Li Jin Mae - BBC2 - The Mekong River with Sue Perkins

I hesitate to spell this brilliant ladies name because it was only said aloud on the program, but I think it might be Li Jin Mae. She is an Aini woman in China trying to keep the traditions of her people alive in the midst of a rapidly changing culture that pursues the new and modern. I like how she doesn't completely vilify technological advances, they're kind of ok you know? There's pros and cons. It's the way we live now and it's moving so fast we don't always have time to get used to the changes or to sit down and work out what is worth preserving of the old ways of doing things, and what is fine to throw out with the bathwater. Or Mekong River water in this case. 

I like Sue Perkins as a travalogueer, and I enjoy how tall she looks in China and how polite and jovial she is, like a young Steven Fry. I do miss her presence on the the Comic Relief Bake Off though. 

Football special: Cristiano Ronaldo

The field of sport is ripe for the plundering for wisdom. Who could know more about hard work and the price of success than people that are paid ridiculous amounts of money so they can focus on nothing else? And Ronaldo's analysis could apply to so many undertakings - whether the Great British Bake Off tent (come on Ruby), the classroom (come on year 11), or of course the football pitch. Unless you have the bravery to push yourself and take risks to expand your knowledge, you will never develop the skills you need to succeed. Courage is not a guarantee of a multi million paycheck of course. 

Kimberley

I almost didn't sketch this piece of Real TV Wisdom, for starters, the GBBO editors are OBSESSED with this soundbite, cos, you know, it sounds a bit rude, and Kimberley looks all sparkly and happy when she says it. So I already saw it two weeks ago and was actually a bit confused to see it in the actual episode this week. Also, the close up angle means you can't see the top of Kimberley's hair. And she was star baker like Ruby and it's not like a thing that I want to draw the star baker. 

But, obviously, i drew it anyway.  Because, you know, it sounds a bit rude, but is very wise. What truly governs our happiness more than our physical comfort, and satisfactory pie? 

Ruby Tandoh

Just as the wedding season is drawing to a close, the Great British Bake Off season is begining! Hooray and Hurrah and Bally Ho or whatever it is us British say at such times. This is a little off of the Real TV Wisdom rules, being a statement in the first person, but as I'm already a little bit in love with this week's star baker Ruby (I'm not alone according to a quick google) I wanted to draw her and extol the wisdom of this statement, which ran deep with me. Succeeding, not in what you are EXPECTED to succeed in, or even what you are EXPECTED not to, not in what SOCIETY (I'm getting carried away with the caps today sorry) deems success, but in what you find most fun and fulfilling, that's the real icing on the cake isn't it? I could be Sue Perkins.