West Ham's reborn keeper is dreaming of FA Cup glory, but life for the veteran will get even sweeter this summer with a trip to Germany.
Today, Shaka Hislop has plenty to be happy about but it was only a few months ago that he was considering retirement. He was approaching his 37th birthday and although that's not at the antique stage for a goalkeeper, it signalled an approaching watershed in his life.
It wasn't that he was unhappy as Roy Carroll's understudy - far from it. It just seemed the right time to start thinking about life after football.
Then Trinidad & Tobago qualified for the World Cup finals, Hislop was recalled to the West Ham first team and all thoughts about retirement disappeared.
Since then, he has hardly stopped smiling.
Mention the FA Cup, Germany or even Wayne Rooney and the big man breaks instantly into infectious laughter.
Life is good for Hislop and there is a distinct opportunity it could get even better over the next few months.
"Retirement did cross my mind," he admits following a final training session in preparation for tonight's FA Cup fifth-round replay at home to Bolton.
"You get to a certain age, Roy was doing very well, my chances were few and far between and I was thinking I might just have to call it a day at the end of the season"
"Now I'm back in becasue of Roy's unfortunate injury, I'm enjoying my football and I'm feeling good about my game.
"I'm looking forward to running out for West Ham every weekend and in the space of a few weeks all thoughts about my pension have been put on the backburner.
"Now it's more like 'How much longer can I keep this going?'''
Hislop would dearly like to keep it going at least as far as this summer when his home country of Trinidad & Tobago play in the World Cup finals for the first time.
"It's great that, in the autumn of my playing career, I've realised my greatest ambition by hopefully playing in the World Cup," he said.
"I have the opportunity to really stake a claim for the No1 jersey which would round off not only this season but a career of which I'm really happy and proud. You wouldn't believe the excitement in Trinidad. We've come close on a number of occasions but this time we've managed to lay low those ghosts and a lot of people, me included, still can't believe it.
"My mum is coming over to Germany while my dad is still thiking about it. He was a magistrate in Trinidad. He's retired now but he still has a private law practice, doing things at his own pace."
When Hislop finally hangs up those gloves, there is a possibility he could move back to Trinidad.
"When I retire I want to maintain a presence back there," he said. "I feel I owe Trinidad & Tobago football quite a lot and now I'm in a position to contribute.
"My wife is from Trinidad as well so moving back there would be easy but I don't know yet what I will do when I pack up playing"
For the moment, though, tonight's FA Cup replay is occupying all Hislop's thoughts.
Just five days ago West Ham were thumped 4-1 by Bolton and in the three other matches between the clubs this season the Hammers have lost twice and drawn once.
But Hislop believes his team can break their dreadful run against Sam Allardyce' side. "We came unstuck in the first half in Saturday but we learned from that and it's behind us now," he said.
"I don't think it will knock the condfidence. I've been there, seen it all before too many times.
"The run was going to come to an end at some time and there was a chance we would take a heavy beating. It's one of those things. You take it on your chin and just get on with it.
"No problem, though. We'll pick up where we left off, everybody should be back and we;ll try to put together another decent run."
The FA Cup is a special to Hislop as most other players. He made the Newcastle bench when they lost the 1998 final to Arsenal and is dreaming of reaching this season's showpiece match.
"We're only three games away from that and to achieve that would be right up there as my proudest achievement at club level," he said.
"If that happened, on top of qualifying for the World Cup, it might all be a little too much for me but it would be a fantastic way to bring the curtain down - or maybe not.
"These are very exciting times for me and I;m looking forward to it a lot. I came here at the beginning of the season with the intention of enjoying my football again, something I hadn't done for the last nine months at Portsmouth.
"When I finally pack it in, sit down and think about my career, I will have only have fond memories of this club.
"I am fortunate to have played for clubs who had great support but I feel that I've played my best football here at West Ham."
Once the domestic season is over, Hislop can focus on the World Cup.
Trinidad & Tobago will play England in their second match of the finals but Hislop does not yet know if he will be handed the job of trying to keep out Rooney and Co in Nuremberg in 15 June. Hislop and Fulham's Tony Warner played one half each in a recent friendly match but Dundee's Kelvin Jack has been the first choice for coach Leo Beenhakker.
"Kelvin has had the No1 shirt consistently and he's done fantastically well for us" said Hislop. "We'll just have to wait and see.
"If I keep playing well for West Ham it gives Leo Beenhakker something to think about.
"I hope I get the nod but if I don't I'll be as philosophical as possible."
Like his father, Shaka believes in doing things at his own pace.