December, 11 down one to go on the way to MMXVII.
From the Things You'd Never Expect File, I was asked to come back to work for the company that "let me go" about 13 months ago. It's on a limited schedule, I don't really want to give up retirement completely, Saturday nights from 7 to 11. All the years I was working I called the program the Night Train, Saturday's show will be the Insubordination Train because that's what I am.
Which brings me to the topic for this month about admitting when you broke the rules and the importance of not burning bridges behind.
My first full time radio show was for a station playing country music from Midnight to 5 am. The station manager that hired me went on to be corporate vice president for the company that owned it. I left on very good terms with everyone for a station closer to home in Mpls.
A couple of years later I was out of work and searching, I applied for the News Director position at a twin cities radio station with no previous experience and was hired largely on the basis of the recommendation from my former boss who was now a big shot.
My years in North Iowa have been spent from one station to the other for going on 39 years, fired from one hired by the other, off air and brought back only to repeat myself. Now, I could have done or said nasty things about them but I remained friends with the former workers and when the time was right I was hired back by these same people. The point being there's no sense in holding grudges, and a good memory is what you want to leave behind.
What I am doing at this moment is a result of an enduring friendship with the person who is behind this website, and what I'll be doing Saturday night is the same. The person who approached me about doing the air shift has been a friend for decades as well and the employees are glad to have me with them again.
I will be 68 this month and I am so thankful for many things that have led to this point, I've made mistakes, things I might have done differently but life's about learning.
Whether you celebrate the holidays or not I wish you peace and happiness and a bright new year.
