Ron Gross:  

If you've seen my timeline, you know the story about where and when I attended school, but not why. So, here¿s the rest of the story. Life in Whippany was great for the most part, with good friends -- some of whom I still have to this day. However, near the time I graduated from middle school, my annual asthma attacks due to hay fever were keeping me from the first few weeks of school each year, and causing my parents much concern about my ability to breathe. Allergy shots didn't help much, so the doctors said for relief we should move to a dry climate like Phoenix. Therefore, in 1968, after just 1 year as a freshman in Whippany Park HS, we left NJ and headed west. In Phoenix, I found the promised relief from allergies. I also found Camelback High had new opportunities for me -- I became involved with the Civil Air Patrol and the school's concert/marching band (where we made a vinyl record!), and was introduced to electronics engineering by a great teacher. But Phoenix was too hot for my sister, who fainted several times while running outdoors during PE class. As the end of 1968 approached, I traveled with the marching band to play a half-time show at the Chargers/Chiefs game in San Diego (which the Chiefs won). I liked the cooler air there and didn't have any negative allergic reactions. With that influence and after a summer visit to the San Diego region, my family moved to Chula Vista, CA, a 'bedroom' community of San Diego, in late 1969. Hilltop High in CV was my third and final high school. I continued playing clarinet and my membership with the Civil Air Patrol through my 1.5 years at Hilltop and my 2 years at Southwestern College. In 1973, I started upper division courses at San Diego State University for a BS degree in electrical engineering. I made some more friends and enjoyed the great college! But wait, my family wasn't finished with moving me around yet! After one year attending SDSU, my folks decided to leave Chula Vista and retire to Santa Barbara. But I was only three fourths through college. Fortunately, UCSB was nearby with an excellent colleg...Expand for more