May 5, 1997. It was four years ago today that I landed in California. I arrived at SFO that night and drove up to Sebastopol in order to start at O'Reilly the next day. I walked to work, and when I got there at 7am, my building was locked. (I didn't have a key yet.) I guess I was a little anxious to get started and be part in the heart of the real computer industry—having been on the fringes for so long. (Sebastopol equals Bay Area, which equals The Heart of Things when you're from Nebraska. Your distinctions only get more precise with familiarity. And, plus, it was O'Reilly.)