I have been programming in SAS for over 20 years. My earliest memories of SAS was reviewing code my supervisor shared with me. She wanted to know if I could update the code. The program was a report with pages of put statements. At the time I was working on collecting data in dBase for a HIV counseling and testing program. I somehow figured it out. I briefly went to work for a company that provided hospital reporting. I had become a database query programmer. However the experience working with healthcare data provided me the credentials for my next employer. I was back to SAS programming. At this time the datasets were state Medicaid eligibilty and claims files. I soon had 2 sons and decided to stay for the benefits and family friendly environment. The boys grew and were starting High School. I felt they did not need me as much. The outlook for promotion was bleak and my skills were becoming stagnant. I found my current position working for a CMS contractor. The SAS part is much the same but I get to work with new data and group of programmers. I have started learning some Java and hope to be exposed to more technologies. Although change is hard - I think it is necessary to continue self improvement.