My Claim to Fame

I've had an "interesting" life so far, at least I think a lot of people would think so. I've had my share of battles -- and even lost my share of battles -- but I don't regret a single one. In hindsight, I would have handled some of them differently, but I don't regret at all what I tried to do. I think that's what Billy Joel meant in his song "Angry Young Man": "he's proud of his scars and the battles he's lost."

But one of the things I'm proudest of is just a little thing that's best described by recounting the story...

A year and a half ago I got an email message out of the blue from a guy I used to know over 20 years ago, when I was Editor-in-Chief of VLSI Design magazine out in Silicon Valley:

"I'm trying to find the Jerry Werner that used to be editor-in-chief of VLSI Design magazine in the early 1980s. Do I have the right fellow? - Gary"

The message was from Gary Robson, one of my friends years ago who was Vice President of a small chip design company in Cupertino and someone who wrote a number of articles for my magazine. I called him up on the phone: "Gary -- great to hear from you. It's been a while!"

He told me that he had given up the rat race in the Valley three years earlier and moved to Montana, where he and his wife have a small ranch and a bookstore. He also said that writing, not technology, had finally become his primary source of income, and that he just finished his 11th book, which would be published the following February.

He told me that he had decided to dedicate this latest book to me, since I was the first person who ever paid him to write, and that he'd send me a copy of the book when it came out. I told him that I really appreciated it, and that it was great to talk with him after so many years.

Cut to the following February.

I got a brown envelope in the mail, containing Gary's latest masterpiece. The title:

"Who Pooped in the Park? Grand Canyon National Park"

It turns out that Gary has written a whole series of kids books, featuring animal crap from different kind of animals that populate various popular national parks, including Yosemite, Rocky Mountain, Glacier, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, and other parks. The idea is that when kids see certain kinds of "scat" on the ground, they can learn more about the animals themselves. Every time I've shown these books to friends they've died laughing. It's a very creative series.

By the way, I was only the third person to whom he dedicated one of his "Poop" books, after his mother and older brother Bill (whom I also know), but I'm very proud of the honor and that's no shit.

Here's the inscription that's printed on page 2: "To the first editor who decided my writing was good enough to pay for, Jerry Werner. Thanks for kick-starting my writing career at VLSI Design Magazine twenty years ago."

Gary added this handwritten note: "Jerry -- This probably wasn't the direction you thought you were sending me, but you got me started writing as a career, and I've finally gotten there. Thanks! Gary Robson, 2005."

Pretty cool, huh?

By the way, Gary has invited me to spend time on his mini-ranch in Montana, and I plan to do that when I can (no telling right now).

If you're interested in learning more about this series (or ordering a book), check out:

Gary's Who Pooped in the Park website

Amazon ordering form for Grand Canyon book