Bit if a tease, really, not telling you what all I found in the time capsule that is the dark recesses of my unfinished basement.
But there was a reason for avoiding too much talk. Much of what I saw was embarrassing or difficult, even in the remembering.
Maybe a dozen years isn't far away enough? Nahhhh.
So what did I find? Personal stuff of course. Probably not that interesting except to me. But then again, the US Mint in Denver just celebrated 100 years of minting coins yesterday with a 100 year time capsule with, get this, 2 scrolls listing the employees of the Mint. Lame.
It was fascinating to remember things long forgotten (and some of them best forgotten, I must say).
But a few highlights stand out, measured by volume.
1996 was the year I sold part of IDs customer base. Why? Raising money so my partner could buy me out. Then we ended up arguing about it with lawyers until he'd burned through all the cash and had to bring in new investors just to get me out of there. But I got out, and didn't lose money, so that was a "positive learning experience."
Then, fortuitously, I considered returning to the UofA to finish my degree. With one day left to register, I high-tailed it down to Tucson, got re-enrolled, got my classes updated, and got an apartment. The next day I was in class, sipping lattés, and playing Nintendo 64 with a couple buddies who'd never left Tucson. Got my degree. Suh-WEEET!
1998 Near financial ruin. Went from well-off to nearly bankrupt in a few short day-trades. Did I get off the drugs? Nope, I took more and day-traded my way back to financial health. Yuck. I remember, one day, learning I had lost most of my money, something like $40,000 in a day. ONE SINGLE FUCKING DAY. Ahem. Not in a good mood, I said to hell with it, left work early, grabbed a bottle of whiskey on the walk home to my leased townhome, and had 1/2 a fifth.
1989-1993Took over the helm of the Robert Asprin MythAdventures Fan Club. Looking back through my papers, and hundreds of letters from fans wanting to join even after things had shut down, I found an interesting letter to the Asprin.
It went like this: Mr. Asprin. I'm poor. Please help. When I took over the club, I got all the responsibilities, but the previous guys and gals spent all the f'ing money.
That reminded me of why I couldn't continue the club... it was taking all of the money that I didn't have, since I was a jobless student.
Asprin wrote back: I'm an ex-accountant, which makes me wonder why anyone runs a non-profit book club. Oh, and I'm separated from my wife, it's expensive, and I can't give you shit because I ain't got shit. So dump it, I won't feel bad.
Anyway, fun and weird stuff. Lots of legal papers, some brilliant marketing plans I put together for the evil empire (US WEST, now Qwest). A few personal notes, some old writings from when I was on the yearbook committee in 7th grade (Yowza Ms. Anderson, what a hottie teacher!) and articles I wrote for student newspapers in High School.
My picture in the Annual Report of DSL.net, their first report after we took the company public.
Old yearbook pix, old membership pictures in fan clubs, on credit cards, University I.D.'s and more. Used ticket stubs to the Opera in Alabama. No kidding. But then there was London's amazing The Complete Works of Shakespeare: Abridged.
Interesting, fun, and basically all trashed now.
But I've put them all in new time capsules. Hopefully I'll store the good bits away in my memory, and the bad bits in the landfill up highway 93 just a few miles from here.
Posted by BilFish at February 2, 2006 08:54 AM