Gary Huddleston:  

Life After January graduation, I went to work for Rand McNally's but stayed there only about a month and joined the Air Force. I was discharged on a medical disabilty while still in Basic. I came back home after a few months and worked for an hydraulic cylinder company , quit there and went to Purdue Cal Camp in the summer of 67 through spring of '68. I went to work in the summer of '68 in Chicago, for a publishing company as receivable clerk, then to the First National Bank of Chicago for 3 years. I met my first wife Susan, my daughter's mother (Chauni). Chauni was born in 73. I was divorced in June of 76. I met my second wife Pat late in '76 and she and I lived together for a year before getting married. I hopped from job to job in the 70's Most of the time I did clerical accounting work but did such things as pumping gas, digging graves and for a while worked on a drill rig for a soil test service company. After that, I went back into clerical positions as a buyer and then when that company sold to a British firm, went to work as a pressman in a small printing company. In 1980 I joined the McDonald's management team and eventually became a store manager in Lansing. I quit there in early '85 and went to work for a new Domino's Pizza franchise in Lansing. In the summer of '85, I came to the Dallas area to interview for a McDonald's franchise owner and was hired by that owner with 3 stores in Irving. Pat and I divorced in 89, shortly after my mother died. After my dad died less than a year later, my store manager convinced me to take a few classes at the junior college. That is when I got hooked on art. In two years, along with my credits transfered from Purdue, I had an associates degree and started going to UT (Arlington) It took another 4 years to complete my studies there. During that time, about a year after my second divorce, I met the mother of one of my employees, went on a few dates, had an up and down relationship and was again married in '92, and was divorced again in '95. Pretty much, I have been on my own since then. I left McDonald's for good after I graduated. I worked for a home owners association for two years before I took a job as an accounts payable clerk for the Westin Hotel in Dallas. I did that for 6 years and a year ago I took on a postion as purchasing manager for the hotel food and beverage department. Just this week (May 06) I start back in accounting at a Sheraton in Dallas. I left there in late November of 2006 and have been looking for work ever since.In March of 07 I went to work for Kroger as a deli manager, worked there a year and then got back into hotel accounting at an Embassy suites in Frisco Texas. It is now almost December 09 and will rpobably stay there until I retire. I am on face book if anyone is interested if you would like to see some of my paintings. I haven't posted any of my pottery work there, mainly because I did most of it in school and have given most of it away, the rest I am keeping for my home decor. Now I paint a little and practice on a cello, viola, violin, an assortment of flutes, trumpet and not least, I still play guitar and sing a little. I enjoy going to art festivals, flea markets and the renaissance festival when it is here. I also love to travel and have been almost around the world. As far east as Pakistan, as far going west as Hong Kong and as far south as Rio de Janeiro. I would like to retire to either of Mexico, Guatemala or Brazil where I can live on Soc Sec and spend the rest of my life painting and relaxing in the warm evening breezes with a cool drink listening to the rythyms of the bosa nova. Anyone want to join me? School I thought at the time that Mr. Robinson was my biggest influence at High School. All of my dreams and aspirations were to continue on to college to become a high school band instructor. I would have been better prepared for life had I taken machine shop, plumbing, or electric. Although I received good grades, I really didn't have to work at them. I was as lazy then as I am now. I don't know how it came about, but I got in trouble with Mr. Robinson one semester when I got the pep band to perform at the Goldblatt's store. I guess someone complained, although I know it was not one of our group. I ran for a class office one year and had the pep band performing down the halls one morning, now that was loud. I also did a drawing of Marmaduke and had it hanging in the cafeteria. I think that the age of instant gratification came during the period we we...Expand for more