Some of you may have seen this, but I thought it was worth while posting.
Enjoy...
Jack Calandra
AIG New York


YEAR 10,000

There once was a COBOL programmer in the late 1990s named Jack.
He'd become a private consultant specializing in Year 2000
conversions.  He was working short-term for prestige companies,
traveling all over the world on different assignments.  He was
working 70, 80 and even up to 90 hours a week, but it was worth
it.

After several relentless years of this mind-numbing work, Jack
began to have trouble sleeping and developed anxiety attacks as
a result of the pending Year 2000 dilemma.

Jack decided to contact a company that specialized in
cryogenics.  He made a deal to have himself frozen until March
15th 2000.  So, Jack was placed into his cryogenic receptacle,
the technicians set the revival date, he was given an injection
to slow his heartbeat to a bare minimum.

When Jack awoke, he saw an enormous, modern room filled with
excited people screaming and shouting for joy.  There were
literally thousands of people, news crews, cameras and hi-tech
equipment that he would have never imagined.  A spokesman from
the excited mob approached.

Jack couldn' t contain his enthusiasm.  "Is it over?" he asked.
"Are all the millennial parties and promotions and crises over?"

The spokesman explained that there was a problem with the
programming of the timer on Jack's cryogenic receptacle; it
hadn't been Year 2000 compliant.  It was actually 8000 years
later, not the year 2000.  But the spokesman told Jack not to get
excited.  This was a wonderful time to be alive.  There was world
peace, no more starvation, the space program had been reinstated
and there were colonies on the moon and Mars.  Technology had
advanced far beyond everyone's hopes and expectations.

"Terrific," exclaimed Jack, "but I'm curious.  Why is everyone so
interested in me?"

"Well," said the spokesman, "The year 10000 is just around the
corner and it says in your files that you know COBOL."