Feeling quite nostalgic this evening…

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what’s gone into my life. Nothing prepared me for what has become my life.

I was supposed to be the guy that got married, settled down, had 2 or 3 kids. I suspected that I would become some sort of technical genius. I was a geek thru and thru, but alas genius I am not.

I really enjoyed swimming, became a lifeguard and swimming instructor and after several years, I was sought out to teach First Aid and Lifesaving Courses. For several years, there wasn’t a lifeguard in Lambton County that I hadn’t taught, or examined or recertified at either the new YMCA in Sarnia, or in Moore Sports Complex in Mooretown. It was a lifestyle that I enjoyed greatly. I miss it so much, but as many know, it’s tough to make a living doing that – some do, but the life I wanted also saw me not working until I retired.

Somewhere in there, I was trying to form my identity. Was I destined to stay in Recreation? I thought so. I graduated in the very first class at Lambton College in “Sports Facilities & Recreation Administration” which most of us just shortened to Sports Management. After applying at several hundred jobs leading up to and after graduation, I ended up working at the YMCA which had just opened a new facility in Sarnia. I stayed there for 2 years, but after working for 2 years at minimum wage (back then – just over $8.00/hr) I decided it was time to grow up and move on to something else.