Chapter 1: The Life and Times of a Small Town Kid

Hello World. I guess I've always pondered with the idea of starting my own blog at some point in time. I decided today was the day. So here we are - August 30th, 2010. It's hard to say exactly how I got here - but here's the quick summary:

I was born in small town USA - a little spot in Northeast Pennsylvania nestled in the hills. Growing up in Pennsylvania was great...calm, relaxed, and fairly low key. I participated in sports in school - pretty much all of them. Football, Soccer, Track, Basketball, and I was a tough guy (or so I thought... ) I had some fairy tale dreams that I might actually make it to the next level in Football or Track one day - that was until I destroyed my knee one day in 9th grade at Basketball practice. I guess fate kicked in, and changed the game. One full ACL Reconstruction later and 1 year of intense physical  rehabilitation, and my life went into a whole new direction.

I wasn't the fastest kid anymore, or the strongest, but I was still me. I was still looking for something to be the best at. So I guess I kinda gave up on the dreams of Pro Football or  famous Olympic Sprinter - and hit the books hard. I ended up being the "Valedictorian" of my freshman class. It's funny to think about it now, but  I even got a plaque with my name and GPA on it - 99.7% overall. Looking back on it, that was pretty insane - but I had to focus on something. With a moderately bum leg and no lack of motivation or competition - I turned the classroom into my new grid iron.

High School was good times for sure, but "real life" awaited - and I will use this as my segway into Chapter 2: The College Years - Leaving Small Town USA...

To be continued...