All about the site and me
About this site
My first web site was nothing more than a page of quotes with a couple of graphics. Eventually it became a sort of journal, though I eventually decided I wanted to share a lot more of myself, that the journal-only format was far too limiting. So I went beyond that, though not all at once. This present format (4th so far) represents my support for open source and my love of learning new things. I'm still learning new things because I am not a professional web designer and I don't do a lot of design. Still, it's better than it ever was. And not as good as it will be. I hope you'll stick around to see it.
I've revamped things here a number of times, the most recent was eliminating my use of LiveJournal to manage the main journal part. All journal content then became part of my Weblog, A href="http://www.tommasz.net/">Maszman Speaks!. Prior to LiveJournal I maintained the HTML on my own site using a word processor. This current incarnation was done mostly with BBEdit, CSSEdit and various browsers. The photo album was done with a nifty Java application called JAlbum.
In case you wondered, the title is a takeoff on the Angry Young Man thing (particularly Billy Joel's tune by that name) modified to fit the fact that I'm not young anymore. To be honest, I'm not all that angry either, most of the time, but given I've already stretched the metaphor pretty thin already, why not take it all the way? So, if you've actually read this far, you might as well continue. I suggest Journal in the navigation bar above to begin for historical, Weblog for topical.
Section Descriptions
Here are descriptions of the various sections, in the order that they appear across the navigation bar. Expect them to evolve along with everything else.
About
This is the page you are viewing now. It serves a dual purpose, as a description of the site, and as a description of me. Both change from time to time, so check back here every now and then.
Contact
This presents a couple of ways for you to send me a message, via various services.
Journal
This was the "meat" of the older versions of this site. It was an electronic journal, though I don't write every day, and place where I posted little essays, mostly on tech issues. Some of those little essays will get expanded and put in the Writings section. I don't get as personal as many people do, so it's not going to shock anyone. As of October, 2007 my weblog is now the home of journal entries and this page contains some HTML and some PDF files of the older journal.
Weblog
In 2009 no one needs to explain what a weblog is, so I won't bother. It opens in a separate window so you don't have to navigate back here.
Writings
This is where my attempts at creative writing go. Some are articles, essays, etc. that live here while some are links to places on the Web where I have written pieces in a more public mode. Read them and judge whether I'm a writer or not.
Opinions
Opinions is the home of my more editorial pieces, including my posts at Epinions.com.
Images
My various photo albums. The album I keep here is a collection of digital camera and scanned images from over the years. My Flickr album offers pictures I've taken with various digital and film cameras, including my Canon 30D dSLR, my Speed Graphic, my Treo phone camera and various others.
About the Author
Glad you asked :) I am a 50-something techogeek type who lives in Rochester New York. I was born on Long Island in 1957 and grew up there an only child. My mother passed away in 1971 and my father remarried a couple of years later. Now I have four step brothers. In 1975 I came to Rochester to attend Rochester Institute of Technology as a Photographic Science major. Following a number of interesting events that will remain unmentioned (well, not all of them, see the Writings page), I graduated in 1980 with a degree in Food Service Administration. I went on to attend RIT two more times, earning a Bachelors (1987) and a Masters degree (1994) in Computer Science. Presently I work for one of the major employers in Rochester but I've worked in a number of firms in the area over the years. I'm married (to another computer engineer) and we have two children, daughters 15 and 17. My family is far more wonderful than I deserve, and that's a good thing. They are particularly tolerant of my love of books and reading, surrendering large amounts of the house to books of all sorts. This is a Maszerowski family tradition and shows every sign of continuing in the next generation.
For fun, I play Jazz and Blues on the guitar. I've been studying under Steve Greene, a local master, since 1994. I haven't played in public much, other than one session for a local nursing home, but I hope to in the future. I'm always open to jam sessions with fellow musicians, so give me a shout if you're interested.
I became a volunteer firefighter in 1979. I was inactive most of 2000-2001, due to an accident in July 2000 when I hit a deer while riding my 1987 BMW K75s motorcycle. I thought for a while I would buy another motorcycle, but I've since changed my mind and haven't actually ridden since (I will admit to giving it more than one second thought). I am currently inactive again but still keep track of things. You never know when I'll return.
Now and then I like to brew my own beer and hard cider and I consider Courage Director's Bitter to be the most sublime pint available (though Old Speckled Hen is close). Living in Rochester, despite the small town connotations, offers more craft-brewed beer now than you'd expect, so I haven't been brewing as much in recent years as I used to.
Following my motorcycle accident, I started taking Tai Chi in order to regain my flexibility and work out some of the kinks. After a year or so of that, I felt a need for more activity and started taking Isshin Ryu (an Okinawan style) Karate at Martial Arts America. I joined my youngest daughter, Liz, who was also studying there. I earned my Black Belt in October of 2007. I also train in Kendo, the Japanese art of the sword. I hope to test for my Ikkyu ranking in 2009.
I've had the chance to visit many US states, Canada, Mexico, Brazil, England, Wales, Ireland, Holland, Germany and Japan. I'm particularly fond of Toronto, Ontario and St. Albans, Herts. The former because it's the nearest major city to Rochester (Buffalo doesn't count). The latter for its wonderful cathedral that has affected me so deeply. I enjoy traveling in general, except when it keeps me away from my family for too long. As far as cuisine, I'm pretty open, so don't worry about what to make if you ever decide to invite me over.
I've been working with computers since the late 1970's, from IBM mainframes, to DEC VAXes , to Mac's and PC's. I used to be an expert C programmer, but I haven't done much of that since about 1999 or so. Nowadays I'm mostly toying with Python, a scripting language that runs on just about everything. I ported GNU gawk to the Mac back in the early 1990's and I've contributed some bug fixes to the Mozilla project. I worked on the Info/MDR product from Veramark and the Xerox 212/214 Copier and Printer. I'm not sure, but I think some of my code is still being used in products from Asea Brown Boveri (ABB) and Harris/RF Communications, though it's been a while since I checked. For the heck of it, I created a Palm application that creates buzz word phrases, ask me if you'd like a copy.
I'm presently working as an Engineering Specialist in the Export department at my company. I feel a bit like a "fish out of water" here but they definitely needed someone conversant in software jargon and technical lingo, so I'm busy if nothing else. We'll see what happens, won't we?
In case you've never met me in person, you should know that I'm 6'4" with blue eyes and dark blond hair that is turning slowly gray. I had a moustache for a long time, but finally shaved it off in early 2005. I've worn glasses since I was kid, and bifocals since I was about 42 or so (age does that to you). I mostly wear contact lenses, both for convenience and for vanity (so sue me).
I have an amazing number of good friends, all of whom make my life worthwhile. You know who you are. And you know I love you all.
For a long time I've harbored dreams of teaching, writing, being a rhythm guitarist in a band, and doing standup comedy, though not all at once. It is clear that none of these things have happened, at least yet. You will be notified in case something happens.