User:ThoHug/sandbox

I am this late thirties (as of now), single father of two, balding, born and bread Kentuckian who loves to wiki-crawl. From time to time I see small things that need to be changed like spelling or rewording something, and sometimes when I feel brave I will update an article adding sections and/or modifying them. Oh, and I'm an only child, so expect that kinda attitude from me. Also, I have no idea why I started this out on such a downer. WTF?!?!

Divorce
First and foremost, please don't divorce. That is why I'm a single father. Hey, I have our children, and I am so thankful for that, but she left me over medical issues and did not wish to find solutions to our marriage at the time. It wasn't a pretty divorce and we still have the hardest time communicating, but it is what it is. Divorce kills children, so remember that divorce isn't just about you. It's about the whole family. Divorce is NEVER about two people deciding to leave the marriage. It's always one's wishes. Maybe the other's wishes were close enough to the point that they decided that it would be best, but no, in the end it is not and you will walk away with regret.

Remember the time you got married and your reasons then. Love was the deep part of it. So many times this is forgotten over the petty things in life like money or fear. Love should conquer these w/o issues. I have been a d/j for many wedding receptions and it shocks me how often marriages fall apart even w/in just a year.

Okay, off my high horse.

Family helps
I may be an only child, but I do have family support, even those who are not blood family. All that is left in my blood family that is close to me is my mother. My father is dead as are both my grandparents. Aunts and uncles live far away and they are starting to leave this world as well. The closest family I have are actually 2nd cousins and 1st cousins once removed which are an hour away.

What helps me here is not only my mother but more so the friends we have here. It has taken me a long time to start to put down roots here after the divorce, but I have a social structure here that helps greatly. My mom's friends were always here and they help, but my friends are what help the most. Social structures are what make life worth it sometimes, don't they?

Education
Not exactly an interest. I got my degree in Computer Science after my divorce from WKU. When I started in college in 1995 I was headed for a CS degree. I was doing this bcz of what ppl were telling me. They said that I needed a job that made money and was secure and that a CS degree would put me in this direction. Ppl told me, so I did this. I was told that I should also rush and I ended up becoming a SigEp. Again, this is what ppl wanted for me. The whole thing came to a crashing halt when I was in my second year, though.

In 1996 my father died and with that I lost my closest friend. He was both a driving force for me and I shared everything about myself with him. Losing him was a killer to me. With that, I thought to myself that life wasn't all about money and doing what others thought I should do. Life was about being somewhat a free spirit and doing what you can before your ship sets sail from this world.

So with that, I left my degree and headed over to music which was another passion of mine. I could sing and kinda play cello. Mind you, I sucked at it, and I know this bothered others in the department, but they couldn't exactly tell me to leave. I left school for a while in order to provide for my family, but when I returned I was able to secure a degree with a major in Computer Science and a minor in Music.

Jobs
I can't count the number of jobs I have had in my life. A brief overview of the types of jobs I have had include: Too many. I am shocked, if you want to know the truth, that I got a career job due to how my job history looks, but I finally ended up with a great job doing database administration for an electric company. Unfortunately, database work is the least thing I do. My main job is coding which I royally hate, but I actually enjoy my job. I especially love the fact that I earn enough to support my children and me. To go from just scraping by to actually have a somewhat comfortable house is a blessing in itself.
 * Life Guarding
 * IT
 * Student Secretary
 * Outsourced work including Apple and Verizon Wireless
 * Restaurant work including Waiting Tables, Grill Chef, Hosting, Fast Food, plus countless others I cannot think of currently
 * Online work for Pokertracker