EARLY LIFE
COLLEGE
My first recollection is vague pictures of the neighborhood in Fort Wayne at about age four. An bout with hepatitis and missing most of first grade mixed with my early nerdiness and left me lonely and mostly friendless through grade school, pushing me to decide to learn to dance (inspired by Grandma's flapper days) in order to meet people once in high school. So I went down to my room in the basement everyday after school in eighth grade, put on Jimi Hendrix 'Let Me Stand Next To Your Fire' and learned to dance to every beat. It worked. High school was a dance fest, I came in second in most weight lost at a sock hop (7 pounds!... Bill Gay lost 11!)
High School was a blast. Lots of fun friends, lots of activities, craziness. We were at a 'dumping ground' school for the Catholic Church from what I could tell. French nun ran off with the women's gym teacher, latin priest used to flip the boys desks over (while we were still in them), the priest who taught religious history was a Hitler fanatic who would always teach from behind a lecturn, whapping his pointer constantly, lips smothered in Vaseline. Our senior homeroom priest used to name the Golden Rod Award to the senior with the biggest member, and was later co-named in the first outing of sexually molesting priests...and there's lots more...
WORK LIFE
My I started working around age 7 with a weekly paper route. I soon moved to a morning route and and afternoon route. I liked everything about except collecting. I wasn't very successful. My first work for someone else was a car hop at an A&W root beer drive in. Bad. I soon got a good job doing janitor work and as a hod carrier (grunt work for brick layers)
TEACHING: Head Start, middle school math, high school math, chemistry, and drama, University of Michigan computer classes (900 workshops, 10,000 students including three University Presidents and an astronaut), GED classes (computer programming), Teaching Assistant for Personal and Family Relations (BGSU).
COMPUTER: 27 years of design and implementation of the University of Michigan's micro computer systems, including documentation, computer sales, computer support (developed possibly the world's first large scale computer help line), and education. Here's a University of Michigan article about my work...
https://hr.umich.edu/microcomputer-support-pioneer
Managed a used computer sales and repair store. Private computer consultant for individuals and small businesses.
RADIO/VIDEO: Designed and developed one of the first community internet radio and video internet stations. Named Official Community Internet Radio Station of Ann Arbor Michigan.
ATHLETICS
An My first sport was out of necessity. It was fourth grade and I was looking for someone to play with around the neighborhood and Mark was always off at soccer practice, so I decided to go there. I ended up making the all-star team that year, competing against eighth graders. I was asked onto a semi-pro team at 13 years old, but my parents said it was too far away. I set the record for highest points ever in our gym phys-ed test and won my weight class in the all school wrestling contest. I set the school record for the 880 yard run (1.58) which I think still stands. Our track team was the first ever sports team to post a winning record. No soccer, the school didn't have a team.
In college, I was the only freshman to dress on the soccer team, which at the time was ranked number 1 in the country. I was the quarterback of the all-campus football intramural champions. Team sports didn't work out so well for me (more on that later) and I ended up playing freestyly frisbee daily (attending tournaments too), and joining the campus modern dance troupe.
I played soccer off and on with different teams and groups in the summers, basketball (I was told once that when I was on the court it was like we had an extra man), volleyball (semi-pro trained), badminton (College intramural champ), and hacky sack. I am a good but non-interested golfer and once had a .850 scoring average in softball.
I have danced in several modern dance companies and was a member of Men Working (a contact improv dance company) for 11 years.
I still play soccer in the summer and take dance classes in the winter.
EARLY INFLUENCES
One of my early influences was Matty McCall. My mom didn't like to cook or clean, so she got a job as soon us kids were old enough for school so that she could hire someone. Matty was the first black person I met. She was so kind and warm when she first said hello to me that I remember thinking..."So this is what it's like to be a real human being." Matty worked for us for 18 years. We used to fake being sick on Thursdays so we could stay home with her. She taught us how to cook (my sister is Columbus Ohio's top personal chief), fed me my first 'soul' food, and treated us to meeting her man, "Big Time" McCall. I miss her still.
My gramma, Helen Carpenter. She was a flapper in the 20's (she and her 4 friends would take turns baby sitting and go out dancing 5 days a week). A strong woman.
Jr. Brown. He was a brick layer from Kentucky. Had a 4th grade education and was one of the smartest people I ever met.
John Lennon, Marting Luther King, Jimmy Carter, Joe Sens (high school chemistry teacher), Jim and Joyce Walker (across the street neighbors, Sister Marilyn Ann (high school english teacher and later romantic interest),
HOBBIES
My first hobby was taking apart watches and putting them back together, jigsaw puzzles, and packing for family trips. I fixed things so often that the family called my fixes 'jimmy-rigged'. Needless to say, McGyver was a favorite show of mine! It was the 5 foot rule that made it more fun... fixing whatever it was with materials within a 5 foot radius. I moved to cars in high school, rebuilding my first engine at 15, and spending years of hours in the garage bent over a fender, transistor radio as a best friend.
I collected Chinese artifacts for awhile (even took chinese, only to be so confused when the voice in my head would switch to chinese in the middle of a sentence I had to give it up) and love collecting odd things. My latest is a plastic head of a clown that was placed on top of helium tanks for blowing up balloons.
I love sewing, music, swimming in lakes, writing, playing sleuth (like Sherlock Holmes), fashion, colors, doing makeup, dancing, watching live music at bars, and going for drives in the country. I'll often take two lane roads on long trips. My favorite speed is 45mph.
I watch local sports and often 'announce' the games. My house was called the 'Sports Palace' for awhile and it's common for me make a comment about a play just before the TV announcer says the same thing. It runs in the family. I announced the high school girls basketball games where I taught, my brother did local high school and college games, and many people tried to convince my mom to do senior sports announcing when she was in her 70's.