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| On previous homepages the, �About Me� page always turned out to sound like some sort of advertisement. Instead of repeating that mistake I am going to try a whole different approach by telling you, �briefly� about myself. Although I have led a very full life I will try to keep this as brief as possible.
Where does one begin about telling their life story? The best answer I could come up with is to more or less follow the time line described in my occupational resume. I am going to spare you the long story of my childhood due to the fact that this would be a long story in it�s self. I do have to mention the fact that I was born in Honolulu Hawaii in 1958. In 1958 Hawaii was not yet a state so my birth certificate reads, �Territory of Hawaii.� I moved quite a bit as a child and ended up graduating from high school in Chicago Heights Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. 1978 As I�m sure a lot of men�s stories begin mine too will start with when I joined the United States Army. Because my homepage has a section dedicated to this subject I won�t spend too much time on it here. Although I have many proud memories that I could bore you with from the time that I spent in the service of the greatest country on earth. My primary MOS (Military Occupational Status) was 13E10, Cannon Fire Direction Specialist. Briefly, I computed indirect fire data for field artillery howitzers, using various computer and manual back up procedures for various ordinances. In other words, I told a battery of big guns (6) what kind of bullets to shoot and where to aim their cannons. And believe it or not I got pretty good at it. My hobbies or interests of this period include the purchase of my first rifle and handgun although I did not get to spend much time shooting them. I did own a shotgun prior to enlisting. Listening to music, mostly �rock and roll.� Going for long drives and going to the beach. Drinking. 1982 Upon discharge the Army usually sends you to where you enlisted in my case Mt. Vernon Illinois. (300 miles south of Chicago) Allow me a minute to explain. Over the 17 years that I spent in Southern Illinois many people would ask how a Hawaiian ended up there. My answer always was that my father is originally from Southern Illinois (Mt. Vernon) and while stationed in Hawaii with the U.S. Navy he started screwing the natives and that�s how they got me. Upon my return to Mt. Vernon because I had worked for a couple of months at the truck stop in town before the Army, I went back there. As it turned out that because I was working there when I enlisted when I returned my seniority had accrued while I was in the service. This giving me 4 years and 2 months seniority made me the senior fueler there. I then spent another 2 years there before the next chapter in my life. There is one small minor incident that happened to me right after I got out of the Army that I should mention. In August of 1982 on a blind date set up by a cousin of mine I met a woman from Centralia Illinois. I was to be married to this woman from August of 1983 to November of 1998. My hobbies or interests of this period include firearms in general, target practice, maintaining, trading. I never hunted game all of my ammunition was spent on paper targets and tin cans. Listening to music, mostly �rock and roll.� Going for long drives and going to the beach, in this case at the lake. Drinking. Adapting to married life. More drinking. 1984 After I got married we lived in Mt. Vernon while I worked at the truck stop. Soon after that she got a job at a Rockwell International plant in Centralia making fiberglass auto body parts. Soon after she had started working there I left the truck stop and went to work for Rockwell also. Although the pay was slightly above the average pay, the working conditions were terrible. This would be my first and only experience with a factory job, the closest I would ever come to forced slave labor. Another of the many things that I hated about that job was working in the same building everyday for 4 years. It got to the point that just walking in was the hardest part of the workday. My hobbies or interests of this period are an exact continuation of those listed a couple of paragraphs above with the exception of one addition. In 1984 I purchased a 1978 Harley Davidson Sportster that I would bare frame from the ground up totally rebuild. Only for me to sell in 1985 so that I could buy the 1978 Harley Davidson Supergluide that I would go on to ride for the next 10 years. 1988 Now as with most young boys I grew up dreaming of becoming a soldier, and as it turned out I was fortunate enough to have lived that dream. As with most young boys I�m sure a lot dream of becoming an over the road truck driver. So I set out to live that dream as well. To get out of that factory I went to truck driving school. It was time to hit the open road. The school it�s self was only 8 weeks long. After completion I went straight to work for an over the road trucking company. My over the road career would be cut short but I do return to driving the big rigs. While trying to clear customs in Windsor Canada I called our Detroit terminal to ask a question and they instructed me to drop the trailer and head back to the terminal. Because this was such an unusual procedure I was already worried of what was taking place. Upon my arrival to the terminal the owner�s son told me to use the phone in his office to call home. That�s when I found out that my mother had passed away. The ride from Detroit back to Centralia was only about 12 to 14 hours but it felt more like 12 days. I could write volumes just on those 12 hours with all the thoughts and emotions that I went through in that time period. Now my mother and I didn�t really get a long all that well. As a matter of fact, because she had rejected my so-called wife at the time, I had rejected her and hadn�t spoken a word to her for the 5 years leading up to her passing. What was really bothering me was the fact that I never wanted to be on the road and to have received bad news. After my mother�s funeral I took a