Michael Schrader:  

Life I existed (like many) mostly as a shadow during HS. There were a few memorable moments and interesting people I met, but mostly I considered HS a big waste of time. Most of what I needed to learn about life happened later. Now, about 12 years later, little on the surface has changed: I am unmarried, have no pets, debt, degrees, nor wild tales of adventure. Like all, I've felt both joy and pain, clarity and confusion, fulfillment and emptiness, but when balanced out, I've prospered. I worked in Austin for several years, and in a fit of frustration and stagnation, flew with little more than my backpack to Silicon Valley in 2001, and haven't looked back since. I am still thankfully employed and progressing steadily in the networking field. I own a house now. I learned you're not really free to do anything until you've lost everything. It might sound cliche, but in my case, it was true. I had my contact info here, but it got removed - sorry. I work at a place called Tellme Networks (part of Microsoft now) - they all know me if you look me up and are in Mountain View,...Expand for more