Grew up working in my father’s service station, changing oil, tires, washing and waxing cars. I don’t believe anyone ever washed a truck back then. He died when I was 13. Took a job at another station and worked there until I graduated high school.

Studied Drafting and Design in tech school, joined the Navy Air Reserve after graduation and went to Millington Tn. for boot camp and anti-submarine warfare school and then to Pa. for aircrew training. Finished my 6 years reserve enlistment at NAS- Jax as an aircrewman (radar/e.c.m./m.a.d.) on the P-3 Orion.

In the real world, I took a job as a draftsman for a couple of years then was fortunate enough to get a job as an industrial engineer in the garment business. Worked with several textile companies around the southeast for several years finally winding up back with the one I started with. Have held the position of Plant Manager for the last 20 or so years, working 200-350 women. I can tell you about headaches. This is the industry first affected by outsourcing, started with us over 25 years ago. Most southerners can remember when textile plants were in nearly every small town in the southeast. They were the reason a lot of small towns existed.

My wife and I have been married 34 years this month. We raised two wonderful kids, a daughter and a son. We now have a 3 year old grandson that helps keep the twinkle in our eyes.

 

While we are on the subject of what new guys can do...how about amending your profile to include WHERE YOU LIVE!!!

Much easier to answer many of the usual questions with that info.

 

I worked for my city as a garbage truck driver, but then I got "promoted" to driving a recycle truck.....no respect..., you'd be surprised at how many people put diapers in their recycle bin, that's when I want to throw their bin on their roof!!
"It's a living"

 

My first "real" job was chief scooper at the local dog boarding kennel. Before that I did grunt labor for my dad's contracting business. I don't consider that a real job because he didn't pay me. He said he was already providing me free room and board so I should just suck it up and quit whinning. After high school I moved up to professional dishwasher and then fry cook. After that I started my new career as a furniture mover and truck driver. Somewhere in there I picked up a wife and son and decided that I needed to go to college after all. After 7 years of work and school I got my engineering degree. That's right, another stinkin' engineer. Now I do satellite network planning and engineering. I grew up watching my dad rebuild three 1957 Ford trucks but was never really interested in them. Then when my son was 16 he spent a month with the old man and got the bug. When he got home he was determined to get an old truck. He scoured the papers for months until he found a rusty, dented, non-running '51 F2. We paid $75 to get the beater towed to the house and then proceeded to have the time of our lives restoring it to its former glory. I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Scott

 

I'm the lead web developer at dennis kirk, inc., and have been for about five and a half years. I also end up being the DBA (database admin)... it's fun... not truck related, but we sell everything for motorcycles, snowmobiles, atv's, etc. pretty neat when you're a motorhead!

Previously, I was a installer and service tech for Carl Zeiss, on their CMM's, and before that did R&D for Zeiss... prior to that worked at machine shops doing manual mill and lathe work, and a little CNC programming.

Ben

 

i started out at the age of five my grandfather and dad bought a 3/4 horse briggs and stratton from the local junk jard and had me tear it apart and put it back together and they got bigger from there built several go carts and min bikes as i got older id help my dad and grand father fix and scrap cars early years my grandfather was a welder ironworker my dad was a mechanic so i learned alot about metals and welding and automotive my grand father didnt want me following in his or my dads footsteps career wise. so i worked from kitchens to driving jobs but always worked on cars. i was alway better with my hands than with a deck so i went to school to get a degree to get into shop because i didnt have working shop experiance. been a mechanic ever since and at the first of the year i opened my own shop.

 

I'm still sort of young, 23. Grew up and still live in Central Florida.
In Junior high I started landscaping and pouring concrete driveways with my buddy. In 10th grade I bought the first ever CD Writer for a PC and started my own music and software piracy business(dont tell the Feds). After everyone else caught on and bought CD writers the demand went down, so I quit lol. I probably only made enough to pay off the writer, which was about $320 at the time.. Eventually I stopped doing illegal things and started going to church. Then I started working at a Fried Chicken shack my Junior year.. After a year became assistant manager, opened a seperate restaurant.. managed that for a while.. started working as an IT director for a business.. ended up marrying the chicken restaraunt owner's daughter.. The business i was working at had stupid owners and dissolved.. found myself managing the chicken restaurant again. lol
Finally got a job as an estimator for a sitework & underground utilities construction company, and have been doing this for almost 2 years.. I read and do "take-offs" on civil engineering plans all day, and price out bids..
I have been at SouthEastern University for... 2.5 years, I am currently taking 21 credit hours a semester in hopes to graduate in April. I'm double-majoring with a BA in business and a BA in church leadership. Way too much school.. no time for trucky..
I am married (3 and a half years) and have a 16 month old little boy who is just as crazy as me. I was also a youth leader in the youth group at my church for like 3 years until I started school on wed. nights and couldn't do it anymore. Will probably do it again when I'm done.
I love old Ford trucks.. Bought my truck as a first-time project this February in order to learn everything.. its coming along slowly because of school.. Have learned a lot.. still a lot to learn.

^Way too much info^

 

Started my life in 1953 at a very young age.

Late sixties were devoted to the normal hippy pursuits – sex, drugs and rock and roll (actually - acid rock)

Somehow, by the age of 22, I was in Toronto and the Traffic & Customs Manager for the Canadian operations of one of the big four Japanese motorcycle mfgrs. Later, same title at a subsidiary of Colgate-Palmolive.

The 80s found me working for Digital Equipment Corp. at their Ottawa, Ontario mfgr operation as a Supervisor-Material Planners for New Product Introductions.

Have been in various positions related to Materials Planning in high tech ever since.

(No longer a work-aholic.)

Been messing with cars in one form or another since the 70s.

Married once for 5 yrs and second time for 23 years. Two great sons – 20 and 21, the elder a ticketed welder and apprentice bodyman , the younger a cabinet maker/carpenter.

 

Fegie, how bout some new shots of the chop job?

 

Raerjim,

I have posted a gallery of progress to date. It's called "Summer 2006". I've actually progressed a little since the gallery was put up. The roof has been bondoed, actually the whole cab has been. It's been shot with self-etching primer. It needs about 4 to 8 more hours on the roof and then we're ready for epoxy primer. Hoping to shoot it in about 3 wks. (My bodyman has been slacking off).

Doors need a lot of work which they'll get between now and christmas. Otherwise, don't plan any work this winter.....well, maybe rear fenders......

 

Xcountry trucker, local delivery, dump trucks, cement mixers, had my own straight rig delivering appliances for Sears but that turned out to be young men's work...ouch... cabinet maker, ***'t Network Admin for Arthur Andersen in DC.... shovelled horse poop, dug ditches, operated heavy tracked equipment..... former homeowner who got fed up with it all and "retired" to a debt-free life with my girlfriend, helping take care of her horses, and working as a convenience store clerk 3 miles from our little rented loft. Life is good when you dispense with the BS... Avid shadetree mechanic, keeping busy with my old F250 6.9 former feed store truck, and restoring a 75 Honda Gold Wing... Lot's of projects to keep me occupied and broke, but never lacking in the happiness or contentment department.