I am not sure I have ever posted to the Who we all are thread before so forgive me if I had in the past. The following post is my contribution to this thread. Thanks.

As my FlyerTalk name indicates I work in the Robotic Industry. I am a Field Service Engineer for the largest supplier of industrial robot manipulators in the industry. I have been in this profession for 15 years. My responsibilities are to support our customers in any need that may arise once our systems have shipped. This means that I am responsible for electrical and mechanical repair, hence the my name RobotDoctor. I also program the robots for customers, do process analysis, provide technical assistance and conduct training classes. My company is based in Switzerland (Sweden for the Robotics segment) but I am domestic bound. My territory is generally the West and Midwest. However, as one of the "elder" members of our field service team, I have experience on robotic systems we have produced since 1982. Therefore, my realistic territory is the continental US. I would welcome the opportunity to travel internationally but unfortunately this is not a severe need as we have service organizations worldwide. I am on the road between 30 and 40 weeks a year to resort destinations such as LaCrosse, KS, Crossett, AR, Stilwell, AR, Versailles, OH, just to name a few. Of course I do go to some great locations like Seattle, Chicago, San Francisco and the list does go on.

I am married with 2 daughters. My family is the cornerstone of my existence and without them, I would be a ship with no compass or rudder. The hardest part of my job is the time away from my family. This is the area in my life I wrestle with the most. I am a former athlete, playing baseball most of my youth until a serious eye injury derailed my potential career. I have an extreme competitive nature but I learned long ago how to win gracefully and lose with dignity. I now focus most of my competitive energy into Golf. I did play a little Golf in college, being the number 10 man on a 10-man team. I was so bad then that old men used to laugh at my scores and brag that they could score better than I did. Truth be told, those old guys were probably right. :D However that did not stop me from playing and learning about my favorite game.

Since finding FlyerTalk, I have come to love the community that is present here. I have come to know several members well and enjoy their company when the opportunity presents itself. I cannot express how wonderful it is to travel to a different city and know that there is a friend a phone call away. The sense of community I have come to know from my fellow FlyerTalkers is something that is difficult to express unless one is a member. I am fortunate to have this community and would like to thank Randy for offering this gift. FlyerTalk has filled many a lonely night with laughter, joy, tears, admiration, some intense debate, avenues to relieve my stress, insight into the wacky world of frequent travel and so much more. FlyerTalk has become a cherished friend to me, one of the greatest I have ever known. The members of FlyerTalk are the faces of my great friend and without you, my travel life would be less bearable. Thank you, members of FlyerTalk for the gift of friendship that has been bestowed to me. I would also like to offer great thanks to the members of FlyerTalk Chat for the personal friendship that you have offered to me. I always look forward to Chat to catch up with the people there. Also, I would like to thank the Seattle gang for your friendship for our time together means a great deal to me. The Buenos Aires Grill would never be the same without each and every one of you. There are many FlyerTalk members out there that I wish to thank and appreciate and you know who you are.

In closing, I thank you all from the bottom of my heart. Until our path cross, take care and safe travels.

Best regards to all,

Sam (aka: RobotDoctor).

Oops... my original disappeared!
 

I had posted on one of the threads (7 or 8 maybe?) a few years ago but the post seems to have disappeared. It was no doubt out of date, so I'll just repost here.

I'm techgirl... 32 years old and living in the DFW area about seven minutes due NE of the airport (the post office swears I'm in Lewisville, but I pay property tax to the city of Coppell because my house literally stradles the line). I'm a Texas native... grew up in Fort Worth, graduated from Texas Tech in '94 (hence the Tech-girl) with a political science (public policy emphasis) degree which I spun into a career in healthcare human resources. Ten years later, I've picked up a masters in accounting from UNT ('99) and run a healthcare intelligence consulting firm that we spun off as a funded group from the search firm I was with. I travel around the US now doing strategic planning and employee/provider relations for hospitals and health systems. Lots of surveys (patient satisfaction, employee satisfaction, etc.), focus groups, and managerial seminars. I also speak at healthcare industry conferences, primarily on generational dynamics in the workplace.

My biz travel takes me far and wide... from Seattle to San Diego to Maine to south Florida and all points in between. I can be in a rural town one day and NYC the next so there is never a dull moment. I've met many FTers in my travels and had some great times in a couple dozen countries since the millenium turned. My primary airline is AA (EXP) but I manage enough UA/US traffic to make 1K as well. I used to be a Delta/TWA elite as well but one bit the dust and the other just bites now. My hotel preferences are Starwood and Hilton although I sneak quite a bit of 6C and Intercontinental in as well as a boutique hotel here and there.

Whether at home or on the road, I love a great dinner party and never mind hosting if no one else is up for the challenge. I enjoy wine and have built a nice cellar. I also scout out cooking classes and local markets where I can bring goodies home. Shopping is another passion and I now know where to get the best custom suits for women (Bangkok), awesome custom purses and shoes (Hong Kong), or incredible jewelry designs (Bali). I can also point out the best off-the-beaten path shopping districts in a dozen European countries with good bar stops afterwards.

I'm happily single although I have no problem finding travel companions when I need them. I'm usually the one in the corner organizing the group to hop the next flight to Vegas. Buying a house curbed some of my "living out of a rollaboard" ways, but I still have the wanderlust in my blood.

