Important
My parents and grandparents taught their children to behave!
My grandmother proudly told both friends and neighbors alike: "My grandchildren toe the line."
As a result, I am proud to say that I have neither a juvenile nor criminal record.
I am also proud of the fact that I have a good driving record, as well.
About Me
I was born in Detroit at Mount Carmel Mercy Hospital(now, Grace Hospital) in August of 1957. It was a great year for cars, guitars, and Rock & Roll.
I went to school at Burns Elementary School, and would have gone on to Cadillac Middle School, and then, Cooley High School, but the riots broke out, and so we moved to Dearborn Heights. I attended Pardee Elementary School, and then Best Junior High School, and finally Annapolis High School for one year, finishing up at Lakeland High School in the Milford Michigan area. I loved Lakeland; the kids were very laid back, and sincere. In fact, my best friend at 15 is still my best friend, to this day!
The Electronic Age
I grew up playing technician in my father's television repair shop. Over the years, quite a few technicians filtered though the shop. A number of them took me under their wing, and taught me quite a bit about radio and television. By the time I was twelve years old, I was a better technician than many of the men my father was employing and paying much more than me. And believe me, I noticed.
One day after school was out, I walked quietly into the TV shop through the screen door in the back. I heard my father talking to one of the technicians in the front office. I heard him say(to the tech):
"Yeah... that set you were looking for... the one that was on your bench for 3 weeks, well it's gone. My 12 yr old son fixed it yesterday. So I'm sorry, but I've got to let you go."
I quietly left the way I came in.
The next day, I talked to my Dad. Since I was repairing television sets that grown men were getting paid $20 an hour to repair, I began with:
Me: "I feel I should make more than $3 an hour."
Dad: "Well son, most of your pay is in knowledge right now (he always said that)."
Me: "The thing is Dad, I can't spend it(knowledge). The storekeepers wont take it!"
We ended up going back & forth... but I came out with a dollar an hour raise. That may not sound like much, but believe me, in 1969, that was a lot of money I'll never forget that night; I was on top of the world!
I worked another 40 years as an Electronic Technician, eventually earning two degrees: Home Electronics, and, Digital Electronics, and passing the Electronic Certification examination (I got a 92 on the exam) given at the City-County building in Detroit, and becoming a Certified Electronic Technician, and working for Sears and Roebuck Product Services.
Years later, I took the Coast Guard Boating and Safety Course given at Washtenaw Community College. The instructor was the Professor of Electronics at the University of Michigan. Between breaks, I asked him if he'd passed the C.E.T exam. He was completely honest: he'd flunked it(you've got to score 75 out of 100 to pass). I consoled him, and told him truthfully:
"Well... it's a hard exam."
But inside, I was elated. I'd passed an exam that the Professor of Electronics at U of M, had failed.
As a quick aside, I'd like to note that during my 9 years at Sears Product Services, I was also able to become a Certified Counselor through a special course given by Sears, in conjunction with the Carnegie Institute.
The Computer Age
I guess I've always followed my father. In the late 1970's, Dad bought himself a Radio Shack computer, and began learning how to program it. As I understand it, the language he learned was Basic. It was the forerunner of Visual Basic, which, is the language of what has gone on to become Windows.
Dad was always one-step ahead of the game, and in no time, was a master of computers and their languages. His articles were featured in computer publications, and by the mid 1990's, Dad's computer center(he ran from his desk near the foot of his bed) became one of Microsoft's Beta Test Centers for Windows 95.
It was around this time that Dad began bugging me about learning computers. I was working for Sears Product Services at the time, and gradually gave in to the old man's pestering. Sear's gave me 2 weeks vacation (with pay) every year, so I began flying down to Florida(he lived in DeLeon Springs) each year and learned a different computer language every year.
By 2000, I knew 8 languages fluently; Dad was a great teacher!
In 2001, I began what was to become my own software company: CartDesigns, a developer of Shopping Cart software and custom software for individual clients. I went on to receive my Certificate in Computer Database Administration from Orange Technologies, a Microsoft Training Center in Gaithersburg, Maryland.
We lost Dad in 2007, after a short bout with pancreatic cancer. I miss him.