"Im"-possible. Almost.

I'm done.

"Done with what?", you ask.

"Done working?" - No.

"Done enjoying what I do?" - Nope.

"Done complaining?" - Aha. Now we're getting closer.

"Done being bitter?" - I had a dog, and his name was Bingo.

That's it. I'm through being negative. Good grief, it's been what, six months? I came to the rather abrupt, yet not so incredibly surprising, realization today that I am a completely different programmer today than I was six short months ago. Yeah, shocks me to think it - but jeez, I almost became the Impossible Programmer.

I even said it today to a co-worker. Me. I said something was impossible. I once said we could do anything, and today I said something could never be. It hit me like a ton of bricks.

Somewhere along the line of changing management, getting burned and being forced to work on something I swore I'd never do, I lost sight of what was important to me.

To me, it's not about the people we help - although that is a very pleasant side effect. It's also not about making myself look good in the eyes of those that hold the reins. It's about the feeling of sheer joy that courses through my veins when I figure something out. THAT makes it all worthwhile.

Not pressure, not management, not deadlines, not people. Just the immense satisfaction of problem solving, and that's it. I always talk about simplicity - and hey, can't get any more simple than that.

My pledge from this day forth is to stop whining and quit wallowing in the pit of despair. I will make things fun again, and I will help those around me do the same.