So...what do you do?

[jcollins]

It's funny how paths cross in life. Owning an Albin has brought us all together but we don't know much about each other. Some folks may want to remain anonymous and that's o.k. too. I'm just curious.
So, I'll start...

Until 1985 I was a full-time musician (bass guitar) After getting married I realized I needed a real job. So I got into computers.
Over the years I owned or worked at small consulting firms. A few years ago I got tired of the 60 hr. work week and cut my client list down to 10 or 12. Now I am a independent network and forensic consultant. Semi-retired is a nice way to say that I only work as much as I must to support my boating habit. (and wife, of course)

[Mariner]

I'm a 28 year old Mortgage Banker. I went to a private college and majored in Business Administration, expecting to end up in manufacturing, most likely marine related. I worked for about a year for a company that made marine electronics mounts (you're probably heard of them), but the opportunity to put the business skills I learned in college to good use just was not developing at that company and I grew to dislike the owner more and more each day. I finally left and the first job I was offered was as a sales assistant at a mortgage company. I found that I loved it, and very quickly advanced to where I am now. I still love helping people buy homes, but I've been looking more and more towards the water as a way to make my living. Deep down I know I wasn't meant to spend my days on land in an office staring at a computer screen.

I've been a boater my whole life. My dad turned the helm of his 19' bowrider over to me at the age of five and I was a natural, navigating us about ten miles to home with no direction from dad (at least that's how he tells it). By the age of 13 I was zig-zagging South Puget Sound in my 13' Boston Whaler (which I still have and will never sell). In high school I joined the Sea Scouts and crewed aboard the S.E.S. Odyssey, a 90' wooden yawl formerly owned by the Vanderbilt family. By then, the family had progressed up from small powerboats to mid-sized sailboats and I was teaching my high school friends to sail at every opportunity. Since then, boating has been purely recreational as we've worked our way through several boats, but my passion for it has only grown. I don't yet know what shape my future with boats will take, but there is no doubt that my life will increasingly revolve around them.

[Denis]

John, I will include my bio later but if you don't mind, what is a network and forensic consultant? It sounds very interesting. Denis

[TonyAmalfitano]

I was born and raised in Princeton NJ. I graduated PHS in 1970 and went into a Plumbers Apprenticeship. Two and a half years later the alarm clock went off, I looked up at the ceiling and said, "I'm going to be doing this same sh*t for the rest of my life." I went to work that day and got laid off. God was listening. Ten days later I was marking time in Ft. Dix. Two years later I was a brand new buck Sergeant patroling the Czechoslovakia, West Germany border. I ETS'ed in 1975 and have kicked myself in the ass ever since for not doing 20, 30, or 40 years in the Army. I found myself working for Princeton University as a security guard, not a bad job. They sent me to the NJ State Police Academy in 1976. They fired me in 1984. Something about an ex-marine from Waco, Tx. stalking Brook Shields, and an ex-Army Sgt. who kicked his butt while effecting an arrest. Oh well, I forgive them. Because I found myself working for Jackson Township PD at twice the pay! Life is good. I made Sergeant in 1998, and will retire in Dec. 2008. Unless they make me a really good offer. Which might just happen, I have been asked what it would take to get me to stay............
I went to Trenton State College, (now The College of NJ) under the GI bill. I got my BA in Crim of course. God Bless the U.S. Army!
I bought my first boat a Hunter 30, sail boat, in 2005. I love to sail, the wife and youngest kid don't. They wanted something faster. Enter the Albin 27 Aft Cabin, or Family Cruiser. Blew the trans, and really haven't been out on her yet. Next Year!!!!
My oldest Daughter is a PFC in the U.S. Army, stationed at Ft. Gordon, Ga. My middle girl is a senior at Monmouth University here in NJ, she'll be going to grad school for her Masters. Oh boy! two more years of support! The little one is 10, all girls. I sleep well at night knowing I will make 3 mens lives miserable!
Got married in '79, divorced in '89, married again in '92 this one is still going strong, found a good woman.
I don't know what I'll be doing when I retire, but boating will be a big part of it. I might even find myself doing home inspections for re-finance.

[gerygarcia]

I am a Senior Graphic Designer at a NYC ad agency.
The name of our 28TE is "Resolution" due to the fact I deal with
alot of digital graphic files, it also work with what my wife does - Lawyer.

Work too hard. Wish I played harder - just not enough time, gotta pay the bills if you know what I mean!

I too have live around boats for most of my life.

My family's boating resume:
15 Boston Whaler CC sport (my younger years boat)
25 Boston Whaler Outrage
26 Pacemaker
27 Boston Whaler FC (father still owns)
32 Uniflight
37 Tollycraft
48 Tollycraft
55 Viking
44 Tollycraft (father still owns)
27 Boston Whaler (father still owns)
32 Acadia Downeast (sister's boat)
28 Albin Tournament Express (mine & my wife's boat)

Have done much cruising with the family. As you can see, my father went up the boat ladder. He is downsizing now. More fun with the smaller ones!

