Ramblers

[Last Updated Jan. 7, 2017]
According to Webster, a Rambler is "one who moves aimlessly from place to place".  We were definitely ramblers.  I made you all a map to prove it!

My sister and I attended 11 schools in 5 different states and many more towns.  We got used to it, probably like anyone else who moved a lot as a kid.  Two things really sucked about moving: Trying to make friends (duh!) and losing stuff during the moves.  We once lost all of our youth sports trophies in our move from MS to PA because one of us had the brilliant idea to pack them in a trash bag that was left behind.  The same thing happened with most of our toys in another move.  Most of our photo albums and other sentimental stuff were lost in a storage unit that was auctioned off to pay overdue rental fees.  I want to scream at the television every time I see an episode of  Storage Wars.

One of the cool things about moving a lot is that you get to see a lot of different people and different places.  I'm really grateful for those experiences.  I couldn't be where I am today without them.  I also value friendships, family, and roots now more because of my travels as a kid.

Often, when I make new friends and acquaintances, I'm asked "Where are you from?".  Tough question.  My typical response is: "I moved around a lot as a kid, but I've been in Pennsylvania since '94".  The usual reply is some version of "Oh, military brat?", to which I say "Yeah, something like that."  If they look intrigued and/or ask more questions, we roll with the long version.  Here goes...

McDonald's Playland in 1981

Georgia (1980-1981)

My dad broke his neck just before I was born.  At the time, my parents and 13 month-old sister were living in Georgia.  My mother was just 21 and my dad was 22.   I can't imagine what it was like for their lives to change so dramatically at that young age.  We had help from family and friends on and off for many years, which basically explains why we moved so much.  We generally moved where we'd have the most help.

Delaware (1981-1986)

My Sister and I Circa 1982

Not long after my dad's accident, we moved closer to our family in Delaware.  Although I was very young, I still have plenty of memories from our time there.  I'll share them later for the sake of keeping this post to a reasonable length.  Like I said, our parents were really young when my dad had his accident.  They split around the time when I was 6.  I remember my dad asking me if I wanted to "go visit" my aunt in California.  She was in the Army at the time, and was stationed at Fort Ord in Salinas.  She would be able to help take care of us there.  At 6 years old, I had no idea what that meant, but it sounded like an adventure to me!  My dad had a buddy that needed to get away from his girlfriend, so the plan was for him to drive us to California, where we'd meet up with our gracious aunt.  It seemed like the trip took months.  My sister and I were laying in the bed of our Ford Ranchero (it had a truck cap on the bed), hauling a moderate-sized U-Haul trailer for the entire trip.  Somewhere in "Mid-West-Town, USA", the axle snapped on the U-Haul.  I remember spending a few days in a hotel, probably waiting on money from back East, but we managed to get back on the road and make it to sunny California!

Visit with Mom - 1988

California (1986-1989)

As a kid, I hated California people.  Other than the bikers that my dad hooked up with, who were free-spirited and usually fun, the rest of the people there seemed to suck.  It was probably some perception I had as a kid, because I now have quite a few friends out there who are good people and I generally like the people I've met there as an adult.  Some of the highlights from our time in CA include getting kissed by Miss California, going to rodeos, hanging and camping with my dad's biker buddies, visiting Fisherman's Wharf, and getting to see my mom when she came out to visit.  There are a few stories from that saga too.

Louisiana (1989-1990)

My Aunt got re-stationed in Leesville, LA, so we moved with her After my mom came out to visit us in CA, she and my dad agreed to move us closer to her.  She was living in Louisiana with an Army guy who was stationed at Fort Polk (see where the "military brat" shoe kinda' fits?).  My dad and aunt weren't on the best of terms, so we packed up and headed south!  Louisiana was a pretty wild place.  We had really weird friends with even weirder names.  For example, my dad had this one pal named "Scrap Iron".  Ol' Scrap Iron used to go dumpster diving and find the most incredible stuff...and it was all in great condition.  He found so much good stuff that my dad eventually suspected he was stealing it from somewhere and that there was no possible way he was digging it all out of dumpsters.  Louisiana was the strangest place I've lived, but the fishing was out-of-this-world!

Mississippi (1990-1994)

Bagged a pair of rabbits in 1990

My mom split with the dude she was dating, so she and my dad made the decision to move us to MS to be closer to our mother and some of his biker buddies.  My sister and I finally started getting into sports, and they are SERIOUS about ball down south!  If you haven't seen a little league complex in the south, you don't know what you're missing.  I have a lot of fun memories to share from this part of my life, but you're probably going to check out if I don't wrap this up soon.  Aside from learning to play ball, I learned how to plow with a donkey, raise fighting chickens (something I really wish I hadn't learned), how to throw fishing nets, and how to hunt.  Good times.

School's Out - 1998

Pennsylvania (1994-Now)

In 1994, my dad decided it was time for us to move north so that my sister and I could get to know members of our distant family that we had never met.  I can't wait to share that road trip with you all!  After 3 years, my dad had his fill of northern winters and decided it was time to move back to the south.  I was a rebellious teenager, and I parted ways with my dad and sister in 1997.  They moved south and I bounced from a short stint with my Aunt and Cousins into foster care.  Then, "adulting" happened.

Moving On

I hope you enjoyed this summary.  I thought it would be helpful to write before getting into more stories.  Dara warned me that it would probably make for a dry, tough read, but I hope it wasn't.  I promise to follow this up with something a bit more interesting!