And So It Begins . . . .

I'm told that every good story should start at the begining, but where exactly is the begining? I have been puttering around the 'Social' Internet for the last year or so trying to find my place. I'm still not sure that I have found it yet, but maybe that is because everything is so dynamic on the Internet. Constantly changing. But I can find the begining of my technology roots.

In 1989 while managing a McDonald's Restaurant in La Grande, Oregon I was introduced to my first PC. The owner had bought a scheduling application and I was 'the guy' who caught on. Changes in my personal life caused me to leave that position and I moved back to Portland, Oregon where I took a job managing in a cabinet door production shop. It was here that I discovered the power of spreadsheets, formulas, and calculations. I attended night school at Trend Business College and increased my knowledge of Lotus 1-2-3 and Wordperfect. After a layoff at the cabinet manufacturer I found myself taking a positon with Shari's Restaurants and it was back to 'manual' processes. At the time, they were reluctant to embrace technology as a tool to assist them in running their restaurants more efficiently.

In the summer of 1993 I spyed a classified ad in the Newspaper (remember, there was no 'Craigslist') looking to hire Restaurant Managers to be trained as installers and trainers for a Point of Sale company called RapidFire Software. I went to work for them after Labor Day of that year, and I have been in the technology industry ever since. My early interactions with the Internet were primarily for support. Downloading drivers was constant in our industry. Over the years I have refined my skills at research, support, and replacing my newspaper subscription, but I have yet to find my place in the "Social" Internet.

I researched "MySpace" and it did not seem like my style and Facebook seems like a whole lot of one-liners. When I was checking out twitter that seemed like an issue their as well. How do you interact with one-liners? Good conversation includes storytelling and details. It can not be summed up in "Feeling sunny today :)". I tried my hand previously at blogging (http://www.crazyguyonabike.com/Kurtus) and enjoyed it, so I decided to give this a try. I've also been trying to build my resume/business relationships by utilizing LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com/in/kurtus).

OK. So now you know how I got here, but you are probably wondering where I plan to go from here. I decided to call my Blog 'Celebrate the Moments'. For those my age you will probably remember the General Mills commercials for International Coffee. One of the few things I have learned in life is that the best things I have collected are not possessions, but rather memories. I have also realized that we have the opportunity to make memorable moments everyday. This Blog is my attempt to highlight the special moments and make them even more memorable. So let the celebration begin.