Furthest south I've been: Miami. - Brought the 55 Viking up north to Long Island with my father.

Furthest north I've been at the wheel: Burlington VT - Up the Hudson and back.

Been to most popular destinations in the Northeast - Block Island, Essex CT, Newport, Marthas V, Nantucket, Boston, etc.

Next big trip: Hoping to go up to Maine (maybe two years from now - need at least a month for this one)

[jcollins]

John, I will include my bio later but if you don't mind, what is a network and forensic consultant? It sounds very interesting. Denis

Denis,
The network part is very typical. I install and maintain multiple servers on small networks. (20-100) Provide user and security support.
About 4 years ago I got interested in the forensic part of the business. I got my certifications and work with companies, law enforcement, and government to recover data (evidence) that has been lost or hidden either by accident or intentionally. Although qualified to present expert witness testimony, cases very seldom go to court.

My boating life began with a Sears jon-boat. Have owned 17' Glastron, 21'Sea Ray, 26' Sunrunner, and the Albin. (my last boat) Sharon and I plan to do some real cruising next year now that I am comfortable with the boat. Cape May, Lewes, Ocean City, MD. We also plan to cruise the Chesapeake. That could take all summer given the size.

[Denis]

John thanks for the job description, that sounds like something I would enjoy.

I graduated from HS in 73 and went to work as a plumber for four years. By then the housing market was very bad so I went back to school to learn computer repair. I repaired main frame computers down to chip level for eleven years, eventually they didn't need someone like me they just needed a board swapper and I had no interest in doing that so it was time to move on. I had built a few houses while I worked in computer repair so the transition was natural, I started a home improvement business 19 years ago. It has been very good to me, I am starting to be very selective in the jobs that I take on which leaves me plenty of time to visit my kids, daughter in college in Kentucky, my son is a navigator on an air crew in the coast guard stationed in North Carolina, previously in Kodiak Alaska and also plenty of time to spend on my boat, an Albin 28 named Red Stripe. My wife of 28 years is the perfect first mate, she is very comfortable on our boat and enjoys it as much a I do. We travel all over Long Island sound, Block Island sound and up into Mass. I enjoy cruising, fishing and SCUBA diving, my office walls are covered with pictures of our family cruises from when they were very young children to the present.
Tony, thank you and your daughter for your service in our military!
Denis

[Butch]

I live and work in Canton of Baltimore in the energy business, we wholesale Heating oil ,Gasoline, Diesel, natural gas and Power. My wife and I have a shore home on Leeds Creek near St Michaels in a town called Tunis Mills. We keep our boat out front an Albin28 named MARY B and it is in the water all the time except for an annnual hauling.We often cruise to Baltimore and Back while I fish and my wife reads.We have been as fas south as the rappahannock and north to Sassafras river

Happy Holidays to all

[johnmurray]

I joined the Royal Canadian Navy in 1954 as a Cadet. My naval college had a 97 foot ketch for seamanship training and that was my first experience at sea. During our two cadet years we spent six months at sea in a training cruiser where there was a great deal of emphasis on navigation and small boating handling. Later in my career I spent seven years at sea in various types of destroyers, and that included transiting a ship around the world on a "showing the flag" cruise. During the Viet Nam period I spent two years on exchange with the US Navy based in San Diego.
Later I took a master's degree in finance and have since worked, mainly for the federal government, on large scale financial and information technology issues.
I have owned a series of small sailboats, ranging from 17 to 28 feet, for sailing in the confined waters of the Ottawa River. I have also chartered larger sailboats many times in the Pacific Northwest and in the West Indies. My first power boat was an Albin 27 which I purchased in the Chesapeake Bay area and transited up here through the waterways, a trip of about 1000 miles. Last year I sold the A-27 and replaced it with a new Albin 30 Family Cruiser. The A-30FC is an ideal boat for our beautiful Ontario canal systems as well as the 1000 Islands. It has all of the features of the A-28, but with the added advantage of an aft cabin (but at the expense of a smaller cockpit).
My boat's name is "katie G' in honor of my late mother's cat!

[chiefrcd]

Professionally retired.

but before the good life:
I started in the fire service in 1963 as a KVG for the Virginia Forestry Department. In 1968 I begain my paid career and for the next 35 years I held a series of jobs including Firefighter, Inspector, Lieutenant, Captain, Director of Training, Battalion Chief, District Chief, Fire Marshal and Deputy Chief. For a while I was Acting Fire Chief right before I retired. Part of my duties involved Home Land Defense Training, Hazardous Materials Response, Arson Investigations, Tactical Rescue and the Marine Patrol. Currently I work for Richmond International Raceway on a part time basis as Chief of Guest Services and I work part time measuring and selling custom boat mattresses for a company called BedCrafters in Deltaville Virginia.....the part time jobs allow me to own a Albin and FISH !! I was also a sailor before I came over to the dark side and bought my first power boat. Once I realized that I could start the engine and go directly to my destination, sailing wasn't the same....I bought my current Albin 28 in May of 2004. My best feesh'n buddy is my wife Candy and I have a step son who is in his second year at the University of Virginia.

