Small autobiography

-Childhood-

I was born a long time ago, in September 1977. The same day, one of the space probes from the Voyager program took off (n.I, which was strangely launched two months after n.II launch). Some years ago, this probe left the Solar System… and I’m still here.

When I was a child I wanted to be an architect. I loved to draw houses, but they were full of engines and traps, so it was obvious that I would be an engineer (or a sapper). In my tender years I started to use those devil’s machines: computers! I learnt to program when I was between 5 and 8 years old, I don’t remember when it was exactly, with the help of a small book bought by my father, called “BASIC for children”.

Also there was another person who helped me to improve my intelligence: my grandfather. He was self-taught, who loved to read books, from maths to languages, only for fun. He spoke lots of languages… only for fun. And he was always trying to teach and help everybody. I think I got some of this passion he had, so I’m proud of him.

I lived in a city, Novelda (in Alicante province, Mediterranean coast, Spain) quite Aristotelian: nor big neither small, nor amusing neither boring. I went to a public school where teachers thought I was a genius, with lots of A’s without working hard. But I also remember sometimes I went to the retarded class, so those adults didn’t really known what think of me.

I remember those days playing with computers, managing a magazine publication about astronomy and playing chess at school. Also I remember a trip to Russia with my grandfather (he wanted to practise his 5th language), going to the beach, and such things.

-Teenager’s years-

Those years were so cloudy, as you can guess it: studies, friends, girls… Some years in high school, and then I jumped to University (choosing a Computer Science degree).

I continued my computer hobby, learning to program in C (and even in Assembler), and programming small utilities.

The most important trip I had done was to Barcelona, with people from high school. In those days I never guessed I will live there.

My definitive step to adult stage wasn’t when I loved a woman. It was when my eyes saw how a cancer was destroying my grandfather, with no hopes. My hands were so useless… sometimes life is in this way.

-Twenty and X years-

I finished my degree (5 years of Computer Science), and I started to get a job. I worked in different places until I went again to University, to start a Ph.D with a research grant. For 2 years I was researching about information retrieval: web searchers, natural language processing, etc. But that grant finished, and I chose to move to Barcelona, to try to continue my doctorate at the Technical University of Catalonia. But due to a lack of funds I had to work in a private company, developing websites.

In my holidays I was lucky to travel a lot. Thanks to friends who live in different cities of Europe, I can say I have a house in every country. I met most of them when they were Erasmus at Alicante… when we usually spent weekends doing trips with my car. I have been in Germany, Belgium, France, Portugal, Switzerland, UK and even Syria (Middle East). I was happy to visit those countries with “local” guides, who showed me the most interesting places (which are not always the turist ones).

I started to play the game of Go, which is my favourite hobby. It’s a game full of subtle things, like life is.

I’ve had stages with intense music composition, but also months without playing anything. I’ve played in different ways: by myself, as part of a band, and not played at all. Three different manners, all of them equally interesting.

-Thirties-
I travelled to Korea to study Go (or Baduk, as it’s called in Korea) for one month, and I felt in love with Seoul. 3 years later, I moved from Barcelona to Seoul, to experience a new amazing life in Asia!

-Fourties-
Back in Barcelona, married, making music again, drinking more tea than ever… and observing the disasters of the 21th century.

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