<Brag> What's your Life's Greatest Achievement? </Brag>

[ATB]

Academic? Athletic? Familial? Share the pinnacles of your life so far.  Don't be shy.

[Scuzz]

Probably finding a wife. That one still shocks me.   

[Turtle]

So far?

I made a video game. A bad one, but I at least I worked on it.

[hepcat]

A little thing I like to call The Kama Sutra.

[CeeKay]

inventing the question mark.

[Purge]

Surviving my last marriage.

Oh, and losing 130lbs.

[Purge]

Honestly, parenthood.

[TiLT]

Deciding to start a game company, calling Fantasy Flight Games, asking them for an exclusive computer game license for one of their most valuable and popular properties, and actually having them say yes. Too bad I never managed to bring the game to the market, but I'm proud of what I did nevertheless.

[gellar]

Very early contributor at three separate startups that eventually sold to Microsoft, Cisco, and Symantec.  Someday I'll find my next one and try to go 4 for 4.

[Clanwolfer]

Employee of the Year at my company. Considering the quality of the folks I work with, that was a really, really, REALLY high compliment, and something I took to heart.

[Bullwinkle]

My kid.

Also being on national television for a few years.

And getting out of bed this morning (I was really tired).

[The Grue]

Deciding to start a game company, calling Fantasy Flight Games, asking them for an exclusive computer game license for one of their most valuable and popular properties, and actually having them say yes. Too bad I never managed to bring the game to the market, but I'm proud of what I did nevertheless.

Talisman?  I was looking forward to that game and I hated when it got cancelled.  I know that some Talisman-related game will come out, but I want Talisman, not Talisman-related.

[TiLT]

Deciding to start a game company, calling Fantasy Flight Games, asking them for an exclusive computer game license for one of their most valuable and popular properties, and actually having them say yes. Too bad I never managed to bring the game to the market, but I'm proud of what I did nevertheless.

Talisman?  I was looking forward to that game and I hated when it got cancelled.  I know that some Talisman-related game will come out, but I want Talisman, not Talisman-related.

No, Descent: Journeys in the Dark.

[Hrothgar]

Also being on national television for a few years.

If you hadn't gone all William Shatner on Rocky, you might still be on the air.

I'm sure it's my kids.  From an outsiders point of view, they might look at the time I spent at Air University.  I met most of the senior leaders in the U.S. military from the President on down.  I doubt any of them remember me though.  I have some neat challenge coins.  I didn't get a presidential coin, but I got a tour of Air Force One.

[USMC Kato]

Retiring somewhat intact and coming back home from down range.

[TK-421]

I invented mauve.

Also taupe.

[Isgrimnur]

I'm sure it's my kids.  From an outsiders point of view, they might look at the time I spent at Air University.  I met most of the senior leaders in the U.S. military from the President on down.  I doubt any of them remember me though.  I have some neat challenge coins.  I didn't get a presidential coin, but I got a tour of Air Force One.

Here's the one I carry. 

Retiring somewhat intact and coming back home from down range.

 

[USMC Kato]

I'm sure it's my kids.  From an outsiders point of view, they might look at the time I spent at Air University.  I met most of the senior leaders in the U.S. military from the President on down.  I doubt any of them remember me though.  I have some neat challenge coins.  I didn't get a presidential coin, but I got a tour of Air Force One.

Here's the one I carry. 

Retiring somewhat intact and coming back home from down range.

 

Right on flyboy

[Roman]

Google my full name and I am #1 on the list. In fact I am all over the 1st page.

Take that!!!!

[leo8877]

Very early contributor at three separate startups that eventually sold to Microsoft, Cisco, and Symantec.  Someday I'll find my next one and try to go 4 for 4.

How or why are you still working and not sitting on a beach everyday?

[WorkingMike]

Becoming a thoughtful and functioning adult. It sounds trite, but my life could have gone a very different direction.

