Too many irons in different fires!?

Well the last 4 months has been something of a whirlwind!

I must say that I like to keep busy and have many irons in different fires.

For the last 12 years I have dipped my toes into all manner of things - some have withered and died, some have flourished and continue to bloom and some need watering with the promise of reaping a great crop (sorry for all the analogies).

Some of my friends and colleagues question why I do this, and the answer really comes down to, it excites me! Sure, there are times where I stretch myself too thin and this can be overwhelming, but they pass and you just have to manage and balance it out.

You have to grab opportunities as they arise and there is nothing worse than a MISSED OPPORTUNITY!!

As the saying goes, Opportunity only knocks once and I'll be f!?ked if I am going to miss it, just because I couldn't be bothered or just a little tired.

Now, I'm not saying that you should just sit back and wait for things to land in your lap. You also need to create opportunities for yourself. Think outside the square, draw from your strengths and make shit happen. More times than not, you will hit dead ends, but - Nothing ventured - Nothing gained!

Anyway, enough of the preaching!

Recently I commenced a consultancy gig with the Great Lakes Hotel Development in Miena, which will take up fair chunk of my life - 6 years and beyond!

I am extremely excited about this, as this is going to be BIG. A major development that will see punters from all over the world visit this hidden gem. Having said that, the existing hotel has a staggering 45,000 plus followers on Facebook and the engagement is astonishing. We are only going to build on this and create a world class Tourist and local attraction. Watch this space!!

While all this is happening, the ofCourse+ TV Cooking show is only 2 episodes away from completion.

My great friend John Xintravelonis and I (Chef and the Showman), along with Darren Alexander of Beetle Black Media, have been working on this show for close to 12 months now and we are super excited to unleash it on the world through YouTube. If you want to check out a 'Taste' of what's to come, check us out on YouTube now and subscribe. Oh and don't forget to hit the notifications button to stay up to date. We are looking at a December release!!

Skirting around all of this, I have been catering for all matter of large and small gigs, from weddings to awards dinners.

Black Box Kitchen (Food Van) is currently having a rest, but ironically, much interest is beginning to develop, not just in Hobart - but of all places - BRAZIL! After doing an interview for SBS Portugal in Sydney I have been approached by G1, a Brazilian news channel to do a story on Pao de Queijo in Tasmania! All very exciting! This interview should be out any day now.

Coming up, I will be co emceeing with John X as the Chef and Showman (checkout our Facebook page!)

For the Variety of Chefs Gala dinner for the Variety Club on Saturday 14th September.

If you ever get an opportunity to help out with any charity

A throw back to 2008! Trip to Sri Lanka with Dilmah Tea as part of their 20th Anniversary in Australia. Unbelievable experience!

work - DO IT!! So bloody rewarding.

There has been a great deal of work involved with this event and it promises to be one not to be missed. Go to www.variety .org.au >events to book.

Finally, I am two weeks away from competing in Sydney with my Tassie team mates, Robin Kelly, Neil Li, Beau McLean and Michael Norton at the Restaurant of Champions cooking competition.

Can't wait to get into it and bring home gold again for Tassie!

Thanks for reading and feel free to comment on what's happening in your life!

Pxx