So hello and here we go. Who am I and what am I doing here?

I'm a middle aged IT guy, USN vet, guitar player with a serious love for all things that come with 6 strings, especially if they say stratocaster on them, fly fishing fool, libertarian leaning fiscal conservative, father of 2 (one of each) and computer gamer.

First lets talk about IT. I've been a VAX/VMS system admin, a UNIX system admin, a network (wan/lan) manager, a data center manager, a programmer and an Oracle DBA. Its not as glamorous as it used to be (if it ever was glamorous) its not as exciting as it used to be, but it pays the bills.

In the USN I was an AT2/NAC what they used to call an E-2 Flight Tech or Radar Operator. I flew off the USS Ranger, USS Enterprise and USS Nimitz. I always like a spot of Naval Aviation pr0n.

This picture was taken at Lossiemouth Scotland in January of 1978. 

I've played in bands off and on most of my life from high school until the past few years. I'd love to get a blues band going but my current job isn't conducive to that type of commitment and where I live doesn't have many venues that you can leverage, even if all you want to accomplish in playing is a boys night out and enough cash to make beer change. I've currently got a nice collection of instruments, and I'll be showing them off from time to time.

I'm appalled by the current deficit spending going on these days and fear we're going to suffer through a great deal more before the boneheads of both parties in DC and elsewhere realize you can just spend without limits.

 I've got two kids from a previous marriage, a daughter 23 and a son 21. Despite my best efforts to the contrary they both turned out to be responsible adults. Go figure. Miracles do happen.

Where to start with gaming? I love combat flight simulations, starting back on my commodore 64 playing F-15 right up through today (Rise of Flight, IL-2) I've always had a joystick and a flight sim installed. I also liked a few strategy games, most notably Total Annihilation. I spent about 2 years playing Eve Online as a member of the Morsus Mihi Alliance, but eventually I got bored with the endless BOB wars and parked my characters. If you know Eve then you know about the war, if you don't but are interested google is your friend.

I live in central Maine, and that brings me to fly fishing. I've been fly fishing since about 1980-81. I tie my flies, I've built many of my rods, and I've dubbed about with restoring old bamboo rods.

There is nothing more gratifying than casting a fly you've tied, on a rod you wrapped to a wild trout and catching and releasing the fish. Which brings me to this fine picture of my buddy Frank taken one morning on the Androscoggin River.

I need to get out and fish more. Don't we all?