[Ironrod]

I used to run a science museum bookstore and arranged many author appearances by well-known scientists and astronauts. (Sold Stephen Hawking a book once.) The best was Apollo 13 Commander Jim Lovell, who'd written a book called Lost Moon that was being made into a movie starring Tom Hanks -- maybe you've heard of it. I hosted him (Lovell, not Hanks) for a whole day. He did a routine book signing outside the planetarium in the afternoon (and signed the back of a poster with a very kind, personal autograph for me, which is still on my wall today). In the evening he gave a sold-out multimedia presentation in the museum's largest auditorium and then did another book signing.

Like most academic institutions, the museum was heavily silo'd -- that is, divided into departments that competed with one another for turf and dollars and only cooperated under duress. Most employees viewed their main responsibility as deflecting work onto other departments. So arranging all of this was a huge achievement, especially for someone from the low-status museum store -- I got the theater people, the auditorium people, the planetarium people, the parking garage, the education department, and even marketing to work together to bring off a successful event that people remembered fondly for years afterward. I even introduced Lovell myself, which is the only time I've ever spoken before a large crowd (hundreds of people).

In between appearances, after the exhibit halls were closed, Lovell and I walked through the museum's small spaceflight exhibit where we had mockups of Apollo command and landing modules. He told me a bunch of personal anecdotes about the 13 mission that weren't in his book or the movie, growing more and more enthusiastic as he went on, and pointed out the LEM's targeting reticule that he'd used for seat-of-the-pants navigation. Before they cut the LEM loose he snapped that part off and pocketed it; it is displayed on his mantle as his personal souvenir of the mission.

That was the best day of my working life. In fact, I knew that I'd peaked, and I left my bookselling career within a year.

[Lee]

Becoming a thoughtful and functioning adult. It sounds trite, but my life could have gone a very different direction.

I haven't achieved it, tried a few times, gave up.

[disarm]

Graduating from college and medical school, finishing residency, and becoming a board-certified anesthesiologist...will probably only be surpassed by having kids some day

[Crusis]

Over the last 4 years I've written 6 books, 5 have been published. I have a fancy-scmacy NY Literary agent that represents Chris Hardwick. I sold over 20K books last year, hung out with celebs, been hit up by movie producers concerning my books, I have NY Times best selling author's as friends, I've moderated panels at conventions with stars of the writing world, and all that's cool. You'd think that was a great life's achievement, right? (you did say brag)

But that's NOT my life's greatest achievement, I just wanted to put this into perspective. Being with my wife for 22 years is my greatest achievement. I would collapse into a shapeless mass of babbling jello without a purpose in life if she weren't with me every day.

And yeah, that's me with Daryl Fucking Dixon.



Brag on!

[gellar]

Very early contributor at three separate startups that eventually sold to Microsoft, Cisco, and Symantec.  Someday I'll find my next one and try to go 4 for 4.

How or why are you still working and not sitting on a beach everyday?

I have very expensive taste in shoes.

[Captain Caveman]

I used to run a science museum bookstore and arranged many author appearances by well-known scientists and astronauts. (Sold Stephen Hawking a book once.) The best was Apollo 13 Commander Jim Lovell, who'd written a book called Lost Moon that was being made into a movie starring Tom Hanks -- maybe you've heard of it. I hosted him (Lovell, not Hanks) for a whole day. He did a routine book signing outside the planetarium in the afternoon (and signed the back of a poster with a very kind, personal autograph for me, which is still on my wall today). In the evening he gave a sold-out multimedia presentation in the museum's largest auditorium and then did another book signing.

Like most academic institutions, the museum was heavily silo'd -- that is, divided into departments that competed with one another for turf and dollars and only cooperated under duress. Most employees viewed their main responsibility as deflecting work onto other departments. So arranging all of this was a huge achievement, especially for someone from the low-status museum store -- I got the theater people, the auditorium people, the planetarium people, the parking garage, the education department, and even marketing to work together to bring off a successful event that people remembered fondly for years afterward. I even introduced Lovell myself, which is the only time I've ever spoken before a large crowd (hundreds of people).

