Mr. Skinner

One of my proudest moments in my life came very unexpectedly during my senior year in high school. The same moment was the culmination for many of the decisions that I have made throughout my life after that point. It has been the inspiration for many of my goals and aspirations.
I didn't take ag class until I was a sophomore in high school. For some reason, I felt that I would be out of place in ag, although many of my friends were already in the class. After coming to my senses a year late (I have always been a late bloomer), I came to really love the subjects and my teachers. Sheridan FFA was split into Ag 100 (freshmen), Ag 200 (sophomores), and Ag 400 (juniors and seniors, rotating curriculum each year). After taking Ag 100, my junior year I skipped Ag 200 and took Ag 400 for 2 years.
My teacher for those last 2 years was Mr. Mike Skinner. We didn't have too much in common, but we got along really well. Looking back, I wish I would have done even more in that class, and especially in FFA. I always had a lot of respect for Mr. Skinner and that didn't change as we developed a friendship that still stands today. Although I don't get to see him nearly as often as I would like, I am sure that he will stay a friend of mine thorughout the years and we will stay in contact.
Back to the moment that changed my life. During my senior awards banquet, I was seated in the very last seat. Out of 300-something guests, members, family, and friends, I was the only person there without a door prize at my seat. Small details, but it's funny what you remember as time goes on.
As the banquet neared the end, awards and scholarships were handed out. I won a few and lost a few. Mr. Skinner stood to give his award and scholarship, in honor of his late father, Don. to a senior student that he felt was deserving. As he started his speech, it became clearer and clearer to me that I was going to win the most coveted award of the night. I don't remember what all he said, but two things stuck with me. The first was that I "chose agriculture. Agriculture did not chose (me)." I did not come from a substantial farming operation. This simple statement has provided me with motivation throughout my years (and years) of college.
The second thing Mr. Skinner said was something that meant much, much more. In front of a packed room, he said that he was impressed with me. The guy that I had grown to respect more than almost anyone else in this world was impressed with me. I was a chubby (I was always skinny, I just started filling out my senior year of high school) 18 year old who had no idea what I wanted to do with my life, who wasn't very involved in his FFA. But something I had done along the way impressed Mr. Skinner. Afterward, he told my parents and me how much he really was a fan my mine. I was floored.
It's amazing the impact that a teacher can have on a student. It's hard to tell where I would be today without the influence that Mr. Skinner had on me. That one man had such an impact on where I am today and things that I have done since meeting him as a sophomore. Realizing the impact that Mr. Skinner had on me is a chief reason that I want to become an ag teacher. Hopefully I can have half the impact on a student that he had on me.


(Please leave a comment below if you got Rick Roll'd.)

No More NAPA

As many of you know, I have several occupations. I am very blessed with my employment opportunites, especially in such hard economic times across the country.
Most recently, I became the maintenance supervisor at the Perry County Fairgrounds. I like this job because it not only pays a lot more than my other jobs, but it allows me to work whenever I want to, as long as all the events at the fairgrounds have their needs met.
I am also the Service Crew Supervisor at CABS, for OSU. I started as a driver for CABS in September 2008, and was promoted to supervisor in September 2009. I have learned so much about leadership with this job. The hours arn't the greatest (5pm-11pm Sunday through Friday), but most of the time it doesn't interfere with my class schedule. Plus, I can usually get time off if I need it.
While I love these jobs (I actually do enjoy both very much), it is my job at NAPA that means the most to me. I have been at Thornville NAPA for the past 7 years. I worked there through high school and stayed on to work weekends through college. I got to know 2 of the greatest friends a guy could ask for in my bosses, Wes and Phil Harlan; learned about parts and how to work on cars/trucks/tractors/boats/etc; learned how a small business operates; and have built relationships with so many people from Thornville and surrounding communities. Working at NAPA has been an experience that is truely invaluable to me.
Last week, I called to order a muffler for a truck that I have been working on for my dad's friend. Wes let me know that they hired his son Lukas to start working at NAPA after school and on Saturdays. What this means for me is that I have been forced into retirement from NAPA. It's kinda funny that I have replaced by a 15 year-old sophomore in high school with very little experience.
Most people would be upset about losing a job that they love to some snot-nosed kid, but not this guy. (editor's note: He's actually a great kid, I watched him grow up.) Wes and Phil seem like family to me, and I know the decisions that they made were with my best interests in mind. I also knew that the time was coming when Lukas would replace me- I just hadn't thought about it lately, which is why this kinda caught me by surprise. The money I make at NAPA is barely enough to cover my fuel money to get to work and back. Wes and Phil know that I make more money at my other jobs, so this will allow me to work at my higher-paying jobs.
I haven't pushed for a raise at NAPA for several reasons:

1. NAPA doesn't seem like a job to me. It's more like a 6 hour-long social event during which I occasionally have to help people.
2. I can get off any time I want with little or no notice. They are very flexible with giving me time off when I need it (and I'm a few minutes late for work nearly every Saturday and they never say anything about it).
3. Most importantly, I work for the discount. It might be accurate to say that on average, I spend my entire paycheck on parts. After I'm gone, Wes and Phil said they will keep my discount as long as possible.

So this Saturday will be my last day at NAPA. It will feel so weird to get up Saturday morning and make the 11 minute drive to NAPA for the last time as an employee. I know that as long as I live in or around Perry-dise, I will be a customer of theirs, but that store that I have spent thousands of hours in will never be the same. Whether they realize it or not, though, I will keep my key because it is so handy to get in there whenever I want.

Summer's Coming

So this block is kinda kicking my butt lately. I'm really looking forward to when I can get caught up on 10 weeks worth of lost sleep. I think I might stop shaving, start carrying a shotgun and go sleep in the woods for a few years.

When summer gets here, my life will slow down considerably. I am looking forward to this just as much as I am looking forward to starting some new projects that I don't have enough time to work on during school. I will be the maintenance supervisor at the Perry County Fairgrounds again this summer. I have been there since last June and I really like it. If you've never been, you should go. The more people that come to the events we have at the fairgrounds, the more job security for me.

Back to my summer projects. I will be working on a boat for my brother-in-law's parents. The boat came out of the water, over-revved and threw a rod out the side of the engine block. I just happen to have a rotating assembly that should work, so I will soon begin switching engines. I have never worked on a boat, so this could be interesting...

Another project that I have really been wanting to tackle this summer is a tractor restoration. I have always been fascinated with unstyled John Deere Two-Cylinders. I need to get in gear about finding one, however. Summer's coming fast, even if it seems like this quarter will never end.