Reading The Hobbit and JRR Tolkien's marvelous Lord of the Rings trilogy in 10th grade inspired me to write; life had other ideas. After some years in the military, I went to work at Ford Motor Company. After six years, I realized it wasn't for me. All the time I had been writing, but got nowhere with it. After Ford, I held a series of manufacturing  management positions, experiencing layoff, downsizing, and off-shoring. Finally,  being forced to believe manufacturing in America was dying, I tried other jobs. The failures and successes of these experiences made me more aware of why many people live in poverty in our country, why they do not have basic health care, why they do not earn a living wage, and why their voices are not heard. While I hope my writing is entertaining, I know it suggests solutions.