| More than 62 weeks ago I read a that going for 50 coffees with people you've never met is the entrepreneur's equivalent to the that doing anything for 10,000 hours will make you an expert on it. While I got the idea, 50 coffees was far easier than practicing something for ten years, so after completing that challenge I decided to make a major commitment and publish 500 over the next few years. In this series I introduce you to interesting Vancouverites, many of whom I had never met before. It's an exercise in networking for myself and for V.I.A. while also being a platform through which I to introduce you to some people who are doing really cool stuff in the city you live in. |
Meet Simon Thomas. Victoria-born and raised, he now resides in Vancouver, playing with the Whitecaps this previous season (and some prior to it). He was recently included on the roster for Canada's national soccer team!
We met at Tableau on Melville and Simon gave me a bit of a crash course on Major League Soccer, which is something I should probably be following a bit closer. We talked about his growing up in Victoria (near one of my favourite places there: Oak Bay Marina), about heritage homes (have you noticed that all of Victoria seems to be heritage?) and we exchanged stories about helping people move (his trumped mine as it involved blood). When in the presence of people like Simon I tend to ask a lot of dumb questions, which usually turn out to be the best kinds of questions, so I always ask them. What I gleaned from a line of questioning around pro sports is a fact that I didn't possess before our meeting: professional weightlifters will sometimes be mended up with a type of Super Glue instead of stitches if they rip open their hands while competing. That's crazy.
I'm looking forward to watching Simon mind the net in some future MLS games, and perhaps if I get more into soccer I'll even see him play in the next CONCACAF Gold Cup!
Stay tuned for 438 more Coffees! And check out the caffeinated archive .
