Member Spotlight SGT_Smeg >XI<

[BlackRose]

  Let start with your clan name?   

SGT_Smeg  COD4 Moderator

    Do you have any nicknames? Personal or in game?

Oh I have been called a lot of things, right @ShadyBrady?!  But none seem to stick.  So no....

    When and where were you born?

Born in Washington D.C. in 1962

    When you were a child, what did you want to be when you grew up?

I wanted to get into law enforcement.  Thank goodness I didn't.....if I were a cop you'd probably be reading about me in the news.

    Where have you lived?

Virginia my entire life     

    What got you into gaming?

I have been interested in games on computers since my father got his first PC back in 1983.  I have never gotten into console gaming like XBOX, Wii, etc.

    Your first game you played?

Duke Nukem using dial up modem's with friends I worked with.

    And what do you play now?

COD4 exclusively and occasionally COD2

    Why did you join XI?

The people.  I used to float around the COD4 servers but the people at XI just made me feel welcome.  Well everyone except @ANGU5.  What a jerk.  

    What do you get from being in this clan?

Is it weird to say I get withdrawals when I have to skip a few nights of playing?  I love this clan and the people in it.  They are like my second family.

    What is your favorite hobby?

Photography and boating

    What is your favorite travel destination?

Wow this is a tough one.  Florida Keys is at the top of my list.

    Are you married?

Yes.  Will be 37 years in October.  Can't imagine life without my wife, Jona.

    Do you have children?

Yes, one son and one grandson.  Thomas who is 31 and his son Tilian who will be 3 in October

    What kind of pets do you have, if any? What are their names?

Dogs.  Rusty (Jack Russell Terrier) and Koi (a Sato rescue dog from Puerto Rico)

    Are you a sports fan? If so, what is your favorite team?

No, I never watch professional sports. It used to be the Washington Redskins until they went woke.

    What causes are you passionate about?

Giving back to my community

    Do you volunteer? If so, where?

My wife and I volunteer with our local fire company.  We are both life members going on 15 years.  I served as the Vice President of the fire company for 7 years, now we focus primarily on Life, Safety & Education hosting community events teaching about fire safety.

We are both passionate about scouting.  Our son is an Eagle scout and as Scoutmaster of my sons troop, I mentored 24 Eagle scouts and was the recipient of the Scoutmaster Award Of Merit.  We no longer volunteer as scout leaders, but it was a big part of our lives.

    What is an interesting fact about you?

Nothing in particular.  What you see is what you get with me.  People can usually tell everything they want (or don't want) to know about me within the first 10 minutes of meeting me. I am very down to earth, respectful and have never met a stranger.

    Have you continued your education past college or university with career development seminars or classes? What kind?

I went to technical / trade school.  I have, however, been in many technical training courses as part of my corporate training development to support their operations.

    Did you know what profession you wanted to work in when you started college?

I did not go to college other than a few night classes.  I stopped taking classes.  It wasn't helping my career and it just wasn't my thing.

    Did you belong to any professional organizations?

No

    What is your current job title?

Senior SAN (Storage Area Network) Engineer.  

    Did you win any awards or recognitions during your education?

No

    Where do you work?

I work for Baptist Memorial Health Care Corporation.  We are a large chain of hospitals and clinics throughout Tennessee, Mississippi and Arkansas.

    What other job titles have you had in your career?

Too many to list.  All centered around the various positions in IT that I have held

    Where else have you worked?

I worked at the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) for 18 years.  These are the people with the label on the 'Nature Made Vitamins'.  Other than that I have worked for many companies around Washington D.C that were contractors to the United States government and U.S. military branches.

    Why did you choose to work in your industry?

IT is very interesting and challenging.  It is an industry that has many different paths to take, career wise.  It also pays well.  It is also a very cut throat industry, working many hours when everyone else is off such as nights, weekends and holidays.

    Why do you like your job?

I like being challenged.  Work is boring if you're not being challenged.  I like technical things, and working on the infrastructure of a datacenter is the basis for everything that happens in that datacenter.  No servers or databases or applications that people use will work without the infrastructure that I put in place.  

    How would you describe your career?

My career in IT has been amazing.  I learned to program mainframes on punch cards back in the 1980s.  Anyone that has ever used punch card machines and run that deck through a card reader knows just how far things have come with regard to computers.  I have had the ability to reinvent myself many times over my career.  Sometimes by choice and sometimes because I was laid off because a contract I was on was lost.  I have gone from mainframe programmer to open systems (Unix) System Administrator, to Enterprise Backup Engineer to Storage Area Network (SAN) engineer.  The opportunities in IT are literally limitless.

