|
| Woodsboro, Maryland |
| Home |
| Pre High School |
| High School |
| Fordham Univ. |
| Harrisburg PA |
| White Plains NY |
| Williamsport PA |
| State College |
| Utica NY |
| Wheeling WV |
| Woodsboro Md |
| Current Home |
| My Wife |
| My Kids |
| My Grandkids |
| My Parents |
|
| Our home in Woodsboro, Maryland. This home was actually about five miles from Woodsboro on a gravel road. |
|
When Jean and I first arrived in Maryland we never dreamed that we would spend the next twenty years in the same home. Based on our previous history we both anticipated that we would be in Maryland about five years or so. But that doesn't mean that I stayed with only one employer during that stretch of time. Those employers were:
|
|
BUFFINGTON ROAD HOME Our home was a smallish ranch house perched on the side of a gentle hill and completely surrounded with woods and brush. It was rather secluded being sited on a narrow gravel road that was about a half mile from the nearest county paved road. On rainy days the gloom seemed sometimes oppressive as the nearness of the rain soaked foliage drooped depressingly downwards more closely to the home. But on sunny days the ever-changing patterns of light and shade through the trees were refreshing. In winter we were protected from the sharp blasts of icy winds as the trees broke up their force into more endurable eddies. But humid summer days were magnified by the lack of breezes and the retention of moisture beneath the trees and in the ground. In spring, as the earth thawed, Buiffington road would turn into a quagmire in several spots. Sometimes passage was impossible until the county could spread enough stone to stiffen things up a bit. A creek ran parallel to the road and after sustained heavy rain, or snowmelt, Buffington road became flooded. This would have been just a temporary inconvenience but invariably the base of our driveway would wash away creating a trench that could not be navigated. Summer brought a scourge of ticks. At their point of highest density, simply wandering beneath the trees resulted in picking up one of those obnoxious hitchhikers. Examination of our clothing and exposed parts of our bodies for ticks was a common occurrence prior to entering the house. Snakes would wander by from time to time but were never troublesome. We would only kill them if we were uncertain if they were venomous or not. Some 6-8 inch ring neck snakes would take up residence in the basement but these were gently deposited outside. Squirrels were constant companions. One became sufficiently friendly enough for Jean to feed by hand. Squirrels in the chimney, basement or attic were a major pain in the neck, however. Charmingly adorable chipmunks frequently turned out to be villains as they ate our flower bulbs and dug holes in inappropriate places. Deer were frequent visitors and were usually not a problem. Bats would bed down in the attic during daylight hours but we left them undisturbed. Mice made themselves comfortable in the basement and attic but were unable to enter our living quarters. Mice were controlled but never eliminated. We had a gravel driveway, about 200 feet long that rose uphill to our home. In winter, if it was snow covered, it was not generally possible to drive to the top. So, following a snow, priority number one was to get the snow removed. Plowing or snow blowing was not an option because these approaches spewed stones over a broad area to one side or the other. Shoveling, then, was the preferred way to clear the snow. This job was typically undertaken by Jean and I'm stilled awed by the strength and stamina she displayed over the years. The house had two bedrooms that were sufficient for Jean, Nancy and I. A limited number of bedrooms, however, also imposed limitations on overnight guests. The kitchen and living room were more than adequate. There was no outside lighting, which meant that nights were quite dark. The sky at night sparkled with stars. At night, the sound of various insects was at, certain times of the year, almost deafening. The attic was fairly spacious and as a result we seldom threw things out and accumulated a lot of stuff, over the years, which became a huge problem when we moved out. There was no TV cable and satellite TV was problematic because of the surrounding hills and trees. We erected a TV tower, which allowed us to get fuzzy reception of the major networks. After moving in the first major task we undertook was to clear away the underbrush that was gradually crowding in on the house. Our lot encompassed 1.5 acres so this was a formidable task. We quickly learned that simply cutting saplings and shrubs off at the lowest possible point was not sufficient. They simply grew back with disheartening ferocity. To prevent re-growth the roots had to be completely removed via pick and shovel. We also quickly learned that we had an abundance of poison ivy to contend with. Skin rashes were something we endured several times a year in spite of our awareness of the dangers. Large fallen trees littered the lot and posed problems because they hindered maneuverability and were unsightly. They were cut up and split for firewood. There were also three large mounds of soil, widely separated, that were deposited during excavation work for the home. Those mounds, about 25 feet square at the base, were redeposited throughout the lot via shovel and wheelbarrow. These clearance processes were ongoing over the years and never really was completed to our full satisfaction. Our remoteness also caused problems for Nancy that I'm certain that I was incapable of fully appreciating. Nancy was in high school at the time and there were no kids in her age group anywhere nearby. Also her school was about 10 miles away in Walkersville. Consequently, she had to be driven wherever she wanted to go which limited the scope of her activities. Nancy never complained about her situation and handled it with a stoicism that was tacitly appreciated by both Jean and I. A few months after moving in, Jean went to work in the Walkersville High School cafeteria. Back to Top |
|
