I'm back again for another fantastic interview.  Where do these people hide in Kent?

This week's special guest on my blog is the wonderfully truthful and exceptionally brave Sian Murphy, 48 from Hoo near Rochester, Medway.

Although the picture is quite clear, Sian would like to reiterate that she is a woman as her name is sometimes confused with Sean.  Don't worry Sian, they will never make that mistake.

Currently, Sian runs her own business, Stormchasers, with her husband Mark.  In conjunction with her work at Stormchasers, Sian works with 2 other professional to make up The Ruby Marketers.

If you are wondering exactly what the company is, I will tell you!  The company specialises in helping local business owners who are computer illiterate or did not have the priviledge of using a laptop when they were younger to market their business online.  The range of services they offer is so vast which can start from setting up a Business Blog for a business to setting up social media profiles and as Sian puts it 'Give them the confidence and know-how to start using it.'

If that wasn't already enough, Stormchaser is branching out in another field of their business.

'Another part of my business is run by my husband Mark and he builds starter websites for businesses as part of Stormchasers at AskStormchasers.'

I was intrigued to find out more and did a bit of 'Googling' and came across an interesting article on the following website:

http://leavingthearmedforces.com/stormchasers/

I found a great quote on this website which described Stormchasers as a business that  'Is about leaping forwards into the storm, and coming back out the other side into a brighter and calmer world.'

I think this is a great acknowledgement of Sian and Mark's hard work.

And for any potential new and bright minds that want to begin their own business, take this advice from Sian.  'My tip for setting up in business is to give it time.  Work out how long it will take you to get it all up and running and get work finished - and then double it!'

'Set goals and then plan how you are going to achieve them and don't give up too soon, but be prepared to bend and sway as things change.  Smile, laugh, share and have 1 full day off each week.'

Wise words and I think, sensible advice for new business minds in the making.  Thanks Sian!

Moving on to Kentish matters, Sian likes the diversity of the landscape in Kent.  'We have rolling countryside, inland waterways, estuary shorelines and seaside all within a 70 mile radius.  To top it all off we also have some fascinating industrial areas with some really unexpected hidden treasures.'

Sian particularly like Hoo Church Cemetery.  Before you feel a shiver go down your spine, listen to the reason.  'A bit odd I know but unlike so many graveyards, Hoo is full of life.  Despite the age of many of the gravestones, there are flowers and shiny windmills, some truly wonderful trees to sit under when it's raining and some well placed benches for when the sun is out.  There are often children playing or just hanging out in their hoodies chatting to each other, whilst other villagers walk their dogs.  It's the happiest graveyard I've ever been to!'

Maybe I could have saved this for Halloween but I think it is great to hear something out the ordinary in an ordinary day in our lives.  Plus, I have never heard someone describe a graveyard in detail without using the words 'depressing' and 'upsetting' before.

As you know, my avid readers, as of 2011 I introduced a new question to my blog in which my interviewees tell me a specific fact or snippet of information about our beloved county.  Sian had a really interesting and historical one this week!

'One day I'm going to walk the Saxon Shore Way.' Sian begins. ' The Shore Way follows the line of historic fortifications that defended the Kent coast at the end of the Roman era.  The Shore Way is 160 miles long and starts from Gravesend and goes right the way around to Hasting, East Sussex.'

'There's lots to see along the way from ports, coastline and stunning countryside and of course that sense of history that walking along an ancient footpath - following along in the footstep of goodness know who always amuses me.'

Further to Sian's comments about the Saxon Shore Way, there are also four Roman fort remains, dating from the 4th Century that line the trail.  The only one I am familiar with is the one in Dover.  Kent is very rich in history but it is always great to learn about new things that different Kent residents know from their own experiences.

One of my favourite parts of the blog is eating spots! 

Sian enjoys eating at two pubs in Kent, namely The Ringlestone Inn and The Pier at Upnor, Rochester.  'I like them because the food is good and so is the atmosphere.  We also like to take a little picnic along the shoreline at Hoo every now and then.' 

You can't beat a Ham and Colman's Mustard sandwich, a bag of kettle crisps and a healthy slice of Chocolate Fudge cake! Delicious.

When not working, Sian enjoys cooking and eating meal with the family with a good bottle of wine, which she finds is her 'favourite pastime.'

This is followed by watching a movie whilst nodding off on the sofa.  A pastime of many in Kent I assume.

But there is more!  'When Mark and I are on our own, we enjoy walking and can often be spotted meandering mindlessly around the haunts of Hoo with nowhere in particular to go.'