    What are some accomplishments you've achieved during your career?

Too many to list.  Mostly personal goals achieved and many company recognitions.  The list would bore you to death. 

    Describe a time that your career was rewarding.

One of the most rewarding times in my volunteer career at my fire company was receiving the Loudoun County Combined Fire-Rescue System award for exceptional leadership for new members system wide.  This is an award that was presented to me by the Loudoun County fire rescue leadership.  This award is presented to one person every year who is chosen from the thousands of career and volunteer fire staff within the combined system.  It made me feel like I really made a difference, and I am very proud of that recognition.

    If you could give a younger person career advice, what would it be?

You are the only thing getting in your way.  All you have to do is have the tenacity and willingness to learn.  Put forth the effort to learn.  Forget about instant gratification and keeping up with the joneses.  That will come in time.  Be willing to be the low man on the totem pole and work your way up.  Dedication and perseverance will get you everywhere you want to go in life.  Don't be the guy who has all the answers.  Don't come in with a cocky personality with a know it all attitude.  Just don't.  Be willing to put in the time, the hard work, the sweat equity into your career and it will serve you well.

    What is your favorite thing about your career or industry?

My favorite thing is working with a team that is as dedicated as I am, doing the right thing and taking pride in what I do.  I love working with a group that has different responsibilities in IT than I do, yet we all have the same goal.  Brainstorming ideas (because there is always more than one way to get a job done) and coming to an agreement on the best path forward.....and then implementing that to a successful completion is just so awesome.

    What is a valuable lesson you learned in your career?

I learned that being humble, being open minded, listening and learning is all that you need to succeed.

    What do you hope to accomplish in your career?

I am done with accomplishments.  I love what I do now and I look forward to hopefully retiring in 4 years or so.

    Are you involved in any professional/ non-profit/sports organizations? If so, do you have a title or rank within these organizations?

No

    What is your favorite sport?

Is fishing a sport? 

    Do you play any sports?

Is fishing a sport? 

    If you were granted 1 wish, what would you wish for?

To retire and travel (mostly on the boat) with my wife

    If you won a very large amount of money what would you do?

Buy a bigger boat

[Ruggerxi]

@SGTSmeg

Thanks for sharing and thank for all the volunteering you do! 

[Labob]

An amazing life up to now. A great choice for member of the month. Congrats 

[TBB]

VERY nicely done - congrats!!  

[tsw 8.5]

[Dot80]

God Bless you for the volunteering  work you  do .

[BUDMAN]

Nailed it!!  

[WeednFeed]

That's a great human right there! Well done.

[Biotech]

nice read    

[iBrock]

Thanks for the inside info, of who you really are @SGTSmeg.

[Smeggie]

Thanks all!

Currently in the Outer Banks of NC enjoying some amazing weather and relaxation.

We had family photos done on Monday evening from a friend and fellow photographer.

It's been a good week (so far) visiting with our son, grandson and our son's girlfriend.

Peace and tranquility, see you all in server on Sunday!

[Hoth]

Great read. IT nerds are cool. Keep it up @SGTSmeg there is a finish line! 

[LilAcorn]

I always have and always will call him..... SMEEeeeeeeeee

[Majbasil]

       

[Mule]

Well done nice read! HeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeHaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaW!

[ShadyBrady]

On 5/8/2023 at 12:11 PM, BlackRose said:

Do you have any nicknames? Personal or in game?

Oh I have been called a lot of things, right @ShadyBrady?!  But none seem to stick.  So no....

Ohhhhhhhh yeah I have MANY names for ol' Smeggy. Hmmm lemme think here... Just off the top of my head:

• Commander Queef
• Pubes McGee
• Earl Grey's Chin
• Toilet Bowl
• Lord Tookus Lingus
• Doggy Dick Drippings
• Rugger's Lil Butt Plug
• Wet Fart
• 3F (Furious Flappin' Foreskin)

Now I know these may seem a lil mean, BUT.....they are said with love.

[Smeggie]

On 5/14/2023 at 3:30 PM, ShadyBrady said:

Ohhhhhhhh yeah I have MANY names for ol' Smeggy. Hmmm lemme think here... Just off the top of my head:

• Commander Queef
• Pubes McGee
• Earl Grey's Chin
• Toilet Bowl
• Lord Tookus Lingus
• Doggy Dick Drippings
• Rugger's Lil Butt Plug
• Wet Fart
• 3F (Furious Flappin' Foreskin)

Now I know these may seem a lil mean, BUT.....they are said with love.

I gotta remember some of these!  Classics! 

Edited May 16, 2023 by SGTSmeg

[rexbowan]

Well said and done! Thanks for sharing.