[TonyAmalfitano]

Dennis, Thank you so much. Serving in the Army was some kind of fun! I kinda feel sorry for those who never served, they really don't know what they missed. My Daughter, Michele, has not turned down the idea of a career in the Army. She would like to go "Green to Gold" Army pays for college ROTC, she keeps her rank and pay while attending college, then receives a commision as a 2LT, the pay back is year for year., in her case it'll be 2 extra years.

[SpaceCoaster]

Born in Puerto Rico in the early 60's, I was always surrounded by water and was mesmerized by boats. Coming from a family of few resources I didn't have much of an opportunity to spend time on them. So, I took up snorkeling, diving, and body-surfing. But loved the ocean and always fantasized about boating.

Moved to FLA and graduated from HS in Titusville. I went to the service (US Army) just like some of you Albin brethren did and am also very proud to have served my country. Upon being honorably discharged I enrolled at the University of Central Florida and earned my BSEE.

I've worked my whole career in the simulation and training field designing and building training devices for ground combat systems (Abrams Tanks, Bradley Fighting Vehicles, Strykers). It's a great job and love that I can contribute in some small way so that our soldiers can be as safe and efficient as possible.

Personal life centers around my wife and two darling daughters. My wife came from a boating family. But still I was still shocked when she agreed to live aboard a boat while we were still newlyweds (before kids). We loved our 36' Marine Trader, Sundeck Trawler. It was my first boat so acquiring boat-handling skills on a single engine trawler proved interesting.

Since then I owned 19' Key West and (somewhat owned) a 22' Mako center console. A couple of years ago I purchased the 28' Albin out of the West coast of FL and moved her to East Central Florida where we tool around the Indian and Banana rivers mostly. It's been an ideal family boat for us and if I end up keeping her long term she'll be my fishing machine.

We'll always be water people - we're fortunate to have a home that permits us to have our Albin on a lift in our backyard and have big dreams of making it our part-time home while we travel around on a larger vessel to "who knows where" the rest of the time.

I've surely enjoyed learning from you folks and am glad to be a part of this community. There is certainly a camaraderie amongst Albin-folk so I hope to meet some of you one day while out on one of our adventures.

Jorge

[Capt Paul]

I was born in Brooklyn NY (Bayridge Brooklyn if you know where that is). I graduated high school there in 1972. I was accepted into the US Maritime Academy at Fort Schyler NY but did not wind up going there do to financial reasons. Attended Brooklyn College briefly and decided college was not for me at that particular time in my life. Worked some odd jobs here and there and decided going back to school was the thing to do. I took a liking to electronics and attended Devry Technical institute for 3 years. Upon graduation I wound up getting hired by Digital Equipment Corp in Massachusetts. Spent 3 years there and was recruited into the Military electronics business out here in the Silicon Valley in 1979 and have been here ever since. I am now in the Network industry working for a Router/Switch manufacturer.

I always loved being around the water and in the water. San Francisco is definitely one of the places to be if you like to sail and one day I was invited along for a day sail. I was instantly hooked. For the next 3 years I did a bunch of sailing on the bay and did 1 ocean trip to Catalina. Got married and had kids and that put a damper on the boating for a long while. A few years ago I went out on a friend’s power boat and the fire inside me was re-ignited. We bought a 19foot Bayliner run about and spent time on the lakes and the Delta. We decided to be safe and took a boating course from the Coast Guard Auxiliary. Buy the end of the class I decided to join the Auxiliary. I went through all the member training and decided to go one step further and get my Merchant Marine license (something all serious boaters should do in my opinion). Two years ago we decided to move up and after some long research I decided on either an Albin or a SkipJack. The east coaster in me won out and as soon as a used ALBIN came along that fit our budget we bought it. We have had smiles on our faces ever since.

Paul

[Denis]

This is not a sales pitch just an opinion.
Purchase and display a burgee from the AOG while you are out cruising around, if you run across any fellow members from the group they are sure to see it. It could be a great way to get to meet a fellow member.
Denis

[tomcat rio]

had a 27' catalina sloop for 25 years. used to race around robins island in the peconic bay every wedesday night. did a lot of trips to block island newport and southern conn.
sailboats can get to be a little work for us early boomers but they do help develop character and seamanship.
got it in my mind i'd like to take a trip up the hudson to the erie canal and maybe lake erie. the albin 28 seemed to make sense for that endeavor. got it last year and stuck a new peninsular in it. may do the trip in '07 (opec permitting).
i'm an old jet fighter backseater (phantoms in vietnam and tomcats in iran and with grumman). still fly gliders out of westhampton airport in suffolk county, new york. this is the other day with my nephew, sean in back,
http://static.flickr.com/142/321573804_d67caed706.jpg
...
i've been pretty happy with my 14 year old albin. it helps if you like to tinker and tweak things. i also like to restore old lee enfield rifles, snowboard and am a 20 mi a week jogger.