I never could keep my mouth shut.
When a conversation is going on, I can’t just mind my business and focus on the work at hand. I have to be the man at the table who injects quips into the discussion; the guy who thinks he’s not contributing properly unless he pontificates, no matter how ridiculous his words are.
That was the scenario Friday when some of us Akamites (Akamai employees) were talking about the content for a new site in the works. I noted that while I love the daily blogging in The Akamai Security Blog and am grateful that I have another forum – The OCD Diaries — to say whatever I want, I miss the Salted Hash days. That’s the blog I started as managing editor of CSOonline, and I faithfully crammed it with all manner of opinion and analysis daily.
Steve Ragan has done a fantastic job keeping it going, and that makes me happy. But, I told anyone in our Skype chatroom who might care, I missed the edgier security blogging. That sort of thing isn’t appropriate for The Akamai Blog, and I had no qualms about making that shift. I wanted the job I have, and I love it. No regrets.
I could have started a separate security blog, but I’ve resisted. The Akamai Blog and The OCD Diaries take a lot of time and passion to feed, and my job and family life are crammed to bursting.
Still, I opened my mouth, joking that I should write for Liquidmatrix. After all, I was the first reporter ever to interview Gattaca (or so he tells me), and like many a reporter in the digital age, I had certainly sourced the site often enough. And now Dave and I were a year into working together at Akamai.
But seriously — I was just joking.
“I’d love it if you wanted to write on Liquidmatrix,” Gattaca tells me on Skype. “Simple rules, write when you want and don’t get us sued.”
Before my common sense could kick in, I say something like, “Oh, what the hell?”
Next thing I know, he’s giving me a username, password and writing my bio.
Like he’s done so many times at Akamai, Gattaca has roped me in for a new mission, one I wasn’t planning for.
The man is as much a fiend as he is a friend.
So here I am.
And, to be perfectly honest, I’ve warmed to the idea of doing this. I’ll even admit that I’m happy to be here.
How can one resist working with this crew:
I’ve been reading Liquidmatrix since I became a security journalist more than a decade ago. Many of those associated with it are good friends.
It’s a reflection of life at Akamai: I get paid to do what I love, working with people I’ve been friends with for years.
I have a charmed life.
