Thanks, Martin. I need a mental break, so I'll play along. Here are five things you didn't know about me:

1. When I was about a year old, I reached and pulled the cord of a coffee percolator from my high chair, which came crashing down on me resulting in a number of severe burns. To this day (almost forty years later), I still have some traces of burn scars on my forearms.
2. When I was 11 years old, I worked as probably one of the youngest volunteers on Capitol Hill for U.S. Congressman Newton Steers during school vacations. At the time, I commuted solo by bus, train, and subway from the suburbs into downtown Washington, DC. I can't imagine allowing someone that young to do that these days.
3. I was academically dismissed from the University of Maryland, College Park (due to lack of attendance). To get away from school for a bit, I joined the US Navy before the semester ended; however, I spent the first two years of my enlistment in schools, such as Naval Nuclear Power School. Ten years later, I completed an AS in Applied Science & Technology (Nuclear Engineering Technology).
4. I'm a licensed amateur radio operator (N3KNQ). Attending hamfests growing up I saw electronic social networking transition from radios to computers.
5. I almost suffered a "career limiting move" by accidentally slamming into (and almost knocking over) Bill Gates while exiting the infield at Safeco Field following the Microsoft Company Meeting in 2000.

I'm tagging Brian Harry, Eric Lee, Michael Ruminer, Mickey Gousset, and Korby Parnell to post their five things. I'm just getting to know Andy Leonard, so I'd like to tag him, too.

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