Eric Mayhaus the Inspiration

Last night was our office Christmas party. The ride there was filled with rousing international conversation as I shared a taxi with 3 friends (1 from France, 1 from Italy, and 1 from Belgium). The party was held at the world famous Ascot Racecourse in merry ole' England. To my surprise upon arrival, most were decked in bow ties and evening gowns leaving my plan of being stylishly over dressed in shambles (I showed up in my $50 suit that I had tailor made in a fabric market in Shanghai as seen in the picture above). The musical sylings of The Rat Pack filled the air as the swing band and Dean Martin imitator set the mood. The meal was elegant, the champagne was flowing, and the open bar kept my jolly colleagues in high spirits.

Today started like several others for me in England. I woke up on the couch with the TV still on and an empty container of what I can only assume was a delicious doner kebab (the traditional "late night" food in England). With the stale taste of onions and chili sauce still in my mouth, I grabbed my computer and began my daily journey through the information super highway only to stumble across Eric Mayhaus's blog. While reading of his exciting NYC adventures with his fiancé, I began to think of how I was letting down my own fiancé Michelle, and the rest of my family by not creating a blog as I promised when preparing for my 6-month adventure in England.

To be fair, although my promise not kept was the primary driver for the creation of this blog, it is not the only. Once I noticed Mayhaus's blog profile contained Stetson Hills (our awesome band) in his favorite music and that he was surprisingly the only member of the blogger community as a fan, I felt it was my moral obligation to ensure my friend had company. Stetson Hills is now 2 members strong in the Blogger community!