Daily Archives: 03/08/2006

What’s your most unusual job?

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The most unusual job I’ve had was selling stars. Yes, I worked at the International Star Registry as their PR consultant back in 1997/98. The catch line really was “your sure to adore your place in space”. The oddest moment was complaining to the then Broadcasting Standards Commission about astronomer Patrick Moore calling us cowboys, and then a freak tornado destroying his observatory not long after (sorry Patrick..). The BSC threw out our complaint.

But that pales into insignificance against meeting the niece of Ivor Downie, the founder of the company from Canada at a friend’s party. Downie was a farmer who wanted to name a star after his daughter, and set up the company to make his wish come true. Now that’s what I call a far-out coincidence!

I never did get round to naming a star – though we put my name on a certificate sent to the BSC as evidence. What I did really enjoy was telling people my job, and the ‘straights’ complaining, “Oh, but that’s not really naming a star is it? Only astronomers can do that.” How right they are.

Sir Elton and his star certificate.

How many laughs have you had?

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Don’t you just laugh when people who’ve ‘made it’ telling the rest of it how to ‘keep it real’? I guess I must be looking for laughter ’cause I keep stumbling across these gut busters. A few months ago Sir Elton John, musician, was saying how careerism had got out of hand and was creating a culture of conformity (something like that). Cheers Elton! And then I read an interview with Apple founder Steve Wozniak, which concludes: “Woz provided a philosophical moment after he was asked about his love of pranks. “When you die, how many yachts you have won’t be as important as how many laughs you had,” he said.” Here’s laughing at you Steve! <note: edit to ‘laughing with you’ should a job offer come through..>