It was the age of DAKS suits and Allen Edmonds shoes, and a Corvette. It was a dream come true, from my entry level marketing classes in Dallas, through advancement to Account Systems Engineer, with Carolina Power & Light at first, then a “loan” assignment to the State Team, State of North Carolina mostly Department of Public Instruction and Community Colleges, where I found a happy home. I was good, useful and carrying my weight, and getting better. A project involving the AS-400 systems and IBM AIX (Advanced Interactive Executive, IBM’s UNIX) led to an award, and I bought the Corvette on the way home from the Branch Office meeting.

I had arrived. And then, it was time to move on, and an early retirement package offering, and all things considered, it was too good to pass up. It had been everything I could possibly have wanted it to be, and I owe it all to some significant influencers I met along the way, and a couple of pivotal but chance encounters without which none of it would have happened.