Hi there. That's me over there. I'm the geek in the name of the site, and this is where I chatter obsessively about my gadgets and gizmos. In other words, my geeky toys, my various hobbies, and other things that some people will find mind numbing, and other will find fascinating.
I can hear you asking "What are some of the geeky and nerdy things that occupy my time?" I'm glad you asked! Near the top of the list, if not in the number one spot, is what you're looking at now. I've been a software developer for over 30 years, but I'm retired now. My primary development language is PHP, which I first learned in 1995. PHP has been very, very good to me, and turned in to an in demand specialty. Back in 2016, I answered an ad looking for PHP developers with an uncommon set of requirements. It turned out to be for a Drupal developer for Turner (before they were bought by IBM, became WarnerMedia, was spun out from IBM, then merged with Discovery). It seemed like they had been trying to hire Drupal developers, and all they were getting were Drupal Theme developers.
The hiring manager and the lead developer decided that they would instead advertise for PHP developers with experience with some of the underlying technologies used by Drupal. They were betting that it would be easier to teach an experienced PHP developer Drupal, than turn a Drupal Theme developer into a true PHP developer. And they were right.
What is it they say? "Love what you do and you'll never work a day in your life." No, not that one, this one - "People wonder how I can work with a computer all day and then go home and play with a computer all night. What they don't realize is... I'm not working all day." I just love writing and debugging code.
Now that I'm semi-retired, I keep myself busy as the principal team lead for the Montreal 2027 Worldcon website. And while my wife will tell you that all I do is play on the computer and social media all day and night, I do have other hobbies. In no particular order, they are
- Plastic Scale Model Building
- 3D Printing
- Woodworking
- Medieval and Renaissance recreation (no, not Ren Faires)
- Medieval and Renaissance Heraldry, including Court Heraldry
- Photography
- Traveling
My wife and I are world travelers. So far, I have visited 5 of the 7 continents. Surprisingly, Antartica is one of them 😎! In July of 2027, I will have managed to pick up my last two, Africa and Asia. I've visited the ABC islands, Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao. I've snorkeled the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and visited the Karanda rainforest and seen the rare Australian cassowary, which is one of the strangest birds you will ever see!
My wife and I are also avid eclipse chasers. A total solar eclipse is worth any amount of travel. If you have never experienced one, it is breathtaking. I won't say it's life changing, but it is breathtaking.
That's it for now. It's late, and I have to get up early.