Its More then just meeting people.

[Lakota Wolf]

Its interesting to meet people from all walks of life, young and old.

I have been fortunate enough to have met several well known people.

Now most people think,, Did you run up and ask for an autograph? What were they like? and so on. Ive met many many people in my travels, in RV parks, roadside parks, rest areas,and even Walmart. 99% are just regular common folk out for adventure and was raised in an era where conversation consisted more then a text or email. A firm handshake sealed a deal or agreement, where a mans word was stronger then any piece of paper. Along my travels over the years, and while serving in the Military, followed by working for a communications company, I have met some very unique people, other then us regular folks.  Friends will say wow,, you met famous people. Its not them being famous, but I was in the right place at the right time and just met people who have their name up in lights. They put their pants on the same way we do, yes they drink day old coffee from 7/11. Each one of these people are as unique as each of us. Some have attitude some dont, Woody Harrlison for example, had to sign a release form for the company I was contracted with to bury a fiber optic cable across his front yard near the road. His personal assistant came out expecting to sign the form and I said, No, it has to be the home owner, as stated in the contract form.He got all huffy and went and got Mr. Harrilson. Mr. Harrilson came out with a serious attitude and grabbed the clip board with the form on it and signed it and tossed it back at me and it fell to the ground. He then asked,, I suppose you want a &$%#@ autograph? I said, no,,I dont just give MY autograph to just anyone.especially A-Holes like you. He said excuse me? who the *^%$# are you? And I replied in my Attitude tone of voice,,  I can control what you watch and when you watch it. I control whether or not you can even watch the sports channel. I officially OWN your entertainment, I posses a tool that controls your entertainment life.

Sir,, I AM, the cable guy, and maybe, just maybe, I will give you MY autograph, if you appologize for your disrespect to me. He leaned down and picked up the clip board and handed it to me and applogized, and said, your an Onry lil cuss arent you? And replied, Im just little ole me, and I will not tolerate being treated like a step child or someone you think is below you in status.He smiled and invited me up to the gazebo for some ice water. All in all, hes an ok guy, but fame and fortune brings out the worst in people at times. Out of all the *so called famous people I have met,,, the best group of people I put on the top of my list, are, Just plain ole folks. The kind of people who growing up, worked the nastiest worst jobs, and worked their way up the labor ladder, getting better jobs along the way. The kind of people who after grinding through the work day, come home and had a loving family to make even the worst day better.The kind of folks who didnt have everything,, But we worked hard to keep a roof over our heads, food on the table and clothes on our backs. The kind of folks who couldnt afford a new car every year, so we just babied and crippled the cars we had till we got another.Life wasnt easy,, But it wasnt really that hard, because we had family values growing up. If we couldnt afford to go some place fancy,, we would do something else to amuse ourselves, which made us stronger as a family, and taught us, Life really does suck, But dont make it sukier complaining about it. We went out and added an extra 10% effort, and things got a little easier. Hard work and morals and respect was far greater then all the wealth in the world. And as you get older,, you slow down and realize,, you dont need to stay on that gerbil wheel spinning no-where. Its time to relax, Reap your rewards from hard work,, may it be a large sum or a small sum,,, its all the same. Life is as simple as you want it to be.

Coming back to the moral,,,, meeting older folks, who have been there, done that, got the coffee cup and T shirt. Sitting around a fire pit on a quiet summer evening, watching the fireflies, or lightning bugs flutter around, and learning of their adventures and aquantences. Listening to old Vets talk bout Dubbya Dubbya 2  and how they met their better half.. Or an old trucker who has a billion miles under him, when he drove on roads before they was roads. Everyone had a different job, and no job was better or worse then the next.. Its what we did, and we put in our 100%. To me,,, meeting like minded folks IS like meeting someone famous,, (they are famous to someone, right?)

And as we get older,(seriously,, some of us are old as dirt), want to pass on what we know to our children,(and those who dont have children, maybe a young mind). To instill the knowledge that life isnt handed to you on a platter. What you put into something, karma returns that 10 fold. We buy an old delapitated RV, dump tons of money into it,, we bust knuckles, sweat buckets and learn new cuss words along the way. After a long drawn out effort, (sometimes years), we complete our Hobby project. We took pride in building something with our own hands. The neighbors think your nuts and just shake their heads at you, Your kids and grand kids sometimes think you have lost it up stairs... But when its done,, they realize what you were doing,, and then think differently. Of course there is still that one neighbor, (everyone has one of those), who thinks you just polished a turd, there fore its still a turd. But you finished it,, used it a few times,, but age has caught up with you and you can no longer enjoy the fruits of your labor. Then and only then, You hope that some where along the way, some one was rooting for you,, and refuses to let your Dream just fade away.. They take that ole rig,, give it a bath and take it down the road someplace,, and even if your not phisically there,, your sitting in the seat enjoying the ride.  And when its your kids turn to keep the ole gal going,,, they will someday be visiting someone new and bring up the stories you passed on to them, starting the cycle  of campfire lore all over again. So just dont build a project for yourself,, build it to pass down.As long as the flame keeps burning the candle will never go out.