Dan Boren

Young. Svelte. Brimming with enthusiasm. Dan joins forces with the Computer Science department. He begins work doing instructional support for the huge introductory programming classes. The World Wide Web is a new phenomenon, the dot com monster is but a zygote. It would be another three years before he owns his first cellphone.

The internet gold rush is on. Dan's responsibilities now include internal tools and infrastructure. Though coding in perl has added a few gray hairs, watching the pace of technology is like a skateboard ride down the Eiffel Tower. This is the zenith of the famous Hawaiian Shirt Period, and after the department decamps the crumbling Sieg Hall for the gorgeous Allen Center, Dan is so overcome with joy that he hosts a cocktail party in his new office.

The Hawaiian Shirt Period sinks into the western horizon. The bubble has burst. Budget woes abound. In a nod to austere times, Dan embraces the understated elegance of a plain shirt.

A dignified middle age. The years speed by, and in the way of the world Dan experiences the full spectrum of joy, loss, hard work, and good play. Regrets are few, and he wouldn't trade it for anything. He works for the best department in the best university in the world.