My Interests
I have always had a variety of interests. Some of my current favorites include:
Computers
I have long had an interest in computers. Our family was the first on the block to have a personal computer at home, an Apple II+. I am not only interested in how to program computers, but also in how the electronics are designed and function.
Programming
I have been programming computers for many years. My first programming experience was in BASIC on a Honeywell timeshare mainframe computer. I was using a teletype terminal in the middle school library and saving my programs on punch tape.
My career has not been as a developer, but I have often used programming to help in my job. I have programmed in:
- BASIC
- Pascal
- Visual Basic
- C++
- Java
- Other database and application languages
Electronics
In addition to programming, I have also long had an interest in electronics. My current degree is actually in electronics engineering. Understanding both the electronic and software side of computers has helped in many aspects of my career. The specific area of electronics that I currently enjoy is robotics. I am not very advanced, but do enjoy it. I have dabbled with Lego Mindstorms, Basic Stamp, and Arduino.
RC Airplanes
I believe I inherited my interest in airplanes from my father. He built and flew control line model airplanes. As we grew older, he would let us children fly them, on occasion, as well. I built my first radio control airplane, a trainer, when my first two children were young. I truly enjoyed the model building process. Before I even flew that first plane, I began building my second model airplane, a beautiful F4U Corsair with retractable landing gear. Unfortunately I have not completed this second kit yet. My interest in radio controlled airplanes exceeds my available time to spend on them.
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Family History
Another interest or hobby I inherited from my parents is family history research. This time it was from my mother. It is exciting to find things out about your ancestors and learn more about the times in which they lived. It certainly helps me appreciate all of the modern conviences that we enjoy today. I have also taken time to help others begin their family history research. I subscribe to Ancestry.com, which is a great resource for locating information about your ancestors through government records such as birth, death and census. I also like to use FamilySearch.org.
Family
My family is very important to me. I have four children ranging in ages from 10 to 21. My wife and I will be celebrating our 23rd wedding anniversary this year. We enjoy spending time with our children traveling, camping, biking, and just being together. It is exciting to watch my children grow and mature.