Stories - FD Thornton

As some of you may know I'm two months away from my graduation. An event that I find myself quite calm about, other than being ready to get it thing over with already. Today I found myself listening to a live streaming webcast about higher education and it's real value. So while I listened to the back and to banter it got me to thinking. What value have a gotten or I'm I going to get from my degree? My answer to that question goes well beyond the any monetary value I'll get from that piece of paper. And, to be honest that piece of paper is as valuable to me as my marriage license and my children's birth certificates. Because that piece of paper represents a commitment I made to myself to finish my program. Just as those other pieces paper represent my commitment to my bride and to our love and to our family.  I know that may sound a bit heavy, but proving to myself that I can finish this, is as earth changing to me as the days I signed and committed to those other...

I was sitting on my porch Saturday just rocking away in one of the rocking chairs out there. It was the afternoon but it wasn't too hot. The sky was cloudless and a slight breeze was blowing. It was a good day to be in the rocking chair. As I sat there with a bowl of tobacco and a cool drink, my mind thought over my situation. And, how for the last two years, I've felt both stagnate and flowing.  I let that thought only stay in my mind for a moment. Then went back to the steady rocking of the chair. I closed my eyes for a bit and, almost like a mantra, I let the rocking clear my thoughts and just be in the moment.  I wonder sometimes how others who I know or just observe get through a day. I say this because I see them literally running everyday. They are either running to work or running home or running to play. Always running, always moving. Yet I sit here thinking about them and wondering. Why? Despite my appearance and most peoples ill-thought out opinions. Many feel...

My wife and I have four kids. Well you can't technically call them kids because they are between the ages of 25 - 20. So I'll say, we have four young adult "children". Well for a while now a lot of people, including me, thought that this generation was "spoiled". Meaning they grew up with a lot more stuff then any generation before.  What I didn't take into account was the great recession of 2008 and beyond. You see, since my oldest and some of yours to, have graduated high school and now college. This generation is going through a harder recession and job search then I went though when I graduated high school in 1980. To call an average kid today a "spoiled kid" is real dis-service to these kids. The national unemployment rate for youth (16-24) is at 17.1% as of July 2012 (per government statistics). When I was a teenager getting an after school job meant extra pocket money for dates. Today is helping to support the family to just pay bill...

As some may know, I have good and bad days. On the good days I'm ready to "hit the ground running" and take on whatever challenge I have to face. Then their are the bad days where I'm doing good to pull my head out of from under the covers. This may not the best response to give especially when courting employers, but it's an honest one. So if your an employer who wants only one-sided people who bounce off the walls, then maybe it's best we don't work together.  That said, when the bad days do come it usually means I require putting forth extra focus and extra effort to do what I have to do. A good example is a few weeks ago I had an assignment to do and needless to say it was during a bad day. Well I sat in front of my monitor for a while thinking, "I really don't want to do this". But as usual I pushed myself to complete the assignment. During the following week I wasn't looking forward to my grade on that paper. But to my surprise, t...

As you pursue a your dreams, like I am to create a career, you run across patches were you wonder if your on the right path. Well over the last few months that's what I have been wondering. I mean put yourself in my situation, I'm nearly 50, just finishing my first bachelor's degree, and going into a new career field. So if I wonder if I'm doing the right thing, I think I'm justified in having those thoughts. Well today I go a little ego boost. The boost came from of all places a textbook. It's our first week in a new class so I was reading the text for the week. What I found in it was a full blown description of the job I want to get into. Then it went on to describe some of the personal traits that are best to have at that job. Nearly every quality the book described I have in my own life and have used in my professional life. Needless to say, I felt pretty good after reading that. I guess my whole point in writing any of this is to tell others to first l...

Politics & Religion are two subjects I don't usually touch in my posts. It's not that I don't have a point of view, it's just that I find when speaking to groups of people; these two subjects can be very polarizing and blind some from the message your wanting to send. That said I wanted to touch on something that has really been a crawl under my skin for a long, long time. First off I will admit I am a person of faith with a very strong belief system that I keep very private. For some right now that may be a problem, but that is not the subject at hand, just some background. I grew up in a home with a strong dominating religious ideal. An ideal that is shared by many in my family and by my old friends. I must admit that my belief system has grown apart from some of the truths that many of the people I know hold so dear. This a another fact I don't often share. That said, I think of myself as an optimist. As I have achieved goals over the past number of years...

Lately all I can think about is a job. When I get up in the morning, when I go to sleep, even when I dream, I'm thinking about who to sent a resume to next. So far my track record isn't very good, of all the resumes, applications, and cover letters I have sent, I've only gotten a few replies for more information, one interview. And one half interview were I was the only one who showed up. As much as I'd hate to admit, this does take a toll on the ego, wallet, and lifestyle. Not that we lived like kings mind you, but it was nice to take your wife out every so often.    Right now the things around the house are wearing a bit thin. Things like towels, clothes, teeth, all are in need of repair. I do thank God that no one has had to go to the doctor, my medicine cost enough as it is. So at this point I would work for food, if someone was hiring. Sometimes my mind wonders if I hadn't gone back to school, would I been able to find work? I mean my values wouldn't have...

Over the last three or so classes I've been taking courses with pretty much the same group of people. All of whom are either in my concentration or real close to it. So for the first time since my associate studies I've kinda of gotten to know my classmates. A few of my classmates have commented to me that my fellow employees and employer must be glad to have you on their team. Because of my grasp of business analysis. I think I've surprised them by telling them that I have been out of work for nearly two years and that so far not one employer with an opening in business analysis has even given me an interview. Two of my classmates have even told me of openings within their own organizations that need filling, which I'd be glad to look at only if they were not across the country from me. You get a little frustrated when you see so many job openings that I know are not being filled. Yet it appears none of these businesses are willing to look at your application. I sit ...