Over the years, I've collected quite a few sobriquets. The one that stayed with me for quite a while was Kid, as well as some variations of it (for example, *kid where * is some prefix/modifier like my zodiac sign). I've also been called J Bear, a moniker inspired by my middle name, physique, and bearing.
As the years have gone by, surprisingly little has changed about that kid part of my identity. Instead of high sophistication and perfect tact commonly expected of an adult, I still carry much of the same curiosity, shyness, sense of wonder, and a mix of humility and audacity that earned me the nickname Kid in the first place. Besides, I'm still trying to get more social graces and emotional maturity under my belt. It's been a lonely journey for me to figure out how to adult.
That said, reality occasionally taps me on the shoulder. The back pain and the growing number of white hairs in my beard are gentle reminders that I can no longer convincingly claim to be a kid. More importantly, I'm a protector and problem solver by nature, which has gained me more daddy credits over these years.
Therefore, in the human world, I now come off as something between a kid and a daddy, though I oftentimes find myself acting like the latter. By analogy with the ursine world, I'm not a young cub, and not yet a full-grown daddy bear — though, again, I oftentimes fit the "daddy bill" for certain individuals (sometimes even for those who are much older than I am).
Likewise, I'm somewhere between a kohai and a senpai, or between a disciple and a mentor. That's somewhat amusing, considering I spent more than fifteen years working as a teacher in real life. Even so, I've always felt more at home as a learner/observer than an expert/front runner, another sign that the cub in me never wandered too far away.
All things considered, oldercub (in all lowercase) feels about right. It's a nod to my age (older), a play on my monikers (Kid + Bear = cub), and the fact that I still feel young at heart while struggling to adult.
A little more about me — In real life, I go by J Bear, J.B., or simply J (not spelled "Jay"), in addition to my legal first name. Of course, I wouldn't mind if you called me oldercub on the Internet. I'm a Canadian guy living a simple life that mainly consists of music, food, technology, art, and various projects that keep me busy. I live in the beautiful province of Ontario in Canada. With university credentials in Computer Science and Clinical Trial Management, I work as a software/web developer, technical research assistant, and clinical research associate. I've written music since I was a teenager but produce very little of it these days due to my busy schedule. Don't feel surprised if I drop a new single or EP sometime in the future.
I prefer my full legal name to be used in professional contexts, and nicknames including oldercub elsewhere, so my social media accounts under the oldercub handle are mostly for personal use. Please be aware that some of my content may not be suitable for minors.
Welcome to my little corner of the Internet.
— J.B. "oldercub" Brogan