: About Me

I am a software engineer, freelance writer, blogger, and amateur political analyst from Hopewell, VA. I've been in the software development/engineering line of work for over 27 years.

I still live in the town where I was born and grew up. I graduated from Hopewell High School in the top 10% of my class and attended John Tyler Community College, where I earned an A.A.S. degree in Information Technology. I later attended Saint Leo University, where I earned an A.A. degree in Liberal Arts.

When I was in school, I hated writing. That sentiment continued into my adulthood. However, in 1999, my supervisor at the time told me that she was really impressed with the way I wrote emails and other technical communication. She even started having me review her emails for grammar and content before she would send them out.

I didn't actually get bitten by the writing bug until 2001, when I started posting my opinions on Internet forums. In 2004, I created my own website to showcase the articles that I was beginning to write.

In 2005, I followed that up by starting my CommenTerry blog (see the link on the right side of this page) that I have posted to almost every day since. On this blog, I write about various subjects such as current events, politics, cultural and social issues, health and well-being, personal finance, religion, technology, media issues, law, government, sports, humor, and trivia.

My blog is syndicated by BlogBurst and Newstex. Through the BlogBurst network, my blog entries are often carried on the websites of of some of the top newspapers in America, like the Houston Chronicle, the Chicago Sun-Times, and USA Today. Newstex provides my blog posts to its paying customers which include LexisNexis, CanWest, Newsbank, and Amazon Kindle. LexisNexis then provides my posts to, among others, the libraries of some of the most prestigious universities in the world.

I also regularly write for SearchWarp.com, where I am now in its hall of fame (top 100 writers), and EzineArticles.com, where I have achieved Expert Author status.

In addition, my columns and essays regularly appear on American Chronicle's network of 21 online magazines. I am also a columnist for etalkinghead.com and my work has appeared on hundreds of additional Web sites.

For more detailed biographical information about me, visit my blog.

My passion is ...

writing

I know too much about ...

sports trivia and the exact years when various things occurred

My parents always told me ...

stay out of trouble

My childhood ambition ...

was to be a pastor

My favorite memory ...

carefree summers of childhood

Why I write ...

to show off and make a few bucks on the side

What I am reading/watching/listening to ...

articles from today's great columnists

My first job ...

a keypunch operator

My best moment ...

being hired to my first fulltime job as a computer programmer

My inspiration ...

anyone who has succeeded against great odds

Personal Finance > Credit Cards Maximizing the benefit of your rewards credit cards

5 of 6

For those of us who know how to use them properly, credit cards can actually be quite fun and lucrative. To those who do not know how to use them properly, I would say that you should stop reading this column right about now, or at least I would advise you not to try any of this stuff at home. What I'm about to describe is not one of those illegal credit card schemes. Instead, I'm talking about taking full advantage of the benefits and offers that credit card companies and store chains offer their customers all the time. I get several credit card offers each month, but I only accept those ...

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Writing:

• Marketplace Approved Writer
• Marketplace Premier Writer
• Helium Charter Member