What's the Best Mistake You've Ever Made?
你犯过最美好的错误是什么
I sent a job application to the wrong email address. It was 1997, I was a kid working tech support at a local ISP called jps.net. I knew C and had taught myself Perl during downtime. I was applying for a Programmer I position at the university where my dad worked. I sent my resume along with a really long university application. Instead of sending the packet to jobs@ucdavis.edu, I sent it to jobs@jps.net. A few days later, the head of the NOC called me into his office. Before I really had time to be nervous, he started interviewing me. He gave me a page of a C program and asked me what it did. I didn't really get it at first, so I went through line by line explaining it. I recognised the port for POP3 and get host by addr() and the guy seemed to be getting more and more excited. In one of the funnier cases of title inflation, they called me “staff programmer”. That's one rank up from senior programmer. I was 17.
我把工作申请发错邮箱地址。那是在1997年，我还是个孩子，在当地一家互联网服务供应商工作。我在停工期自学了C语言和Perl代码，当时我申请了我父亲所工作的大学的编程员工作。我将我的简历连同学校超长的申请表一起发送了过去，结果发去的地址是jobs@jps.net，而不是jobs@ucdavis.edu，几天后，NOC 的老板打电话让我去他的办公室。我还处在惶恐不安时，他开始对我进行面试。他给了我一张C语言编程并问我怎么做。其实一开始我并不懂，所以我逐行解释。后来我发现了端口3，并通过地址获取主机，他开始变得越来越兴奋了。最有趣的是他们还给我取了个头衔是“高级程序员”，那是对高级程序员的称呼，那时我才17岁。

I asked the wrong woman on a date. I have a problem remembering names and faces. There was a girl at school I had been chatting with during lunch breaks, Vicki. There was another that I had met and spoken to exactly once during an outdoor cookout at the school (college) Marie.
我搞错了约会对象，我记不住人名和脸。有一个叫做薇姬的女生，我们曾在午饭时间交谈过。还有另外一个女生名叫玛丽，曾谋面过并在学校组织的户外野炊聊过天。
I had an occasion where I was performing, the event included a dinner and dancing and I could bring a date
我有一个重要场合需要出席，期间将举行晚宴、跳舞，我还可以带一个女伴。
I planned to ask Vicki as I had spent more time with her and felt I knew her better.
我打算约上薇姬，主要是我和她更熟点。
I am rushing between classes and I am stopped by a girl who says Hi. Vicki. I surprise her by asking her to accompany me to my event. She says yes and I get out my note pad to write down her number and write the name Vicki. She says “That's not my name.” I apologize for my memory glitch and ask her what her name is. Marie. Then it dawned on me, I had just asked out the wrong girl. But she had said yes and I was a gentleman so I would not back out.
由于急着去上课，我在一个女生面前停下，对她说：嗨，薇姬。我约她和我一起去那个聚会，似乎让她有点惊讶。她答应了，于是我拿出笔记本记下她的号码和她的名字薇姬。她说那不是她的名字。我为我的过失道歉，并问她叫什么。她回答我是玛丽。我明白了，我约错女生了。但是她答应了，作为一个绅士我不能收回我的话。
We went on the date. We both fell in love that night. We were engaged three weeks later. That was 38 years and one son ago. We are still together. And yes, she knows the story.
我们如期赴约。在那晚我们坠入爱河。三周之后我们订了婚，事情过去已经三十八年了，我们还有了一个儿子。如今我们还在一起，是的，她也知道这个故事。