News about me

[[IFU]Warchief]

I am not ignoring requests to post pictures lets just say I break every camera they use on me and then drop it.
I'm not big on sharing a lot of curerent info because of people who use that to hurt or attack you. But I have no problem sharing a little history.
 As a child in the 1950s I excelled in academics and even skipped a couple of grades( would not reccommend this for any child)  I was small for my age many was the time neighbors made a big deal how hard it was to believe my age.By the time I hit double digits in age I had started to underachieve with school work I found that by listening in class and a little reading I could get decent grades with almost no effort. I developed a violent temper and it came out quite a lot. At 14 I shot a man for attacking his wife in front of me he lived but the incident marked me in my hometown as a crazy kid. In high school after this not many wanted to cross me and I became somewhat of the bullies bully. I would interfere anytime I saw someone being picked on and got a reputation with the teachers for having a "white knight complex " It was during this time that I met a boy who became my closest and dearest friend he taught me chess,Risk,loads of card games and we became closer than I did with my brothers. He and his family helped me to control my temper to a degree but it was years before I finally got it under control. I took the ACT test at his encouragement and scored in the top 98%. I did attend college for several years and got BAs in business data processing,programming and accounting Although I did well in college  I was  almost 30 and had 2 children (that anyone knew of actually it was 4) so   I left  college and took an apprenticeship in const. I completed my apprenticeships in plumbing electrical and framing and eventually opened my own company
 I started working at 14 and in the 39 years I worked I held  two jobs at a time a lot of the time. I have been a cook,baker,machine operator in plants,forklift driver,truck loader, warehouseman ,salesman in hardware stores,
gas attendant,plumber,electrician and a contractor. I am thinking I may have forgotten a few. I have owned several businesses, a sandwich wagon,donut shop,full service bakery and a contracting business.
  As you can see from this brief history I have lead a full life and maybe you can understand why I love my life now. I get to do alot of playing reading and stuff just for the joy of it. Even when I retired I was available for some close friends to call on when they were in bad need of help. THe last few years the hardest thing I do is wash a few dishes once in a while. I have a lovely sweet wife who insists my time is my own now play my games, watch tv and generally enjoy myself. She appreciates any help I give her but never expects it. Plus if I get to doing to much she makes me stop. She came home at 2 am from work but she stopped at the donut shop and got me an irish coffee and some cake donuts God I love her
  Now before you guys say anything nope she is mine and I am not trading sharing or anything like that.LOL Now if you wonder why she treats me so good look at what my life has been like. For 25 years we shared household chores, rearing the children(I probably spent more time with them than she) and all that stuff. She even worked for me in my construction business she loved doing the demolishion. well thats a general overview probably a lot more info than you wanted to know.

[Zebulon]

=D> Wow! thanks for sharing this.  Been "round the block" a few times myself given that I am a mere whippersnapper of 45...! Actions always have consequences.  Word of wisdom from one of my teachers: "Engage Brain - think before operating your gob..."  I developed a "rage complex" in my late teenage years but luckily for me a loving family and a strong upbringing helped me containt the worst of it.  I was 22 when I got to the bottom of it all.  Wont bore you with the details but it was thanks to a man called Werner Erhardt who was (and still is I believe) what the Californians refer to as a "Life Coach" - thats about the simplest explanation.  Jack of all trades,  master of none.  High school qualifications only - the rest is all self taught.  When I retire Im going to University to do a History degree....thats after Ive written my best selling book of course. (No Im not kidding.....!)  

I am living with the consequences of some bad relationship decisions earlier in my life - but life does go on and I have to thank the wonderful and very patient Mrs Zeb for that.  Again I wont bore you with the details.  Just to say if anyone has got a spare $20K kicking around I'd appreciate it to help pay off and sort out the legal bills and the custody battle right now!

Got some pics somewhere - let me see if I can fish em out for ya......aha! Here they are:

Me and my Daughter a couple of years ago in Canada

A Brown Eyed Handsome Man ..... (song by Chuck Berry)

The Happy Groom

The Happy Couple

Thanks for sharing that with us Chief....  :D

[Maverick]

Funny enough I can identify myself very well with most of both your stories.

Actions always have a consequence

Indeed, very well put. This is what has marked my life. In the urly stages actions on which I had no influence on, now ever more actions I initiate myself to change things for the better.

