Philip George lives on his own in a rugged mountain village close to the Apuane Mountains, in Garfagnana, Tuscany, having recently lost George his beloved black Labrador and visited daily by a cat named Sciusci, and sometimes a pigeon called Che. They are his holy trinity. For one who at 18 left his country of birth, Malaysia, to make something of himself in England for over four decades, before happily retiring to Italy, he indeed has stories aplenty. Long before his successful career as a Solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales, Phil tried his hand at many jobs in Lancaster: a process worker in a linoleum factory, a psychiatric nurse in two mental hospitals, a banker, a stevedore at the Heysham Port, book-keeper in a betting shop and cashier in a gambling den. Adjacent to this period Phil played international-level badminton and county-level squash, ran twenty-five international marathons and cycled extensively in England and Vietnam. An avid fan of many sports, he has attended three World Cups, three Olympics, three Commonwealth Games, several Formula One races and for good measure one Royal Ascot. He is now a member of CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sports) headquartered in Switzerland. Phil currently offers legal consultancy on a Pro Bono basis and with the aid of technology and social media, mentors anyone in need from any part of the world. This book is a dedication to every underdog willing to chip away at their insecurities.
