I remember birthdays, anniversaries, and special occasions,
11-11-11, 9/11, and 24/7,
appointments, deadlines, schedules, passwords, PINs, SINs, and sins.
I know what LOL, LMAO, and TTYL mean, but I have trouble remembering ROTF (don't know why)
I know what JSP, ASP, ASPX, RSVP, HTML, XML, SOAP, API, CSS, SQL, B2B, AJAX, JCL and MIDI stand for.
I know the difference between Intranet, Internet, and Extranet.
I still remember COBOL, C#, and JAVA. I'm doubtful for Assembler and CICS.
I think I get design patterns. Some of them, at least.
I know one greeting in Mandarin,Vietnamese, and Portuguese.
I'm a bit better with French and English.
I do not know where my keys are at the moment.
I'm really useless with XBOX controls, and I think WII is a French word.
But I can type on a QWERTY keyboard.
And I'm experienced at spawning in HALO.
Is anyone in the market for a Compaq Commodore 64, Atari 520, or Intellivision?
I have XP and Vista running, but not Windows 7 yet.
I still have some stuff from 95 and 98.
I probably still like DOS... something about typing commands.
I've been decentralized, centralized, decentralized, centralized, merged, merged, immersed, right-sized, down-sized,
moved, moved, moved, moved, moved, moved, moved, moved, really moved, moved, relocated,
but I'm feeling supersized right now.
I can sing most of the words to Bohemiam Rhapsody, especially when it's playing.
"I've seen Sunny Days that I thought would never end."
"And I hope I have the time of my life"
I think The Wall is a Pink Floyd album.
I can't remember most of the movies I've seen,
but I was very familiar with STAR TREK; the original series.
I've recently viewed The Matrix again, which I guess is old school now.
I've recently watched the Wizard of OZ and Kelly's Heroes again.
Which I guess are cave drawings, really.
I have not yet fallen in love with a vampire. That I'm aware of.
Someday, we may all be Gone With The Wind.
I still enjoy watching Hogan's Heroes, M*A*S*H, Gilligan's Island, Bewitched, and I Dream of Jeanie.
What's New Pussycat? didn't hold up so well, but The Rat Patrol did.
The Pink Panther is the Pink Panther. Both versions.
I enjoyed House. And I'm on my 4th one.
80's sitcoms. The Best.
Monsters, Inc - a new classic.
or is it an old classic now ?
When did I become 50? And why doesn't it feel old ?
I've lived thru high interest rates, low interest rates, no interest rates.
I remember good investment decisions.
And not so good investment decisions.
How many have an RRSP? RESP? TFSA? LIRA? CSB? GIC?
pay GST? HST? PST?
I don't have time for someone else's reality.
What are today's recycle rules? here? at McDonalds? at Tim Horton's? at...
I have memorized my library card number.
Both of them.
I do not know all of my userids for all of the times that I've had to create one.
or had one given to me.
I remember my first wife's parents' names.
I remember my second wife's mannerisms, and her four sons' middle names.
I am not looking to know a third wife.
But chances are, if I've met you, I remember you.
And your list will be different.
And I could go on.
But I am learning to take a break.
...
I do not normally answer the phone anymore.
I have never owned a blackberry, and my cell phone needs charging.
I try to step away from the computer for a while. This one still needs more practice.
I now play guitar to relax and unwind, not to write a hit song. usually.
I've discovered there's a world around me that does not run on electricity, gasoline, or propane.
The more I slow down, the more time I seem to have.
The less I multi-task, the more I feel I'm accomplishing something.
And yesterday, I took the usual Remembrance day break.
This year, I've taken the time to think what it means to me.
It's not my occasion, really.
Yes, I've recognized it all my life.
And I feel very fortunate to live in these times in our country.
But I wasn't alive for World War I, World War II, or the Korean War.
And I associate the Viet Nam war primarily with the music of the times.
And I don't know anyone that fought in any wars.
And the other 'skirmishes', well...
But I know it's very important to the people that lived through one of the wars.
And perhaps lost someone in those wars.
Or had their lives changes dramatically as a result of those wars.
The wars would be life, and death, defining moments.
But I can't remember what I never knew; what I never felt.
However,
I can remember people that I am familiar with.
People of my generation.
People that are no longer with us.
I can think of the sacrifices they may have made.
And the tough choices they had to make.
And the life defining moments they may have had.
Life defining moments that may have forced on them.
In this way, I will make Remembrance Day my day as well.
And help keep the tradition alive.
So I can take that moment of silence,
and truly feel for those that went before us.
that's just between you and me.
Peace