So, why "DTXMATT12"?
My internet handle has for years been "DTXMATT12". The origins of this handle all go back to the fire department. My home-base firehouse is fire station #12, on the southside of Woodbridge, Virginia. The "MATT12" portion of the handle is derived from a habit many of us picked up over the years of referring to each other on the radio as if we were our own units.
A bit of explanation: Firetrucks and ambulances coming out of fire station 12 are referred to as "Engine 12" or "Medic 12" or whatever. We have had the same core of about 20 guys at our firehouse for about fifteen years. Many of us have now outlasted the service life of every vehicle in our house and seen them all replaced. As a prank, we will breach protocol on the radio and call each other by name with the station designation. This leads to radio traffic like "Engine 12 to Zark 12" or "Tower 12 to Jay 12". The other thing that you will see around our firehouse is that anyone with a custom sports jersey will have their name and the number 12 on the back. This leaves us with "BRIAN 12" or "CHRIS 12". So, for the longest time, I have been "MATT12"
The "DTX" is a different story. When my generation of firemen came into the firehouse as kids, we inherited two reputations and nicknames: One was the "Blacksheep" (for our members being mischevious misfits), and the other was "The Animal House" (for the general condition of the firehouse). The "animal house" model has been followed for years, and the bible of this religion is the movie by the same name. If you somehow haven't seen Animal House, the "zoo fraternity" in that movie is Delta Tau Chi. Spelled in Greek, that is Delta (the little triangle), Tau (simple T) and Chi (simple X). The Delta Tau Chi is on our station patch, is on our building, was traced in wet concrete in our parking lot, is integrated into our tee shirts, is on sports jerseys, and we even have a couple of actual fraternity sweatshirts lying around. For firehouse insiders, it is a symbol of our bond and our brotherhood. That having been said, the "Delta" character does not handily come out of the computer keyboard. I know that it is possible. I even have a shortcut on my keyboard at work. For the most part though, it is inconvenient. So, instead of "Delta", I subbed in "D" and got "DTX". It is not "DEE-TEE-EX" it is Delta Tau Chi (Delta TAU KAI).
Slap those two bits of firehouse lore together with my name and you get DTXMATT12. That's the story.
A bit of explanation: Firetrucks and ambulances coming out of fire station 12 are referred to as "Engine 12" or "Medic 12" or whatever. We have had the same core of about 20 guys at our firehouse for about fifteen years. Many of us have now outlasted the service life of every vehicle in our house and seen them all replaced. As a prank, we will breach protocol on the radio and call each other by name with the station designation. This leads to radio traffic like "Engine 12 to Zark 12" or "Tower 12 to Jay 12". The other thing that you will see around our firehouse is that anyone with a custom sports jersey will have their name and the number 12 on the back. This leaves us with "BRIAN 12" or "CHRIS 12". So, for the longest time, I have been "MATT12"
The "DTX" is a different story. When my generation of firemen came into the firehouse as kids, we inherited two reputations and nicknames: One was the "Blacksheep" (for our members being mischevious misfits), and the other was "The Animal House" (for the general condition of the firehouse). The "animal house" model has been followed for years, and the bible of this religion is the movie by the same name. If you somehow haven't seen Animal House, the "zoo fraternity" in that movie is Delta Tau Chi. Spelled in Greek, that is Delta (the little triangle), Tau (simple T) and Chi (simple X). The Delta Tau Chi is on our station patch, is on our building, was traced in wet concrete in our parking lot, is integrated into our tee shirts, is on sports jerseys, and we even have a couple of actual fraternity sweatshirts lying around. For firehouse insiders, it is a symbol of our bond and our brotherhood. That having been said, the "Delta" character does not handily come out of the computer keyboard. I know that it is possible. I even have a shortcut on my keyboard at work. For the most part though, it is inconvenient. So, instead of "Delta", I subbed in "D" and got "DTX". It is not "DEE-TEE-EX" it is Delta Tau Chi (Delta TAU KAI).
Slap those two bits of firehouse lore together with my name and you get DTXMATT12. That's the story.
posted by DTXMATT12 at 9:49 PM
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