Richard Carlson:
CLASS OF 1974
Richardson High SchoolClass of 1974
Richardson, TX
Richard's Story
The journey is probably more important than where you are now. I have been married for 10 years for the second time (this one should last!). I married a good Norweigan girl this time. Actually Denise was born in Chicago IL which is not far from Racine WI where I was born. Must be the Midwestern roots which is where my family moved from to Dallas in 1966 when I was 11 years old (4th grade I believe).
Back to Houston where I was teaching Sunday School at a Lutheran church and my wife's daughter Emily was in the class with my youngest son Bryan. Emily was well behaved (but quite a character), her mom was single and the rest is history. We both had two children (Brady Bunch syndrome), loved kids, grew up in the Lutheran church and have been raising those kids including recently putting them through college ever since.
My oldest Tyler graduated from Texas Tech in December and just got a job in July as a computer programmer here in Houston (a hurray for $60 a barrel oil!). My youngest Bryan is a senior at Texas Tech majoring in Chemistry. He will probably go to graduate school rather than go to work when he graduates next May.
My stepdaughter Emily is majoring in Elementary Education and has 3 semesters to go at Stephen F Austin. Lastly, my stepson, Jeremy, starts at Texas Tech in August in the architecture program which takes 6 years. I wonder why I am broke, any ideas?
Now I did go to "The University" of Texas at Austin after Richardson HS and graduated in 1978 with a degree in Accounting. At that time the Big 8 were after the good students (yeah ... I guess I studied a lot, or at least enough to do well). I could have gone back to Dallas with Price Waterhouse but chose Houston whose economy was booming at the time and where more importantly my parents weren't. Doesn't that tell you something about me?
Got married the first time at age 27 to a girl I met in New Orleans (a great place to fall in love) who also worked for Price Waterhouse. Did I mention my current wife is also an accountant. When I graduated from college, I swore I would never date an accountant and I ended up marrying two! Any...Expand for more
way, after two kids and 10 years we parted company. For the next 5 years I was a single dad, had the boys for 5 days each week (yes, I was paid child support) and handled the homework battles as the boys progressed through elementary and middle school.
I left Price Waterhouse after 4 1/2 years, worked for an independent oil company for 1 1/2 years, a local CPA firm for another 6 years doing audit and tax work then the last 18 years (since 1991) as the CFO for a privately held mortgage company which finances apartment projects using HUD insured mortgages (which means we are still in business in these tough economic times).
As the boys grew up, I coached them in YMCA soccer, baseball and flag football. This eventually led to Scouting where I served as Cubmaster and Scoutmaster as they both progressed to the Eagle Scout rank. I must have spent over 5 months of nights camping with their boy scout troops (naturally the youngest couldn't be in the same troop as his older brother, not competitive at all). The "Now" picture of me was taken at 11,002 feet on a 7 day Scout trek though Tyler and I carried 50 pounds on our backs to the 11,700 feet summit of Mount Phillips at Philmont Scout Ranch.
As you might guess, I love to push myself physically. My typical exercise schedule is tennis Tue, Thu & Fri with 20 mile bike rides Sat & Sun. I love to eat food so this keeps me in reasonable physical shape (God I used to be skinny, I do have a little stomach now, but not too bad)
I have been really into music the last two years. I started by recording my old record albums then started borrowing friends' vinyl. Have quite a music collection now which I listen to in the car using my IPOD on my hour commute during the work week. And no Barry Manilow is not my favorite artist. I am presently listening to some Yes as I write this so called story. At least I didn't post the picture of me with black rimmed glasses wearing a paisley shirt proudly displaying my new Texas Instruments calculator to this website. Of course you all certainly don't possess any embarrassing pictures from your youth, right!
Richard
July 2009
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