My First Speech

                        I have rather negligent my blog along with other things in my life . I need to start paying more attention to the things that I have going on .  I still have not finished my boat ,let alone caught a fish . I have bought all kinds of fishing gear and books , but still no fish . Neither have done much more on my wood burning , have a few projects started that I need to complete . However I have given my first speech , I had gotten a good review for that .
                      I am finding that the Toastmasters club at my job is added benefit , one I am finding I am enjoying the meetings ,two I found that I am take my work in it very serious ,but lastly I am meeting other people in the casino other than those I work with. When I gave my speech I didn't even use my notes , I had them with me at the podium , did not turn a page .  The following are the notes I didn't use .

                         I have thought long and hard about what I would talk about today ,and were many false starts and rough drafts . Like the book said I should talk about a subject I know well, ME . So here going to talk about some of my adventures. They all started with me saying the word Never .
                       It started with me working at chain restaurant that had opened a new location here in Battle Creek almost forty years ago . I was young , inexperienced , not to mention a bit hard headed . On this day I left work determined that I could not take it anymore . My Mother was waiting outside to take me home , not knowing I was going to ask her something she and my dad were waiting to hear . I got in the car and asked her to take me to the recruiter . Instead of heading home she right then took me there . By the end of my visit with the Air Force recruiter, I had signed papers committing myself to go through the enlistment process. During this whole time she didn't ask me once why this sudden decision . On the ride home I finally said it . I WILL NEVER WORK IN ANTHER RESTAURANT AGAIN!  And with that I began my journey through my life.
                       And with that I found myself at the AFEE's station in Detroit on a cold winters night in December . The night before before I went basic training a group of decided we would go to the movies . Of all movies that was playing it was The Texas Chainsaw Massacre .
                        The following mourning we were on a plane on our way to San Antonio Texas . I made through basic training easy enough . Then came time to go on with my military career . The Air Force decided to load me on a bus to go to anther school . They decided I needed more training in building trades . I had already went though three years of it in high school and ceta . 
                         Here I am on a bus ,on one of those long hi-ways in Texas that yo hear about in country songs. We were riding along I noticed we were chasing this tree down the hi-way . I seemed that the tree was winning . We chased that tree for what seemed like hours . When we finally caught up with the tree , I found myself looking for the guy in a mask with a chainsaw jumping out from the tree. Imagine that the whole time I was in Texas ,I did not once Think about that movie until we caught up with this single tree .
                         I finished tech school in Wichita Falls Texas , and found myself California Dreaming .I got orders to a base near where the they had just filmed American Graffiti , Castle Air force base near Merced .
                         At this base I fond myself DJing Disco at the clubs on base . WE put on a show, behind the turntables we had large gong , to the side of us we mounted a cow bell , we had some smoke machines , the usual lights hooked up to a sequential computer and puppet , god awful green dragon with matching boa . The puppet came out every time we played a Donna Summer song . All the lights were on the dragon . Yes I guess I had A Little to much fun , after a year I found myself on the way to headquarters base in West Germany , Ramstien .
                      While I was there I made the best of my stay . I travelled around the country a lot . There were the wine fests , the beer tents , the volks marches , all the music festivals I went to . The most memorable times I had was driving along the Rhine River .I had a Toyota Land cruiser . We would on a nice spring day loaded up in the cruiser with the top and doors off , the windshield folded down on a sunny Sunday . With villages along the river ,Castles on the hills ,grape vines up and the hills , the cool spring breeze blowing,and the sun up high .Everything was so right and the colors were so vivid . It was always an enjoyable ride. Each time we always spotted something we hadn't seen .
                         I was loving it in Germany ,but as with all things my stay came to and end . I came home and found myself on the way to Florida , as a civilian . I worked in a lot of different jobs . Built cabin cruisers , fabricated aluminum tub enclosers built and repaired signs , finished concrete . But the one thing I found in Florida is that I could not get serious about work or career . To me it felt like a vacation all the time . It was to easy to just chuck it and go to the beach .
                        I found myself on my way back home to Michigan , but I made a stop to visit my brother in Charlotte NC . Well that visit lasted better than twenty years .I wound up hanging marble on a new tower for the hospital there . On this one day we were hanging A large stone stone on the entry way of the tower . we were about 30' up on the scaffolding and chainfalled the stone up to put it in place . We got it up there , all we had to do was lift it a quarter inch or so to set it in place .
                        Well we were almost there , and my partner let the stone slip. It dropped about six foot pulling me with it . Luckily enough i had all my safety harnesses on and hooked up . Once I got back on the scaffolding , I climbed a little angry and walked over to my car . I then drove to the nearest fast food restaurant and got me a job dropping french fries . I have been in food service ever since and that was over twenty years .
                          It was not long before my mother got a smile on her face and said remember when you said never . She reminded me of this often . Here's the big question , is never a good thing to say or a bad thing . On one hand I would have never been to or done things I have ,if I had not said Never.


             This was my notes I had to give my speech , I had them in front of me and not once used them .