Charles Barwell, of Barclays, nearly got caught "sloping off" from our top share tipping competition.
He came second with a 148 per cent profit on Vestas Wind.
And, unamazingly, after all this is The Birmingham Post, news reached him while on a skiing holiday in France. He tells me: "Was in Courchevel where the snow was amazing."
Except half his kit was still in Birmingham.
He went on: "Unfortunately my ski kit was still at BHX so I had the most expensive afternoon of my life buying new goggles, gloves and even underwear in Europe's most expensive resort.
"At Christmas I could however console myself that my goddaughter's father, who's chalet I was staying at, had a private plane direct from the altiport here to get us back
for Arsenal v Spurs.
"So I didn't have to face the prospect of Flybe losing my kit a second time!"
Bah humbug. What about Villa and the Blues?
Still, many congratulations.
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Indefatigable networker and all-round good egg Neil Pountney has never been a man afraid of a gadget.
So his little eyes must have lit up when - ver the recent festive period - found that Santa had left him a brand new iPod.
The two (Pountney and the iPod, not Santa) have become inseparable. Knowing the boy's predilection for a bit of Celine Dion (and we all know which bit), his work colleagues were quick to set some rules.
"I told him in no uncertain terms that we were not going to stand him wandering round with that Canadian songstress warbling away in the background," says Renee Lamb, Pountney's executive assistant at his Solihull firm of construction experts, Emprima.
So when he appeared a couple of days later with the strains of female singing clearly audible from the iPod, he had some explaining to do.
So he did.
"It's not Celine Dion, it's a Girls Aloud video I've downloaded purely to test out the audio quality and the graphics," he said.
Yes Neil; audio quality and graphics, two of Girls Aloud's biggest assets!
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Young bloods are still romantics at heart, Bright can reveal.
It follows two uplifting tales of today's lovers.
Birmingham businessman and Selly Oak rugby club scrum half Ciaran Nolan has just got engaged to long term girlfriend Emma Turner.
Took her to New York,no less,and went down on one knee in front of the Christmas tree at the Rockefeller centre.
What girl could resist?
And, I am told, the 'rock' he has bought her is seriously impressive.
So congratulations to those two.
Stuart Mair, local director at James Lang LaSalle, stayed in good old Brum when proposing to his girlfriend, Alison Hill.
The Hill family have been Moseley rugby club supporters almost as long as Moseley has existed.
So Stuart chose the half way line on the club's main pitch to go down on one knee.
Popped the question at 12.30pm on the day of the recent big game against Northampton.
Pity it couldn't have been at half time - dung the game would have been even more interesting.
But the lad was never going to get kicked into touch and the two are now officially engaged.
So isn't that nice.
They may have been written off as the "hoodie generation" but when it comes to the crunch these kids are just as soppy as their predecessors.
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According to the wags, some things should never appear in the same sentence - John Duckers and new media being two of them.
The business editor of this august organ is someone who until only recently believed that an attachment merely meant an affinity to someone or something.
Old hacks on a recent course he was forced on were advised that the latest "experts' report" predicts the demise of the print media by 2043 or some such date.
"I'll be retired but he'll be dead!" crows Birmingham Mail editor Steve Dyson, gleefully pointing at Duckers.
So he doesn't see it as all bad news then.
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Colourful Brummie MP John Hemming has been telling me how he can legitimately vote in membership ballots for both Labour and the Liberal Democrats.
Liberals, yes; he is a Liberal.
But Labour?
From my dodgy memory deep into a lengthy day on the sauce it was something, I think, to do with his membership of some trade union affiliated to the party.
Had he ever done so?
No.
Oh come on, John, where's your sense of mischief?
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Online shopping is clearly the thing but is it possible that some people are taking it just a little bit too far?
PR consultant Andy Skinner arrived home wearily one evening recently thinking that the next item on his To Do list was to drag himself round Tesco with his partner Angela - not something that appealed on a wet and windy evening.
"It's all right, darling," said Angela. "I got everything we need delivered by Tesco Direct this afternoon."
They live just 200 yards from Tesco in Stratford-upon-Avon!
Meanwhile, spotting something that didn't make sense on the company bank account, John Teece, accountant to ASAP PR and long term business partner in Andy's various commercial interests, picked up the phone to speak to the bank.
He launched into the poor unfortunate who answered the phone who was somewhat bemused to be berated in such a fashion.
"That is Lloyds in Bromsgrove, isn't it?" he thundered.
"Yes, sir, Lloyds Pharmacy."