[geeks] RE: How old am I and where do I come from...

[Robert Slover]

Robert J. Slover, born April 23, 1969.  Happily married, 11+ years, 1 daughter.
Grew
up in St. Bernice, Indiana.  Been programming since 1979, have had a job of one
sort
or another since I was 13 (first job was castrating sheep).  Attended two years
and one
quarter at a very good/tough private college studying electrical engineering,
though I really
could not afford it.  Missed only a couple of questions each on the ASFAB and OSB
in
college and was hounded by recruiter the whole time I was there...though I don't
take
well to being bossed around so I refused to join ROTC.  Dropped out of school when

I could no longer make ends meet otherwise.  Worked as a typesetter, then
carpenter,
then took another job typesetting and later became systems manager there.  Worked
elsewhere as a PC/Mac Tech, a database programmer, and contracted for a while as
broadcast engineer for an FM and simulcast AM radio station.  Took a job later as
a
technical writer, then got placed as a software developer on a large/fast-paced
development project for a telco because I knew Oracle.  Left there, went back to
the
same college this time as a staff programmer, soon became the VMS system admin,
later the Oracle DBA.  After 5 years there, left after they replaced the great
retired VP
with a loud ex-military gonad that likes to boss people around just for the sake
of it.  A
real shame, since I liked my job and everybody else there.  Of course, most
everyone
else in the department has since left too (even the buddy he brought up from
Texas).
I am now employed as a unix software engineer by a mid-sized multinational, though
I
work in an office with fewer than 30 people, and all of them are great to work
with.
I now live in Brazil, Indiana and work in Terre Haute, Indiana.  I mostly lurk
here, as I
don't have time to follow the volume of traffic thoroughly, let alone participate
much.

My two desktop machines are a SS20 and a NeXT Dimension cube, and this lousy
Toshiba laptop running Win2k sits there too, just because the corporate VPN only
works
with it (though most all I use are terminal sessions). I am ferociously jealous of
my wife's
iMac DV.  Love DEC equipment also, and VMS, have a few Vaxen, a couple of small
Alphas and some DECStations.  Am also into cars, especially late 60's models (my
favorite car was my '69 LeMans) and other mechanical hardware.  Just built my own
miniature boring machine for trenching a crawlspace under the house, complete with
a
vacuum system to remove the dirt as it is broken up.  Am also an artist, having
done some
commercial artwork on-and-off since I was 12 (one of the local Chevy dealerships
still
uses a logo I designed 21 years ago), though I rarely have much time for drawing
or
painting these days.  My musical interests are extremely varied, ranging
everywhere from
old country/bluegrass (Homer & Jethro, Bill Monroe) to classical, to electronica,
to metal,
to punk, to blues and spoken word.  Haven't found much rap I like, nor can I stand
this
stuff they now try to pass off as country, nor pop music in general.  At this
moment I am
listening to Kristin Hersh (formerly of Throwing Muses).  Favorites are old
Marillion
(80's, with Fish), older Rush, Jethro Tull, and Fairport Convention.  Though I
love music,
I can't play an instrument (so far...I want to find time to learn Bass).  Though
I've owned
a gun and have been hunting since I was 7, I'm not much into guns...I enjoy
archery
more, though I do follow the occasional gun/knife discussions that pop up here.

Well, OK, now I'm just rambling.  That's who I am, how old I am, and where I'm
from.

Regards,

--Robert