Most everyone here knows that I am an over-the-road Trucker. But lets go WAY back for a moment.

In 1984, I decided going to school was a waste of my time. I had more important things to do. Like sleep till noon, and stay up till the wee hours of the morning. Riding my GS750 in excess of 100 mph down I-295 in Fl. And just being a lazy good for nothing teenager.

A couple months of this was all I needed, and all I could stand.

I moved, (by myself, not the family) to a small town in Central Fl., and enrolled in a private school. In 1986, I graduated with a 3.0 GPA, and joined the Army N.G.

Soon after training, I got a job as a diesel mechanic, working on tour busses. Exactly 20 days after I turned 21, I walked into a local trucking company, and asked for a job. No experience! The owner asked me why I would expect them to hire me. I proudly explained that my Mother, Father, and Uncles all drove a truck for a living, and the next day he set me up on a road test. The rest is history.

That was April, 1989. Today, 19 years later, It is time for something new.

I have made arrangements, set a goal, got Federal and Private funding, and next month, in June of 2008, I start going to College!

For over 10 years, I have dabbled in websites, html, php, css, etc. Just goofing off. Some of my family and friends said I should go to work doing stuff like this. I blew them off, as usual, and forgot about even thinking about it. (re-read that again, it is not a typo).

Anyway, I am enrolled in Kaplan University. This is a FULL accredited college, but I get to take my classes online, so I can keep my driving job. The field I will be studing is Web Developement. 180 credit hours! Thats 3.75 years of SCHOOL!

Today is Saturday,May 10, 2008. We are heading over to my Mothers house to have a surprise cookout for Mothers day, as me and my little brother will be leaving later to go back to California. We always do stuff like this, so I am sure it will not be too much of a surprise to my Mom.

EXCEPT I DO HAVE A SURPRISE FOR HER!

I will be the first Gatlin to attend college! I mean a real accredited college. I am hoping she will be as excited for me as I am nervous.

And yes, yesterday when I got the news that I got the funding, and was accepted, I actually had butterflys in my tummy! Even now I am thinking, "Can I do this?"

The answer is YES! I CAN do this, and I MUST do this!

So, in 3.75 years, after 180 Credit hours, I will be a College Grad! I hope everyone will still be here to see the pics.

***I wonder if they have a cap and gown in MY size?***

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