Open Your Golden Gate
Today is a momentous date. We go hands free statewide and there will be no more trans fats in NYC. In addition, it was 25 years ago today that I moved out to California. The state has not been the same since. To celebrate, I plan to recycle some old material, as I threatened to do on my 5/20/08 post. Several of my readers will expect that since they say I haven’t had an original thought in years.
The passage below is a slightly edited version of a bio I sent out to my high school classmates a few years back when there were several email exchanges after a 30th reunion. I was unable to attend that event so I wanted to re-introduce myself. Shortly thereafter I got re-connected with TK and The UK. I probably should have kept my mouth shut.
Hello Everybody! I’ve been reading all your emails and postings and I've decided to join the fray. I would have loved to have been at the reunion but the witness protection program doesn't allow it. Things were going really well until my first marriage to J Lo broke up. I hit a rough patch, did a couple stints in rehab but managed to pull it all together. But when my second marriage to J Lo hit the skids, I was really beside myself.
So I tend to exaggerate a little. I'm a dull guy, which comes as no surprise to anyone. I thought I’d try to appear edgy and hip. I know. I couldn't pull it off in high school and I still can't. Let me start over.
Hi. I'm DJ and you're not. Since its been 30 years since I've spoken to many of you, this may be a little long winded. I'd advise you to bail out now.
OK, so you decided to keep reading. You gotta make choices in life. So I guess I'll pick up with the summer of '74. I remember being at a poker game and taking a quick break to watch Nixon give his resignation speech. Shortly after that I began my illustrious journey in higher learning at OCCC. I managed to get about 19 credits over a three year period while holding down a part-time dishwashing gig at St. Theresa’s Nursing Home. The Catholic connection got me the job. After a couple years there I told them that I wanted to pursue other opportunities and spend more time with my family. I quickly caught on with Lloyd’s stationery department but it wasn’t exactly the right fit. I ended up at the Holiday Inn as a maintenance man. There I learned the difference between a screwdriver and a pair of pliers. After that experience I began to see that it would perhaps be wise to pursue my degree at an accelerated pace. I went to SUNY Binghamton in 1977 and actually graduated in four years. Those OCCC credits put me over the top. I studied Spanish and spent a semester in Madrid. As I'm sure we all did, I made a few lifelong friends in college, but I won't drag them into this.
After graduation I spent a couple years in the Hudson Valley working at a school for autistic kids. After 25 winters I decided it was time to go and headed out to San Francisco, where my brother was in law school. It’s good to have a lawyer in the family. So why did the lawyer not charge his client, the shark? Professional courtesy. Alright, I just lost a few more readers. So I lived in SF for about five years, working with autistic adults and then moved on to a school for emotionally disturbed kids, where I met my wife. Just to clarify for all the wiseasses out there, she was a teacher there.
In ‘87 I started working for MCI, the pre-Worldcom MCI. It was a good company back then and improved measurably when I left in '92. In '88 I got married in sunny San Diego, where my wife grew up. It was a beautiful event and I looked great in a wedding dress. And yes, I had saved myself for marriage. My first son was born in April 1990. When he was five days old, we brought him to 4M’s wedding, where I was best man. I guess there were no other classmates around so it defaulted to me. 4M had briefly considered a former hash dealer from OCCC who was running the marketing department for a valley start-up but the old school loyalty kicked in and I got the job.
By now I was living in the burbs and doing the daily commute into SF. I went over to Sprint in ’92 and my twins arrived in '93. I did a year at Wells Fargo Bank in '97 and then went down to Silicon Valley, where I’ll be as long as they’ll have me. I managed to get my MBA at USF. I put about as much effort into that as I did into my high school education but the reason I was able to get my advanced degree was that I was not cruising around 6 1/2 station road in a '62 Mercury most of the time.
So I guess that pretty much covers my career and higher education. I love the corporate life as I'm sure all of you that are involved in it do. Excuse the whining. What the hell did I expect to do with a Spanish degree?
So what else can I tell the two or three people that decided to read this far. My kids are all happy and well-adjusted. They take after my wife. We live in the lovely town of Foster City, CA. We’ve been here for ten years. Foster City is right by San Mateo. So where the hell is San Mateo? We’re halfway between SF and San Jose. So the commute either way isn't bad. You don’t give a damn about my commute? I don’t blame you.
