10 Things You Don’t Know About Me
And probably don’t care to know, but it sounded like fun…
Whoever started this is brilliant. What a great way to build connections in this giant community! Thanks to Jack Preston King and Terrye Turpin
(1) Between third and fifth grade I attended six different schools. My dad was a civil engineer for the state during the height of Interstate construction. My attempts at being the class clown/new kid did not always fare well. I got bullied severely on a couple of occasions, and adults back then (early 70’s) didn’t pay as much attention to that as they seem to these days.
(2) I was a voracious reader as a kid up into adolescence. My mother believed in using the local library and I became an expert on the Dewey Decimal System. I ate up biographies and loved books like Tom Sawyer, A Wrinkle in Time, and Tarzan. My all-time favorite novels are The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Choke by Chuck Palahniuk, American Psycho by Brett Easton Ellis, and Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck. I still read quite a bit, but writing has eaten into my reading time. I also love short stories by Flannery O’Connor, O. Henry, Hemingway, and Jack London.
(3) At one time I broke the state high school record for the 50 meter freestyle in swimming. I swam a lot and would usually take only two breaths each length of the pool. Unfortunately I set that record during a preseason meet and the times were not “official.” My coach made a big deal out of it though.
(4) I am totally deaf in my right ear. About 28 years ago I came down with Meniere’s disease. An inner ear ailment, I would get dizzy and sick to the point of dry heaves. I had a vestibular neurectomy where the doctor disconnected the 8th cranial nerve in my inner ear. The dizziness and nausea stopped, but tinnitus and deafness were the result. A tough trade off, but I adjusted. No other choice!
(5) I flunked out of college when I first started, yet now hold three college degrees. My first major was wine, women and song. I majored in Theater, English, Speech Communication and finally earned a bachelor’s degree in Behavioral Science. I finished with two minors in English and Speech Communication. A few years later I got a Master’s in Family Systems Counseling then pursued a Ph.D. in Organizational Psychology. I had to quit that pursuit because of a family crisis and am All But Dissertation which unfortunately means little to nothing in the world of academia. It sucks when I pay my student loan payment each month, but I had to do what was best for my family!
(6) I’m a Certified Equine Assisted Therapist & Coach, yet I don’t own any horses. I’m also a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist. Eight years ago I took a position at a facility that treats clients for Trauma, Codependency and Life Redesign. I work with a lady who did the horse side of therapy and I did the people part. Soon after I also received training in the horse side of it and have become very comfortable working with her horses even if she’s away for some reason. We also do coaching workshops for families and businesses etc.
(7) I dreamed of being a writer since I was a teenager. In high school I wrote bad poetry and song lyrics that were only slightly better. I’d learned to play the guitar and loved to write songs, even if they weren’t very good. I dreamed of writing a great novel, but life kicked in and I dabbled at it for years. At the beginning of 2017 I joined Medium and participated in The Writing Cooperative’s 52 Week Writing Challenge. I wrote something every week for a year. My goal for this year has been to write at least one short story a week and The Weekly Knob has been a fantastic opportunity to do that. I’ve missed three weeks so far this year, but have also written 23 poems and 9 nonfiction pieces.
(8) If there’s a who-done-it cop show on I pick the killer in the first 5 minutes. I’m right 75–80 % of the time. I get vibes about people and while not foolproof I’m right four out of every five times. My wife and friends say I should have been a profiler. I think it’s because I’m a student of nonverbal behavior and pick easily up on people’s energy. Everyone has “tells” there for us to notice. It’s simply a matter of observing patterns or the lack of them.
(9)I want to create a T.V. series about a therapist who moonlights as a stand-up comedian who moonlights as a private detective. Think In Treatment with Gabriel Byrne meets Ron White’s Tater Salad meets Wallander with Kenneth Branagh. Only our hero’s not as funny as Ron White. And he loses his license cause he had sex with a client, so he becomes a private detective moonlighting as a stand-up comedian. He uses his powers of observation as a therapist to solve crimes, and those of a comic to afford good bourbon and cigars. Much more to it, but that’s the gist.
(10) None of my extended family or friends know I’ve published hundreds of stories, poems and articles on Medium. My wife and kids do, but I haven’t told my sister, mom, in-laws, friends or co-workers. You might ask “Why?” Because I don’t want to answer their well intended questions and comment on their comments. At least not yet. My mom and sister alone would eat up valuable time playing an unsolicited critic and agent. I just started calling myself a “writer” a few months ago. I’ll let them know when I’m ready. My plan is early next year.
So there it is. Things about me you likely didn’t know, and until now, didn’t know you were interested in knowing.