'I also make rag rugs from old clothes and cloth, mainly for decorative purposes.'

My blog now enters a more serious tone that I believe needs delicate and careful attention as I am writing it.  Normally, I take great delight in listening to my interviewees explaining a humourous story to me about themselves, whether it be of them waking up semi nude on a beach after an initiation ceremony at University or walking into walls for no apparent reason.

Sian tells me a story that she is currently closing in her life at the moment.  One that has me wanting to stand up and applaud her bravery and courage to be able to tell a volunteer bloggist she has never met a very close and personal chapter of her life which I greatly appreciate and hope you find I have describe in a way that is befitting to you.

'2 years ago Mark and I used to have jobs.  I worked in local Government and Mark was a Project Manager.  We were both unhappy with our jobs and spent years talking about leaving and starting our own business.  I'd already trained as an NLP (forgive me if I'm wrong - Neurolinguistic Programming) practitioner and copywriter but unfortunately we didn't plan properly and then in

2009 found ourselves so stressed and miserable that we just decided to hand in our notice and quit.'

So, on 1st August 2009 there we were with no salaries, but some rather grand business plans.  On 17th August, I was diagnosed with breast cancer.  That stopped us in our tracks for a while.'

'It's now 2 years later and whilst I'm still on medication, our business is finally taking off after lots of false starts.  I could write a whole book on false starts but we have learned so much.'

'It sounds odd but whilst it might seem like the worst possible time to get cancer, in fact it was the best and it might even have been a lifesaver.  Had I been diagnosed whilst I was still at work I think I never would have left because of the security around the sick pay.  If I wasn't diagnosed just 2 weeks after we both left our jobs we would have just transferred our hectic lifestyles from jobs to businesses.  It would have been the same except now we wouldn't have been receiving monthly pay cheques!'

'Today we've both learned the lesson that money isn't that important, although of course that is also now our challenge because when you are in business you have to value money to some extent or you don't earn any of the damn stuff!'

'We also say thank you got what we do have instead of moaning about what we don't and we really do have so much.  Today we are working with some fabulous people the universe has sent us the perfect business partners and associates.  Our offices are up at the Innovation Centre and we have the most amazing fun.  It's all the good stuff about being at work in an office such as being around friends and having someone to share your triumphs and challenges, but without all of the grim stuff of having to dance to someone else's tune.'

As upbeat as ever, Sian claims ' We're having a ball!'

Now one of my favourite parts of the blog where my interviewees put the world to rights with their opinions on how to make Kent a better place.

"I would get planners in Medway to either change or introduce a required ratio of concrete to plants and greenery in the large housing development that are springing up around Hoo.  Many of the houses open directly onto the street, there are no gardens to speak of and the roads are so narrow they are like little brick tunnels.'

Sian likes to see 'a bit of green' when she looks out the window and whilst she doesn't live a development house, it still forms part of the landscape.

'Given that these estates have replaced fields, it would seem ecologically important at least to give a cursory nod to keeping some greenery around!'

I totally agree with that point and think that planners and developers should look closely at where they are building and how it will affect the local surrounding for both the locals and the wildlife.

So we come to my random question of the week and this one is a really good one!

If you could become any person in the world for one day, who would you become and why?

'I tried so hard to think of someone who wasn't too obvious but I couldn't, so I plumped for Oprah Winfrey, a bit of a cliche I know.'

'I chose Oprah because I want to know how it feels to be her.  She had a difficult childhood, dealt with racism and has overcome so much to get where she is.  She has such a clear vision about her life, that I want to know how that feels so I can recreate it for myself.

Well, this has been one of my most intense blogs yet, with highs and lows, cheerful quips and serious tones but overall I have enjoyed writing this one very much.  I hope Sian receives the recognition she deserves, not just through this blog but through the business world too.

Sian - my very best wishes for your future and a speedy recovery and I hope your business will continue to bloom!

So that's it for another week folks! (No Looney Tunes pun intended) but check in again soon for my newest interviewee.  Who knows, it could even be you!

If you live in Kent, let's talk!

If you would like to appear on my blog, all I ask is that you live in Kent and that you are willing to talk to me for 10 - 15 minutes about yourself.

If you think you'd like to give it a try, drop me an email on millendauthor@gmail.com and we will see what we can do!

Turn your back for one moment and something always happens at Medway Council.

The latest is an extraordinary announcement that it is publishing a webpage giving its answers to media questions.

