I take inspiration from - the magazines I read, the websites I visit, that sort of thing.

I don't keep a list, more a general eye across the various people I follow on Twitter.

It's helpful knowing Mat, as he frequently points me in the direction of decent looking websites: It's Nice That, for instance.

Other bloggers will also throw a few pieces of interest my way. Yasumi of WorshipBlues is very good at doing that, as well as producing incredible content herself.

One source that I'd say is generally overlooked is BBC News Magazine. Their pieces occasionally appear on the BBC News website's 'Most Popular' column, but I doubt many people take the time to scour the magazine section fully and discover the gems hidden within it.

They produce incredibly insightful and often moving writing. Take the piece on Captain Mbaye Diagne, working in Rwanda in the 1990s, for example; or the terrifying story from Alex Owumi, 'I played basketball for Gaddafi' - a great, but disturbing read.

They also produce pieces that are 'lighter'. A series of videos that I've shared around a bit on Twitter feature a man who makes £100,000 watches, one who paints fairground signs, and another who whittles spoons.

These strangely absorbing videos deliver a fascinating view of someone else's work, craft, and life, reminding me (and hopefully others) that living isn't just about chasing money and sitting in-front of an illuminated screen each and every day.

It's the inspiration to try something new, try something different, and to keep on looking for new sources of direction and inspiration.