Although I am just 27 years old, I have a firm believe that life makes you into what you are. Quite logical actually. But the essence is that you can make decisions which have the potential to change your life either way. I have learned the hard way that this statement is far more important than one would think at first glance.
I am not much for posting pictures for reasons Chiefy already stated, but I would like to share a few highs and lows. Only read on if you are either bored or just like to read long dull stories.

My time on primary school was a bad one. I was bullied continuously. I then had a very slim build which was part of the cause. People like to pick on appearances. I learned from that. The other part of the cause was the fact that I was not the dumbest in my class. This resulted in my not working to get good grades and therefore becoming lazy. In the final year we all had to take a test which indicated one's IQ and gave an impression as to what form of education to follow after primary school. The results showed I had a very high IQ and I even had the highest score of that year country-wide, along with 2 others from somewhere else in the country, who had the same scores. They advised me to go to the highest form of college - not sure how this is called in proper English -. But because I didn't see the purpose of learning Greek and Latin, I chose the next level, which was actually just as high but without the languages.
I did great at first. Got straight A's without doing anything at all. It had the same effect as in primary school - I got lazy. I started missing classes, made some very poor 'friends' and fell back in semi-criminal behavior. My doing time by a hair on a number of occasions. My grades went down. At the end of the third year I was forced to go down one level. I did and even failed that, making me having to repeat that year. I failed that too and dropped out. Talking about missed chances. Looking back, I now know this was all the result of the problems I had with myself, or rather the lack of self-confidence. This in turn being caused by the continuous bullying, which also dominated my college time. I learned from that.

I have always had 2 interests: 'something with police-stuff' and 'something in construction', as I liked to call it. I decided to try the selection procedures for the police. I passed, but after that they told me I was too young to enter the training. So I went in Security. Done a number of things there before trying again with the police. This time I solicited for one level higher than before and applied for the Military Police (Gendarmery) at the same time. I passed both selections easily and eventually chose for the MP. I was advised to take the academic training, but being 'a guy for the street', I refused that and took the normal training. Note that the 'MP' is something totally different than the US and UK MP's. Actually the Dutch MP is just a part of the 'Koninklijke Marechaussee' or 'Royal Gendarmery' freely translated. There are several more branches within the KM, like Aliens Police, special drug squads, vice squads, normal police, and of course the MP itself. Next to that there are SWAT teams, and more cool stuff like that. The MP here has more jurisdiction than regular police. My decision to prefer the MP to the 'regular' police, was the fact that the Dutch MP is part of the military, working for the Ministry of Defense rather than the regular ministries the normal police works for. This meant that part of the training course was military at the level of the marines prior to the law-schooling. The discipline in what attract me. I started the course and it was made for me. When we were in the field being squashed by the commanders, class mates of me, coming from the special forces where standing next to me crying, whilst I was smiling, feeling more in my element than I ever had before. It was like I developed a sixth sense and got hyper-concentrated. I had unlimited energy and out-did all of the others. I was a great shooter and one of the best on physical stuff. My brain helped me get through the dry law stuff. I sound pretty cocky here, being the best in this and that. But I was finally so proud at myself to have found something I was really good at and what made me feel right in my place. I was no longer the kid that was bullied all the time. I was the guy to go to for help when something else didn't see a way out anymore. And dam was I proud and happy about that!
This training meant the total and complete turn in my life. And yes I learned from that.

After the training I was stationed on Amsterdam Airport. After a few months I received a letter telling me to appear on a briefing. But it didn't say what it was about, which was strange. Turned out I (along with my best mate) was selected as one of the very few to become a member of and help set up a new team which had gotten the task of counteracting the drug traffic on the airport on surrounding areas. The minister of Defense appeared on the briefing to tell us about it. I don't think he actually knew what he was talking about lmao. Pretty embarrassing Sir!

