Yesterday was a pretty monumental day in Spain. The parliament of Catalonia voted for a full ban on a centuries-old tradition, bullfighting, in the entire region. This sets an impressive precedent in an area which is increasingly looking to differentiate itself from the traditional ruling culture of Castilian Spain. Thousands of bulls will be spared a short, miserable life and a horrifyingly cruel death.

The vote was called after a petition was handed to parliament bearing a staggering 180,000 signatures calling for an end to the practice; many thought a ban was way out of reach and would not happen in the near future. This just goes to show that incredible leaps of progress can be made in a short space of time.

So, the night before last I walked across hot coals. Yes! Really! I really did do it! Six times hotter than a barbecue, they said. Hot enough to melt aluminium. And I felt it! But it didn’t hurt, and I didn’t get burned. Not one jot. I know you probably don’t believe me, but it’s true.

All people have been asking me since yesterday is, “how did you do it?” The truth is, I don’t really know. I mean, it was explained to us; there are several complex reasons why it’s physically possible to do, but none of that answers the question of how, standing there in front of the intense heat, smoke and glowing coals, was I able to take that first step?

Earlier this week I came across a news story that caused me to question myself in a way I haven’t for a long time.

The title of said story goes like this: “Painful truth is mice twist their faces in agony, just like humans”, and it goes on to describe how a team of Dutch and Canadian scientists have created a ‘mouse grimace scale’ for measuring the amount of pain a mouse is suffering based on its facial expressions.

A whirlwind. That is the only way I can think to describe adequately the presence of the fascinating, energetic, gifted and highly eccentric Lucinda Hare, author of children's fantasy novel The Dragon Whisperer - a book which has recently been taking the already saturated and hard-to-break fantasy novel genre by storm.

Having heard that The Dragon Whisperer was something of an allegory about human relationships with animals, I decided recently to have a read of it. Then I found out that the author is a fan of ours, and, much to my surprise and delight, I had even had conversations with her on Facebook without realising it. It turns out she's passionate about the idea of OneKind, and feels that OneKind world is the kind of world her stories stand for. So, next thing I know, we're emailing, and she's coming in to meet us.

"A what?"

"A fire walk."

"You mean, walking on a fiery bed of hot coals?"

"Exactly."

"And why would any of our supporters want to do that?"

"Because they want to raise money for animals. Oh, and maybe because they're a little bit mad."

"Is it safe?"

"Of course! These specialists have been running these events for 20 years with no problems. Besides, people have been walking on fire since prehistoric times."

"Right."

"Right."

"This should be interesting."

Since I started working for Advocates for Animals last year, seals have been at the forefront of our work and day-to-day office life. But in truth, ever since the first mention of a Marine Bill for Scotland in early 2007, and our seeing an opportunity to lobby for some formal protection for the estimated 200,000 seals in Scottish waters, the issue has not been at rest.

The constant discussions and updates led by our policy director, Libby, have kept the issue in the spotlight even when we've been focussing on other campaigns. Even during those 'quiet' periods between parliamentary debates on the Bill, Libby has been unwavering in her dedication to the issue, spending endless hours with MSPs discussing and debating amendments to the Bill.

So, a new year - a new decade no less!

First of all, Happy New Year to everyone, and I hope you all had a good one. I went down South to spend the holidays with my family, where we had our first ever white Christmas, and what a treat that was. Whenever I return home I’m always reminded of what an animal-centric world my parents live in.

Today is a very important day for Advocates for Animals and anyone who cares about Scotland’s wildlife. Why? Because this morning I am accompanying our Policy Director, Libby Anderson, to the Scottish Parliament to attend a meeting of the Rural Affairs and Environment Committee, where they will vote on the proposed amendments to the Marine (Scotland) Bill.

‘Eh?’ I hear you say. Well, let me explain.

Wow! The Advocates for Animals office is buzzing right now. Our CEO and Campaigns Director came back from a meeting yesterday with Queen guitar legend and all round top bloke Brian May CBE. For two hours they spoke with him about the OneKind campaign, he spoke with them passionately about his love for animals.

They showed Brian our campaign literature and recent press adverts featuring Alesha Dixon, Paul O’Grady and Johnny Vegas. Brian returned the favour of inspiration with his stunning photographs and videos of the beautiful Sebastian the fox. You can read more about Sebastian the fox for yourself on Brian’s Blog at www.brianmay.com