Callum's personal narrative asset list

Title - Callum’s personal narrative asset list tags - callumfascination

Who is he?

• Private practice owner

Where does he come from?

• My great grandma was a real character - German, big lady, stern, lovely - being wheeled to supermarket checkout, “old aged pensioner coming through!”
• When nan Jasmine passed
• My brother and me named two of our nan’s after their pets - we had nan Jasmine after her cat and nan Tammy after her dog, then nan Margaret (she didn’t have a pet)
• Nan Jasmine saying dad was very dark and asking if he was sure he hadn’t strayed
• Nan Margaret called her black dog “Nigger”
• Grandad referred to Hednesford player as “the darky” a little too loudly
• When nan Jasmine passed away, mom found a framed picture of her first husband, a German soldier, in an SS uniform with the SS badge marked over
• Grandad was born in Germany and arrived in England during/immediately after WW2, didn’t speak English, unfamiliar culture, was bullied, skipped school
• I used to love seeing my grandparents on a Sunday after football games, especially in winter when I’d lie on the floor watching TV, in front of the fire with the dog, or cuddle in to grandads belly
• Had a Walsall season ticket as a kid - dad and I would park up on a street near the ground, walk to the stadium, buy a coke and meat & potato pie, watch the game
• I remember being upset wheneve I saw nan Tammy smoking (or knew she was smoking) and I remember her reaction was almost like she felt guilty. Why?
• I remember feeling lost in my late school and sixth form years. It was liked I’d only loved and been good at football. I loved the practice and felt in the zone. I hadn’t been able to replicate that in any other area. I had to decide “what to do with my life” but nothing motivated me, there was no sense of direction or goal-striving
• My first job was in sales for JJB Sports at The Wharf in Walsall. I’d re-stock the shoes, help customers choose trainers/boots/shoes, then try to upsell laces, cleaners, etc. Manager was a dick. Others were good at selling without being pushy (Sikh guy stands out)
• Looking back, I can see myself looking for a “creative outlet”. I’ve tried learning to draw, art GCSE, gone back to football a few times, research, basketball, cricket, swimming, rowing
• Teacher told me and my parents I needed to change friends otherwise I’d go down the wrong path. I did. It was painful. They were my friends, good choice or not. I turned out ok, but would I do the same again? I don’t know.
• Bromsgrove holidays with parents, nan, nan’s friends. Good memories, peaceful place, relaxing
• I was fascinated with cars as a kid. Dad was too. He’d bring home company cars: Honda Civic Type R, Honda S2000. I’d study WhatCar and Top Gear magazines and help him choose the “best” company car in budget. Richard Shaws dad had a Noble M12 - incredible car.
• The first time I met Sue, John, Steven - “do you like Rugby?”
• My first love was Lauren who lived on the same street. Until then, I’d only loved football. I was totally focussed on it. She drew me away. I lost control. I never trusted her but couldn’t stop myself from being attracted. It was agonising when it ended.

What makes him tick?

• Autonomy

• Family man

• Love of animals, especially dogs

• Integrity - driven by moral values

• Worked in phone sales

• Fired from marketing agency

• No mobile phone

• No social media

• No personal use of email

• Foster home for dogs

• Career change

• Football fanatic

• Married to farmer’s daughter

• Former radiographer

• Former medical researcher

• Dad as inspiration for sales/business; mom for approach to it

• Ramit Sethi: first business mentor

• Coached by Matt Furey

• My ex died from spinal sarcoma under 30

• Dev moved to Middle East and converted to Islam

• Trained with Wolves, West Brom, and played for Walsall School Boys pre-teen

• First visit to America, a local said, “OMG - you’re British! Do you know David Beckham??”

• First exposure to racist policing problem in America - staying in a motel, in the pool, black guy arrested, shouting claims that “this is what you get for being black in America” or something to that effect

• My brother Jarrod is a Senior Policy Advisor for the civil service - worked on Brexit, Covid and Decarbonisation policy

• Jarrod is working on policies to prevent electric charging points being hacked by the Russians

• I got married in mid-December, in England, in a field, on a farm, in a tipi, with open fires. Next day, tipi flooded

• Discovery of Psycho-Cybernetics

• Discovery of daily goals vs massive long-term goals

• Discovery of Four-Hour Work Week

• Memories of Bella - puppy training, recall, running off to the pheasant pen, swimming to Appledore, beating, loveliness, experiences with Mabel

• Beating at John’s pheasant shoot

• Puppies at Netherdown’s

• Bessie was the first foster dog I remember. She was lovely. Unhinged. Ran off one day.

• Cassie was the dog tha captured our hearts and we decided to keep and stop fostering (later continued). German Shephard. In the area, GSD’s were bred for white puppies (valuable) and others were left on the street. Looked terrifying; but soft as a brush. Picked her up from kennels, bouncing off the walls (literally), dragged me all the way home. The time she ran home to mom and dads house in my care.

• Sue and John’s mentally-ill tenant. Thought his mom, sue, john and the pileons were trying to kill him. Sue walked into garden, said hi to him twice, ignored, stared at Sue without blinking. She ran back inside scared.

• Trip to SE Asia

• Phillipines - Malapascua, wiped out by Typhoon Ursula, killed at least 28, still in ruins when we stayed (to our surpised; not as advertised).

• Phillipines - first hotel: beautiful location, bugs in the bed, brown stains on wall, final straw - prepared fish on wall outside rooms with hundreds of flies on.

• Phillipines - general experience: adrenaline-fueled, angry young men, guns, drugs, pushy sales, mopeds speeding along dirt tracks

• Cambodia - killing fields, Angkor Wat, Mr. Bun (007)/Mr. Buffalo, Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum, Buo Meng, corrupt police, nearby assassination of political competitor, embarrasing tuk tuk driver with parting gift, kickboxing show with tuk tuk driver

• Vietnam - felt like prey, beautiful Hoi An, tailored suits, laughed at in Hanoi airport

• Halong Bay - 9-course meals, beauty, massive jelly-fish near-miss, floating village

• Vietnam - arrival: had read westerners pay over the odds for airport taxis, wanted to negotiate fair price, they didn’t budge, refused to pay over threshold, stood for ages in heat, got in car, had to hold door closed, no seat belts, sped off into manic city roads, multiple near hits, arrived in hotel with no air conditioning

• Honeymoon in Sri Lanka

• Mabels birth

• Stealing change off mom and dad’s dresser as a kid so I could buy sweets on the way to school - felt guilty, kept doing it, felt so guilty I stopped

[#kennedyIWW]: Dan S. Kennedy: Influential Writing Workshop.