HOOD COLLEGE I left my teaching job in West Virginia for the position at Hood College, which was an all women's school with a long history of transforming girls into sophisticated women suitable for marrying men who had the potential of rising to prestigious positions. Hood turned out bright, feminine, socially astute women ready to assist their husbands in achieving their highest career aspirations. Admirable goals for some women, I suppose, but not a regimen I would want my daughters exposed to. Hood students were taught such things as archery, horseback riding, sewing and cooking along with the more usual liberal arts courses. For traditional special events that occurred throughout the year they would dress in pretty white or pastel colored dresses. I arrived on the scene, at Hood, as the feminist movement was picking up steam. Within several years Hood College had indiscriminately dumped all its traditions and its underlying developmental agenda became one of churning out feminist firebrands. It was disturbing that I, as a male, was viewed as the enemy. Someone standing in the way of women achieving their full potential. As a father of four daughters there was no one more committed to the principle of equal opportunities for females. I wanted my daughters to be able to live their lives without the need for dependence on any man. But, the women at Hood were uninterested in probing my beliefs. My gender was, apparently, sufficient reason to distrust me. Many women at Hood were part of a belligerent cadre that was always ready to lash out at any hint of what they construed to be discriminatory speech. After one particularly expletive laced attack on me, I was determined thereafter to not engage in conversation with any of them unless it was absolutely necessary. Their virulence extended to other traditional male behavior. Simply holding open a door for then, or extending any common courtesy, meant risking being subjected to a mini lecture on how disparaging you were. So I stopped being courteous. Maybe they achieved their goals in the way they changed my behavior but, from my perspective, I never felt that gender relationships were improved by their truculent attitudes. Instead their actions spawned a passive alienation among many men. Generally, this pleased then as they smugly reveled in the sense of power they thought they achieved. So, as I began my work at Hood College I was a minority member of the administrative staff. My boss was Joe Pastore, a guy that I deeply admired and respected. Joe was a retired US army officer who previously held the position of commander of Fort Dietrick in Frederick, MD, where government sponsored research on recombinant DNA was done. At Hood, Joe was the Vice President for Administration. My first task was to automate all their accounting functions. Hood did not have their own computer. We rented computer time from Western Maryland College, which was about 25 miles away. This was a handicap but, nevertheless, the accounting system was set up within a few months. The work that I did required me to work closely with the treasurer of the college. He was a congenial fun loving guy who took a dedicated hard nosed approach to the strict adherence to sound accounting principles. He worked at Hood for many years and for a succession of Hood presidents. Of course I got to know him well and gradually he began to confide in me about the problems that assailed him. His chief concern was that the current administration was apparently indifferent to the annual deficits that the college was experiencing. He brought in independent outside consultants who dutifully warned of the perils of reckless financial attitudes. The consultants report was largely ignored and the treasurer became more and more despondent about his seeming irrelevance. He was only in his early 40's but gradually I witnessed his vigor dissipate. I wasn't surprised when the news came that he had cancer. Within a year he was dead. I blame the college administration for contributing to his death. During my tenure at Hood, the federal government passed various legislation that provided grant monies to minority institutions for all kinds of use. The college produced a package of proposals, one of which I prepared which was for the automation of student record keeping. Approval came quickly with several hundred thousand dollars for my project. The reporting requirements to the Washington bureaucrats was a major pain in the butt but it was worth it in order to work on something that would otherwise not be possible. The money paid for a Harris computer, (few people ever heard of it), and software from a firm in Rochester, NY. One person was hired to work on transforming manual records to automated media. But, it was decided to have that person report to the Registrar and not to me. That turned out to be a disastrous decision. I worked for a number of colleges and the Registrar at Hood College was one of the best I encountered. But her unit was understaffed and non-critical work was piling up. The new person that was assigned to her was promptly put to use, to an inordinate extent, on work not associated with the automation project. As a result, although my work was completed, progress on full implementation languished. I would address this problem, on an almost weekly basis, with the Register in the most tactful manner I could muster. I periodically covered the situation with my boss in a far more forceful way. Nothing worked. As time went by, I became increasingly exasperated with the situation and began looking for another position. Back to employer list |
|
LEBANON VALLEY COLLEGE Lebanon Valley College was in Annvile, Pennsylvania, a small town between Hershey and Lebanon. It was a private college with a small enrollment and generally undistinguished. It had a relatively low tuition rate, which was a reflection of its somewhat low esteem. Its principal claim to fame was its music program, which drew good talent and was well supported by the college. Once in a while it would turn out a credible basketball squad but for decades its football teams were usually pushovers. Since there was no time for me to purchase a new home in the Annville area the college generously allowed me to stay in a room in a house that the college owned, which was across the street from the campus. The house was chiefly used for prominent guest speakers who appeared at the college. The room was generously sized and the home offered many amenities that I appreciated. It turned out that my stay in that house was for a longer period of time than either the college or I expected. Unfortunately, I made my move to Annville at a time when the country was experiencing double-digit inflation and interest rates. Under those conditions, it was impossible to sell our home in Maryland. Consequently, for the entire time I worked in Annville, I lived out of that room and commuted to Woodsboro for weekends. I reported to a guy who was Vice President of something or other. He was basically a fine fellow who was a bit of a stuffed shirt, I thought, who relied heavily on pomposity to cover up his shortcomings. The computer on campus was under the control of the administration but was also used by faculty and students. So, I had to work closely with the Chair of the Math department who controlled the Computer Science curriculum. When I got to the college they already had automated their administrative accounting functions. My first assigned task was to set up an admissions and enrollment system. The admission system requirements were fairly straight forward so I assigned most of the