I like to play Baseball, Football, and Basketball. I was on the Farmville Central High School Varsity team in all three sports. I also lift weights and try to keep up with my training. I am called "Tall Paul" or "Long Drink" because I'm 6 foot 8 inches tall and weigh 245 pounds. I graduated from Farmville Central High School Saturday, June 5th, 1999. I worked for a while and then I enlisted in the US Navy in the Delayed Entry Program. I have been accepted in the Navy's Advanced Electronics Technician program. I left for Boot Camp at Great Lakes Naval Station, outside of Chicago, Illinois, on October 7, 1999. The Navy has trimmed me down to 224 pounds. I completed Boot Camp on December 10, 1999 and went home on Christmas Leave. I then attended the Navy's Electronics School at the Lakes. The school was tough, but I did my best. I have decided to strike for Fire Control Technician.
In January 2000, I was transferred to the Fleet Combat Training Center at Dam Neck Virginia, where I have started training on the Sea Sparrow Suface to Air missile. I enjoy the training classes, even though they are quite challenging. In January of 2001 I was advanced to Petty Officer 3rd Class, FC3.
I am a Duke Basketball fan and missed seeing their games on TV.
I also follow the East Carolina University Pirates, especially in Football and Baseball.
I have been involved in Cub and Boy Scouts since 1st grade and completed the requirements for my Eagle Scout Rank, on December 21, 1998. I belonged to Boy Scout Troop 452, sponsored by First Presbyterian Church, Greenville NC. My Eagle Project was removing some old park benches and building new ones for the Greenville Parks and Recreation Department.
On July 25, 1999 I received my Eagle Scout rank.
Recently, we acquired a 1997 Dodge Dakota SLT Club Cab pickup. My Dad made it possible for me to drive this set of wheels while attending Farmville Central for my senior year. It's Red with Gray trim, has a 3.9 Liter V-6 engine, really nice interior, with full gauges, on-board computer, and is a very nice truck. I did some customizing and added Dual Exhausts and Chrome Bed Rail Bars. It looks and sounds really cool!
My Dad let me drive it for a while until I could get my own "ride". I then got a really nice 1996 Chevy Silverado Extended Cab C-1500 pickup that has a 255 hp Vortec V-8 motor with roller tappet cam and tuned headers, AERO trim package, Lear locking bed cover, full instumentation and leather interior. Check it out!
I wanted to learn something about working on cars and especially wanted to build a really nice street rod. So, I sold the Silverado and bought a 1972 Chevy Nova with a 350 V-8. This car is now equipped with a Comp Cams 3/4 grind camshaft and a big Holley 4-barrel carb, and 3-speed automatic transmission. The body needs a lot of work, as do the insides.
I was Honorably Discharged from the Navy on October 5, 2002. After packing up my gear, I rented a Penske truck and loaded my 72 Nova on a 4-wheel carrier and headed for my new job as cook/management trainee for the Cracker Barrel Restaurant in West Memphis Arkansas. I am staying with family friends in Senatobia, MS, the town where I lived when I was born. Commuting to work, through Memphis traffic is not fun, but I'm making it OK. My goal was to enroll at either the University of Memphis or Northwest MS Junior College and major in Hotel and Restaurant Management.
However, in May of 2006 I decided to come back to North Carolina to help my folks work on their house. In 2007 we erected a large, all-metal 2-car garage with attached "office". and tore down our old storage shed and erected a really nice storage building. The garage is 24 ft by 30 feet, with 14 ft high walls, high enough to eventually install a 2-post hydraulic lift. My Dad and I are building a really nice shop area for working on cars and he plans on doing some wood working and will also build a large "O" gauge model railroad in his half of the garage. He will also use the attached "office" building for his amamteur radio equipment. I am enrolled in Pitt Community College with a Double Major in Automotive Technology and Welding.
