South Korea, 2008 ---

  That thing behind me, that looks like a giant brown milk bottle, has been standing there, in Gyeongju, over a thousand years.  It was an observatory.  I've read that it's one of the oldest in Asia.  I was too lazy to get the information.  Just look up "Gyeongju" in South Korea, and you can find it quickly.

     It was my first trip to Seoul for just doing some sight seeing and hanging out.  That station is like a grand central station.  Since the day I made this picture a subway track connecting this station with Incheon International Airport was installed. 

    
     ...a few days before I got my first haircut in South Korea.  I lived in Yeongcheon, a small town where most people I met daily did not speak (or understand) English, and there were so many hair shops all over the place.  Finally, I picked one.  Before going there, I printed up a picture of the haircut I wanted. 

     ... a few days after I got my first haircut in South Korea.

     Christmas vacation, 2010.

     In the teacher's work room at my first job in South Korea

Standing in the tower of Busan.

Ok!  Ok!  Everyone's wearing these fake glasses.

     First time I ever dyed my hair (and beard, and eyebrows).

     A view from the locker

We've come a long way, Mom!
     Summer, 2011

Sis and I both are 21 with a lot of experience!

My second niece and me.

Thanks Leo!

(Last day at the first job in South Korea)

Atlanta, Georgia, 1995-2008

Worked a weekend job after teaching all week.

I taught Home Economics for twelve years.

Picture taken with my first webcam on my first computer.

Athen, Georgia, 1991 - 1995

Those were stressful days.  Had to find ways to be cheerful.

Atlanta, 1983 - 1991

    

Springfield, Missouri, Central Bible College, 1981-1983

     In 1983, I finished my BA in Bible.

Cleveland, Tennessee / Lee University (College) 1979-1981

     While many people grew up and enjoyed living in Habersham County, Georgia, some of us, who grew up on (or near) Air Force bases, felt like a fish out of water to say the least. It was a rural mountain kinda place. No bowling alley. No movie cinema. No Pizza Hut. No NOTHING. It was bad enough that I was a very green college student and that I did not know what I wanted to become. Now, I was in a area where if anyone knew your car, everyone around heard about where it was parked the night before. It was, to me, the kind of place where EVERYONE knew everyone and everyone's relatives. After going to Piedmont College in Demorest, Georgia for one quarter, I decided I wanted to move on to another college somewhere else. Next stop? Lee College in Cleveland, Tennessee.

Some friends and I made this guy.

My roommate and I earned "Dorm Room of the Month."

     I spent two years at Lee College.  While there I was the cafeteria breakfast cook for one semester, and the snack bar student manager for a year. 

Georgia, 1977 - 1979

     Going to church, playing the piano, and participating in all the church activities was pretty much the theme of my life.  In Baldwin, Georgia I found a church that had a Hammond B3.  Oh yea!  It was the kind of organ that Jimmy Swaggart played.  It was the kind played by my all time favorite orgainst "Sister Madge Mayo" of the Assembly of God Tabernacle in Atlanta, Georgia.  I used to sit where I could watch her play.  When she played, she was in command.  I watched every move her hands made on that organ.  Now, I had a chance to get to know a B3.
  The picture below shows standing next to a Hammond, not a B3, but close enough.  This one was in an Assemblies of God Church in Richmond, Virgina.  How I got there is another story.  

         

Oklahoma, 1973-1977

     I was much happier in Oklahoma than in South Carolina.  I loved Altus High School where I graduate in 1976.  While in Oklahoma, I worked at Harkins Dairy Queen for $1 and hour, Sonic Drive In for $1.40 an hour, and at Harvey's Restaurant for $2.20.

     Altus was (and still is) a small town surrounded by cattle yards and various farm fields.  You could ride a bicycle around the whole town with a couple hours of pedalling at a moderate pace.  We lived on the Air Force Base.  Our address was 114 Echo Street.  I can't remember what our phone number was.

     Besides going to school, I enjoyed going to Church at Park Lane Assembly of God as often as I could.  Not only that, I enjoyed bowling (with friends and on the youth league), playing tennis, and going out to eat pizza.

     I was not a very smart student. I excelled at typing, office machines, Art, Social Studies, English and Wood Shop, and barely got by in Geometry, Algebra, and Spanish. Still, most of the teachers were nice. Most of the students were nice. All the school assemblies, concerts, all school productions, and ball games were fun.

     When I first dreamed of going there, the cost for going to Oral Roberts University (ORU) amounted to about $2000 a year.  By the time I graduated from high school, four years later, that amount had nearly doubled.  After enjoying a visit to the campus for one of their Youth Seminars, I submitted an application for admission.  I was turned down.
    

     At first I said I wanted to major in Math.  Then, I changed my mind to Social Sciences.  To tell you the truth, I didn't really know what I wanted to do.  During my first and only semester at Southwestern Oklahoma University my classes were these: Biology, Government, Swimming, Gymnastics, English, Piano, and Algebra.  On weekends, I drove back home to Altus to work a weekend job at Harvey's restaurant.

     I don't now why I didn't go there from the start, but I took Philosophy, US History, Speech, Marriage and the Family, and English there during my second semester of college. The new Western Oklahoma State College campus was near my work place, kinda on the edge of town.  Shortly after that spring semester ended, I moved from Oklahma to Georgia and, so, transfer to my third college.

South Carolina, 1967-1973

     During my middle school years and my first year of high school, I was not a happy camper.  I didn't walk right, didn't talk right, wasn't violent, had braces on my teeth and a tube in my ear, wore glasses, took piano lesson, played the flute in the school band, was scared of snakes and frogs, didn't follow the boy-code well at all.  Walking to the bus stop was torture every morning, let alone just getting through the school days.

     Freshman at Goose Creek High School... Goose Creek, South Carolina 1972-73

     I think the only reason I joined the school band was so that I could get out of class and enjoy marching in parades.  I half-way played the flute during concert season.  During football season, I carried cymbals and hit them together once in awhile.  Couldn't ask for an easier job than that!

     See that black dog in the picture?  We called her "Snuffy."  She was a puppy born to one of the neighbor's dogs and was given to us after our Boston Terrier "Feebee" passed away.  Later, she gave birth to two puppies of her own.  We kept her brown puppy and caller her "Ginger."  We gave her black puppy away.  Snuffy and Ginger moved with us to Oklahoma and, later, Georgia.  Both of them lived to about 15 years of age and died during the same year.

     Our address in Goose Creek was 20 Henderson Drive 29405, but after about 7 months, we moved to Rt. 1 Box 329 B Craven Street Ladson 29456. 

Georgia, Maryland and Alaska, 1957-1967

   

     I ain't trying to be an egomaniac.  I'm simply trying to put all these pictures in one place before my computer crashes AGAIN!  Hopefully, this blog sight will stay alive for a long long time.  I might not put these pictures in the right order.  Still, you'll get the idea.

     It was Easter.  We lived in Temple Hills, Maryland.  Ours was a small house surrounded by a yard that had a few apple trees.  Daddy put a sand box and swing set in the back yard, and he got puppies for my sister and me.  We called the black puppy "Blacky" and the white puppy with the black spots "Spotty." 

Another Santa Claus, and another one, and another one came to town whether we were pouting or not.  We were living at 5140 Artic Street, Apartment F, Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska.  Our phone number was 377-2342. 

      I wanted to wear one of the yellow scarves and blue uniforms I saw so many other boys wear at school.  There were a lot of cub scout on that base. 








Vividly, I remember this scene so well.  While all the other cubs were swinging their swords at the great big card board dragon head, I was fighting just trying to get my sword out of the sling.