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I had two shops in Illinois where I repaired watches, clocks, and manufactured jewelry. Since moving to Australia I have also started computer repair, and iPhone, and iPod repair. I have a brother (retired) and sister in the business and learned from my grandfather in Nebraska.
I am the third child of an Optometrist from Sidney Nebraska, in the western panhandle, 18 miles from the Colorado border. I have two older brothers, retired, and a younger sister. My sister has Rominger Jewelry in Sterling Colorado, not far from Sidney. It’s a wonderful place to grow up with wide open spaces. I always thought of Nebraska as a secret special place.
When I was ten years old my grandparents thought I should start working Saturday’s at their jewelry store. I remember it was not easy to wake up and walk downtown at eight in the morning. Of course after I got my own repair shops I was up at 3:30AM and not home until 10:30PM or sometimes even past 2AM. Grandfather Pat (Glen Patrick) was a watchmaker with 65 years experience. He would have to me to do the machine engraving, unpacking stock, and finding parts for him when they would hit the floor.
Before I knew I was mechanically inclined I would sneak into Pat’s watchmaking bench, take a junk watch movement out and take it apart while he was at lunch. I most likely had lunch with my grandmother, Grammy Pat, so had opportunity to tinker. Eventually I got where I could get them back together, but not in running order. Pat would always come back from lunch and straighten things up for me before putting the movement back in the junk drawer, and then give me a lecture for using his #5 tweezers. Those are the finest point hairspring straightening tweezers and not to be used for general repair work.
At the same time of life I was also starting to get into my father’s work room in the basement of our house. I remember my mother telling to me stay out of there. The was probably because I made such a mess. I also had a neighbor across the street who was a year of two older than I who’s father was a farm implement dealer, and the boy himself was a car enthusiast. We used to sit in his 1932 Ford coupe hot rod and drive up and down the driveway, back and forth. I just ate this up. He also had model airplanes which I loved, as I was also being taught to fly by my father who was in the army air corps as bomber instructor. Dad had a share in a N1399C, a Piper Tri-Pacer, and later N3298W, a Piper Cherokee 180 which I soloed in at the age of 16.
More later....
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