| Mike's Story: | |||
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is a 56 year old "Boomer"; born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania - June 10, 1947 |
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has a sister, Carol, four years younger |
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attended Parochial School taught by nuns (Sisters Christopher and Myrona were really keen) | ||
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was only hit on the palm once with an 18 inch ruler; for throwing snowballs during recess (Sister Christopher) | ||
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skipped school for two entire weeks |
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nuns called to see if I was ill | ||
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was smacked, by Pop, (repeatedly) with a "cat-o-nine-tail" | |
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was in love with Mary Bedrin | ||
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was in love with Joyce Kovalick | ||
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attended Coughlin High School; 1961 - 1965 | ||
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was an average student | ||
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skipped afternoons to see movies: | ||
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James Bond | |
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beach movies with Annette and Frankie | ||
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science fiction | ||
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WWII and Korean conflict | ||
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westerns | ||
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horror (classics) with Vincent Price, Christopher Lee (can't think of the other major actor in horror flicks was) | ||
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was in love with Gigi Schlingman | ||
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was in love with Carol Lombardi | ||
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was in love with Franny Miller | ||
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missed the prom - was extremely shy | ||
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hung out with three guys from Bear Creek and Mountain Top - John Mosely, Myron Mokrus, and Walter Bell | ||
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was harassed, at lunch time, by one asshole in particular; Pat Nallon; with some neighborhood pricks, on occasion | ||
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worked as a farm laborer, each Summer, for 27 cents per hour; 50 hours per week) | ||
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was harassed by the same asshole; with some neighborhood pricks, on occasion | ||
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Was a pinboy in a local bowling alley - paid 10 cents a game | ||
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was harassed by an asshole (you guessed it); with some neighborhood pricks, on occasion | ||
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Graduated High School in 1965 |
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Worked as a spotwelder for six months |
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attended Technical School for Mechanical Engineering: Tool and Die; Jig and Fixture design in Allentown Pennsylvania | ||
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program was established to alleviate a shortage of Tool and Die Designers in Pennsylvania |
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received a "Greetings from the President" midway through Tech School; was granted a "Postponement of Induction" |
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evidently, Lyndon Johnson thought I would make a fine addition to his military forces |
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Graduated Tech School in July 1967; had to report for induction six days after graduation |
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drafted into the US Army July 1967 | ||
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had basic training at Fort Gordon, Georgia - Summer of 1967 | ||
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had Advanced Individual Training (AIT) within the US Army South Eastern Signal School at Fort Gordon, Georgia | ||
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graduated USASESS in December 1967 as a mobile 12 channel Radio-Telephone station operator (MOS-31M20) | ||
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after the ship USS Pueblo was seized, was sent to Hawk Missile unit just South of Soul Korea | ||
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Tour of duty in Korea was 13 months | ||
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on return to "the world", there were no jobs for Tool and Die; Jig and Fixture Designers | ||
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there was no need for mobile 12 channel Radio-Telephone station operators in civilian jobs | ||
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after a year out of work, I found a job as a Draftsman | ||
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loved the job; it paid $2.50 an hour, and: | ||
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learned HVAC (Heating Ventilating & Air Conditioning) drawing | ||
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learned some Architectural drawing | ||
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made a lot of 3-Dimensional drawings; like technical illustrations, exploded drawings (mechanical) | ||
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held the job for 2-1/2 years until business went slow; was laid off |
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after awhile out of work I found a job as a "Greenhouseman" at the Veteran's Hospital i Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania | ||
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I had developed a love for growing vegetables and flowers the first year out of the Army | ||
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I could have worked as a "Greenhouseman" for the rest of my life | ||
| Tired of working for ingrates | |||
| Has 10 years to go in the workforce | |||
