Thomas Rankine:  

High school was great. After graduation I followed my girlfriend Janice to Wildwood, NJ where I became a lifeguard on the beach. 1965 lifeguards had big chairs and no shade. My hair turned blonde and my skin got dark brown. Janice made the cover of Philadelphia Magazine for an article they were doing about Wildwood. Inside there was a picture of me on the stand with my cowboy hat on. I had such a good time I went back the following year. There are some things I regret not doing and one of those is following up with the lifeguarding on the beach. Eventually I got a job at the Barefoot Mailman taking care of the Beach and Pool. It was great. I stayed there 4 years. I would have stayed longer except my mother started to call me a beach bum. I didn't mind the name calling but I decided to get a"real job". Whatever that was. I now know that physical labor and I don't get along too good. I tried working in a Glass Tempering Plant, fabricating and tempering glass. There were aspects of it I e...Expand for more