pos, but, only first names...
pos, but, only first names...
Recently, a friend asked me how, HUH? What's up with that? was born. He wanted to know if I ever had a problem getting interviews or coming up with subject matter as well as a few other related questions.
We concluded our reunion after a little more small talk and ended with a promise to get together for lunch in the near future. Experience tells me it won't happen.
HUH? What's up with that?
What did happen was our conversation sparked an interest in going back over almost six years worth of interviews, research and ideas.
When I got home, I was looking over pages of typed notes and realized I had quite a few one on ones with people who didn't want to divulge their last names. Prior to this blog, I had only used a couple such interviews because I didn't want there to be a credibility issue. Any mistake I made was to be just that, a mistake, and, not a purposeful misdirection.
Last December, I asked Nora, my daughter-in-law and a former newspaper reporter, if printing an interview without using the interviewee's full name was ethical. She assured me leaving off a last name was okay.
I reread about 20 such interviews and pulled a couple I felt were the most interesting. I hope you enjoy reading my choices.
The first interview chosen (June 2022) was with a man who told me he was a retired cattle buyer. Since I was totally naive about the subject, my questions were sketchy. Cal told me he had brokered cattle for 38 years.
I got out of the business because ranchers and farms were changing from what they used to be. And, the older I got the less I wanted to change, he admitted.
Did you work for a company, a bank, Eckrich, or, who?
No, I was an independent broker. I never really wanted to work for anybody else, he claimed.
Were you here in Louisville?
We lived in Arizona for the last 13 years before moving here, but, we started out in Texas, he recalled. My wife is from here.
I know in the Old West Days, a cattle buyer bought beef from the ranches out west and the cattle were shipped to processing plants back east. Is that what you did?
Well, kind of, he shook his head yes. I went to mostly cattle auctions and sales, bid on the cattle, then would ship them to whoever bought them from me. It could have been another farm, or, as you say, Eckrich.
Did you go to college to learn to be a cattle buyer or were you specially trained in your field?
Actually, back when I was in college and you were undecided what you wanted to do, you got a degree in marketing or communications, he laughed. It was one or the other. I chose marketing and went to work for Coca Cola when I graduated. I met people who knew other people and I wound up working for a guy who bought and sold all kinds of livestock. I worked for him for three years and then went on my own.
Since you retired, do you miss the action?
No, I am pretty content. My wife is a nurse and is about ready to throw it in and we plan on traveling before we are too old to do it. We both have places we want to see, he said. We will definitely spend more time with our two grandsons in Arizona.
What about hobbies? Anything special?
I have been trying to write the Great American mystery novel for about 10 years, he revealed.
Oh, that's pretty cool. Can you tell me about it?
All I can say is it is a mystery without an ending so far, he disclosed. It's challenging, but, it is something I've always wanted to do.
Cal, thank you for your time.
Sure, he replied.
Maria told me she couldn't tell me her last name because her family wouldn't approve of such a thing (January, 2024). I remember standing before her, momentarily silent, because I didn't know what direction I should take. In the end, she proved to be pretty interesting and I was glad I went ahead with the interview.
I moved here from St. Louis a few years ago, she said. My husband and two kids came with me of course.
You told me you are retired. You look too young to retire.
Oh, thank you, she laughed. I worked in home health care for 13 years, but, I won a lottery four years ago, but, my husband he is in construction. He owns a small company.
Oh, wow, that's exciting. You know I want to ask how much you won.
Of course, she laughed.
(Since the amount Maria won wasn't going to be revealed in my lifetime, I forged ahead)
What have you done for you or your family since your good fortune?
Well, I have always wanted to know more about my culture, so, I am going to college right now to get a degree in Hispanic Diversity and Culture, she said proudly. The majority of Latinos, they value education, but, not many go to college. I want to change that.
What about your kids? How old are they?
Our daughter, Elana, is 16, and, Emiliana is 13, she said with pride. Right now, they are just kids.
What about goals? Do you have something besides your degree you would like to do?
Well, this summer, we are going to Latin America for four weeks, she said excitedly. We want to see all of it we can, Uruguay, Brazil, Chile, Argentina.
That's cool. You, your husband and the kids?
Yes, and my mom and dad and my husband's mother, she smiled.
Well, I hope you have a grand four weeks in Latin America. Best of luck to you and your family. By the way, Maria, does your husband know he doesn't have to work?
He does, but, he says he has to do things his way, she rolled her eyes and laughed.
Coming up: another oddities, observations, & ?'s; a conversation with a retired world traveler doing his Encore Performance, and; a special women in history month guest.
And, finally. Jerry Hicks is a master carpenter from Banner Elk, North Carolina. He found a $20 bill in the parking lot of a Speedway gas station. Jerry went inside and bought a $20 lottery scratch off and won a million dollars.
The irony of buying that particular ticket? He told Lottery officials the store was out of the ticket he wanted, so, he bought one called, Extreme Cash.
HUH? What's up with that?
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