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When my boss Jim, a very tall, broad shouldered and lean individual, talked about his foreman, Mike, I guess I thought he also would be a tall and rugged kind of guy. When his jacked up pickup truck rolled up to the job one morning, I looked over as he opened his door to step out. When he did, I couldn't see him, he was so short he disappeared behind the door. Physical appearance and first impression.... he looked like an elf to me.
Mike was a very outgoing and pleasant guy, we hit it off right away, as he was quick with a joke, and I found myself amused with some of his antics. I was a bit relieved, working with him was going to be alot less stressful than working with Jim all the time.
He told me he had graduated tops in his vocational high school class, valedictorian and all, and also attended Wentworth for a few semesters before dropping out to start working and making money.
Right off I found him to be an excellent teacher, patiently explaining things about home building and carpentry skills that were still a mystery to me.
Mike was about five years older than me and over the next couple of years he became my mentor, and not just for carpentry stuff.
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