My life. My wife. My cars.

Barry Hill — Copywriter                                        

But that wasn’t always the case. I’ve also:

·  Mixed sound for a friend’s band on weekends, eventually starting a small L.A. record label while at university;

·  Volunteered as a university Business lecturer with a US NGO in China (after MBA); and

·  Conducted all planning and analysis studies for Exxon Lubricants before China market entry (Lead Project Manager, Logistics); completed one month before one-year deadline.

And then out of the blue, it happened…

Replete with sunbeams and angelic choir, a copywriter’s desk floated down before me, transitioning me to a new career at Bates Hong Kong. Since then I’ve been blessed enough to do what I love most — writing, brainstorming and creative problem-solving across all media.

I did manage to collect one very special treasure during my 13 years in Asia (or did she collect me?); my Indian uber-princess, Priscilla. We married and have now settled in Toronto to be near my parents.

Things that turn my crank

Science, philosophy, photography, a round of golf — sometimes not even on Wii.

Astronomy, too, has been a lifelong fascination. I’m also a news junkie and British history buff — particularly WWII, as my granddad was a D-Day vet / RAF mechanic who witnessed much carnage and chaos as he followed the front lines. A spectacular motorcycle crash landed him a five-month hospital stint, after which he married his nurse (that would be Nana). That means I technically have a 350 cc Ariel in my family tree.

Things with cranks I turn

Under his tutelage, I restored a ’62 Ford, a ’67 Mustang and a rare blood-red Boss 351, among others … see, I didn’t always have my head in the Internet (or Mad magazine).

Below: Fresh from the paint shop after a summer-long body restoration — my ’67 Mustang 289 V8 with 4-barrel, 4-speed and posi-trac rear. That’s me, aged 16, and little bro, impatiently awaiting test-launch. (See car’s demise at bottom of page.)

Actually, rebuilding cars helped me develop a few skills that transfer well to communications, like creative problem-solving — although back then it was, “How can I fabricate a broken part?”, “Where exactly is the wiring bad?”, “Why are all these parts left over after rebuilding the engine?” (Go easy, I was only 14, practicing on old 4-cylinder motors from the wrecker.)
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’77 Eldorado… now THAT’S a carbon footprint! (Gas crisis? What gas crisis?) One of the heaviest Cadillacs ever made at 5000 lbs or 2.15 tonnes.  Needed plenty of mechanical and body work at first — and again later after a friend T-boned a truck with it.

’72 Caddy Sedan Deville — 472 cubes of gas-guzzling glory. This is pretty-much how mine looked after I restored the body and treated it to Dupont’s latest ‘Imron’ metallic paint.

’62 Ford Galaxie wagon and a 15-year-old who can’t wait to get his licence. Granddad showed me how to rebuild the 390-cube, 4-barrel engine like a watch, while also guiding me on the bodywork — yep, that means I did all the sanding.

A mint Celica from my ‘practical’ phase … oh well, everybody makes mistakes.

If you’re peeking below, let’s just say ‘Pride comes before a fall.’ But that’s another story. Which I will consider telling you, if you will consider hiring me.

Another one bites the dust … or in this case, the back of an ’89 Chrysler.

Well, thanks for watching — now get back to oogling my ads.