My introduction - A chink in my armour for a glimpse within...

G’day everyone I’m coming to you from Down Under! Well, to be honest,
‘down under' is not a term we tend to use when describing where we live so let’s scratch that and simply go with Australia. I’m new to Steemit so feel an introduction post is appropriate and a good way to break the ice. I’m a little nervous as I would usually not open up in a forum like this...

I’m a pretty typical Aussie guy really. Like so many people here I’m a product of a marriage between an immigrant father, and a fourth generation Australian; One of 5 siblings. Being born into a mixed marriage had it's challenges back when I was young. We live in a very multicultural society here now but in the 60's and 70’s it was completely different. Thoughts on that later. My lineage on my mothers’ side heralds from English convict stock when a couple hundred years ago the penalty for minor theft, say a loaf of bread to feed one’s children, was death. However often the sentence was commuted to 'transportation' to the penal colony that was Australia at the time. Two of my ancestors arrived in chains, a man and woman.

But that’s a story for another post as is further thoughts on our society, challenges, positives, negatives and benefits around multiculturalism and many other topics I’m passionate about. For now however I’ll stick to the here-and-now and my brief introduction post. Please, read on…

I’m a married guy of 40 (or so) years old and work as a manager heading up a dealership retailing off-road extreme camper trailers. Past roles include a long stint in management at an auto plant then some 12 years as a licenced land agent (realtor) as principle of my own company and within an international franchise specializing in residential, commercial and development property sales and leasing. My wife and I also own and operate our own business, which we started 24 years ago so you could say we are reasonably busy professionally.

We have a small family, well… We have two cats you’ll meet in the future and as generally is the case, they run our household. Cleo and Merlin have personalities of their own and we’d not be without them. We love our little family and focus on making our way through life the only way we know how, being the best people we can be as often as we can. Our ethos is "design and create our ideal life rather than live it by default."

I’ve typically been an outdoorsy person so spend my personal time camping, off-roading, kayaking, hiking and shooting which are things I will write about over time, especially my passion for practical/precision long range rifle shooting and the competitions I compete in…And my beloved 4x4.

My wife and I share a passion for travel, history and learning about other countries, cultures and people, which is partly why Steemit is so attractive. We avoid the traditional online “social” media platforms where possible and I hope Steemit will be a great substitute to engage with like-minded people. We’ve been to Europe, all over Asia and have travelled throughout much of Australia preferring quality over quantity immersing ourselves in the culture in each place we go. It’s an amazing world in which we live with so much to absorb, so many thought-provoking sights sounds and experiences; Some of which I’ll share with you.

So, I look forward to sharing my thoughts, observations, opinions and lessons I’ve learned throughout my time on this place we call earth and hope to show some value to you guys.

Thanks for reading and follow for more insights to come.