About Canada-Engineering

Tuesday, 21 February 2017

A feat worth celebrating?

This past week, I ran into an old friend from my university days, I had not seen for a while.

Since he is a French-Canadian and we have always spoken in French, we continued the tradition of speaking in French. This is my translation, of part of our conversation as best as I can remember.

We started by bantering and as a man with a great sense of humour, he kept the bantering going until he suddenly stopped and looked earnest.

He said, this year I am celebrating two things instead of one. I have been celebrating one of them since I started dating young women.

I said, I know the first of the two: you are celebrating 150 the anniversary of Canada, but what on earth is the second celebration about: is it the invention of the condom?

No he said, don’t joke, this is serious.

I said my good man, what are you blathering about, are you going gaga?

Well, wait, he said: I tell you, nothing, absolutely nothing, has done as much for my love life as the reason of my celebration.

And you know what? The thing was invented by one of your people Moses Nadler and one of mine, Louise Poirier.

The names didn’t mean anything to me.

When I tell you, you will surely join me and together we can celebrate the anniversary of the event together!

After pulling my leg for a while longer he finally said: well, some 50 or 55 years ago this Nadler guy and the Poirier lady came up with this marvelous invention, a new bra, model 1300 Wonderbra!

Then, he took me to a nearby lingerie store and showed me the bra, I realised that it was yet another missed life-time opportunity to add a new dimension to my relationship with women.

On the other hand, I was glad to hear, for a change, an all-around feel good story.

I told him to go ahead and celebrate the event. I had to go home and take the dog for his evening walk.

On the way home, I could not help wonder whether Nadler and Poirier ever tested  the effects of the bra together.

C’est la vie!