In between appearances, after the exhibit halls were closed, Lovell and I walked through the museum's small spaceflight exhibit where we had mockups of Apollo command and landing modules. He told me a bunch of personal anecdotes about the 13 mission that weren't in his book or the movie, growing more and more enthusiastic as he went on, and pointed out the LEM's targeting reticule that he'd used for seat-of-the-pants navigation. Before they cut the LEM loose he snapped that part off and pocketed it; it is displayed on his mantle as his personal souvenir of the mission.

That was the best day of my working life. In fact, I knew that I'd peaked, and I left my bookselling career within a year.

 

[Gratch]

Considering the rather ridiculous emotional and financial investment it took to get them here (multiple rounds of IVF), I'd have to go with having my kids.  A 4 year old daughter and (arriving soon) twin boys.

[rshetts2]

Being alive.  I really didnt think Id make it this far.  I should have died 12 years ago but incredible will, great insurance and the best surgeon in the Kalamazoo area combined to get me where I am.  Im very thankful for having Blue Cross master medical at the time because the total bill was over $300,000. 

[Laner]

- Surviving cancer
- Managing to punch above my weight in marriage
- Building my family in a non-traditional manner (one bio-daughter via IVF, one son via adoption, possibly another via donor embryo)

[Canuck]

I once got the highest score on the babysitting exam in a class that was made up almost entirely of girls. I survived basic training. Not huge but when you consider how many people drop out before the end I think that's a significant achievement.

[The Grue]

That one time I hit the game-winning home run in Little League!  Oh wait...that was a movie.

[ATB]

This thread is awesome. You guys are really neat.

[Bullwinkle]

As part of the TV show I was on, I got to meet and work with John Travolta (who taught me to put on sunglasses) and Michael Rooker (who I got to beat in a go kart race).  I also got to perform with William Shatner (who Shatnered me on stage).

None of those are as cool as that Jim Lovell story.   

Also loving a lot of the great triumphs here.

[Ironrod]

None of those are as cool as that Jim Lovell story.   

Glad you liked it. I was a huge fan of the space program when I was growing up, and I felt a particular connection to Apollo 13 because the April 13 explosion happened on my 13th birthday. (The launch had been at 1313 hours the previous day, btw.)

I'm a jaded and cynical person and I never really believed in heroes until I spent an afternoon with Jim Lovell. He really is the genuine article.

[Azhag]

Got to brief the President once. Otherwise I'll go with my wife in case she ever sees this.

I also got completely shelled as a pitcher once against a team that had two or three players from the previous years' team that lost in the little league world series US championship game. 

[Laner]

None of those are as cool as that Jim Lovell story.   

Glad you liked it. I was a huge fan of the space program when I was growing up, and I felt a particular connection to Apollo 13 because the April 13 explosion happened on my 13th birthday. (The launch had been at 1313 hours the previous day, btw.)

I'm a jaded and cynical person and I never really believed in heroes until I spent an afternoon with Jim Lovell. He really is the genuine article.

That's good to hear... he owns a restaurant near my in-laws, and whenever the subject comes up they talk about what a jerk he is.  I didn't want to believe them

[Ironrod]

As far as personal accomplishments, I wrote all the text and made all of the battle maps for Civil War Generals 2, which was a really fun beer-and-pretzels hex-based wargame with decent AI. I worked on other games that were better known and more popular, but CWG2 was my favorite project because most of the company was focused on making Lords of Magic at the same time, leaving the small CWG2 team to labor in the shadows. We were able to make a much better game than if management had been breathing down our necks. I also learned far more about CW history than I was ever taught in school and got to represent the company at a CW reenactment in Charleston, SC.

(If you download it, BE SURE to get the version 1.04 patch; it made single-player rock solid and multiplayer almost so).

[Misguided]

Let's see...

Celebrating our 20th anniversary last year.

Having two awesome kids.

Walking away from 7 years of medical/graduate school and never once looking back.

Possibly figuring out what I want to be when I grow up while still in my 40s.

[sgoldj]

My quest for immortality is going well.