During my first 6 years as an adult-ish person, I tried on more than a few different professional identities. Some of these attempts had names like artist, United States Marine, structural aircraft mechanic, audio visual technician, hotel manager, motorcycle messenger and even, for a very short and painful time, car salesman.Some of these roles have insinuated themselves into my personal identity more than others, but more recently I have focused almost exclusively on the design and creation of software to solve a variety of business problems.Since 1998, I have been called a consultant, contractor, web developer, CEO, CTO, cofounder, software engineering manager, technical lead, presenter, author and occasionally other names that an unusual burst of good taste prevents me from mentioning here.In all of these roles I have endeavored to maximize real value and cultivate technical mastery, integrity, humility and a sense of humor while continuing to be straightforward and plainspoken. I am, after all, the grandson of a West Virginia coal miner.While I spent 20 years in the San Francisco Bay Area, I am currently building my home and business with the alligators and the never ending summer on the gulf coast of Florida.