About

My Fascinations

Design

Good design, bad design, great design, and woeful design. Here I look at how different design disciplines have shaped our lives.

Food

From basic equipment to culinary masterpieces we explore the history of food, food production, dining, and their impact on civilization.

Drink

Ancients brews, astronomical prices, sustenance and sustainability. Whether you like tea, wine, beer, or even water, I’ll look at it.

Language

Communication is the key. Language guides our thoughts, brings people together, and raises more than a few cultural issues.

About Me

With over 25 years of experience living in Taiwan and working in fields related to all of my interests, I thought it was time to share some of what I’ve learnt along the way

Hi, I’m Richard and I’m the voice behind the words that you’re hopefully reading. I was born in the UK. Having survived boarding school in England, studied in Scotland, lived in China, and studied Ergonomics and Human-Computer Interactions in London, I moved to Taiwan and never left. I’ve worked in education, R&D, event organisation, public relations and marketing, and met some really interesting people in doing so.

Now that I’m semi-retired, I have time to further explore everything that I find fascinating and share my thoughts with the world.

Skepticism and sarcasm are virtues

Too many people are conned by how people say things

All opinions are my own, feel free to disagree or agree

I want to keep learning and hope you do too

About My Fascinations

An exploration of design, science, food, drink, language, culture, and more. How they influenced and continue to influence humanity. The passions, joy, desire, and hate that they can create.

History.

Each section of the site will look at the history of the topic, from ancient origins to the modern day. Key protagonists and antagonists, events, and developments, and how they shaped their times and ours.

Personal Anecdotes.

My perspective on the subjects discussed. They are my opinions. You have yours. Unless they’re about my cats. My cats are wonderful, if you don’t agree, you’re wrong.

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Clients I’ve Worked With

Got Something Interesting?

I’d love to hear about it! We can meet in person or online to discuss your interest. Maybe it’s something that I want to learn more about and can write about, or you could write about it for an upcoming section on other people’s fascinations

Contact Me

Let’s learn from each other

When your business or hobby appears on My Fascinations you aren’t just teaching me, you’re sharing with everyone I reach.