development tasks to a programmer while I turned my attention to academic computer usage. A squabble with the Math department chair erupted because I supported a Business department request that a business programming language be added to the curriculum. The math chair thought the programming language was inappropriate as a computer science course. He was right, but I thought there was no other way for business students to pick up those skills. The debates swirled for weeks until one day I was summoned to the president's office where he told me, kindly, to back off. This was an interesting outcome since I always believed that the power of faculty always trumps that of a member of the administration. But in this case, every member of the business department faculty supported the position I was taking. The college was using a computer that was very limited in its capabilities. It was adequate, however, for the limited vision the school had of automation possibilities. I yearned for more computing sophistication. Remarkably, a graduate of Lebanon Valley, who was a corporation president, offered to donate his company's computer to the college. I excitedly drove to the Philadelphia area to discuss the details with him. My disappointment was overwhelming when I learned that the maintenance costs on the computer would far exceed what the college was already paying for computer resources. Naturally, I could not get approval to bump up my budget by the necessary amount. It took weeks for my to recover from my dejected mood. For the duration of my stay at Lebanon Valley College, Jean, essentially, lived alone at our home in Maryland. During this period it was interesting to watch her grow in independence and self-assurance. Previously, she always managed our personal finances extremely well and during our separation she demonstrated the ability to respond to all kinds of situations with determination. For me, it was a stark lesson in how dispensable I was. Being separated from Jean was hard to take. My job was also one of the dullest of my career, which made the days drag on and on. After a year or so, it was clear that it would be a long time before we could sell our home and buy another. I began looking for a job closer to our Maryland home. Back to employer list |
|
GETTYSBURG COLLEGE It was a great relief to get a job at Gettysburg College. Finally I worked within commuting distance from my home. Gettysburg College was an average sized private liberal arts college with an excellent academic reputation. Although its tuition was quite high it had no trouble attracting sufficient students to fill its dormitories and classrooms. It had a computer center dedicated to strictly academic endeavors. My job was confined to administrative computing functions. I reported to an assistant dean, which was a notch or two below where I was typically placed in the pecking order in previous jobs. Nothing had yet been automated on the administrative side when I got to Gettysburg but they had already made a decision as to what computer and software package they would use. From what I could tell, they were both excellent choices. All in all, I was both pleased and proud to be associated with the college. The first task was to automate the Admissions Office. Setting up equipment and software was done rather quickly and before long a database of prospective students was being established. The cooperation of the Admissions Office staff was fabulous. It's interesting to note that the Admissions office was in what was once a large private home with its rooms converted into offices. President Eisenhower regularly used one of those modest upstairs offices when he retired and had taken up full time residency on his nearby farm. As implementation work steadily progressed I became more deeply acquainted with the computer's operating system, (OS), and data base management system, (DBMS). It was the first exposure I had to either. The OS was Unix, which was somewhat difficult for me to grasp initially, but I was startled at its power and ability to manipulate files with amazing speed. The DBMS was called Information, which was built on relational file system concepts. Creating files and maintaining them was quick and simple. File changes required no database reconstruction and no changes to existing programs. Record access was random and immediate, and, record updates were immediate. Records on networked computers could be accessed as though they resided on the computer logged into. Programming for this DBMS was quick and easy. Also, non-technical users could be readily trained to generate their own reports. For its time, it was cutting edge stuff. The DBMS was so remarkably outstanding that I expected every computer department in the country would be adopting it before long. It didn't happen. Because most of my compatriots in the computer services sector did not rush to embrace the DBMS that we were using at Gettysburg, I thereafter regarded them as irresponsible, ill informed, or being one notch above moronic. Later, as personal computers became ubiquitous, PC based Access and then SQL Server DBMSs came on the scene. Both were, and still are, inferior because they are cumbersome to use and become increasingly cumbersome when huge file sizes are a necessity. Writing SQL statements that need to extract data from related file is ridiculously complicated and overwhelmingly lengthy. Verbosity reigns supreme. Furthermore, the widespread adoption of client server concepts, while promising, failed to deliver easy record access and maintenance. Client server provides a clear advantage in lower equipment costs with easier equipment expandability but, at the expense of efficiency and service. It is an abomination and inexcusable that those developers in this field, who sustain the status quo, either blithely ignore the desperate need for something better or lack the innovative talent to get the job done. Jogging had been a routine part of my life since we lived in Utica, NY. But, it was when I worked at Gettysburg College that my jogging reached almost maniacal levels. I had the freedom to arrive at work earlier or to leave later in the evening and to then take a correspondingly longer lunch period, which is when I did my exercising. One of the advantages of working for a college is that there is access to gymnasiums, weight rooms, tracks, field houses, lockers and showers. I became so addicted to jogging each day that the only thing that stopped me was a thunderstorm. Plain heavy rain was not a deterrent, nor was snow, cold, heat, or anything else that Mother Nature could fashion. My route was the same almost every day through the Gettysburg battlefield. From the college I went out Mummasburg Road to the Peace Light Memorial, across Reynold's Avenue to the Fairfield Road, down the long length of Confederate