Diary of a Network Geek

I’ve been extra introspective lately.
I don’t know, maybe it’s the therapy, but I’ve been thinking a lot about my life lately. I guess I didn’t do that as much at the end of the year, because there was so much going on that I didn’t want to have to look at just then. I’ve really done okay, over the years, with my career. It hasn’t always gone the way I’d like, of course, but, still, it’s been okay. I remember telling my Father at one point that I didn’t want to just bounce from job to job, but that I wanted to take control of my career and steer it in a particular direction. He kind of got upset with me, like I’d insulted him or something. It struck me as odd, at the time, because I’d always felt that he’d done a pretty good job of steering his own career, which is what motivated the comment. I think he thought I was saying the opposite.
Anyway, I’ve been going over my history with my therapist, so that meant a lot of talk about jobs. In many ways, as a man, my job has defined me over the years. But, as I went through the different places and the certifications, it didn’t seem like I’d been steering much at all! I just threw myself upon fate and lucked out! I mean, winning the scholarship to pay for my Certified Novell Engineer training was very lucky. Sure, I did the work to maintain it, and even get Linux+ certified, too, but mostly it was luck.
But, one thing I am very proud of is that my Father got me one interview. That’s it, just one. Everything else that’s happened in my career is either due to luck, or my own ability. Sort of bootstrap-levitation. My therapist commented on it and said, “So, you’re really a self-made man, aren’t you?” And, I had to admit with no small amount of pride, that, yes, I am. So, I may not have as much career direction as I’d like, but I have a good job that I enjoy working for a company that I feel good about for a change. In the over all scheme of things, that’s better than a lot of guys ever manage. So, I guess I’m doing okay after all.

Advice from your Uncle Jim:
A real hero is someone who's afraid, but does the right thing anyway.

Hooray!

Well, I suppose I should wait to see if this article on AustralianIT is correct, or not, but Novell is expecting their Linux market to grow. I certainly hope so!
First, not only do I love Novell, but I love Linux, too! Okay, sure, I really dig the Netware kernel because it’s stable as all get out, but Linux is, too, so it’s a logical step. And, it gives Novell some more marketing leverage in shops that they might not have gotten a foothold into before! Remember, ZenWorks isn’t just for Netware anymore. You can run that on Win2K and, soon, Linux as well as the Netware kernel.
And, yeah, I have to admit, I’m biased because I’ve been Novell certified since 1994. (Well, I’ve been certified since 1993, but I’ve been a CNE, or Certified Novell Engineer, since 1994.) Well, here’s hoping it’s a growing trend!

What search terms get the best results?

My site is fairly well optimized for Google on the terms “CNE Resume“. It’s mainly what I do. My primary area of expertise is Novell Netware and I am a Certified Novell Engineer. But, that’s not all I do. I know a little Linux and, of course, the never escapable WindowsNT and Windows2000. I even have a little experience with WindowsXP, though it’s just the client side. So, while it makes sense that my resume is optimized for Novell products, I’d like to reposition myself to be more of a generalist Network Engineer.
Right now, I show up on the first page of a Google search for “network engineer resume houston“, but not for “network engineer resume“. I suppose I should be happy. After all, I don’t plan on leaving Houston anytime soon, but it just isn’t good enough for me. I need to be on that first page for “network engineer resume”. So, I’m going to work at it. I managed to get that top spot for “CNE Resume”, so I ought to be able to get it for “network engineer resume”, too!

Well, it sure has been a long time since I did any updates on this page! In fact, it’s been literally months!! I can explain…

First off, I’ve been pretty damn busy at work. After my little adventure in the New Orleans airport, I hardly had a chance to sit down. Not only have I had to roll out two sets of patches, or “Service Packs” as they’re called now, on our Novell servers, but I’ve had to set up a Novell BorderManager Proxy server. Man, the troubles I’ve had with that! The initial setup was okay, but getting the VPN (Virtual Private Network) working has really bedeviled me. It’s been so bad that my boss, the CIO, had to raise some ruckus with our sales reps at Novell. He’s finally gotten me a connection with our local Support Engineer, who’s promised to come take a look at our configuration for me. Hopefully, he can find what a CNE (Certified Novell Engineer) with more than eight years experience has missed.
Second of all, I finally got my gorgeous girlfriend/fiancé to marry me. On Saturday, March 10th, 2001, Anne and I got married in the Canterbury Wedding Chapel at the Excalibur Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Allie, Anne’s daughter, was our ring-bearer/flower-girl. The service was nice, short and attended by the photographer. We thought it was the perfect way to get married. No one hassling us or telling us what to do and how to do it. No meddling mothers or aunts or sisters to make us miserable. No seating charts or receptions to worry about planning. Just a cool, quick wedding and a great steak dinner afterward. After that, we spent most of the week running around Las Vegas doing tourist stuff. We went to see Sigfried & Roy, Tournament of Kings and The Blue Man Group. We also went to see Star Trek:The Experience, where I bought “genuine” Romulan Ale and Klingon Blood Wine. But, of course, work intervened and I had to come back a day early to “fix” something that had gone wrong. What would they do if I ever quit?
Finally, now that we’ve done all that, we’ve been looking for houses. It looks like we found a nice four-bedroom, two-bath, two-story house on a lot that’s almost double-deep! And, even with all the flooding that we’ve had here in Houston, it stayed dry. What could be better?!? Two koi-ponds, that’s what. That’s right, the property already has two koi ponds on it, complete with koi. There’s a fireplace with a Ben Franklin stove in it and a partially finished garage. There’s a covered car port that’s connected to the house by a covered walkway. It’s really great and I hope the sale goes through okay. We’re scheduled to close this Friday, 6/29/2001!
And, of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention my kidney stone. That’s right, as if all the work I’ve been doing isn’t enough, I was doubled over in pain by a kidney stone last week Monday, 6/22/2001. It got so bad, that I had Anne take me to the emergency room. We ran into Charles, our paramedic friend, there who told the nurses to take good care of me, which they did. I got moved through as fast as I’ve ever been. And a nice, young doctor gave me some great pain medication. I still haven’t passed the damn thing, but I’m off to see the friendly urologist tomorrow. I plan on demanding that he “do something” about it because I’m tired of peeing through a strainer!
Until next time….