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You Have the Right to Be Complex
- When I was six years old, I knew I would be a veterinarian when I grew up.
- By the time I was nine, I had expanded my love of animals and knew I’d be a zoologist.
- By fourteen, I was certain I wanted to be a geneticist (thank you Jurassic Park).
- By eighteen, I had settled on becoming an engineer, first a software engineer, and finally a mechanical engineer.
If you’ve read the tales, you know I finally did earn a degree in mechanical engineering. . .only to spend the next fifteen years working in inventory and information systems and the subsequent five writing software (among many other things).
Growing up, one of my favorite things to eat — this will be disgusting to some — was peanut butter, butter, and medium cheddar cheese. I loved Brussels sprouts and hated asparagus. I also hated fish. (All fish was sushi to me.) Twice a year (at least) I would get the largest bubblegum milkshake money could buy to see if I could stuff every piece of already-stale gum in my mouth at once.
Now that I’m older, I don’t love bubblegum milkshakes anymore, but I do love asparagus (when cooked right). I’ve also come to love most types of fish, but still can’t handle sushi.
My professional dreams and wanderings and culinary likes and dislikes are just two…
