Congratulations this month go to car PR and events company
PFPR Communications for raising £1,123 for Movember, with an
average of £102 raised per ’tache – nearly twice the national
average.
No congratulations, however,
go to my colleagues Gred Crawley and Frant Collinson (names changed
to hide their clean-lipped shame) who both reneged on their hirsute
promise and left me the only man in the building with brutish fur
across my face.
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Of course, with no
sponsorship dependent on the fuzz, it wasn’t long before I realised
I was no longer the fun and participatory guy in the office but
merely a git with a moustache.
I ran home to shave it
off.
Good thing, too, seeing as I
would have been upstaged royally by Chris Sutton of Black Horse who
addressed the FLA’s Motor Finance Convention in Leamington
Spa
rocking a mo’ that could have won an arm-wrestling
contest.
Talking of intimidating,
waiting at 6.40am at Marylebone for the train to Leamington Spa, I
spied Stephen Sklaroff on the other side of the departures board in
a smart grey fedora. I feared introducing myself. He was evidently
the better-dressed man and it was too early for me to even grumble
the word
“coffee”. I would do well to have him offer me change and tell me
to move along.
At the conference site, I
recognised several solicitors from portraits attached to our
articles. I held back from introducing myself for fear of getting
pepper-sprayed by anybody I introduced myself to with the words:
“I’ve seen your picture before.”
I introduced myself to Darren
Greenyer of HPI. He said he reads this column. I immediately
stopped writing notes.
Ross Hamilton of Mapfre said
he’s seen my debates on LinkedIn. Have to start watching what I say
on there, too. By the end of the day, however, I’ve turned many
unknown faces into friends, and have dispensed business cards like
ninja stars.
I stuff half a slice of Genoa cake in my pocket to make
the goodbye handshakes, and crows follow me all the way back to the
train station.
