T-SQL Tuesday #99: Dealer’s Choice.

Words: 771

Time to read:  ~ 4  minutes

Aaron Bertrand ( blog | twitter ) is hosting this month’s T-SQL Tuesday and he has kindly given us a choice on what to write about:

1. Door #1 – Something you are passionate about, outside SQL Server or the tech community
2. Door #2 – your favourite T-SQL bad habits from a list that Aaron has maintained.

I’ve gone with Door #1.

Honestly I was a bit torn about this T-SQL Tuesday.

I was sure that I didn’t want to write about topics that Aaron has talked about before. I mean, I read those posts when I want to learn about those bad habits. I really don’t want to try and write a failed testimonial to the author on those topics.

So that excluded Door #2, leaving Door #1…and herein lies the rub!

What counts as your Door #2?

I’ve done quite a few things that I’m proud of, quite a few things I’m passionate about.

• I’ve done a Cage Fight for charity,
• I’ve organised a fashion show for charity during college,
• I’ve entered an obstacle course dressed as the Cowardly Lion from The Wizard of Oz,

  

   

• I’ve swam across Galway Bay, 13km non-stop, for charity 2 years in a row and been a lifeguard for it for others

  

   

These were actually the only photographs I could find…I should really keep documenting this stuff!

The problem is…

…that as much as I loved doing them, and are passionate about them, I haven’t done anything of the sort for the past 2 years. Can I use these examples if I haven’t done them continually?

I’d argue no but it was nice to relive those memories.

To be honest, since then the aspect that I’ve been passionate about has been SQL Server and PowerShell. Yet the call to writers said that it needs to be “outside SQL Server or the tech community”

Again, that’s a no go.

So what can I say is something that I’m passionate about, that is outside the SQL Server Community or the tech community, and that I’m still doing today?

I’m passionate about…

Mythology!

Now hear me out, it’s actually pretty cool. Especially since there are so many different versions of the same story!

Greek:

Ever wondered where the word “tantalising” comes from?

Tantalus “[…] was forced to stand in a pool of water beneath a fruit tree with low branches. Whenever he reached for the fruit, the branches raised his intended meal from his grasp. Whenever he bent down to get a drink, the water receded before he could get any.” Everything was tantalisingly out of reach!

Harsh but then he did kill his son and try to serve him to the gods.

Roman:

Or how it attempts to explain an echo?

Echo, while attempting to cover for Jupiter’s philandering, “[…] distracted [Juno] with lengthy conversations. When at last Juno realized the truth, she cursed Echo. From that moment on, the once loquacious nymph could only repeat the most recently spoken words of another person”

Harsh, especially when being unable to say anything, meant she couldn’t save Narcissus from wasting away

Norse:

Despite what the comic books may lead you to believe, Hela was not the daughter of Odin but one of the children of Loki!

Also be warned spoilers ahead:

• Thor dies killing Jörmungandr, the World Serpent (another of Loki’s children),
• Odin dies from Fenrir (the other of Loki’s children), and
• Loki and Heimdallr die from fighting each other (yeah, that’s an “r” at the end of Heimdall)

Irish:

You’ve probably heard of leprechauns, or Tir Na nOg (the land of youth)

But have you heard how Halloween is actually from the Celtic festival of Samhain where the walls between the world of the dead and the world of the living were weakest so the old Celts would dress up to confuse the ghosts and avoid being captured.

There’s so much out there!

There’s tons of different myths out there, I haven’t even got to learn about the Egyptian, the Chinese or Japanese, or others.

But at least I know that having something outside of SQL Server can help me relax when I’m feeling like Sisyphus!