When did I have my first date.

I did not have much success with dating. I tried to get my first date in 6th grade to a Christmas event at a local theatre and she originally said yes but changed her mind and said later no. That kind of set the course for all the school days ahead. I never really could get dates in junior high or high school and my cousin Wally finally decided to make it his mission to find me a date for the prom. Turns out the only reason that she wanted to go to the prom was that her younger sister had a date to the prom. They were both from another school. My dating didn't really start until I met my first wife in the back hills of Missouri in the small town of Washington. It was frustrating at the time but now that I look back on it, it was probably a good thing.

Admiration for a famous person

I didn't really have an admiration for a famous person. I thought the Astronauts were pretty cool. Especially those that landed on the moon. Famous people really didn't interest me. They were just to make movies and play sports. I didn't have much interest in famous sports figures either. Maybe my Dad was the hero in my life. He always seemed to know how to build, fix, or repair anything. I think I have inherited some of that general knowledge. Ideas about how to do things just seem to come into my mind when working on a project. It's not usually the best way but it usually works. It takes me a little longer to figure it out than Dad.

Nicest Thing done for Mother and Father

The nicest thing I can remember for my Mother and Father they celebrated their 25Th wedding anniversary I and my sister bought an organ for my Mother to play and my Dad to listen. Mom was always the musician and played guitar, harmonica, and piano/organ.

High School Extacurricular Activites

I played football starting in Junior High and played all through High School. I liked the physical contact of the sport as well as the team working together. I ran track and did OK but wasn't among the best. It was required to be on the football team and if that weren't the requirement I probably wouldn't have done that sport. I started weight lifting in hight school and liked that, but never entered any competition because it wasn't in my high school.

Hideaway or Clubhouse

We had a clubhouse behind the house on Myrtle street in Sioux City. We had the rule of when we said a bad word we would have to stay in the shed for 10 minutes. My friend Doug was spending all his time in the shed so we quit doing that. Bill and I decided to put a stove in the shed one winter to stay warm and lit the wood with gasoline and practically burned ourselves up. We climbed out a window and after the firemen put out the fire we were given the lecture. That was kind of the end of the clubhouse.

My favorite school teacher

The first teacher I can remember was my 5th grade teacher who's name was Mrs. Wanerholm. I don't know why she stuck in my mind except I had just moved into town and she was the first teacher in that school. In High School, the teacher that most influenced me was the Physics teacher whos name I can't remember. He sparked my interest in electronics which set the course of my career in life. In college it would be Mr. Prendergast. He could start with the simplest of equations and progress into proving the most complex of equations. He impressed me for sure.

Crazy fads from school days.

I think my generation invented crazy fads. We went from the Bobby socks with poodle skirts, slicked back duck tail hair on boys, and jitter bug dances to flat top hair cuts with rolled up sleeves on T-shirts and penny loafer shoes. Then we progressed into long hair Beetle hair cuts and polyister clothes with bell bottoms. Hair styles changed to the Afro look and then morphed into just about any of the past or present styles were good. I participated in the long hair hippie look with a beard which I still have. However the hair is gone on top and cropped short on the sides these days. I participated in the polyister shirts and bell bottom pants. I was always about one style behind the current trend. Today I just like denum kind of modern western look with sneakers and ball cap. However I do have a cowboy hat with western boots for special occasions. I have a Nebraska game day outfit with hat and have purchased a NASCAR jacket for #17 Kenseth DeWalt car and a hat.

What were my favorite TV shows

I had many favorite TV shows over the years. My Dad brought home our first TV when I was about 5 years old I think. The first favorite show I can remember was the Flash Gordon shown on the Commander 4 program. That started the love for SCI-FI which moved into the 60's smash hit show Star Trek and all the generations of Star Trek that followed up into the new century. By then there were many spin off shows and Star Gate with all the factions that spun off from that show as well. Of course the Star Buck and Battle Star Galactica shows were on the list as well. Other shows from childhood were Maverick, Sugarfoot, Davey Crocket, and Danial Boone. Saturday morning shows included Fury, My Friend Flicka, Roy Rogers, and Sky King. Then there was Father knows best, Leave it to Beaver, Lassie, and Mr. Ed. Who could forget the Life of Riley and Ozzie and Harriet. However the absolute best was the late night Japanese monster movies with King Kong and Godzilla. Every week Tokyo was destroyed.

What about mischeivous pranks

Mischievous pranks were not something I ever did much of. I was always serious because I would usually take the prank too far and end up hurting someone's feelings. However, the last time in Louisiana disaster relief I came across a pastor in the church there that seemed to bring out the prankster in me. As the pastor was cutting out the window and door openings with a saws all I sneaked up on the back side and nailed a piece of 2X4 across the cutting path. Upon hitting the board with the saw and immediately slowing the cutting process to almost a halt, the pastor poked his head around the corner to see what was happening only to see my smiling face. He pointed his finger at me and said, "OK, let the games begin." The next day right before noon the pastor talked about how the woods around where we were working was full of Donkeys. Then he proceeded to talk about how he played pin the tail on the donkey when he was a child. We had a good time talking about that subject. Later in the afternoon when I removed my tool belt I found that I had a tail fashioned out of rope hooked to my tool belt. It had been swaying in the breeze all day long. A couple days later the pastor once again talked about how there was a vine in the woods that was poison that turned the skin orange. I kind of figured this time something was up. Later that day I turned up with orange hands so I started looking around for something with orange powder and found the chalk line power to be the same orange color.

What was my favorite hobby or past time as a child.

