I am one of the
most apolitical people you are going to meet. No, I think that suggests
indifference. I hate politics. While I understand it's necessary and
have the greatest respect for anyone trying to make their town a better place,
I am deeply sceptical that the system is, in any real way whatsoever, there to
serve me.
So when Tyler asked
me to write a column for Paleo, giving me free reign to write anything I want,
completely unrestricted - “anything at all...except politics” - I inherently
knew that my first article would be about Brexit.
Hard to say why I
hate politics and indeed authority-for-authorities-sake so much though it's
fair to say my last ten years neck deep in pet food land have utterly
eliminated in me any remaining belief that sentient and, dare-to-dream, caring
adults are in charge. I just leave them at it and continue with my day. I walk
my dogs. I pay my taxes and I don't listen to the radio in the morning.
Then Brexit happened. It was always going to affect each one of us differently. For those that don't know me, I'm a canine nutritionist, yes, but I'm essentially a small, Irish business. I love small business (at least as much as I dislike big business), grew up in one, in fact, but that's not the way I went initially. A scientific researcher by trade, I sought out a career in guide dogs both here and in Australia before returning home to become Ireland's first raw dog food manufacturer in 2010, a product that was made famous by a successful if slightly mortifying appearance on TV's Dragon Den (the stand-in dog didn't eat the food live on TV, pretty much the stuff of nightmares!).
Since then, I have turned whole heartedly back to research. Over the last eight years, I have written various pieces on canine nutrition and health and recently those pieces became a book. During that time, I made some money on the side doing seminars, some consultancy work (isn't Paleo Plus lovely?!), the occasional Zoom consult with troubled dog owners as well as, perhaps most importantly, developing a line of seaweed-based supplements which, I have to admit, I'm really rather fond of.
Few people know this but, while most of my small supplement business is handled by someone else, I still pack my own orders for my website. I get such a buzz from it. Every time I put a pack in the cardboard envelope I think about a happy customer. A child of the 80's, there was nothing I enjoyed more than getting to the unopened cereal box first (not an easy feat when you're the youngest of five boys) too see what little toy lay in wait for me. Today, I still get a giddy thrill when putting the free tick remover tool in with my orders (I really hate ticks), imagining the joy folk get out of opening the parcel to this little surprise bonus. My daughter has started to help me now which is choking me up as I write it. A complete hindrance mind, the child is completely obsessed with stickers. I have to print two of every label. Stamps are highly coveted and must be kept out of reach.