I have an incredibly varied work history, and have led quite the circuitous life!
I am a proud Catholic (though not a very good Catholic, until quite recently). Nevertheless, I am happily married (to a very good Catholic) and have nine children, though three are grown. My faith in Our Lord is the root of all that is good and valuable in my life.
I have been many things in the past: a roofer, a warehouseman, an electrician's apprentice, a knife sharpener, a delivery driver, and a salesman. As it stands today, I am a retired police officer, Partner in a tax and accounting firm and, since I was six-years-old, I have been programming computers. Starting with BASIC on a Commodore 64, then continuing on to Assembly for that same architecture, I have spent a lifetime growing up with computer programming as a background reality in my existence.
Since my early programming experience, I went on to learn and work in C, Python (2 and 3), Lisp, Lua, R, and many other, as well as HTML and CSS. I have worked on volunteer projects, such as a Mandrake Linux (pre-Mandriva) and Arch Linux package maintainer, as well as chasing bugs for various GitHub repos. Most recently I have learned and worked in the Go programming language.
I have a high degree of mastery with the GNU/Linux operating system, and have worked extensively with the Intel Edison platform as a precursor / proof of concept for embedded systems, such as the Microchip PICKIT platform.
As a hobby, I work with both machines and electronics, and hold a General Class Amatuer Radio License (KE7CJV). I have been building, maintaining, and repairing radios and computers since I was a boy.
Nothing in this world captivates and excites me like a novel challenge in the fields of computer science or electronics, and the confluence of the two is my ultimate happy place!