8^{D>

I’m often asked to explain my 8^{D> sig when people see it at the bottom of an email a few times, and realize it’s an intentional inclusion.

If you’ve figured it out, great. If not, read on…

Like the ASCII smiley, “:-)”, or the wink, “;-)”, my sig is sideways. Tilt your head 90° to the left to see it. The “8″ represents my spectacles. The “^” is my nose. The “{ >” is my goatee, and the “D” is my grin.

8^{D> is me!

UPDATE: Since my recent laser eye surgery, I’m no longer wearing the glasses and I’ve shaved the mustache out of the goatee. At this point, I haven’t yet decided whether to change my sig to :^D> or just leave it the way it is.