What others have observed

[luckycanuck]

One thing that happens when you meet old friends whom you've not seen in a long time is that they make observations about you that can surprise you.

Observations made in the last day...

1) I have a cool accent.

Someone said that I have a stronger Australian accent than my father, who was born and raised in Australia (but hasn't lived there since 1971.)  Others have said that I no longer sound Canadian at all.  Others have said I sound Irish for some reason.

2) The years have been good to me.

Some people I've not seen for ten years, and in truth, I am in a much better situation than I was in my early 20s, though I can't really look back on a life of misery from back then.  Things have always been pretty good, and my nickname here is apt.

3) Apparently I was a lady's man in high school.

This caught me TOTALLY off guard.  Last night I had dinner with contaminatedsun 



whom I've not seen since a chance encounter with her and her then husband in Vancouver airport in early 2001.  Apparently the fact that I had more female friends than most guys put the idea into her head that I was a real player.  In fact I was very much a late bloomer.  I can't really claim to have had a girlfriend at any point in high school (though one girl a dated briefly was described by others in those terms) and was 20 before I really got seriously involved with anyone.  (We wound up getting engaged, but that's another story.)

4) I have an impressive work history.

I had drinks with another Univeristy era friend whom I had not seen since finishing my studies in Calgary.  After talking about what we had done over the last decade, he asked if I was likely to move back to Canada, and suggested that if I was thinking about it (in the age of itchy feet and all) I would be a useful addition to the Canadian Prime Minister's Office.  He said the same about a previous job of his which would involve promoting democracy in emerging countries.  (This would mean travel to places like Iraq and Afghanistan, so it's not as glamorous as it sounds.)

Now I can't honestly say I was offered a job, but my interactions from today and yesterday have made me think that there may be work for me after all if I was to return to Canada or move to the US.  If I did I suspect it may only be a short term thing.  I would say that I live in Australia now.  It would take a lot to get me to move.  But an opportunity to bring my British and Australian political experience to bear in Canada could be very good career wise.

Perhaps this is what I do after all.  Perhaps I have broader and richer experiences than I thought.

If nothing else, I feel better knowing that others far away seem to think I have something to bring to the table.

On another note, my plan to drive to the mountains and do pushups on top of one of them was set aside today because there was a few inches of snow on the ground by the time I woke up.  No matter.  I did pushups in the snow instead.



I wasn't happy with my form at first (there was a lot of snow and maintaining proper form under the circumstances was difficult) so I went out again and did more.