I was always building/making things while I was growing up: I always built my own GI Joe forts. I made my own rock tumbler when I was 13 (took apart a toy train to do it�Mom & Dad weren�t happy). I designed a 4-wheel bike, but dad wouldn�t let me use the welder. I built a bench to go around a tree in our back yard. I tried to build a boat one time, but Dad never let me try it out�now I know why. In high school, I built my own loft bed that would have shouldered a horse�this was when I learned about erring on the side of caution. I actually wired my bedroom all directly to my bed after that�the wires were a bit unsightly, but it sure was convenient. I built a desk for my room that I still use as a workbench today. I also built a box for the speakers in my car, and actually used trigonometry to figure it out�who would have thought Mrs. Rutecky�s class would pay off like that.

I attended college at Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, TN. This was when I realized how fortunate I was to have access to all of Dad�s tools and his shop all those years. All I had was my socket set and a bunch of screwdrivers, so I began messing around with car stereos and other small things. My buddies and I rented a house for the last 2 years of college, and I bought my first circular saw and drill. Our first project was stadium seating for the living room to accommodate our 6 couches. My loft bed eventually became our mezzanine for those who didn�t plan on staying awake through the movie. This was when I began my first project of unorthodoxy. I built a captains bed for my bedroom with the intention of making it look like a child built it�I made sure there were no square angles anywhere on it. It was a great mental exercise, and I was so proud of it. Eventually went back to a traditional bed frame, but the headboard became my new guitar rack.