I’m not really sure when it happened. In fact, as a self-proclaimed procrastinator, I’m quite sure it has been a handful of years since I first played with the notion of trying to write short stories about some of my life’s experiences. Understand, I am not a writer. I’m a high school dropout, and don’t claim to have any exceptional use of the English language. In fact, other than a couple of random junior college courses, taken years apart, I haven’t had a challenging load of classes in over 36 years. I used to like to think that it wasn’t so much that I wasn’t intelligent, more that my short attention span made school boring to me. Ironically, the older, wiser, I get, the more I actually doubt my intelligence. But, intelligent or not, over the years I have often found myself recounting stories; true stories, of experiences I have had in my lifetime.
Many of these “situations” were adventures I embarked upon; some were things that just happened to me by chance; and in hindsight it turns out, many were the direct result of a series of bad decisions. Or, worse, complete indecision. Some are wild, some are coincidental, some are funny, some are just plain stupid. And so at some point, I thought that perhaps it might be a good exercise to record some of them in a medium other than the occasional spoken word with friends. If not for literary prize, than at least for mild amusement. Besides, if it hasn’t happened yet, I will eventually forget some of the details.
It’s not that I think I have had a truly exceptional life, or that I feel I am truly special. Don’t get me wrong; I am generally happy. I am married to a wonderful woman, and have four amazing children. And, I have had some amazing, almost unbelievable adventures. It’s just that I have come to the conclusion that, if an average person like myself has had wild experiences like I have, that must mean that everyone has plenty of exciting things that happen in their life. My stories are probably not much different from stuff that most people experience. But, they are mine, and they are true. And, sometimes, I’ve been told, entertaining.
And So, after much consideration, I made a list of some of the more exciting recollections. And, in doing so, discovered that most of them fall into one of a few different categories, each one representing a segment of my life:
* Juvenile delinquency (yes, somewhere between being a solid ‘B’ 8th grader and quitting school to work full-time at 15 years old, I had some dark times)
* Extreme recreational partying (mostly after 15 and mostly before about 30)
* Aviation related (this might sound like a contradiction, but I have always been obsessed with anything that can fly, and became a licensed private pilot when I was 21)
* Family (married at 29; first child at 38; #2, 3 & 4 all at once at 42)
* Music related (I play the guitar, and have been playing bass in rock bands my entire adult life)
I’m not sure which category I enjoy writing about most. I am sure that there are a lot of things I have done that I’m not proud of (most will fall in the first two categories). Ironically, sometimes those are the moments that make the most memorable stories. In fact, the more I write, the more evident my (former, I’d like to think) stupidity becomes. That is why I chose to call this blog “Modest Misadventures”. Believe me, as a father I cringe at the thought of any of my children doing half of the stupid, crazy things I have done.
I think I am writing as much to practice, and learn how to write, as much as for entertainment value. And so, if anyone is actually reading this, please try not to judge too harshly (especially when reading the delinquency stories). You will be glad to know that I have (kind of) grown up, and even feel like I have learned to make reasonably responsible choices. Maybe there is hope for me…
modestmisadventures 