It follows a disagreement with both the Medway Messenger and BBC South East over their reporting of the concerns raised by Jack Hope, a resident of the Isle of Grain. He has been mounting a vitriolic campaign against virtually everyone in authority (councillors, National Grid, MPs et al) over the failure of the any of them to advise what is the escape plan if there is a catastrophe at the LNG terminal. There has to be a plan if (heaven forbid) if there is a massive fireball at the terminal, along the pipe which crosses under the only roadway out of the Isle or aboard one of the 130,000 tonnes-liquid gas carrying tankers which now regularly dock next door to the village. (It's a good site they chose, between the laden wrecks of the munition-carrier Robert Montgomery and the minelayer Princess Irene.)

You would think the residents would know what to do They don't.

It is because there is an issue of national security (so those in authority maintain).

What seems to have upset Medway Council's press baron, John Staples, is that no one has reported that Mr Hope is demanding that National Grid buys his property. It is now blighted by its overbearing neighbours presence - along with everyone else on the tip of the Hoo peninsula.

The real issue is whether residents are safe living at the end of the A228 when they have millions of tonnes of gas stored in a near-frozen compressed state at the end of their gardens.

Mr Staples is a former reporter. He lives an uncomfortable life trying to balance the politicial pressures, officers; defensiveness and the ferrety inquisitiveness of the local media. I should know: I've done the same job.

What his decision means (and I suspect there are at least two politicians pushing this move) is that the confidentiality of press enquiries is going to be blown apart.

Let me explain the system employed by Mr Staples and his team.

A reporter phones in with a simple query. Let's say I ask: "How many staff does Medway Council employ?"

Mr Staples emails a query to HR with a deadline for a response, and asks the same question.

Someone in the HR department then responds. Let's say the answer is: "There are 8,000 full time and 2,200 part-time staff employed by the council."

An email is then sent to the reporter saying "Alan Watkins has asked how many staff does Medway Council employ. The answer is 8,000 full time and 2,200 part-time staff are employed by the council."

That simple enquiry will now find itself on the web. It won't mean very much to the general public. It might, however, mean something to a rival newspaper, broadcaster or whatever.

Mr Staples' bosses have really stirred an explosive mixture.

Their annoyance (did someone suggest petulance?) has led to the unprecedented step of revealing to other journalists what lines of investigation other reporters are following.

That's fine with innocuous enquiries (not that the general public will be interested). But what if it is asking about the asbestos crisis that is building in Medway's schools?

Would they have published the inquiries that I made a year ago when I first reported the spending and chaos that is the Woodlands School extension? I don't think so. They did everything they could to hide the answers I was seeking.

Would they have published the enquiry I made about asbestos examinations of more than 100 local schools? They strongly denied that there was any foundation in the story. In fact, the audit papers that were published earlier this month reveal that it was conducted in a three month spell, and that was a difficult target for the council to meet. But the council press office denied there was any foundation in the story.

Would they care to say how many council houses and flats have asbestos today, and what advice they have given their tenants?

Dogs eat dogs. When one of those hounds takes thousands of pounds of the money we lawful taxpayers reluctantly give them for their high salaries, shoddy schooling, tatty buildings and one-time pop stars he deserves to get bitten.

Medway Council should pull back - or expect a bit more than a bite.

THE next stage of the run up to May 5's local elections has just come to an end with the closure of nominations.

Candidates had until midday today to get their nominations in - along with lists of supporters who can vouch for their standing in the community.

The Conservatives were boasting last week that all their candidates in the 22 wards had been cleared of any blemishes (at least their nomination papers were correctly completed).

Labour was less lucky, and still searching for official supporters to complete nomination papers at the weekend.

Papers were handed in this morning - just before the deadline.

Staff were already trying to sort out papers belonging to several of the smaller parties.

Electoral officers are currently checking the entries, but all three major parties are said to have candidates in virtually every ward, there are plenty of independents in the offing and it looks as though the parish councils are about to get a wake-up call with at least two polticial parties - Conservative and Liberal Democrats - putting in nominations on the west bank of the Medway.

***

If the parishes do have an election, it will be the first in Medway since there was a stand-off in High Halstow in 2003, and only the second since the beginning of the 1990s.

The row at Allhallows (which has spilled on to this blog site and the Medway Messenger's web pages) seems to have sparked renewed interest in the principle of democracy. The practice of the same should follow later.

***

One of the names in the borough council hat is that of Dan McDonald, the chief executive of the Medway CItizens Advice bureau.

Mr McDonald had a good airing yesterday on The Politics Programme on BBC-1 sparking a few angry comments from the Liberal Democrats.

