I started out in computers in 1965 after a whirlwind tour of the University of Oregon where I majored in beer drinking and English. My Comparative Literature skills have long since faded from memory but the beer drinking proficiency lingers.
My first employer was the National Security Agency, a governmental organization the very mention of whose acronym could get one incarcerated for life. These were not gentle years! I became enamored of computers for three reasons:
1. They were gray, squat and didn’t talk back, unlike many of my acquaintances at the time.
2. They never tired of my jokes and never anticipated the punch line
3. They represented the only means of escape from my governmental shackles, as all other disciplines at the Agency were peculiar to the Agency. I would provide more details but I believe they are still watching after all these years.
I spent 40 delightful years playing the role of computer whisperer, subduing those unwieldy iron monsters with craftily-coded programs. Now that I am semi-retired I have redirected my creative efforts toward appeasing the high-maintenance muse of my college major, English.
Most recently I have toiled diligently at the art of creating literary mystery. At 79 fit and fearless years of age, I am ready for the show. All I need is a devoted, fawning public. Bring it on.