I flourished in that team. It was right where I belonged. The job let us do a variety of work: from intelligence gathering and co-operations with foreign police forces, undercover observations, the actual arrests (from which some were really spectacular!) to the interrogating, the drug research and registering, all the way to the public prosecutor.
We had to follow courses for advanced car driving, shooting, fighting techniques, physical training, etc etc. It really was a dream. There too I was known for my fierce approach. Some people noticed this also and I was invited twice to the SWAT teams. I refused, because joining such a team means saying bye bye to your social life. Which is still the main important thing in life, so I learned later. I have also had a few very memorable moments, both good and bad. I have seen people die from up close, and I have - at least in one case - changed a man's life in a positive way and actually got him out of the world of drugs. I have seen the barrel of a gun from closer up than I would like, I have pointed it on other people more often than I would wish. I have physically hurt people more than I would wish, but it had to be done. I have also helped a lot of people in that way. I have seen more drugs than many of you will - hopefully! - ever see. And I have seen what it can do to people and what people do to earn a little cash. From all this, I learned. So much.

Unfortunately some unfortunate developments lead to my decision to leave and do something else. Especially when my own squad leader was arrested for drug possession and use, that filled the bucket. Discipline aint what it was when I joined I guess.

I turned to the second thing I liked when I was a kid: construction. There is nothing in the world more gratifying than actually making stuff with your own hands.
I never went to school for it, I had meanwhile learned that I was very good in teaching myself. I got some books to work on my theoretical knowledge and learned the rest in practice. Responded to an advert which was asking for people who weren't afraid to actually work so to speak. I got it and that was my first experience in construction. I learned that it is an entirely different world with a really different look on life than law-enforcement.
I worked my way up through company's and am now building houses.

Bought my first house when I was 23, completely stripped it just for education purposes, and completely renovated it. It's for sale now, as I am now building a complete new one for my girl and me ( and hopefully a lot of healthy children ). When it's done, I am starting my own business in construction. If possible, I would like to emigrate to a country like New-Zealand, Australia, Canada, or something similar (not that these countries are particularly similar, but you get my point)

I am planning to make ship loads of money, and retire before my 55th birthday. However that time is not here yet. We are currently fighting off the remains of a sequence of 'bad luck' incidents, which caused more grief than I would like. Next to that you all know the current state of the house market, so the house won't sell. It's been for sale for 2 years now. Well we'll see. We'll take that obstacle when it's actually here. I am still learning.

Me in a nutshell:
- I am an emotional person.
- I hate politics. One big corrupt mess.
- I find comfort in music. I believe it reflects emotion. In fact music is emotion.
- I can be a real @ss
- I like sex (Doh)
- I really can be 'your best friend or your worst nightmare', as some have found the hard way.
- I hate books, no patience. Need to learn the art of reading later on.
- I force myself to stop and think and appreciate the things in life. Also simple things like singing birds, the wind blowing through the trees, sunset, clouds, rain (water falling from the sky xD ), our house, my car and most of all: my totally awesome girl, the sweetest woman alive. I wouldn't be the same me if it wouldn't be for her. I have found that doing this can be very gratifying, especially in hard times. There is always someone having worse times than me.
- I have an open mind - means I believe there is 'more', as well as sci-fi-wise as spiritual. I hate discussions about this subject though.
- I think I'm addicted to the Void. Seriously.
- I don't mind.
- I am generally a patient individual, but specific things tick me off, get me going. When I'm angry, I'm really angry.
- I can be very naive.
- I am always learning.
- I don't care what people think of me (contrary to what some here might think). I wouldn't be writing this if I did. I have a saying: "I am who I am. Take it or get the hell out of my face."
- I like movies.
- I see everybody as equals. I try to approach everybody with the same amount of respect. Whether it is a the friggin president or a guy from the street. (this has caused for some pretty heated situations with the MP staff lol)

Life has taught me. Taught me well. Life is what you make of it. Love yourself, your wife and your children. Don't be too easy trusting others.
Enjoy yes Embrace Life and everything in it. It can be over and done before you know it. (you may have read the post a while back about my cousin who died age 27) Chase dreams. Set goals. Learn from your mistakes. And most importantly: Never give up! Always try to see setbacks as challenges which help define you. The way you deal with them greatly determines what you will become.

Thanks you so much Chief for giving the opportunity to share all this. Brings back good - and bad - memories.

Thanks for reading.

[[IFU]Warchief]

Geez Zeb you had to tell a biggg lie or use a gun  to get such a cutie. Lots of luck my friend. My old bud Maverick you have a great plan and I know you will make it work.

[Maverick]

Maybe there are more people who would like to tell something about themselves?...
Subtle BUMP