Norman

I was born in London England from Irish Immigrant parents. I grew up in a area called Islington which used to be a working class area but now has became the "in" place for the trendy middle class to buy houses in. It now has an interesting mix of cool hip cafes and boutiques but has retained the corner fish and chip shop. It currently has the hottest real estate in London. I am very visual and I have always loved art.So at the end of High school I went to the school councilor and told him that I had no idea what I wanted to do but that I loved art. So he got me an apprenticship as a house painter. Hey dude if you ever read this " thanks for nothing". So as a painter I got to work on Buckingham Palace, the homes of Diana Ross, Sylvester Stallone, Freddy Mercury and many other actors and singers. I was a hard core Rockabilly and a Hep Kat for 8 years, all my mates were from Whitechapel in the East End of London. I can tell you a whole bunch of stories and share some cool photos when I get around to it. I had a 1960 Ford Consul which looked cool but was always breaking down. I had a Lambretta 150 which I stripped down and bored out to 175, I hung out with a mod scooter crew from Fulham called the Wasps. I know that sounds crazy, a rockabilly hanging out with mods but it was way cool. I went to all the Northern Soul and Mod clubs with them and we went on a run to Brighton on a Bank Holiday. About 2,000 scooters and with a police escort through London. I'll put up photos if you like. In 1986 I got fired by my boss for setting off a fire extingusher as a joke on a job site. With the paycheck I got I put 4 tee shirts, 2 pairs of jeans some socks in a gym bag and bought a ticket to Los Angeles, California. I have been here ever since and I love the place and the people. I worked as night club DJ in the 80's ran a couple of underground clubs, owned a restaurant, owned a movie set company and a house painting company. I am now working as a real estate agent in Studio City, California. I love this business as it is always fun and challenging. I have been a Buddhist for 19 years. NAM MYOHO RENGE KYO is my mantra and I chant it every day. It helps me to balance my life, to contemplate my actions and observe my mind.I am a member the SGI USA which is a buddhist organization dedicated to acheiving world peace through individual happiness. I am married to a beautiful women from Thailand that I met in LA, we have been married 10 years. We have 2 beautiful children that make my heart soar. My passion is for photography, I lose track of time whenever I do it, I am not one for labels but an artist friend of mine recently told me that it resembled abstract expressionism (hows that for a mouthful). I have posted some of my stuff so check it out. My favourite saying in life is:Draw the sword of the powerful rights that you posess And regardless of the difficulties that you may encounter Never forget your personal duty And staunchly cut your way through to victory. Daisaku IkedaThanks for coming to visit. Chow for now Norman