I tried to have hobbies of stamp collecting and coin collecting, but these didn't fit my personality too well. I liked being outside and exploring creeks, ditches, and woods. Starting at about 14 years of age, I became interested in motors and minni bikes. My best friend Bill had many small engine parts and we entertained ourselves by taking parts and assembling them into working engines. A couple years later, we graduated to cars with bigger motors and parts to take apart and put together.

My first communion.

My first communion took place at a little church in Walthill Nebraska. Some weeks of instruction took place before the event that offically made me a member of the church. At 12 years of age it made little difference for involvement in the church other that attending Sunday services. I came to an understanding about what the Lord had done for me on the cross during those instruction weeks.

What I think makes a good friend.

A good friend to me is one that listens more than talks. It's someone that I can not have to say anything to be with. A good friend is someone I can spend hours sharing life experiences with. A good friend is someone who always has time in the hectic schedule to listen about the good or the bad day's activities. A good friend will be forever and always. A good friend is always willing to help in any way possible. A good friend is always just a phone call away.

Who gave me my first job?

My first job would be working on my uncle's farm. I would earn $20 to $30 dollars for an entire summer's work. I really didn't consider it a job because to me it was fun to be able to drive tractors and run machinery all summer long. I had the best fun when group events took place like baling hay or combining the small grain.

What chores did I do when growing up?

The first chores I remember doing was filling up two 55 gallon drums with water that were setting on a skid. The water was to water the animals in the barn. My Dad would come home from work and take the water up to the barn by pulling the skid with the tractor. I didn't have many chores until later when we moved to town. Then we had a large yard that needed mowing and so yard work became my chores. Inside the house the only chores I recall were the weekly burning of papers and drying the dishes to put away. Later the year before College, I had the duties of milking morning and evening 13 cows and feeding hogs. After I left for college, the herd was quickly sold. Allowances started at the age of 9 years old and consisted of 35 cents a week. I managed to save enough to by a bee bee gun for $15 out that allowance. I still have that gun.  I worked my way up to a whopping $10 dollars a week during the cow milking year. It was enough to keep gas in my car. Back then gas was .30 a gallon unless there was a gas war then it would get down to .20 a gallon. You just got to love the 1960s. 

Did I ever get into fights with other kids?

I can only remember being in two fights both of which were in grade school and both of which I lost. I decided it was better if I didn't do that any more. I came close to fight with a bully in Junior High but became friends with him after I decided to standup to him and his buddies. I expect angels were present and help to protect me from the decision I had made. I thoughly expected to be beaten up and was quite surprised at the outcome.

What about Mom's cooking?

My Mom's cooking was mostly very good. At times she would have some real blunders. Kool Aide without sugar, potato salad with raw potatoes, exploded eggs in the microwave to just name a few. She still made the best apple pie and that became my favorite thing she made. I have yet to find anyone that can compare with those pies. She could bake just about anything from scratch, but had a bad habit of not watching the time and would come rushing into the kitchen when Dad would say, "Do I smell something burning?"

What animals were in the home while growing up?

We always had animals in the home while I grew up. They were dogs that mostly stayed outside until my Mom became interested in Toy Manchester during my High School years and after I had left home for College. The first dog I can remember was a Cocker Spaniel named Hazel. I never knew what become of her until my Dad said she was killed. She was an outside dog on the farm and would disappear for days at a time. Next came a boxer named Mitsi, then an Irish Setter name Cocoa that loved to chase cars and eventually got run over by a tractor. After that came Taska the German Shepard with a litter of pups soon after we got her. After leaving home and having my own family, we acquired a mixed breed dog named Lucky which we got to help my oldest daughter get over nightmares of dogs biting her. Then there was Gidget and Bootsie mixed breed dogs and a black cat named Casey Mae. We then were given a dog named Gretchen who had a litter of pups which a dog named John Jon was born. This dog was part of the family the longest of any of the other animals. He finally had to be put to sleep around 15 years old after Dottie had died and Lydia the last of the children left home.

I don't expect to have any more animals in my lifetime.

Did I go to ball games as a boy?

I didn't go to ball games to watch until well into my twenties. I played football in High School and played in many games in those years. The town that I lived in, Sioux City, really didn't have any ball games or stadiums for that matter outside of School. It just wasn't big enough to support such activities.

When did I become a Christian?

I always thought that I had become a Christian when I was 12 years old. The Caticism class for the Luthern church I attended was coming to an end. The pastor asked if we were standing at the door of heaven and God asked, "Why should I let you in? What would your answer be?". Most said they weren't sure, but one girl said, "Because Christ died on the cross so we could ask for forgiveness of our sins." It clicked in my brain that it was the correct answer. Forty some years later upon reflecting on my childhood life with a friend, I began telling him about praying for family members and pets at the age of eight. It was at that time that I began to understand that I had a relationship with God much earlier than I thought. So I guess my answer would be I don't know when I became a Christian. It appears at an early age. I know that in my early 30s I prayed the prayer of repentance and asked Jesus into my life and was baptised by immersion. It was all pretty much a conformation of what I had already knew to be true. It was more of a public confession of what had been in my heart for many years.

When did I get my first bible and who gave it to me?

I don't remember who gave me my first bible. The first bible I can remember given to me was from Dottie. That bible inspired me to learn more about God, Jesus, and Holy Spirit. It was probably the first bible I read cover to cover. It was the American Standard verison. I still have it and after 20 years and most likely will have it until I die. I don't use it much now as I do most of my reading and study on the computer. The Bible has brought me to a place of no turning back. It's only forward to eternal life and glory with Jesus.