User Profile

I am a single male person located in Arizona, whose occupation currently consists of some mixture of tending a small arty store and looking elsewhere. "Elsewhere" currently is an elemetary school, where I am a classroom-assisting volunteer who is involved in helping students who are not doing so well in their lessons. The small arty store was a family business, but the situation has deteriorated over some years in several ways, all to the worse.

That enterprise, founded by my parents, had started out roughly but became vibrant at a time when the city was not what it now is, the culture was not what it now is, people's interests were not what they now are, and when 2 sufficiently able people and their children ran or otherwise occupied the comparatively ample real estate. Because the home and the employment were at the same locale, it created the somewhat unusual situation [although perhaps not that unusual in Arizona at that time] of having both parents in the home at virtually all times. That is in stark contrast to today, wherein it is hard to find even one parent in the home at all times, due to, if not a broken marriage, then due to the demands of the current economy, in which it is very hard to get by any more without 2 incomes. The parents were thrifty and resourceful by background and also by necessity. There being few regulations in the area at that time, there was no one to sue over the condition of the decrepit building, but not to worry: my father was very resourceful with tools, and the family did a lot of work on the place. The lifestyle resembled that in a more rural, ranchlike existence. (Come to think of it, the area in those days was rural and ranchlike; horses used to be ridden from time to time along the street in front; there were dude ranches in considerable number in those days. as well as other small businesses in the area.) What to do with the children? No problem: there was plenty for us to do on the relatively ample property; also there were neighbor children who came over and occupied a great deal of time. Also, I especially was not one who required, or even enjoyed, a lot of time in front of a TV screen.

I myself did not spend my entire development there: I graduated from college. My father questioned the necessity of that, but I think subsequent developments have proven the wisdom of doing so. I ended up employed doing laboratory work at the university, which payed decently while it lasted, but I was forced by personal circumstances to quit and return to the family business. Right about that time things at the family establishment started falling apart, although I did not perceive their full significance at the time (not that I could have done much about it in any case): 2 things particularly: my sister then moved out for a new life. Shortly thereafter my father passed away.

The history from that point forward, greatly condensed, is that things underwent a multifaceted long-term decline. The business situation deteriorated greatly due to many changing circumstances. My mother's health also deteriorated until she passed away.

By that time the business was no longer viable, because many former customers acquainted with my parents were no longer in this world (and for many other hard economic reasons too) or no longer came around because my mother and sister were gone. And it became all the clearer to me that property lay empty of children. Why would that occur to me? Because it just seemed that the property was made for children, that it was of such nature that it ought to have children -- it is the kind of place where children would hang out if they had access, but it did not have any. (For that matter, the immediate neighborhood also seemed to be childless, although that would later prove to be not correct if we are talking about a somewhat larger region).

The family that once ran this establishment was all gone except me. I found myself the captain of a sunk ship.

Having no good idea what to do, I started looking at options. I started applying for jobs -- unsuccessfully. I went to the community college and took some exploratory courses. I took a business planning course, which was very instructive but unfortunately was unable to yield any information suggesting that resurrecting the business was desirable or even feasible. I went onto the Internet and learned of volunteer opportunities, and here found that which extended from my college exploratory courses, namely, teaching. Having no background therein, but having a science degree, I did further exploration, and that is about where I am now. I have become a school volunteer, and am seeing where that goes.

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