Nicolas Mendez

If anybody would ask me to define myself… I would have to say… ‘it depends’, or… ‘I’m a bitsa’, a bit of this, a bit of that… It depends on the context and who’s asking. This would be only partially tongue in cheek. As a professional, I would say I’m a Cost Planner… but a weird one, as I also try to wear a designer hat when I try to understand what would be the Architect’s intention before they’ve drawn anything. I also try to think like a Facilities Manager in an attempt to understand how the building would be used in years and decades to come.

As a person, well… it also depends! As a father, I try to support my daughters and guide them through my own experience, but understanding that ‘experience is like a toothpick, only for personal use’! As a husband… well, you could ask my wife and, after almost forty years of marriage she might say it’s not been too bad… hopefully!

But if you ask me again, after being frustrated with my ‘it depends’, I might tell you that I’m a dreamer (but I’m not the only one), I’m a glass half full type of guy, I like to see beauty and the good in people (most of the time), I’m crazy about travel, photography and art (in all its forms), philosophy in general (and Buddhism in particular). I love jazz, France, Italy and Japan (and their respective cuisines). I have Spanish, Portuguese, French and indigenous Latin American genes and I love drawing, painting and making noise with my guitars.

What else matters in life if you have health and the love of your family and friends?!