Wyatt Goodwin:  

You knew me as Wyatt, the tallest (6'7"), skinny kid in school. But growing up with that name was tough. Remember the Moron jokes? One of them was, 'Why did the Moron put a bucket in front of the TV? Answer: so he could watch Wyatt Earp.' So, for the last 46 years I've been known as "Tex"; because I wear Western Clothes and a Cowboy Hat. After High School I sought employment in the Oil Fields, literally going out to a Rig and approaching the Supervisor. Before I could say anything, he looked up and said, "Are you looking for work, Tex?" I said in a slow drawl, "Yup". So he hired me, right on the spot. He said, "What's your name?" I said "Tex"; he didn't know he had just renamed me and the look on his face; you could have knocked him over with a feather. The job in the Oil Fields didn't last long(Thank God), but it eventually led me into the Heavy Equipment Business, both Industrial and Agricultural. Over a period of 20 years I wound up working for a Manufacturer in Houston, while I lived in Portland, Oregon and covered all 50 states and 7, Provinces of Canada. Since we had an old, Hunting & Fishing Lodge, built from hand-hewn logs on the Sandy River, near Portland, I wasn't anxious to move to Houston, Texas to take the job. So I explained to my new employer that we had a perfectly good Airport in Portland. That job was to cover the whole country and where I lived should be of no consequence. So I told them I could fly out of Portland just as well as Houston. Thank goodness they went along with it, because even though I go by "Tex", I didn't want to move to Texas. Going there, to the office, once a month was plenty for me (Too much humidity). As a result, I have already done all the Traveling I will ever want to do. Gratefully, I got that out of my system before 9-11; with all the resultant security and long lines nowadays. I would not want to travel that much, now. I flew so much, as it was, I knew most of Flight attendents on a first name basis. I enjoyed it, at the time, and had the opportunity to spend quite a bit of time in each state. Let me just say, all States are not created equal. Somewhere in the middle of being in the Machinery Business, I wound up writing & producing Radio & TV Commercials. It was as much entertainment for me as it was a money making venture. At the time I was covering the Northwest in the Heavy Equipment busines...Expand for more