The passage below is a slightly edited version of a bio I sent out to my high school classmates a few years back when there were several email exchanges after a 30th reunion. I was unable to attend that event so I wanted to re-introduce myself. Shortly thereafter I got re-connected with TK and The UK. I probably should have kept my mouth shut.
Hello Everybody! I’ve been reading all your emails and postings and I've decided to join the fray. I would have loved to have been at the reunion but the witness protection program doesn't allow it. Things were going really well until my first marriage to J Lo broke up. I hit a rough patch, did a couple stints in rehab but managed to pull it all together. But when my second marriage to J Lo hit the skids, I was really beside myself.
So I tend to exaggerate a little. I'm a dull guy, which comes as no surprise to anyone. I thought I’d try to appear edgy and hip. I know. I couldn't pull it off in high school and I still can't. Let me start over.
Hi. I'm DJ and you're not. Since its been 30 years since I've spoken to many of you, this may be a little long winded. I'd advise you to bail out now.
OK, so you decided to keep reading. You gotta make choices in life. So I guess I'll pick up with the summer of '74. I remember being at a poker game and taking a quick break to watch Nixon give his resignation speech. Shortly after that I began my illustrious journey in higher learning at OCCC. I managed to get about 19 credits over a three year period while holding down a part-time dishwashing gig at St. Theresa’s Nursing Home. The Catholic connection got me the job. After a couple years there I told them that I wanted to pursue other opportunities and spend more time with my family. I quickly caught on with Lloyd’s stationery department but it wasn’t exactly the right fit. I ended up at the Holiday Inn as a maintenance man. There I learned the difference between a screwdriver and a pair of pliers. After that experience I began to see that it would perhaps be wise to pursue my degree at an accelerated pace. I went to SUNY Binghamton in 1977 and actually graduated in four years. Those OCCC credits put me over the top. I studied Spanish and spent a semester in Madrid. As I'm sure we all did, I made a few lifelong friends in college, but I won't drag them into this.
After graduation I spent a couple years in the Hudson Valley working at a school for autistic kids. After 25 winters I decided it was time to go and headed out to San Francisco, where my brother was in law school. It’s good to have a lawyer in the family. So why did the lawyer not charge his client, the shark? Professional courtesy. Alright, I just lost a few more readers. So I lived in SF for about five years, working with autistic adults and then moved on to a school for emotionally disturbed kids, where I met my wife. Just to clarify for all the wiseasses out there, she was a teacher there.
In ‘87 I started working for MCI, the pre-Worldcom MCI. It was a good company back then and improved measurably when I left in '92. In '88 I got married in sunny San Diego, where my wife grew up. It was a beautiful event and I looked great in a wedding dress. And yes, I had saved myself for marriage. My first son was born in April 1990. When he was five days old, we brought him to 4M’s wedding, where I was best man. I guess there were no other classmates around so it defaulted to me. 4M had briefly considered a former hash dealer from OCCC who was running the marketing department for a valley start-up but the old school loyalty kicked in and I got the job.
By now I was living in the burbs and doing the daily commute into SF. I went over to Sprint in ’92 and my twins arrived in '93. I did a year at Wells Fargo Bank in '97 and then went down to Silicon Valley, where I’ll be as long as they’ll have me. I managed to get my MBA at USF. I put about as much effort into that as I did into my high school education but the reason I was able to get my advanced degree was that I was not cruising around 6 1/2 station road in a '62 Mercury most of the time.
So I guess that pretty much covers my career and higher education. I love the corporate life as I'm sure all of you that are involved in it do. Excuse the whining. What the hell did I expect to do with a Spanish degree?
So what else can I tell the two or three people that decided to read this far. My kids are all happy and well-adjusted. They take after my wife. We live in the lovely town of Foster City, CA. We’ve been here for ten years. Foster City is right by San Mateo. So where the hell is San Mateo? We’re halfway between SF and San Jose. So the commute either way isn't bad. You don’t give a damn about my commute? I don’t blame you.
posted by DJ @ 6:06 PM
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