Dodged a Coin

2010, it was a typical mid-summer day in South Florida. Anthony headed to work early per usual. Ever eager to get to the office to finish up a task left unfinished from the previous workday. Arriving at the office, grabbing his coffee thermos while hopping out of the candy apple green Ford Explorer he took pride in. Anthony shuffled to the office door. Taking in one last long deep breath of the thick, humid air, he looked at his watch which read 7:00 am, then stepped into the climate-controlled office.

The door slowly coming to a close behind him, he flicked on the lights with his gaze fixed on the server rack. Only just a day ago, he walked in to find the whole server rack tipped over and was still bemused at how a server rack leaps to his fate. Nodding at the sight of a server rack in-order, Anthony proceeded to his desk.

Standing in front of his desk, taking a sip from his coffee, “the world really does run on it”, he said to himself. Reaching out to power on his workstation as if it were the Creation of Adam, Anthony then slumped into his worn-out office chair. Spinning from side-to-side while awaiting for the boot-up to complete. 2 weeks ago the new Foxconn nano workstation was assembled but Ron was reluctant to get him a new SSD.

With his workstation booted up, he raced to open the IDE. Yesterday his day was spent working on the National Abroad Universities back-end to make a view for enrolling new students. Anthony had spent too much time going down a rabbit-hole the previous day. Leaving him short on time, he was calm and calculated as Anthony knew what he was doing. He quickly coded the UI for the view, then headed into the good-stuff, controller logic.

Finishing up his task as always Anthony ran a few tests to confirm that the view and controller were interacting per specs. Feeling accomplished, he headed outside for a smoke, he flicked on the office lights on his way out. Looking up to the sky he placed the Newport to his lips and cracked the lighter to the tip of the cigarette.

Nearing the end of his smoke-break, Ron pulled up in-sync. He was driving the Mercedes he had just purchased his wife recently. Anthony beamed a smile to him, squeezed the cherry off of his cigarette then placed the butt in the cigarette box. “Good morning, Ron!”, Anthony piped out. Feeling the sweat begin to build upon his collar it was not a morning for standing outside pacing in thought.

Both men headed into the office exchanging small talk. “How has the new machine been treating you?”, he asked Anthony. “It will get the job done.”, what Anthony really wanted to say is that it was the computing equivalent of a Hugo. “Well, I have that view finished up. So I should be set for the SCRUM call with the NAU director. What is on today's agenda?”, Anthony asked his boss. “Awesome!”, Ron exclaimed. “You may continue tackling NAU's faculty and student management today. Tell me, Anthony. How's your free-time looking? Care to take on a side-project?”.

Never shy of a side-project, Anthony was excited, “Shoot, if you're paying me. Let's get it done! What's the project entail?”. Ron took a sip from his mug, “Well, I have been talking to a friend. He has a bank account out in the Caymans and a real-time sport betting application.”. Anthony crossed his arms and nodded at Ron to continue. “Though, this will not be done using traditional currency. Have you heard of Bitcoin, Anthony?”.

Truth is, there was nothing big in technology that slipped past Anthony, “Yes, I know the Feds are eager to shut it down, and I am willing to bet Satoshi is the CIA”. Ron chuckled, as Anthony was always straight-forward. “So, go ahead and spend some time today researching bitcoind. I will e-mail you the project specs and you can get started immediately.”. Anthony lifted his almost empty thermos to his lips for another sip. “As far as compensation. You can take $2,000, or 2,000 Bitcoin. This project should only require a week of your time. So, how would you like to be paid?”

Anthony was never one to really take risks with his money, and he could hear his wife saying, “How am I going to buy Coach with internet money no one barely accepts?!” Not to mention, the exchange rate at this time was something like 80 cents to the dollar. Which would put him under his hourly earnings for the project. He was in conflict. A voice in the recess of his mind said, “Asking for forgiveness is easier.”. Anthony responded after a moment, “I will take the cash!”.

In a man's life, many choices will be made. However, many men will not regret a choice made at work for the rest of their lives. Finishing up the day, Anthony sent out his EoD email, powered down his machine ready to call it a day. Headed to the front door, he looked at his watch, the time reading 4:04, and exited the office and entered the warm embrace of the now searing Sun. Before he would make it home. He decided to get in the back of his truck, throw on his board shorts, and head to his favorite beach before heading home.

It was now nearing 6:00 pm, Anthony figured it was time to get home and prepare his supper. He had a recipe for a Tomato Shrimp Scampi he was dying to try with his wife. Hopping into the Explorer the Explorer he put on his favorite mixtape, and turned up the volume to feel the massage from the two 15” Alpines. The drive was relaxing with the warmth still on his skin, and the dampness of the towel behind his back. The atmosphere on the drive home put him at ease. Nothing could alter his mood. Nearing Leafy St., he dialed down the volume on his stereo and turned his blinker on. He remembered, “We have a side-project to do!”.

“Scrumptious!”, Anthony exclaimed as he finished up his Scampi. He wanted to wait until' after the meal to share the good news with Karen. “Well, I have a side-project to tackle. Ron offered me $2,000 for the project.”. Karen's eyes always grew wide at the news of more spending money. Anthony had plans to use a little to purchase some new equipment for the studio in the shed,. Maybe buy Karen a modest gift, as well as a new Thomas the Train set for their son. Then put what remained under the mattress.

Karen prepared to go out for the night with friends. Anthony stored the left-overs in Tupper-ware and placed them into the refrigerator for lunch on Monday. “Good luck with the project!”, Karen said as she exited the house. Anthony was eager to start the project, yet he decided to sit down with Philip and spend some time playing conductor with his engineer.

Looking at his watch, 8:30 pm was the time and he was ready to get plugged in. He tucked the little angel into bed after a short bed-time story. Then headed into his home-office. His machine was always up as he used it often while he was at the office, remotely. He pressed on the power button for the monitor and settled into his comfy office chair.

Anthony's research from work was sufficient, and he thoroughly understood what needed to be done. An hour had already passed as though it were a breath. “Let's take a break”, Anthony said to himself. Walking out to the backyard he laid his skin and bones in the hammock. It was time for pondering. “Why?”, he asked himself. Why were they rolling out with a digital currency? When fiat and several other currencies are available and just as convenient, and more secure compared to a computer-generated hash with a monetary value assigned to it. Or could Anthony have been wrong in his calculations on fiat?

Something certainly was awry here, but Anthony could not put his finger on it. It deeply irked him. Moreover, why would someone create something so revolutionary, the block-chain, and not want credit? Yes, Bitcoin was full of suspicion. Why are a majority of Market experts saying to invest, while the rest are calling for the Feds to shut it down? Whatever the reality may be, Anthony figured it would just be another techno fad that faded away as soon as the Feds got their way.