Avenue, and then retracing my steps back to the college. This was a daily 12-mile run. Inevitably, anyone running those kinds of distances will become injured. When I did become hobbled by a meddlesome calf problem I turned to cycling. Gradually, my cycling improved to the point that on Saturday and Sunday, days when there was ample time, my rides covered between 60 to 75 miles. When my injury cleared up, I resumed jogging but still continued to cycle on weekends. Needless to say, I was in the best physical shape of my life. My resting heart rate was fluctuated around 55. I remember participating is a student's physiology research project at the college. She put me on a treadmill to measure the rise in my heart rate over time. Both she and her professor repeatedly checked their equipment, which they thought was broken, because my heart rate was not rising in accordance with their expectations. As the work required on the Admissions system was winding down, most of my attention shifted to automating all the functions of the Registrar's office. Because many colleges and universities throughout the country also used the software we were using, it was always helpful to be able to call my counterpart at another institution to determine how they handled difficult implementation hurdles. Those institutions formed a consortium and would meet periodically for a symposium. When they met at Gettysburg I was asked to address the group, at the local Holiday Inn, on the topic of how we achieved distributed processing. I was dumbfounded by the topic he chose because we never came close to implementing the concepts of distributed processing, as I understood them, nor was it ever a stated objective. This was confirmation of my continuously growing suspicion that my boss was a phony... a know-it-all who would never make an effort to realize how much he didn't know, about any topic. My presentation at the Holiday Inn proposed that each major unit in the college, (Registrar, Admissions, Student Affairs, Finance, Development, etc.), have their own networked computer and their own computer staff under direct control of the chief administrator of each office. Now, this was presented to a roomful of computer pros who, at their institutions, controlled all computing resources. Needless to say, I really got their attention since the concept I was proposing, if adopted, would mean that they would lose almost all their power. So, in one fell swoop I managed to alienate many of my counterparts, and my boss. After my talk there were several members of the audience who approached me to seriously discuss the advantages of what I was proposing but mostly, I now was a threat, however minor, to their jobs. Oddly, my ideas for giving administrative units direct control over resources relative to their own computing needs were partially put in place when the college automated the library. The library acquired their own computer and software. I was only marginally involved in those acquisitions and the early software design deliberations. The existing computer and the library computer were networked and it worked like a charm. The network was simple to use and data access astoundingly versatile. This success so energized me that at every opportunity I would promote the library paradigm for the entire college to any administrator who would exhibit the slightest interest. Any normal person who had an idea for making an improvement at their job would approach their boss and convey the benefits that would accrue if their proposals were implemented. Not me. I attempted to convince others of my conceptions in order to build up a groundswell of support that would overwhelm my boss such that he would have no choice but to adopt my ideas. There was no way I could justify circumventing my boss, but I did it anyway, habitually. I didn't do the "right" thing because, over time, I grew to have almost no respect for my boss. He excelled at only one skill... schmoozing. His intelligence was average and like most people he possessed a superficial knowledge of many subjects. But, in his mind, he was an expert on everything and was not bashful about expounding on his self-endowed superiority. Humility was a concept that eluded him. I was the same way during my early twenties but somehow was able to able to acquire an understanding of my own limitations. My boss, apparently, was incapable of developing a degree of maturity that progressed beyond that point. (This affliction, incidentally, infects most individuals on college campuses, particularly faculties). My boss also had a penchant for relating off-color jokes in mixed company. Now, I'm a bit of a prude, so his humor made me uncomfortable. My regret, to this day, is that I didn't have the courage to let him know how boorish he was. During my early days at Gettysburg College I found myself more and more internally apologizing for his callow remarks. He belittled or ridiculed people with a frequency that caused me to conclude that he held some deep-seated insecurity that could only be assuaged at the expense of others. So, collectively, it was inevitable that his adolescence would clash with my moral judgmental characteristics... with dire consequences for me. There probably are people who are generally more naive than I, but I've yet to meet them. For example, why, throughout my long, long marriage have I never even came close to having, for want of a better word, an affair. I'm always astonished when I learn of improbably desirable guys who have. I've got to be the ugliest guy on the planet, have the most obnoxious personality, have no antennae for picking up subtle opposite sex signals, or most likely, some of all three. Regrettably, my professional career has been cluttered with the debris of my unsophisticated approach to interpersonal relationships. I failed to notice the signals that my job was in jeopardy. My dismissal came when I was in the midst of working on the automation of all financial functions. I had been having trouble getting the finance VP to sign off on my recommendation for the account number structure. A decision that was holding up moving forward on all aspects of finance implementation. This hold up went on for weeks, apparently at the behest of my boss who was, unknown to me, maneuvering for justification to cut me loose. It never occurred to me that I'd soon be out the door. Several weeks prior to my dismissal, we had a bizarre confrontation in his office in which he made a claim about me that was so blatantly false that I was dumbfounded. Any inhibitions I may have had regarding deference for a superior instantly vanished. Apparently, the strength of my response caused him to quickly drop the topic. It wasn't too long afterward that I received a memo from him which listed about ten items, work I was assigned, with which he expressed concern. I