Friday, 9/6

What were you doing right at noon on September 6^th, 1988? If you were listening to a certain radio station, you heard a slightly nervous young man say “hey” for the first time, and then play Kenny Loggins’ “Nobody’s Fool”.

That slightly nervous young man was me, and today, you and I are celebrating (gulp) 31 years together.

That’s right; it was on this day in 1988 (the Tuesday after Labor Day, actually) that I started working here, a time span that to me seems to only be three or four years, at most. I know it’s not true, though. One of the”joys” in my life is to have one of you, perhaps with a young child in tow, come up to me and say how you listened to me when you were 10, and now your kid's an avid listener. Or when my current doctor came in during my first checkup, with the cheery greeting “I used to listen to you when I was growing up”. That's when I know for sure that I've been here a long time. And I know the day may be coming when someone who listened as a kid introduces their grandchild to me.

Let’s pause here while both you and I shudder in horror at that thought.

Back when I started, I just assumed it would be like the two other jobs I had had since graduating from college...a couple of years, and then on to the next step in my career.

Thankfully, I was wrong.

I’ve never been driven by money in my career (much to the consternation of my parents); instead, I’ve been more concerned about enjoying what I do and how I do it. And, in that respect, I have been the luckiest person on the face of the Earth. All those years ago I slipped into a job I still love (and still find challenging) to this day, I’ve built up relationships with co-workers and with many of you that I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world, and what I've done here has been the starting point for many other adventures in many other areas of my life.  I guess you could say that I was spoiled early and often, and I would in no way disagree. I just wish more people had the chance to be as lucky as I have.

Just let me say this to you--thanks for making it possible. I can’t wait for the next year or decade or however long it ends up being, and I hope that you—if not your kids or even (gulp) your grandkids—come along for the ride.

So if you hear “Nobody’s Fool” at one point today, you’ll know why!

(jim@wmqt.com)