Yesterday was a bit of a strange day. I was concentrating on cleaning up the downstairs office - taking time off the Java studying I have been doing lately. Anyway, I was thinking it was time to think about doing independent consulting, like I did the last time I was unemployed. Unfortunately, I don't have any real programming tools on my home computer. So, I thought I'd try to contact some of the software tool companies I had worked with in the past, to see what software they currently had available.

There was one product I had used in the early-to-mid 1990's that allowed programmers to rapidly design large computer systems, and I wanted to see if they were still in business. I looked up their web site, and was pleased to see they were still around. So, I called them. I still remembered some of their technical support people, and asked to speak to one specific person. He was no longer in technical support... he now owned the company! I explained why I wanted to get hold of their product - to try working as an independent consultant while I search for permanent work.

We spoke at length about their product line, about the progress (or lack of progress) in bringing updated products to market, and then asked about a newly advertised product that I wanted to try. There was a pause on the other end of the line. And then this: "The guy who wrote this program for us quit yesterday, and left us with an unfinished product and no documentation. Can you come to work for us, and figure out what needs to be done to get this product on the market".

You could have knocked me over with a feather. Talk about being at the right place at the right time. I hadn't called to find a job, but I got a job offer right on the spot. Granted, they are desperate, and they may have a change of heart once they realize they could just advertise in the newspaper for another programmer. But anyway, I forwarded my resume (which includes references to using their product), and we'll talk again about money and other trivial matters. In the meantime, I had fun bringing this story up at the dinner table at my father's birthday dinner.