had already completed over half of them by the time I received the memo. Several days later I had completed all but one. I then met with him to discuss the items he had listed, indicating all were completed except one which was pending because I was awaiting information from another source. It was a perfunctory meeting. Early one afternoon I received a call that I was needed at a meeting in the 2nd floor conference room. When I got there my boss and his boss, a Dean, occupied it. I was immediately told that I was no longer wanted and could choose to resign or be dismissed. My boss presented me with a copy the ten-item memo he previously sent me and claimed dereliction. I immediately indicated that the status of those tasks were discussed with my boss and only one item was pending, the status of which he was fully aware. The Dean's jaw dropped, he was obviously not told any of this and probably was under the impression that none of the items were complete. But, it was a done deal. The demeanor of my boss was eerie, reminiscent of a ruthless movie character extracting gratifying lethal revenge from an archenemy. I refused to resign so officially I was fired. The Dean accompanied me back to my office where I was chagrined to find the door locks being changed. I was so outraged I headed for the president's office. He wasn't there. I cleaned out my desk and left. I was able to acquire excellent letters of recommendation from every major associate with whom I closely worked. They were extremely useful in my search for another job. The one exception of one individual who provided a letter but added a generalized qualifier that rendered the letter useless. I was stunned. The letter was immediately deposited in the trash as I wondered how some people could be so small that they can't transcend their own compulsions to respond benevolently to another�s needs. Unemployment compensation is not issued to those who are fired as opposed to those who are laid off. When my case was reviewed it was concluded that I was eligible for full benefits. Why did my boss resort to subterfuge to get rid of me? I was a subordinate who disagreed with just about everything he stood for. I was not insubordinate or incompetent but I did oppose his overall design for administrative computing at the college. To me that was justification enough for him to request dumping me for someone who shared his vision. Could it be that he recognized that he would have been unable to get support for his ideas? Gettysburg College was the most satisfying job I ever had. I was proud of my accomplishments and I was exposed new technologies that I made use of throughout the remainder of my career. I was interested in everything I did. I looked forward to going to work in the morning. One would think that I should have compromised my principles in order to insure my continued employment. But, my self respect would have been shattered and that would have much more difficult to live with. Back to employer list |
| Photo of Pennsylvania Hall at Gettysburg College |
| Photographed while jogging |
|
HALLMARK HEALTHCARE Hallmark Healthcare was in Timonium, Maryland just a few blocks away from the Maryland State Fairgrounds, but it was not a rural area as one might think. We were in an industrial park with various small businesses. The buildings were constructed of cinder blocks with each business not having more than two windows. While I was employed there, the number of employees probably never exceeded 50 people. It took me about an hour to drive to work mostly because of Timonium's proximity to Baltimore. Hallmark Healthcare was an institutional pharmacy. That is, it supplied drugs to patients in nursing homes, prisons, drug rehab centers, and so on. Although prescriptions were filled for individuals, they were delivered en masse to the various institutions in large containers on a weekly scheduled basis. It was a production-oriented operation with prescription orders entered and filled by technicians. The major function of the pharmacists was to verify that prescriptions were correctly filled. Medical supplies, from bedpans to catheters were also provided. As an additional service nursing orders were prepared which chronologically listed the care a patient was to receive. I did a fair amount of programming at Hallmark with much of it being self-defined. So, I was able to delve into sophisticated conceptual areas more than in the past. Much of my output was in the realm of utility programs, which were not directly related to pharmacy applications but helped to make access to data comprehensively easier for everyone. As a kid I took an interest amateur radio, (Ham Radio), and did some tinkering to the point that I decided to work toward getting my FCC license. Other things intervened and although my interest would re-emerge from time to time I never did any serious studying to feel confident about passing the required tests. Then, I finally got determined. I began studying assiduously for both the written test and the Morse code test. I listened to Morse code tapes to and from work and Jean would periodically test my knowledge of radio principles. Finally, on the same day, I passed the Novice class exam, the 5 WPM Morse code test, and the Technician class exam. I was extremely pleased when the FCC mailed me my license with the call sign N3XQF. While I was at Hallmark, he Frederick County Community College hired me as an adjunct professor in their computer related studies program. I would only teach on Friday nights. Most of the stuff I taught was introductory PC courses. I taught there until the college shut down Friday night courses and they wanted to move me to another night. I didn't want that, so I quit. My boss at Hallmark was an easygoing guy whose office was about 20 minutes away in a building that housed our parent company. He mostly provided generalized directions for me and pretty much left me to run the show except for major decisions or expenditures. He was rather computer savvy so although I sometimes disagreed with him, it was easy to go along with almost all the things he wanted to accomplish. We also had offices in South Bend, Indiana, Florida and on the Maryland Eastern Shore. Indiana had its own computer and the others were linked to the computer in Timonium. Managing equipment and operating systems occupied more of my time than at any previous job and cut significantly into my first love, programming. Productivity at Hallmark relied heavily upon computers so if one went down it usually meant many people would have to work overtime to clear up the resultant backlog. Down time only occurred about a half dozen times a year, usually for one to four hours, but when it happened the pressure was enormous to get things going again. My boss and I had only one serious negative encounter. The computer at Timonium