week off before going back over the road. My first load was right back to Detroit and I could just barely drive. Just the thought of going through that long ride home knowing I had a funeral at the end of the ride made it so bad on me it was not safe for me to be on the road. I returned the truck to the Hillsboro Illinois terminal and never drove long haul loads again. After that I knew that I had to maintain my professional driving record in some capacity so I took a job driving a bus for a senior citizens day care. It took about a year before my head was straight enough for me to go back to driving the big rigs I just knew I would have to find a job that allowed me to be home every night. Everyday while picking people up or taking them home I drove past a trucking company that had about 10 trucks and I noticed that all the trucks were sitting there every night. The trailers that were on these tractors were what is called dump trailers. At the time I thought that all they hauled in those trailers were rock and gravel. I really didn�t care what the commodity was all I knew was that they were home every night. My hobbies or interests of this period continue to be those left over as I struggle to hold on to my youth, motorcycles, guns, rock and roll, and of course the beach. However I find myself spending more time doing more mechanical chores, minor carpentry and very minor vehicle maintenance. Mostly out of necessity but I don�t mind and go on to get fairly efficient at it. 1990 One day I decided to apply with the trucking company I had watched and convince that man into hiring me. It was kind of funny but I have never sold myself so hard like that before or since then. I am sure you have heard stories of people saying I went in there and I just wasn�t taking no for an answer. I hate to say it like that but that is kind of how it happened and I did walk out of their with that job. I never forgot the gratitude I had towards Roger Tune for taking a chance and hiring a driver with limited experience and always tried not to disappointment him. Out of the nearly 30 years that I�ve spent in America�s work force I would have to say the 6 years I spent with Tune Trucking will probably be the best I will ever experience. It was the turmoil that had developed in my life that forced my departure from this occupation. Not before Roger Tune had earned a level of respect from me that I can only compare to the respect that I have for my Grandfather. A respect that not only applies to Roger rather also extends to his entire family. This is another one of those if you�ve never been through it, it�s hard to explain. Sometimes the trucking industry can be a little more dangerous then the general public understands. Before the events that would end up costing me my family and personal life these dangers were considered to be adventurous therefore acceptable risks. Once the dark clouds of divorce rolled into my life I then became a danger not just to myself but also to everyone that I shared the road with. I was no longer capable of doing the job I knew I would never be able to enjoy again. My hobbies or interests of this period continue pretty as much as before with yet more new additions. I had become a devoted die-hard St. Louis Cardinals fan. I have attended several games at Bush Stadium and I live for the day that I can experience that again. I also take up freshwater fishing during this period. In 1995 I even sell my Harley so that I could buy a fishing/ski boat. Drinking had declined to only on rare occasions. 1996 No matter what I say or how I say it I have noticed that everything that I have ever said about my divorce has always been met with some kind of criticism. I don�t mean to sound weak or as if I have some sort of anger or any other of the comments that I�ve received. Just for me to say that my divorce will by far be the most devastating experience my life will ever endure. In between the time that I left trucking and the day I actually got to leave Illinois I spent a couple of years surviving by working at minimum wage jobs. It�s embarrassing to admit to and was embarrassing to do at the time. I spent about a year delivering pizzas and about another year working at a car wash. Finally, after 18 long years I would return to Hawaii. Most of the hobbies and interests of the past almost disappear. I do take up roller blades and at age 38 start playing roller hockey in the street with my brother and his friends. Drinking was almost constant. 1999 A month after I arrived home I took the first job that came along that being a Security Guard with a Security Agency. After only a few months I rose to the position of Supervisor and that�s where I�m at today. Of course there is a lot I could say about this job but due to the fact that I am still presently employed in this capacity and out of fear of being misunderstood I feel I should not comment on at this time. Instead I will bore you with a copy and paste of the occupation description listed on my resume. �Site Supervisor: Supervises and coordinates duties for the security staff at a Japanese University. Assigns posts and patrols as it relates to the institution and it�s security requirements. Interprets policies and procedures and directs subordinates in enforcing compliance.� My current interests and hobbies. I would have to say that listening to music and the beach are my two main interests that stood the test of time. I like to say that I listen to all music from Snoop to Beethoven and everything in between. And of course the technology that has afforded me the opportunity to bore you to sleep like I just have, the computer. Oh by the way, haven�t had a drink in years. I would like to take this opportunity to apologize for taking so long to tell this story but it�s a long story, and there�s so much I left out. I don�t know I guess that maybe posting this on the Internet is some way of saying hey this is what happened to me. Not that anyone who doesn�t know me would find any of this the least bit interesting. Who knows, someone might, in which case there you have it. |
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