More on Uncle Fred and the other brothers.

I'm not really sure why I ended up being self-employed, my company has been in existence since 1984. It started out as a crate building company and it had some real promise, but then along the way the truth came out about what it would take to succeed in it. Buyers for the large companies that would generate the type of income required to make a profit either wanted bribes or preferred to do business with their own contacts. Neither my partner nor I cared for the idea of bribing people, we have a preference for earning our reputation based on a job well done. For awhile there we made some real progress, getting a reputation for a good product delivered on time. But then came the turnovers in the buyer departments and we would have to start out all over again trying to kick in the doors of people who had already made up their minds. A reputation for a job well done was not enough. Aside from few companies that required a quality container for such things as electronics, artwork and displays, most of the other potential customers all wanted cheap crap, and I cant bring myself to make cheap crap.
I'm starting to ramble, so back to Uncle Fred. I think the real reason I'm self-employed is because......when I look back I realize that Uncle Fred(farmer) Uncle Jake(tile artist) and Uncle Irwin(machinest) were role models for me and they showed me an alternate lifestyle opposite of what my father did for a living. Dear old dad worked in the same factory for forty something years and was a very un-happy man and that was what I was being groomed for. Lucky for me the 60's came along and I got a chance to see life from a different angle and chose the path of my uncles. So I passed on the factory job and quit making crates. Now I make things I can be pround of and I get to utilize all the skills I've aquired in my 52 years.
I know that one of the things really old people have in common is to work hard. But it has to be satifying work, something thats always changing and developing. I feel lucky to have had the chances I've had even though it hasn't made me rich.
I wish all people could be so lucky and not have to spend a life of misery.........