was slow but a more serious problem was inadequate disk space. Disk space was bumped up from time to time but it was never enough to ease the amount of time I had to spend monitoring space and continually resizing files. I finally got fed up and pressed for a different computer to solve the problem once and for all. My boss acquiesced after a week or so but proposed getting a computer that in my estimation would only have provided relief for about a year. The machine I proposed avoided future pitfalls, but was considerably more expensive. Through innumerable meetings over a period of many months neither one of us was willing to back off our positions and to compromise. Then one day I got word that my proposal was approved. Of course, I was delighted but I subsequently learned that the decision was made over the objection of my boss. A chill settled over our relationship afterwards such that when I needed his support he was reluctant to give it and I was left to fend for myself on most issues that I had to deal with. But, I still felt the price I had to pay was worth it. Musical talent is practically nonexistent among my siblings and I. We were not shortchanged with regard to music appreciation, but the ability to develop skills with any musical instrument was problematic. I never had any difficulty grasping musical notation but could not translate that capability into listenable instrumentational melodic output. My singing also tends to be monotone and I am unable to sustain a consistent beat for more than a few seconds. Nevertheless, these handicaps did not deter me from trying. Mastering a harmonica eluded me because I was never able manage control the flow of air through just one hole. Besides, practicing the harmonica always gave me a sinus headache. So, I tried an electronic keyboard. Although I was too cheap to pay for professional lessons, a dedicated daily effort paid off to the extent that I was able to routinely get through melodies in several different keys. But, alas, my brain was not sufficiently adept to be able to simultaneously control my left hand, even if I confined myself to just playing chords. As my frustration mounted, I reluctantly concluded that I possessed a systemic ineptitude that could never be overcome. The keyboard was banished to the attic to gather dust. As time went by, I grew weary of the indifference of my boss at Hallmark and requested that I be removed from all decision-making responsibilities. My boss instantly gave that idea his blessing. Within months it was decided to replace both the computer at Timonium and all the application software. I disagreed with the decision but I kept my mouth shut and worked hard on implementation efforts, but dispiritedly. During the long hardware/software transition period we got word that our company was sold. Before long, changes were occurring. My boss resigned and a bit later I received an ultimatum to accept a job at the new company's home office in Kenneth Square, PA, or be terminated. I accepted the new position. Jean and I immediately began looking for a new home in the Kenneth Square area since it was too far from Woodsboro, MD for me to commute. The company provided me with room and board until I could get a home but I had to argue vigorously to get that. I was living out of a motel room on the outskirts of town. It was adequate, but I was lonely. At work my new job was to be one of strictly programming. I was put on a training regimen that was to last a couple of months. New to me were the computer, the language and the data base system. My immediate conclusion was that they were all inefficient but I didn't dare express my opinions. After several weeks I decided that I would never want to work, on a long-term basis, with what I was learning. Jean and I stopped looking for a house and I began looking for a new job. It only took me several weeks to get a job in Rockville, MD at Principal Healthcare. Back to employer list |
|
PRINCIPAL HEALTHCARE Principal Healthcare was within commuting distance from our home in Woodsboro but it was into the Washington, DC metropolitan area with its horrendous traffic. A more serious source of discomfort was that I always hated supervising people. At Nationwide Insurance I was responsible for a large group but after that I never had more than four people reporting to me. I was generally comfortable those lesser numbers. But, now, at Principal, I had more than I really would have liked. My boss was a techie that I felt good about and provided me with the guidance that eased me into things fairly well. Then, within two weeks, things started to change. My boss quit and was replaced with a non-techie. During a crisis it was obvious to me that my new boss did not like the way I was handling the resolution. On the basis of that episode I thought that the future of our relationship looked bleak. So, I asked my boss to demote me into a programming position. He did. I was pleased. But, to my dismay, he put a Business Analyst into the programmer supervisory position. I was assigned an EDI job to receive patient claims electronically from a clearinghouse. This was quickly accomplished and I immediately thereafter took on a self-assigned leadership role to design the automatic processing of claims without human intervention. I began calling meetings with other programmers to identify responsibilities and to establish general direction. I didn't particularly want my boss involved because I knew it would crush momentum. Of course, my boss ultimately became involved and things slowed to a crawl. Work became a monumental bore. I filled idle time by technically tinkering with the computer's operating system. This is a practice severely frowned upon and is reserved only for authorized personnel. My activities ultimately culminated in onerous consequences for me. Principal was an HMO insurance company. The HMO concept held so much promise, initially, to improve the health of those they insured and to mollify the harmful effects of the health care costs trajectory. But the unscrupulous HMO managers proceeded to distort sound HMO principles to the point that the contempt and scorn of much of the public was engendered. One practice of Principal was to pool all the premium dollars paid by the insureds from which claims were paid, and at the end of the fiscal year, distribute a percentage of the remainder to participating physicians. Clearly, this had the effect of encouraging physicians to restrict healthcare. The company also routinely evaluated physicians to determine who among them were generating the highest claim payments. Application developers, such as I, were mostly restricted to one login at a time. Requests for more were typically rejected because, we were told, it would slow down computer response time too much. But, I was sufficiently technically astute to be