About
Go ahead and click the image - you’ll get a bigger picture. That’s what I looked like on my trip to Surfaces 2007 in Las Vegas. Nice trip.
This is the end of my flooring career. I have a lung disease and, as I write this, I have about 25% lung function left. If you see new posts by me in my blogs around this time of year in 2011 (that’s 3 years from now), I will have lived beyond what the last doctor told me a couple weeks ago. You should think about quitting smoking, or start wearing a respirator when working around sawdust and chemicals - the kind of stuff us flooring professionals spend hours every day in.
Alright, this isn’t all I’m about, but it sure has had an effect on my focus and goals the past few years. And I sure don’t want to make this about my pissin’ an’ moanin’ because I’m dieing. I have another blog to do that in. This is really about my hope to make things better for flooring professionals. I know, it sounds altruistic, but it’s not like I am the only guy out there trying to help. My experiences on the Internet these past 16 years has enabled me to develop a lot of “virtual relationships” with other pros. There’s been quite a struggle to find a voice and to make a difference in our own and other people’s lives as relates to the flooring industry.
That ain’t to say I agree with all those voices or support every struggle. I’m opinionated as Hell and I prob’ly piss a lot of people off because I don’t think they same way they do, or share the same values. But, as I think about what th’ hell to write here, it has been through the influence of some of the guys I disagree with the most that I have gotten to this part of what I am about. I have grown very discontented with the divisions in the flooring industry, the slow and awkward pace we have had in utilizing the power of Internet communications, and the lack of quality, affordable training available to everyone. And the lackluster interest our fellow pros seem to have is appalling. With few exceptions, it seems like there’s an awfully small group of floor pros that populate the message boards and these people are the ones leading the way and require the least amount of help.
Oh, but I ain’t gonna let that get in my way. I figured out some time back that if you give members of this industry some choices and make it possible for them to reach more people, share more experiences and have a safe place to learn and grow their business, it becomes a real asset to the flooring community as a whole. I imagined manufacturers, distributors, retailers, installers, inspectors, cleaners and every other segment of the flooring industry being able to mingle in the same space without fear or reprisal. No more dividing walls.
Well, I could go on an’ on, which is exactly why I have this blog. But it’s also why all of you have this blog too - the flooring professionals, that is. The last 16 years have been very educational to me and I am trying hard to give you the benefit of that education. It’s why I started The Floor Pro Community and now a Floor Pro network. Forums, Blogs, Directories - these things, I hope, will improve communications, provide a platform to speak your peace, to find a way to cooperate and to improve your businesses. Altruistic? Maybe a little, but I also have to find a way to earn my keep. I am tired of bein’ on the gov’ment dole the past couple years (made plenty of my own mistakes, including a lack of planning), so some of what you are offered here and at TFP might come at a price. Contrary to what a couple people might think, it ain’t against the rules to earn a living doing what you do best. These days, for me, it’s the World Wide Webby.