Keeping on Truckin’

dirinda89 bus A great many of FixYa’s Experts are self-taught. It’s something that never fails to impress us. But some of our Experts’ tales of how they got started as technicians are truly amazing. Dirinda89’s is one such story, and we were lucky enough to get her to share it with us.

Five years ago, dirinda89 was on chemotherapy. The effects of the chemo were turning her mind to mush, as she puts it. Rather than passively accept this consequence of her situation, she started looking for something new to learn in order to keep her brain active. She had never used a computer before, and she decided to buy a system and start from square one. Every day during the next three years, while she soldiered through chemotherapy treatments, dirinda89 learned more and more about PCs and electronics. She first learned through trial and error, but eventually started taking college courses in Computer Management, then went on to earn her degree in the field.

Her strength and ability to create a positive from a negative experience is inspiring, but it fits right in with her character- dirinda89 is no shrinking violet. Until October of 2008, she drove an armored truck for Brinks and she considers her favorite hobby to be shooting her various firearms. Let that be a warning to anyone made jealous by her status as a Guru at FixYa, and tempted to do a little down-rating! Dirinda89 can obviously handle all comers- she can even take them for a ride on her 40-foot charter bus.

Dirinda89 came to FixYa when she was having problems with her Canon printer. After getting her printer replaced, she stayed on the site, which we’re very grateful for. If you look at any of her solutions, it’s very obvious how much she cares about helping the people who use FixYa. Her care was particularly apparent when it came to a problem with a baby’s crib. In early February, dirinda89 discovered that a user’s crib had been recalled due to incidents of infants being injured or even dying due to a faulty mechanism. She contacted FixYa staff immediately, and we were able to email the person who posted the thread about this serious problem. Not content with saving just one person from a potentially tragic experience, she has taken it upon herself to seek out and inform others of this danger.

When she’s not trucking, shooting, or Fixing, dirinda89 likes to use Photoshop. She also helps preserve people’s memories by turning old family snapshots into DVDs. Between her activities on FixYa and off, pretty much everyone who comes into contact with dirinda89 is really benefitting from her decision to combining the healing process with learning something new.

5 Comments

  1. max says:

    A woman like that is what human determination is all about. My mother would have loved to meet you Dirinda89. Keep on pushing at the walls of doubt until they crumble at the sound of your name. You’re a true inspiration to me. I hope i may get to meet you someday. If not i’m glad i at least get to hear your story.

  2. dirinda89 says:

    Thank you Max. It’s my life so it never seemed like that big of a deal, just normal. Your comment has warmed my heart! “keep on truckin” :-)

  3. Farley Redfield says:

    DIRINDA89 verry good story. Impressed me and put me in the light. So glad you shared that with us (me). I am thankful to God for the people that inspire as your story does me.
    Good luck and keep on trucken.

  4. premm says:

    dirinda89 you are AWESOME !!

  5. Worldvet says:

    Glad to see you earn the props. Good on ya, as they say. I’ll be back around soon enough. I just managed to get myself overly involved in renewable energy where I live and now sit on a screening/scoring committee for all the energy companies who have ‘discovered’ our geothermal resources here.

    See you on the boards this Summer.

    Worldvet