At age twelve, I dreamed of being a writer like my father. To that end I did farm work, washed dishes, pumped gas, drove a schoolbus, delivered papers, drafted business letters, and got a BA in journalism. After doing irrigation in the Peace Corps in India, I furthered my dream by becoming a carpenter. My article on window repair in The Old House Journal brought legions of jobs fixing windows. I worked for Disabled Sports USA, as a copy photographer, and at a print shop, writing and getting rejected as time allowed. With To the Far Side of Planet Earth, the dilettante is redeemed at age 67.