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Thanks for a year of enlightenment

by bradcathey (Prior)
on Jul 12, 2004 at 11:56 UTC ( [id://373577]=monkdiscuss: print w/replies, xml ) Need Help??

One year ago I stumbled out of a dark forest of Perl mediocrity and into the sun-lit clearing where sits the Monastery. It's initially foreboding gates have opened up to me a surprising and amazing mix of advice, information, humor, and a sense that I am not alone in this often frustrating world of programming.

I also found this strange little community of odd, clever, funny, and helpful people. If you would have told me a year and a day ago that I would become part of an "online community," I wouldn't have believed you. (Funny...I spent so much time logged on to PM's in those first few months, that my wife thought I was involved in an online romance—I told her, "Hey, they're monks!").

I had taught myself Perl out of a 1995 QUE book and literally started writing web-based programs before I even got past the first couple of chapters. That was three years ago. Long before I had ever heard of strict, taint, CPAN, local variables, map, references, hashes, autovivification, Larry Wall, and O'Reilly (to name only a few). Oh, I have "seen the light!"

It hasn't always been fun. I've been chastised, downvoted, and admonished (but never humiliated) for some of my posted questions and code, but always by well-meaning monks. However, it's worth a little discomfort, especially when I read one of those replies that has me shaking my head jealously in amazement. As a result, my applications, and consequently my customers, have benefitted from what I've learned here in the past year. Oh, that there were a Monastery for HTML and Javascript.

And now, mysteriously, I find myself a Pontiff—probably the most undeserving Pope to ever grace these hollowed halls (there should really be two point systems: one for well-meaning students like myself, and one for all the genius's lurking around "Newest Nodes"—but that's a discussion for later). I just look forward to the day when I can write an intelligent answer to even 1 out of 10 nodes in SoPW.

So, experienced monks, thanks for your patience, your friendliness, but most of all, your genius. I couldn't have done it without you. And if you're new to the place, you won't be disappointed, but hang on to your hat. Well, off to Vespers—or Compline, as Zaxo would say ;^)


—Brad
"Don't ever take a fence down until you know the reason it was put up. " G. K. Chesterton

Replies are listed 'Best First'.
Re: Thanks for a year of enlightenment
by Popcorn Dave (Abbot) on Jul 12, 2004 at 16:06 UTC
    Just because we're monks, doesn't mean we're ALL celibate. ;)
    There is no emoticon for what I'm feeling now.
      Riiiiight, and that's why my wife didn't buy it for a second :^)

      —Brad
      "Don't ever take a fence down until you know the reason it was put up. " G. K. Chesterton

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