CoastalTam

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I am a geek. Yes, I know - I'm female - but believe it or not, girls like computers too. I'm - geez - 40 now, but I wrote my first computer program on an Apple II when I was 16. That was 1984. I guess you could say that I've been doing this for a while. To get me started in this field, my dad bought an IBM PC-XT in 1985. Blazing 4.77 MHz with 640K of RAM. I remember it was $3,000 and was just the coolest thing in the world (other than Intellivision).
I credit two people who, in the 1980's and 1990's, began helping me shape my success as a computer professional: my dad (for throwing me in the deep end when he learned I actually liked computers) and Leo Laporte (who, through his passion for computers and ambition to share it with the rest of the world, taught me how to be fearless in using a computer or any technology to the best of its ability). Thanks, you two... I also credit both mom and dad for teaching me that there is no "male" or "female" career. I was brought up to believe that I could do or be anything.
Now, unlike the standard geek stereotype (which I think is changing), I am very social and love hanging out with my friends and family. I'm not as spontaneous as I used to be, but I'm not averse to jumping on a plane to vacation somewhere. So where does the geek part come in? Well, I served as a systems analyst/administrator to McDonnell Douglas and then to Boeing for 11 years. There, I was able to use and develop in technologies that weren't public yet - like radio frequency - now called wireless. The "little team of 4" (consisting of myself and my friends for life: Eric, Rich, and Randy) did everything from initial analysis of work flow to the final writing and implementation of over 1500 applications for several aircraft programs. Oh yeah, we were also "help desk" - and I've seen everything. In my 11 years, I had something to do with the following programs:
Commercial Aircraft: MD-80, MD-11
Military Aircraft: C-17, T-45, KC-10, AH-64 Apache
Space: International Space Station, Space Shuttle
After aerospace, I was an operations manager for 2 hotels and 5 retail stores on Santa Catalina Island. There, I worked with a "mainland" programmer to computerize the reservations and phone systems in the hotels. Then, a project analyst for Southern California Edison. The job was cool - even though my boss was a tyrant. I collected water data in the interior of the Island and assisted everyone with computer problems.
After 5 years of living on an island, I decided it was time to come back to civilization. Bypassing Southern California (where I had lived most of my life), I came to the Central Coast with two Island roommates who had lived here before. I got a great job as a computer tech here at Cal Poly, SLO - working with great people and helping out over 1,500 students in the College of Architecture and Environmental Design. We're a Mac shop here, so after 20+ years of working with DOS and Windows, I've been thrown into the Mac world. I love it, and I have officially switched over to Mac. And now that I am immersed into the cult of Mac, I have branched out into blogging, web design, and podcasting. I decided to continue on in school and am going for that Masters in Information Technology.
A friend of mine just reminded me of my "creative side" - the side of me not many people know about. Like - I cast, fired, and painted my first ceramic piece (which happened to be a mug) when I was 8. Mom and I quickly opened an informal craft business - I was touring the Southern California mall circuit selling ceramic items at craft shows. Or... I am, at least, a 4th-generation artist in the realm of oil painting (but I haven't reached into that creative realm in quite a while). Finally, when I first went to college, I went to study photography. At 15, I won the silver medal in landscape photography at the Orange County Fair. And for a while there, I studied cinematography and even applied to Lucasfilm for an internship. Finally, I learned to read and write music, and was studying piano for a short while.... something I would definitely like to pick up again.
Last but not least - my religion. I've been Wiccan all of my life, but have studied many different religions. I've had the wonderful opportunity to study Native American spirituality with a Cherokee medicine woman, Buddhism with Tibetan monks, and Shamanism with a Peruvian shaman. I was a theology major for two whole semesters at Long Beach State (grin) and have studied Judaism and Christianity from an academic and a worship perspective. I'd like to learn ayurvedic medicine from a few Hindu friends of mine. In short - I have many friends across the spectrum of faith. They are wonderful and enlightened people, and I learn daily from them. I personally believe Deity walks in many different forms - yet all roads lead to the same place. I also believe that those who like to argue about religion directly offend Deity - so I don't.
Sun Sign: Libra
Sun 12° Libra 27' Libra Horoscope
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Moon Sign: Scorpio
Moon 18° Scorpio 25' Scorpio Horoscope
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Rising Sign: Leo
Ascendant 20° Leo 11' Leo Horoscope
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