I am the Loverboy of research math professors

This post will be less interesting than the title suggests.

I am applying for a job at UCLA, as the director of the Institute for Pure and Applied Mathematics (IPAM). I am happy at UBC but have been here 25 years and a chance to change up my career a bit would be welcome. I tell my friends that it is a long shot and they are surprised. I guess they believed me when I said I was an "international expert" and that "being a research mathematician is as unusual as being a successful rock musician". Well, rock stars come in different kinds. I am the Loverboy of research mathematicians. It puts it into perspective that I probably have to explain to you who Loverboy is. They were (still are) a local band that had some success in the eighties. I have one of their songs, "turn me loose" on a playlist. It is pretty catchy. I have written some research papers that people liked. But UCLA is a top place, a notch above UBC, and IPAM is a serious outfit. They are looking for a David Bowie class mathematician. I have made multiple playlists of only Bowie tunes. Of course, I still have a chance at the job since no mathematician of that class may want it. Or, maybe they really want someone in tight red leather pants (you have to watch a Loverboy video to understand this comment). For me the equivalent to the pants is my track record of collaboration outside of mathematics with Engineering and Industry.