Mr McDonald is an interesting character.

He has variously been a Labour Party member and a Lib Dem (he was press officer for their most successful candidate in the 2010 Gneeral Election.

These days Dan is with the Andy Stamp independent group.

Interesting to read recently that when he worked for the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in North Devon as a housing manager he was known as Rory.

***

I understand one of the Lib Dem candidates is a fellow with the name Jasmin. The Bosnian barrister pronounces it Yasmin in case there was any doubt.

***

On a more mundane level, I hear Derrick Singleton, the former housing chief who was moved sideways, has now left the council. The sound of the door clanging shut was (I undestand) delberately silenced.

***

Among the many who will not be standing for election next month are the two MPs who have also been councillors, Reh (call me Rehman) Chishti and Mark Reckless. They are going to concentrate their efforts in Westminster.

***

A regular correspondent has taken me to task for having the temerity to suggest that most parish councillors are unelected.

If you don't face the election ballot, and get more votes than someone else, that is not an election. It is a sham, shames the community , and is certainly not a democratic process.

If, as then happens, the rest of the council is selected from "volunteers" that is even more disgraceful. Interviews were held at one peninsula parish council to decide who fitted in with the rest of the council - and who should be excluded. It saved an election. It did nothing for democratic rights.

Elections? - stand up and be counted!

Again the cold, winter freeze has made its way across the county causing more chaos but I have still managed to track down one of you lovely Kentish folk for an interview.

This is Katie Smith, 31 from Maidstone.

Katie is currently on a career break from teaching so that she can look after her 2 children.

In the previous 10 weeks I have noticed a pattern developing amoungst Kentish residence.  A pattern that is similar to the amount of times I lose to my nan at cards when she's dealing!

Like most before her, Katie enjoys the quaint villages of our county, how we have an open countryside around the different parts of Kent and the links we have to our beloved capital city, London.

The appeal to most of us who live here is that we have the luxury of public transport that can get you into the capital in just over an hour so if you want to work, shop or just visit, it is not an inconvenience.  Additionally the countryside we do have available to us is ideal for hiking or just a stroll.

So despite the similar response I receive from interviewees, I understand where they are coming from.

As always though, we have tasty food and drinks and we all like to indulge ourselves once in a while.  Katie is no different.

"I like The White Horse on Bearsted Green. It has good food and a good atmosphere and is a brilliant place to sit outside in the summer."

We all like to sit indoors though, on the cold winter nights and watch a good film or a bit of t.v.

"I like to watch Miranda, Desperate Housewives and Coronation Street.  My favourite movies have to be The Thomas Crown Affair and Dirty Dancing."

I always like to get to this part of the interview because I enjoy to find out funny stories about people to see the real them.  Katie's is just superb and kind of makes you wish you were around when it happened.

"When I was at Primary School I thought I would see what would happen if I pulled the pin out of a fire extinguisher and squeezed the handle."

Wait!!!! It gets better.

"Needless to say water started spraying everywhere, I panicked as I was in the school library and I didn't want the books to get wet so I aimed it at myself."

I can't stop grinning because I think that everyone at some point has wanted to try and spray the water or foam from a fire extinguisher around without any repercussions.  I'm sure there was on this occasion but I always wanted to try it!

After this incident though, I'll think I will steer clear.

Back on a serious matter, I asked Katie how she would make Kent a better place and in my opinion the first part is spot on!

"I would reduce the number of demolitions to old buildings that are replaced by 'cardboard' flats and offices."

I 100% agree that tearing down historical buildings in certain spots to be replaced with housing flats is just crazy.  Building complexes on any spare piece of land or by knocking down other buildings instead of properly planning out a good location is ludicrous."

It seems all sensibility is going out the window.

And finally I have, as always, my random question of the week:  What is the scariest thing, in your own opinion, you have ever faced and successfully overcome?

"Learning to drive was pretty scary as I was rubbish.  It did not help that I booked my test for 5 days after my 17th birthday. I failed!"

Although Katie failed, she eventually overcame the fear and can now drive.

A huge thanks to Mrs Smith for her time and best of luck on the career break with her family.

It still remains to be seen who is my interviewee from week to week, but who knows, it could be you next!

If you live in Kent, let's talk!

If you would like to appear on my blog, all I ask is that you live in Kent and that you are willing to talk to me for 10 - 15 minutes about yourself.

If you think you'd like to give it a try, drop me an email on millendauthor@gmail.com and we will see what we can do!