Pow! You got it in one. That's the thing, I needed to change, I felt I was drifting into an unremarkable middle age, which would leave me an embittered old man. Having a child gave me that kick I needed, however I still had to search for it, and it took nearly 3 years of my daughter being around for me to get to the points I describe in the post.

Thanks for your comment :-)

Cg