Life is an adventure... and I don't know where it will take me next but I like knowing that wherever it is, someone on FT has been there first and can show me the ropes.

Your milepost was probably in the thread that would have been #9, but I was never able to find it.

By the way, congratulations on your 4,444th milepost, techgirl!

I did not even realize that all of the Who We All Are threads have indeed been combined. Thank you, moderator(s) who collaborated to make this possible!

I find it interesting how, at the very beginning of this now-massive thread, how many FlyerTalk members are original members whom I do not even recognize...

G'day all. My name is Karl, I am 27 and live between Hillcrest near Durban in South Africa and a small surburb of London. Due to my job, I spend 200 days a year on the road, spending time in Australia, New Zealand and most of all England. I work as a freelance strength and conditioning coach for several top rugby players. My rugby career was ended in 1997 when I was involved in a serious car crash in California. Although I was born and bred in London, I have a South African father and Russian/French mother, which leads to a very interesting accent!

I have enjoyed travelling ever since my father took me on my first flight in 1983 which was to travel to his birthplace Durban, a city where I have since made a home. I have travelled all over the world since, and am currently thinking about planning my first RTW trip.

This site was first recommended to me by a former FT'er based in London, and I have been lurking on the site for over a year before deciding to post. I am going to be spending a lot of the next three months in the Seattle area with regular weekend jaunts to DC and New York. If anyone fancies getting together for a beer, to talk travel or rugby or just generally hang out, give me a shout.

Well, hello, all. I'm brand spankin' new but looking forward to getting to know the FT folks -- I hear y'all are a friendly bunch. :)

My name is jesslynn and I jumped on FT after seeing a friend post. I'm a 25-year-old American woman, born in New York, raised in Atlanta, and currently, for work purposes (I'm a Web journalist) going back and forth between the two quite a bit -- hence you're most likely to see me on the AirTran forum. Single, with no pets (sadly) and one little brother.

Since I tend to travel for work, and since my office operates on the principle of "We're a dotcom! You fly business class on your own time, Buster!", I have only a smattering of FF miles in what seems like a zillion programs -- here a bit on Delta, there a bit on AA, and so on. (I'm not even Elite on AirTran! I know, I know . . . ) I don't really have a favorite hotel chain though I do seem to be booking at Marriotts a lot lately. And I'm planning to do quite a bit of travel this fall . . . I may be asking for some advice!

Welcome to FlyerTalk jesslynn and Karl S. I hope that you find FlyerTalk as a great source of information and friendship. See you in the air. :)

Best regards,

RobotDoctor

Sam, does this mean you've been to Poultry Days & done the cup dance? :)

Well, this is my 500th post, so I think it may be time to introduce myself… My name is Samuel. I just spell my name backwards to have my username. Clever, uh? I thought so… :p

I live in Wellington, NZ, although I was born in HK. Apart from a couple of years in London, UK, I’ve roughly lived half my life in HK and the other half in NZ. I’m 30 now, so you can do the maths… :) . I was first introduced to the Qantas’ Frequent Flyer programme by my Mum about 10 years ago. However, being a student at the time, I wasn’t active in it until I started working.

I work for a global IT company, but my job doesn’t allow me to travel. The client office, if I need to visit, is just down the road. Having said that, I was introduced to premium class travelling from a previous job. I’d to fly from WLG to LHR, and I couldn’t face a long-haul in economy ever since. (I’ve done it, but it wasn’t pleasant…)

I became actively collecting and managing miles especially when I was living in London. With the frequent travel (all non-work), I thought I must be able to get more out of my money without flying budget airlines… It took me a little while to find this site, but I’ve learnt a lot since joining – managing miles, booking fares, etc… I’ve also planned my round-the-world trip next year, thanks to this site.

During my time here, I’ve met a few people, not many, but I hope to change that gradually. I attended the (in)famous London-Do in November 2003 and have met a number of you (too many to list). I’ve also met tom911 when he visited WLG earlier this year. If any of you ever visits WLG, feel free to drop me a note. I’ll also post my round-the-world itinerary in the appropriate forum soon, so if any of you are around, I’m good for at least a drink…!

Sorry Cheryl,

I missed Poultry Days by one week. I can say this was one of my biggest missed opportunities in my life. ;)

That is clever. My name is Samuel, too. I just never thought to do that. Thanks for the tip. This makes sense since my life appears to run in reverse at times. ;)

Doh - all these times I've seen your handle and never thought of that. I thought it might have been some ethnic name!!

Thanks for the post :)

Some of us would not want our first name spelled backwards (would you want to call me Mot?...maybe not) :D I did have the opportunity to have dinner with Leumas in WLG and we had a most excellent evening. Hopefully we'll catch up again down the line.

i found myself back on pg 51
 

It's interesting to go back and read what people you have gotten to know said about themselves when they first joined, and compare it with where they are now.

As for me, I'm older, my kids are older, and my baseball team...well they're having issues. I still think Alaska Rocks the House.. although the fact that they issue my paycheck creates a bit of a bias ;)

Missy, sorry to hear about your firstbaseman. But I do have some good news .....