This book contains many stories about my life, from when I was born at home near Girard, Texas, to the present time. Almost everyone around Girard, including my family, was very poor when I was born and many years thereafter. It was not easy growing up in the late 1930s, 1940s, and early to the middle 1950s. It is also about my family, schoolmates, friends, army reserve time, and coworkers. After graduating from high school, moving to Lubbock, and getting my first job (not counting pulling and hoeing cotton, which I did from when I was about eleven or twelve years old until graduation), things improved considerably for me. My life has had numerous ups and downs, but thankfully, mostly ups Overall, I have had a wonderful life This book also contains numerous, which I consider to be funny, stories and thoughts. I hope the humor improves the lives of everyone who reads it