Thank you for linking to this blog. I hope you enjoy what we are attempting to do with the Blog and Website.
So you know who you are interacting with, I will give you a short biography to review and then outline what is intended with the Blog and Website.
Here we go.....I was born in and spent my first 25 years living and working in eastern Montana. I worked my way through school as a boat and motor mechanic.
I finished my first two years of college, got married and my first child was born. I then transferred and finished my BA in Education in Washington state. My second child was born.
I then began my teaching career in Oregon...My third child was born. After three years, I moved back to Montana to teach. I taught for two years, my fourth child was born and then I returned to school to finish my Masters Degree in Wyoming. I then moved to Washington to teach and my fifth child was born. After 6 years teaching at a community college in Washington, I moved back into the private sector.
I worked for three years traveling five northwest states representing a diesel power and supply company. As a part of my work responsibilities, I spent a lot of time in Alaska
I fell in love with Alaska and moved there. I worked in the fish processing business and taught school in a native village for three years. I then moved into administration at the University of Alaska. After 10 years at the university, I made a change back into the private sector. I developed and managed a raptor rehabilitation center for 6 years with great success.
I moved back to Montana where I taught school, worked as a manager in the private sector. I have retired from three different professions, but retirement and I do not get along.
Why did I spend so much space outlining my own history? I wanted you to understand where I am coming from in this new adventure. I will tie my stories and entries back into my own history so you can better understand why I think the way I do.
I want you to share your thoughts and reactions to what appears on this Blog. ( I am new at this, so give me a chance to come up to speed.)
One of the first things I intend to do is to share stories about people who have had a profound positive influence on your life direction. I would prefer these be people who are not a part of your family or others who would be considered the normal people who would influence everyone; teachers, pastors and the like. I will start by sharing one of my stories to give you some idea of what I am requesting.
When I was 18 years of age, I came under the attack of a very serious infection and was confined to a hospital for an extended stay. It was boring and confining.
During my stay I was able to meet a fellow patient on my floor. He was what we called then a "BUM"...He was dying from cancer of the liver and lungs. His room smelled very bad and none of the hospital staff wanted to spend much time there. Because I had no one else to talk to and had a terrible sense of smell, I befriended him. We would talk for hours and I would help him make his way to an outside balcony so he could smoke a cigarette.
He told me that he was born into a very good family, had a good education, got married, had children and had a very high paying job.
He started drinking very heavily and did not admit the fact he was an alcoholic. The heavy drinking led to him losing his job and eventually everything he possessed, including his family. He left home, became a "BUM" and eventually was diagnosed with sclerosis of the liver.
He had smoked since childhood which led to his lung cancer.
The day after I was dismissed from the hospital I returned with a couple of packs of cigarettes for him and was informed that he had passed away that morning. His death really hit me hard. It changed my whole life. Even though my parents and others had warned me about the evils of alcohol and smoking, the "BUM" really brought it home to me. To this day, I do not smoke and drink very little.
Well, now you see what kinds of stories I want...Please think of that person in your life who really changed your course and helped you become the GREAT person you are today.
Please give me your reaction to the above and add to "the story",,,,