[AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?

Jim:

I have already retired three times and find the lifestyle seductive. 
However, each time I ran out of money so the strategy needs some polishing.

I don't regard retirement as not doing anything but fish and golf.  There 
are a lot of satisfying things to do in this life that don't involve making 
money.  So I have treated myself to extended time off whenever I was between 
major projects.  I always liked the grasshopper's approach better than the 
ants.  But I can see now that winter is on the way...

Rocky

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Jim Lawrence" <accessd at shaw.ca>
To: "'Access Developers discussion and problem solving'" 
<accessd at databaseadvisors.com>
Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 9:27 AM
Subject: RE: [AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?


> Sure Rocky... but wouldn't you rather be churning out code than playing
> golf... let's be honest. You are much too young to consider
> retiring...retiring and then you would be just end up programming in your
> spare time. ;-)
>
> Jim
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com
> [mailto:accessd-bounces at databaseadvisors.com] On Behalf Of Rocky Smolin -
> Beach Access Software
> Sent: Tuesday, February 22, 2005 7:38 AM
> To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
> Subject: Re: [AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?
>
> Steve:
>
> I started with computers when I was 16 - back in the days when they were
> still steam powered (ba-da-boom).  But seriously folks...
>
> I grew up in Chicago and took a weekend course at the Illinois Institute 
> of
> Technology on programming in IITran - their dialect of Fortran.  It was
> punch cards and you handed your deck through the big glass wall and came
> back the next day to find out where you had misplaced your comma.  The
> machines were and IBM 1620 and IBM 7090.  I was hooked.
>
> In college I hung out at the computer center and between my Junior and
> Senior years they installed an IBM 360/40.  I hung with the engineer 
> during
> the installation and when September rolled around I was the only one on
> campus who knew how to run the thing so I got to be systems manager.  And
> they paid me!  I was further hooked.
>
> Then, in my Junior year I wrote a program in assembler to create a 
> variable
> cross reference index, got some free PR in magazines like Datamation and
> sold the program (mailed it on a deck of punched cards) to a bunch of
> companies.  $40 a pop when that was real money.  Now I was totally hooked.
>
> I played with the world's best toys, had as much fun as a person could 
> have
> with their clothes on, and people shoved money at me for doing it!  That's
> as good as it gets.
>
> Until the creation of commercially viable personal computers in the late 
> 70s
>
> I had to work for other companies because of the cost of the systems. 
> Once
> the PCs appeared I went into business for myself and never looked back.
>
> Now, 25 years later, it's still a bit of a high wire act but we're not
> missing any meals, I get to work at home and be with my kids, and if I'm
> still pumping code when all my friends are playing golf or fishing in the
> Keys, well so be it.
>
> Rocky
>
>>> -----Original Message-----
>>> From: Steve Erbach [mailto:erbachs at gmail.com]
>>> Sent: 21 February 2005 12:44
>>> To: Access Developers discussion and problem solving
>>> Subject: Re: [AccessD] OT: What are you lot doing now and then?
>>>
>>> Roz, Gustav, John C., Gary, Jeffrey, Jim D. Doris, Debbie, Brett,
>>> Charlotte, Ken, Mark, John B., Stuart, William, Rocky, Jim L., Jim H.,
>>> Andy, Randy, and Tom,
>>>
>>> Thank you all very much for your responses. Our glorious leader, Mr.
>>> Bartow, has asked me to write an article for the newsletter based on
>>> the responses you've given. So I'm asking if any of you have any
>>> objections to letting me abridge your responses for that purpose? It
>>> would also be helpful if those of you who already gave an
>> "abridged"
>>> version for the survey could flesh out your responses a bit, if you
>>> have the time. I would appreciate it. Everyone has an interesting
>>> story to tell about his or her own growth in the computer field.
>>>
>>> I'm so glad that 21 of you have responded so far. Any others?
>>>
>>> Steve Erbach
>>> Neenah, WI
>>> www.swerbach.com/security
>>>
>>>
>>>
>
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