From the outset, apologies for the gushing nature of this Tash Friday, but this is a week that has been a long time in coming.

If the purpose of Tash Friday hasn’t yet been made clear, we are here to celebrate, appreciate and congratulate those who take a chance and live life to the full. 

This week, I am delighted to be celebrating the success of yet another Appreciator. This is an increasingly familiar occurrence but this week gives us all something to believe in; and that’s the best thing anyone can give to a group these days. 

The lesson this week is perseverance. These days, life is not fair. My friends have to toil with rubbish job opportunities and nonsense selection processes that are biased, partisan and unfair. Nevertheless, they ultimately prevail. 

I would argue that, to a man (“man” meaning people in general), my friends – i.e. you – work harder; are more intelligent ; and have more going for them than the rest of the general population. 

This week alone, I have heard of friends preparing themselves to take a chance by (rightly) backing themselves to get a job in the worst job market in the last three decades; having the cojones to negotiate favourable terms in new jobs; and having the confidence to pursue careers in areas that they may not have considered twelve months ago. 

Suffice to say, I cannot remember a time when I have been so proud of being friends with so many people. I tend not to say this to their faces (as I like to maintain an air of not caring) but this week will live long in my memory. Whether it’s a chat over dinner or the end of a year’s work, this week has been, for me, like an old fashioned movie – you know, the kind with happy endings – and there have been four or five lead characters with several others playing supporting rolls. Some of the narratives haven’t run to their conclusion but I have no doubt that they will end in the way I hope.

Talking of heroic efforts, this week’s Tash is Errol Flynn – a man not unfamiliar with old fashioned movies. I’ve had a smile like this for 48 hours at least.