able to weasel my way into the computer's operating system and increase my logins to three. This contributed towards a generous bump in productivity. I approached each member of our team, including our supervisor, to determine if they would like me to do the same for them. They all responded positively so I also increased their logins. I knew I could potentially get into trouble for my actions, but I did it anyway. The major contribution of the guy in charge of computer hardware and the operating system was obstructionism and erecting barricades that frustrated techies. Unfortunately, he was viewed by upper management as the chief computer guru in the company. He was in charge of computer security and I had breached his security wall. When he discovered my activity his embarrassment and displeasure translated immediately into a demand for my dismissal. My claim that I had the tacit approval of my supervisor for what I did made no difference to my manager. Within an hour, I was on my way home musing about my career and my future plans. Introspection is not normal for me. Now, however, I tried to objectively determine why I had been fired three times and demoted once. It's amazing that I had been able recover each time and to sustain a financially comfortable lifestyle. Each job loss setback was previously an opportunity for me to rationalize my predicament and blame anything or anybody other than myself. Finally, now, I began to accept that there was a definite pattern that I was responsible for. But, I cannot put my finger on the cause. I'm sometimes inclined to conclude that I have an innate inclination to critically view authority with disdain and to kindle a defiant mentality when confronted with authority figures that do not rise to my standards of using power with humility. These personal attributes are so strong that they overwhelm any commonsense reasoning that would normally compel others to act with restraint in order to at least protect themselves from damaging consequences. Another factor that may have contributed to my recalcitrant behavior is the enormous freedom that I enjoyed in my youth. As a kid, there were definite tasks that I was responsible for, but otherwise, there were no other restrictions on my activities. Although my body eventually achieved maturity, my brain did not correspondingly shuck off the freedom to which I had grown accustomed. Also, in my early twenties, my boss at that time epitomized all the qualities I could ever hope for in a superior. I never had an occasion to not accord him the deepest respect and to unquestionably support his every decision. Subsequently, every other boss, when measured against the qualities of my idol, could not possibly perform adequately. So, subconsciously, I was constantly evaluating my bosses. In fact, I recall suggesting to a corporate Human Relations big shot that supervisors should be evaluated periodically by those they supervise. This sort of evaluating is routine in colleges where students evaluate professors at the close of each semester. Think about it, the mental health of the nation would be dramatically improved if every corporate supervisor realized that their every action was being scrutinized by their subordinates for possible use in an evaluation. I immediately plunged into the task of looking for a new job but, then, after a few days of sporadic discussions with Jean, we decided that I should retire. Back to employer list |
|
KEYSTONE HEALTHPLAN SERVICES - (Synertech Systems) During my "retirement" I kept busy with outdoor activities. My jogging regimen was increased a bit but mostly I spent time "rearranging" our lot. My most used tools were pick and shovel, wheelbarrow, axe and a chainsaw. I created paths, cut down trees, removed stumps, controlled the flow of water in the stream, removed rocks, raked and disposed of enormous amount of leaves, moved much soil from one location to another, tended to a garden, split logs for firewood, improved the driveway. A six-hour workday in any kind of weather was the norm. Normally, I had always been an aerobic exerciser, but now I was also acquiring the most upper body strength I had ever previously achieved. When my retirement was approaching the six-month mark, I could no longer suppress my desire to go back to work. Articulating with clarity why I wanted to return to the ranks of the employed was something that eluded me. That difficulty may have been due to a visceral, rather than intellectual, drive that was at the root of my decision. When others inquired about it, I would cite the basic human need to be of service, or of having a purpose in life, or personal identity, but I'm not certain how much credibility those philosophical musings hold. There was, however, certainty about an emptiness in the pit of my stomach that I wanted to make go away. With my checkered employment history it's interesting that, as far as I know, it was not an obstacle to getting hired. On employment applications, the question "Reason for leaving previous position", always appeared. I almost always entered "Philosophical differences". If, during an interview some discussion ensued about it, I was always careful not to make any negative comments about any previous employer. How much checking prospective employers made into my background has always been a source of deep curiosity. I think my profession, in which there has usually been a demand for people with my skills, has helped me overcome any hurdles created by my previous indiscretions. When I was interviewed for the job at Keystone Health Plan Services, (KHPS), I talked to four different people. The first person I talked with exhibited the most skepticism about me. She was a representative of their Human Relations department. I gradually grew so annoyed with her that my attitude changed to one of impatience and disinterest in being hired. Normally, in job interviews, I was there as a supplicant, hoping to be accepted. Did my "I don�t need you" attitude make me a more desirable applicant in their eyes? By the time I was formally hired, my salary was set at a level higher than I expected and they also threw in moving expenses. This was the first non-management position I was hired for in over a span of decades. This company also used Business Analysts to design computer applications. The work they did was something I was accustomed to handling in all my previous jobs. I was quite good at it. It soon became apparent that most of the analysts performed badly at designing systems. They were adequate at extracting information regarding the desired outcomes of an application but their subsequent design contributions were either minimal or dangerous or both. The only analysts I respected were those who were open to my suggestions. Of course, my bruised ego, caused by subordination to these incompetents, is contributing