Congratulations with your fourth. Mine is in three days, but because time is half the illusion that lunchtime is, I see no reason to wait. I was planning on posting a message just like yours, but let's keep things tidy in a single thread :)

I too thought I knew a fair bit of Perl, but the monks here have taught me much more than I already knew, and the end isn't in sight. Perl is one of those things that never ceases to amaze even the most advanced programmers. That's what keeps it fun to use; even after many years you can still learn more and become better at it.

Perl has been my gateway to related computer knowledge, like relational (or, well, tabular :D) databases and system administration. Perl Monks was my gateway to more advanced Perl.

Unlike you, I can get quite annoyed reading the same newbie questions over and over. It sometimes feels like that the community that I'm now a proud member of has failed to provide accessible documentation. On the other hand, the number of newbie posts has decreased. Many more advanced SoPWs are posted than when I joined the monastery, and that is a very good thing.

I originally came here to kill time. My wrists hurt, and later my arms and shoulders too. My computer time intervals were highly unpredictable. Here, I could be helpful while managing my own time. To my surprise, I was able to sometimes post dozens of messages per day. Sure, sometimes because PM is very addictive and I ignored the pain, but the asynchronous nature of this system is certainly important. This practice I applied to my normal work, and it works. I have spread my work all over the day, and now I'm going to try if I'm ready for more concentrated work again: work more AND have more free time. Only time will tell.

The past few years of my life would have been very different if there hadn't been this site, and its wonderful users. Thanks, all.

Thanks.

I'm going to try if I'm ready for more concentrated work again: work more AND have more free time. Only time will tell.

It didn't work out quite as well as I had hoped. The first two weeks went well, but then then everything between shoulders and fingers started to hurt again. I'll have to take up the fragmented scheduling approach again, and that means that I have to disappoint the people I started to work for recently. Their micromanagement and demand for microplanning don't at all fit the way my health forces me to work. Their loss, because I could still do useful things for them. But also my loss, because most businesses do want to control all the details, and I cannot work for those companies, which has awkward financial and social consequences.

Juerd # { site => 'juerd.nl', plp_site => 'plp.juerd.nl', do_not_use => 'spamtrap' }