Den

Den was born in Pittsburgh, PA in 1948.  At that time, Pittsburgh was the “steel capital of the world” and everyone he knew worked either in the steel mills, coal mines, or with the railroads that supported commerce in the area. He enlisted in the USAF in his senior year of high school.  He first worked with B-52 bombers in North Dakota as an aircraft electrician before working on B-52s in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War.  Den's most powerful experiences came during his two years in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam War and the years I served at the end of my military career as a Squadron Commander.  Den later graduated with AA, AS and BA degrees in two years from Point Park University. Once he had his bachelor’s degree, Den obtained a commission with the Air National Guard and after 24 years retired as a Squadron Commander with the rank of Colonel. Den's military service was concurrent with his civilian employment which involved working in engineering and project management for large companies in railroading, data communications, and building electrical power plants.  In total, he had 55 years in engineering experience.

Advice is cheap, but there are things that should be passed on. You’ve probably seen men wearing the tee shirts saying, “I’m old and I know things”. There is truth there. When I was young, I thought I could do anything. Now that I am 77, I look at things with a different perspective. I had strength then but not the experiences that needed to be picked up over the years. Experiences are precious … even the toughest ones. After a combination of time and experience, you have wisdom. At least you hope you do.

First, travel as much as possible. Nothing will broaden you more than travel. You will learn more about another place in the first hour after arrival than you will taking a three-credit course on it. You will breathe the air, eat the food, hear the language, and see the people and learn one thing quickly; there are other people who do things differently than where you live. Observe what is around you and take every possible opportunity to travel and see more. I have been to every state, lived outside the USA for a little over three years, and traveled in 38 countries. The best thing is … I still want more. Always remain curious about the outside world. Second, never stop educating yourself. I know of so many people who thought they were “done” educating themselves after graduating from college. I have never felt that. I have attended seven different colleges and universities and have five degrees. In addition to that, I have years of formal in-residence schools in the military and have taken numerous courses in industry. I always have a project that I am working on that helps to continue educating me in new subjects. I am just as much at home reading a book on DNA as I am a science fiction novel on time travel or a book on trigonometry. I admit I am a bookworm, but if you don’t enjoy reading then listen to an audio book. I rarely drive a car without an audio book playing (I don’t like listening to commercials on the radio) and I have almost 300 books on my iPhone right now that cover any topic imaginable. Here's a bonus idea: If you enjoy writing, keep a journal. I have not missed a day of writing in my journal since 1977. I wrote in long hand in books until the computer came along. The computer made it a lot easier. You will be surprised how often you will look back on things. I know of very few people that do this, but to me it has been well worth the effort. Lastly, enjoy the trip. Dig into what you really enjoy doing even if others around you think otherwise. Have a hobby or two that you can study and learn from. In each area of interest, you will make new friends and find rewarding opportunities. They may even lead you to better full-time endeavors. Some hobbies will stay with you all your life whereas others will fall off along the way. This is okay. Learn from them as you go.