to my opinion, but even from the more objective perspective of several years removed from the company, I still have not revised my opinion. Relative to the more minor role I assumed in this company, I marvel at the unusual self-restraint I displayed in not more proactively making waves over some of the bad decisions many of these analyst made. KHPS provided services for health insurance companies all over Pennsylvania. The company was initially established as a subsidiary of Blue Shield in central PA and began expanding to a significant base of customers. When I went to work for them I was one of over seventy programmers. I was assigned to a unit that was responsible for a system that the company had previously decided to phase out of existence. My expertise did not cover their newer system so I thought that my job would disappear in about two years. Shortly before I arrived at KHPS, they had lost a very big customer in western Pennsylvania. Then within a year or so their new system, which they were attempting to implement for their largest customer in eastern Pennsylvania, had overwhelming problems and the customer decided to leave KHPS. KHPS then decided to purchase software for another system and to market it nationwide. About that time the company was sold by its parent company and KHPS became Synertech Services. The new owner named a new president and shortly afterwards KHPS dumped their primary system and entered into an agreement with another software company to market its, (the other company's), system. This new system was PC based and the customer size that could be accommodated was greatly limited. So, we acquired new customers that produced limited income but required tremendous overhead to service properly. Synertech, as we were now known, continuously lost money with this new system but the entire company was propped up with revenues from the unit that I worked with. But, as I stated above, they had previously decided to get rid of it, and along with it, their profits. Shortly before Synertech lost a large customer that was on their old system, and threw their financial situation into the red, they were sold again. Those new owners were unbelievably snookered. They bought a company that they thought was profitable and that, they thought, were marketing a product that was viable. Anyway, the absurd antics of the brass were always wondrous fodder for satisfying commiserating with my fellow employees. I was always certain that if the company offered stock options to their employees, I would have none of it. With the continued existence of this company, the Dilbert cartoonist need not worry about running out of material. Throughout all the corporate turbulence, I was able to survive five layoffs. Then, one day, I was given an ultimatum to accept a transfer to the Electronic Data Interchange, (EDI), unit or else I would have no job at all. I never hesitated taking the EDI position. It gave me an opportunity to get more involved with Unix, Visual Basic programming, SQL, and several EDI methodologies. To me the move was a lucky break and I loved getting immersed in a different technological environment. Unfortunately, the EDI team leader was an overbearing, micro-managing martinet, obsessed with the idea that subordinates are naturally inclined to not perform responsibly and were not to be trusted. Adaptation to her machinations was not easy but I managed to subsume them in the context of all other activities. Her absence from work, however, was always a cause for cerebral celebration. For the most part, I really enjoyed going to work. Are there kind words that can describe the absolute lack of business acuity among the upper management in Synertech? I don't think the decision makers were stupid but they were certainly ignorant and refused to acknowledge that ignorance. They thought they knew best when they actually lacked the knowledge upon which to base sound decisions. Their horrendous decisions affected the professional and private lives of hundreds of their employees. I suspect those corporate "leaders" have no remorse for their actions. They probably take pride in being able to make tough decisions. Unfortunately, there tends to be a trickle down effect to lower levels of management when the upper level policymakers are infected with egos that prevent them from seeking full the knowledge that will aid them in making better decisions. Take this example of mid level management ignorance. At Snyertech, one day, the head of computer security decided to limit programmer computer access. No one was informed of what was happening and to my knowledge there was no prior discussions with programming management about his planned actions. So, one morning, access that we, as programmers, were entrusted with, was now something for which we were viewed as threats. I immediately took steps to override the "security" measures that had been implemented. Within hours my manager was at my desk to inform me that I was guilty of a security infraction and to undo my changes. I was infuriated for days afterwards. When things cooled down, several months later, I surreptitiously reinstituted my overrides. My security breaches didn't end there, however. Over time I was cited for four other security violations. The last one, I was told weeks after my reprimand, that there were urgings that I be fired. But, my manager, I think, recognized the nuttiness of the accusations. All four of my violations were on a computer that was designated as a developmental computer for programmers. On that computer, there were no customer data or programs. It contained nothing but test files and test programs. But yet, the security department decided to implement security measures to restrict programmer access. So, they were attempting to protect something that required no protecting. The idiocy of it all still amazes me. My so-called violations, then, were actions, by me, to boost productivity or least get it back to levels that existed prior to the security unit�s interventions. Out of the blue, one morning, I was summoned to the conference room for an unscheduled meeting. When I got there, seated around the table were people from our division with whom I rarely did business. Stupid me, I asked what the meeting was all about. Almost in unison I was told we were being laid off. I was devastated but tried to muster a philosophical demeanor. This was an unusual layoff because all the others were preceded with an official warning that it was coming. The surprise caught me unprepared to steel myself for the possibility. After clearing out my desk I lingered for several hours saying my goodbyes. Leaving was difficult because I realized that given my age and the paucity of technological jobs in a slowly reviving economy meant that, this time, I would be permanently retired. Back to employer list |
