D. C. Donahue Books

The most important life lessons to learn are to say “Please” and “Thank You!” Be thankful, grateful, patient, charitable, kind, and smile, as it is infectious. Carpe Diem!

I attended St. Joseph’s University, taking night classes and earning about 21 credits before leaving for a life of learning. I never finished my Bachelor’s degree and really have no regrets. However, it didn’t stop my wife and me from carving out a pretty good life for ourselves. I had a good union job in the food industry. It paid a decent wage but, more importantly, offered a complete benefits package with a pension plan. Also, in the early years, they provided a vacation and Christmas club option, which helped me squirrel away money each week.

My wife and I married young, and she worked until our first child was born, about a year later. We were young, newlyweds in love, ready to take on the world together. We saved the money from our wedding instead of taking a lavish honeymoon, allowing us to buy our first home at 21. We were lucky, as interest rates on a home within a year rose from 5.9% to 16- 18%. So, it really paid off in the long run, making us look like geniuses.

This was in the mid-70s, a time that proved tumultuous in the job market and the world. Jimmy Carter, a Democratic nice guy whom I voted for at the time, a decision I regret to this day, was not a very good President. Interest rates were at their highest in history, the job market was tanking, gas prices were high, and the lines were long. I was grateful to have a Union Job in the Food Industry, as people have to eat. Along with utilities, it’s what we union workers call job security. Thank God Ronald Reagan ran and won, converting me to a lifelong Republican and getting our country back on track, both here at home and abroad. Say what you will, but the Stats and history don’t lie.

Everyone has to make their own decisions about a college education. Still, many will drop out, be on a 5-6-year plan because they change their electives, or never finish their degrees, and, even worse, never get jobs in those fields, owing thousands of dollars that will need to be repaid over many years of youthful family-rearing. Many of the most successful people at this time worked in the trades, e.g., Carpentry, Electrical, HVAC/AC, Plumbing, Construction, and the like. I remember one of the questions in the new hot game, Trivial Pursuit, asked: What does the average millionaire drive? The answer was a “Ford F150.”

My job allowed us to eke out a life in which my wife could be a stay-at-home mom for about 10 years, until our youngest entered kindergarten. She had a talent for sewing and earned some money by doing side work for a neighbor who ran his own dry-cleaning business and another neighbor who worked for an Interior Decorator. She also sold Aprons, Cabbage Patch clothes, and the like, earning extra income. As a footnote, neither one of us can see how a family starting out could do it today. However, anyone who gets a chance to go off to work and their significant other tends to run the house, children, cleaning, cooking, laundry, etc. It is the most critical job. It deserves much more credit and appreciation than it gets. Anyone running a single-parent household deserves a cash-paying award.

My wife went on to do very well in the job market once entering it. We have since both retired and are enjoying a pretty whole life with four grown kids, eight grandchildren, and two grand dogs. We managed to get away on a few nice trips and hopefully will do more of the same in the future. We also get to lend a hand when needed, spend time with family and friends, and, as Christmas and like proved, shop during the day and off-hours to beat the crowds, which I might add is pretty nice.

Point to Ponder: We Baby Boomers and Millennials were so indoctrinated by our parents and grandparents about the importance of advanced education, which, in their world, was more important because it created real opportunities in the job market. However, with advancements in Computers, Robotics, and AI, the market has shifted, with these technologies replacing needed manpower. Everyone views success differently. So, unless you’re at the top of your game in those fields of education, you may want to consider the job market that is in great need, as long as they build things – The Trades of Carpentry, Electrical, Mechanical, HVAC/AC, and Construction. Everyone has a talent; find yours, create a path, and remove the word “Can’t” from your dictionary. The only one who can stop you is YOU!