I'm Joel. I live in New Jersey. Let me tell you all about myself.
What's Up With Your Last Name? It's So Different.
"Joel" is a Jewish name, which my parents, being the "oh-so-mightier-than-thou" Christians they are, took it from the Christian Bible. I'm named after an "impending-doomsayer" prophet. Nice.
The "Ipe" is all Indian. It's pronounced long "i", silent "e". No Ippy, Ippee, Ip. I once got an "Ira" and didn't even know they were talking about me. Both of my parents are Indian, from the southern Indian state of Kerala.
And Why Do You Live in New Jersey, When You Used To Make Fun of It All the Time?
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Doug, my friend, and first apartment roommate |
Funny that you should ask. I used to live in the wonderful state of New York. However, for work considerations, I moved to Jersey. Close to Newark Airport, close to NYC transportation. Close to the occasional hoochie. You name it, Jersey has it. My friend Doug and I got an 2-bdrm apartment in Jersey City, in the Heights, which turns out is one of the bad parts of Jersey City. Two years, numerous parking ticket, and my girlfriend's car was broken into. Nice.
While Jersey City was nice for its time, I quickly tired of commuting on the bus through the Lincoln Tunnel in rush hour, or waiting in line for the bus in the evenings. I yearned for the days when I could relax on a train on the way to work. After much searching, I found a mountain hideout in Essex County. By "mountain hideout", I mean nicely-sized 1-bdrm apartment, dining room, dishwasher, and a parking lot. Oh, a parking lot. No longer did I have to worry about finding parking.
After getting married, my wife and I yearned for a home of our own, or a larger place to rent. After searching for 2-3 bdrm apartments, and finding the rents to cost more than a theoretical mortgage payment, we ended up buying a 3-bdrm townhouse. It feels great to own our first home, and customize it as we see fit.
Anything You Can Share About Your Family?
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My immediate family |
They still live in NY. My dad is a retired computer programmer, my mom is a nurse, and my sister is a pharmacist. Some other family members, like some of my cousins, also live in Rockland. The rest live in far away places like Illinois, California, Maryland, Floriday, and of course, tha muthaland -- India.
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Wedding day |
On the other side of the coin, I recently got married in September 2003 to the exquisite Namita Mariam David. She's a long-time resident and gets all huffy if you defame the state of New Jersey. Little does she know that all New Yorkers make fun of New Jersey. Her parents live in Bergen County. Her dad is a church pastor, and her mom is an English professor at a NJ college.
Where Did You Go to School?
I started my collegiate journey at the University @ Albany to study the exciting career of Medical Technology, but ended my journey at Pace University with a degree in Information Systems. It was a big decision to switch careers, but turns out, the right one. If I had stayed in the Medical Technology track, I'd be working in hospital lab somewhere, not even making half of what I earn nowadays. Wow, big decision indeed.
So What Do You Do Now, Exactly?
Ah, yes. I graduated with a degree in Information Systems. While at Pace University, I work two internships at a publishing company (Help Desk), and a coffee company (IT support). From there, an illustrious career at a Big 5 (security audits and security implementation), recently a life insurance company (IT audit).
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And Joshua makes three |
In 2005, I made a big move to the wonderful world of banking and investments. I work for one of the largest banking and investment firms in the world. So far, I haven't screwed up yet. You can read more on my Resume.
What's With All the Baby Pictures?
Our family got a little bigger (and a lot busier) with the birth of our first child in 2005. His name is Joshua, born in March 2005. He's a handful, but fun. We are expecting another child in early 2008, so the Ipe clan is indeed growing.
Things I Can't Stand I hate the smell of lamb, that smell from the back of the cafeteria where they're cleaning the dishes, pushy people, and litterbugs. I have more pet peeves.
Technology Enthusiast In case you couldn't tell, but I love technology. I love cars, transportation, networking, robotics, etc. Wanna see my toys?
Dogs vs Cats? Cats all the way. They're independent, and you can leave them alone and not be bothered. Also, they're great hunters. Theoretically.
Snack Foods? I have a serious sweet-tooth. If the Bible, Koran, and the Torah are correct, then food really is love.
Music Lover I love music of all types, considering I played the String Bass for 8 years. Everything from rap, to hard rock, to classic rock, to pop, to classical music, to jazz. See more of my favorites.