Without giving away too many of the family secrets I will share some things that have made me who I am today. Family has always played such a big part in my life and having two parents who always put their kids first was a great way to grow up.
#1 My father was a milkman and from the ages of 10 - 16 I would deliver milk with him six days a week. The truck you see below was a Divco Milk truck. He would wake me up at about 1:00am Monday thru Friday and we would head off to the dairy. We would listen to the Milkman's Matinee on our way to Johanna Farms, the dairy where we would load up the truck. The milk route would take about six hours to finish and he would drop me off around 7:30. I would take a quick shower and be off to school. He would go to his 2nd job building Dinner Cars. Hell yes I would be tired, but what better place to rest up in order to get ready for practice. Sports is all that mattered when I was young and dumb. My English teacher would sit me right in front of her desk in an attempt to keep me awake. One time she woke me up and asked me "Mr J do you mind" Being rather quick witted, my reply was,"Ms. Lex, if you don't mind , I don't mind." That answer got me a visit to the principles office. Child labor law violation now, back then it was just part of my life, no questions asked.
http://oldcarandtruckpictures.com/Divco/
#2 I have always hated bullying. Most of the altercations that I got into as a young adult stemmed from this intolerable situation. I can remember one particular incident like it happened yesterday. While driving home on the school bus a fellow classmate who just happened to be on the wrestling team, was picking on a kid that later on became a very good friend. I had just wrestled Roger Short, yes real name, in gym class earlier that month and I have never been so exhausted. He had me in every position possible, while I could not get him off my back. In gym we would wrestle three, 1 minute periods. I thought I was in good shape until this encounter. I should have just rolled over and let him bask in the glory of pinning me, it would have been a lot easier. Some how I made it through and got off of the mat with a modicum of pride left.
Remembering what had just occurred earlier, it took me a little longer to get up my nerve to get involved. The last straw was Roger slapping this kid in the back of his head knocking off his glasses. To my utter surprise, after a short exchange of un-pleasantries the situation had calmed down, Thank God!
https://results.searchlock.com/search/?q=pictures+of+bullies&slr=1&sr=omniredir-google&chnm=store
#3 Talking is not my gig. NNf is my slogan ( no new friends} I have been told that I am a good listener, but have also been called a social prick. I just don't do real good at small talk. Living in the middle of nowhere suits me just fine.
#4 I started dating my wife when she was 15 and I was 16. This past October 20th we have known each other for 50 years. She is still the love of my life and I would probably go out like Romeo and Juliet if I were to lose her, if it were not for the rest of my family!
#5 I am bald and have been that way for over 45 years. Started balding very early, as did my dad and grandfather. I started to shave my head with a razor long before it was in fashion. As a spoof, before deciding to shave my head I wanted to get a tattoo on my bald spot of a piece of watermelon with a fly on it. 😁😁😁. Good choice to nix that idea.
https://pixabay.com/en/photos/bald%20head/
#6 I love collecting coins and purchasing precious metals. I got involved with this through my son @ryan313.
#7 I have always loved basketball and coached varsity H.S. basketball for several years before taking a hiatus for several years from teaching.
https://www.cartoonstock.com/directory/b/basketball_coaches.asp
#8 Before starting a family, my wife and I spent 10 weeks traveling cross-country. We are so glad we made this trip as we got to see so much and learn even more. Some of the highlights of this adventure included seeing the Grand Cannon, Devil's Tower, the Badlands, Four Corners, Yellowstone National Park, Old Faithful , Mount Rushmore and lots else. I guess you could say that at the time of our trip we had really started the family, as my wife was pregnant with our first child.
#9 Like @zekepickleman I have also been brewing beer for many years. My interest in brewing started when I stumbled upon some hops growing on the property. At the corner of our property there are large boulders that were placed there long ago. These boulders seem to have been a foundation to a house that was constructed at this site. Growing hops in this area was very prevalent as the early settlers did not have the luxury of going to the store to buy their brew.
After finding the hops, I have cultivated two large hop beds and harvest the cones in late August.
#10 I have always loved sports. I played both basketball and baseball in H.S. and college. I was very young for my class, graduating H.S. at 17 and would not turn 18 until November of my first year in college. I received many accolades at both levels. There are two that I am very proud of, named Most Valuable Player my junior year at William Paterson University for basketball. As a senior I was given the honor of being named Co-Captain of the basketball team. My senior year we went to the NCAA Sweet 16 in Division 3.
When I graduated from H.S. I was drafted by the St Louis Cardnials. At that time NCAA rules stated that if you played any sport on a professional level you would be excluded from playing any sport in college. My first love was Basketball and I did not want to give that up. After talking with my parents about being drafted we concluded that if I was really that good scouts would continue to follow my career. I was very young and we felt that the best move would be to forgo the signing and go to college. This would allow me to play basketball in college, and as I developed my skills as a pitcher my position in the draft would only go north.
Everything was going as planned, as my stock as a hard throwing youngster continued to climb, I was also competiting in the sport I loved, basketball.
As fate would have it I broke my wrist playing hoops my junior year. Compound fracture with my Ulna bone sticking out of the side of my wrist. I never threw another pitch again.
1970 Baseball Draft
The 1970 Baseball Draft appears below and includes every player chosen in the June amateur draft, every round of the 1970 baseball draft, the overall pick, the team who drafted them, their position at that time, and where they were drafted from (high school / college name).
Rd Pick Phase Player Name Drafting Team Pos Drafted From
38 816 JR Robert Jurgensen St. Louis Cardinals P Lakeland High School (Wanaque,NJ)
http://www.baseball-almanac.com/draft/baseball-draft.php?yr=1970
Life has been very good to me and I would not change a thing.
I would like to forward this challenge to my son @ryan313. I know that you are busier than five people and this may be impossible, but I would like to see what you come up with. Another person I would like to know more about would be #janton, my gentleman redneck buddy!
Hope you enjoyed! thebigsweed