Let's face it, no one really gives a damn about who I am. Yet, here I am spending a few hours to sit down and make a page solely about me. What kind of ego does it take to do that! Actually, this whole website is about my interests and life, so I guess a page solely devoted to me makes as much sense as this whole site does. Since I first wrote this page years ago, I thought a little bit of an update is necessar
My "theme" music in the background is Creep by Radiohead. Yeah, I know MIDI sounds are more than kind of tacky but you get the idea. You can click here to get the lyrics of Creep. If you are still reading then you must be slightly curious -- sort of like when you drive by an accident. I guess we should start at the beginning .... I was born in San Diego, California (sure I am somewhat proud to be an authentic native) in 1966. I was adopted by my parents when I was about eight weeks old. So, fast forwarding through quite a bit, life was pretty cool, I was seventeen, living in north county San Diego, and going through my rockabilly stage (see me)... at which point my parents decide to move to Michigan. We had already lived there for a few months when I was 13, but this time was different, I was older and happy where I was. The move wasn't difficult, but it just changed everything about my life -- mostly for the good. But while I was still trying to figure everything out I dropped out of school for a while. As a result, I didn't graduate until I was 19. The extra year in high school was worth it as it gave me a chance to refocus my priorities, and I met Tammy. Essentially, for better or worse, the person I am today is a large part from that "second" senior year. After graduation, I went to Illinois State University for a my freshman year. It was fun and most of it came easy to me but I was a little too far from home. I had planned on transferring to Ohio State to be closer to Tammy who was by now back in West Virginia, but financially broke I ended up at home instead. I felt terrible not being in school as everyone I knew was going back. Having dropped out of high school for a short time, I didn't want to fee that way through college as well. One day I was thinking about what I wanted to do and my best friend attended Northwood Institute (now Northwood University), as his mom was in the administration. I figured, "what the hell" I might as well check it out. Within hours I was registered and sitting in class the next day. I made one of the best decisions of my life when I decided to attend Northwood. In between my sophomore and junior year Tammy graduated high school and we got married. I graduated in 1990 with a AA in Banking and Finance and a BBA in Business Administration with an economics/language arts; Tammy, who also attended Northwood, graduates in 1993. The irony is Northwood is known and respected as the leading school in Automotive Management. I really wanted nothing to do with the automotive industry -- yet, when I graduated I had one marketable skill, I had worked as a parts manager at a small independent repair shop. I had just graduated, I had a wife and a one year old daughter, it was 1990 and there were no jobs. One fateful day I saw an ad for a parts manager at a local Subaru dealership. In another good decision I answered the ad and I got the job. I still remember sitting on the hide-away bed in the living room of our one-bedroom apartment (Ahmetia as baby had the only room) when I got the call that I was hired. I haven't left automotive since. But it was the early nineties and the times were tough for dealerships, especially the small import ones I worked for. Yet, I was lucky in a number of ways. One, I was surrounded by people who really understood the business and they taught me a lot. Two, by closing two dealerships taught me how fragile business was. Three, working for small stores gave me a chance to learn every job in a dealership. And four, things always worked out for me; when one door slammed shut, another better one always opened up. Again, I was lucky. It might not have felt so at the time - but it's funny how life can find a way to make it if you let it. But working in a dealership wasn't exactly where I wanted to be. I was bored and I wasn't making a lot of money; I wanted something new. I took a job at a warranty processing company named J&L Services. I processed warranty claims for GM dealers and after a while was given the opportunity to learn more about the business. Within a short time I was teaching others, and soon I was giving seminars across the country on how to process GM warranty claims. J&L published a newsletter about processing that was sold to dealerships, and after a while I ended up as the editor. I enjoyed my job, but was slightly depressed at the pay. I knew what I was worth and when I realized I was never going to get it at J&L I considered leaving. At the same time, Tammy was getting sick of working as part of the management team at Target and we both knew one of us should be home with the kids. And, we both wanted to explore the world outside of mid-Michigan. Then one day I got a e-mail. It was from J&L's main competitor WD&S Publishing. I was intrigued by the offer, but politely turned it down. Then something happened at J&L which was the "last straw" and at the same time I got a second e-mail asking me to reconsider. I already had. So, on July 1, 1996 Tammy, the kids, and I packed our shit and we headed to New Jersey. And here we are. It is now eight years later and my life in NJ has been a blur. I have learned to like all NJ has to offer. If nothing else it is easy to make a good living here compared to Michigan, but I do miss Midwestern life quite a bit. Let's just say I enjoy New Jersey and look forward to the next few years until life's next adventure. Personal links Yes, I am Scottish to the bone Spirituality is a personal choice Philosophy on the web Why I didn't pursue a career in banking/finance Home PageTammy's PageKid's PageFun Stuff Page Computer InformationMusicAutomotive PageVintage VW
My "theme" music in the background is Creep by Radiohead. Yeah, I know MIDI sounds are more than kind of tacky but you get the idea. You can click here to get the lyrics of Creep.
If you are still reading then you must be slightly curious -- sort of like when you drive by an accident. I guess we should start at the beginning ....
I was born in San Diego, California (sure I am somewhat proud to be an authentic native) in 1966. I was adopted by my parents when I was about eight weeks old.
So, fast forwarding through quite a bit, life was pretty cool, I was seventeen, living in north county San Diego, and going through my rockabilly stage (see me)... at which point my parents decide to move to Michigan. We had already lived there for a few months when I was 13, but this time was different, I was older and happy where I was. The move wasn't difficult, but it just changed everything about my life -- mostly for the good. But while I was still trying to figure everything out I dropped out of school for a while. As a result, I didn't graduate until I was 19.
The extra year in high school was worth it as it gave me a chance to refocus my priorities, and I met Tammy. Essentially, for better or worse, the person I am today is a large part from that "second" senior year.
After graduation, I went to Illinois State University for a my freshman year. It was fun and most of it came easy to me but I was a little too far from home. I had planned on transferring to Ohio State to be closer to Tammy who was by now back in West Virginia, but financially broke I ended up at home instead. I felt terrible not being in school as everyone I knew was going back. Having dropped out of high school for a short time, I didn't want to fee that way through college as well. One day I was thinking about what I wanted to do and my best friend attended Northwood Institute (now Northwood University), as his mom was in the administration. I figured, "what the hell" I might as well check it out. Within hours I was registered and sitting in class the next day. I made one of the best decisions of my life when I decided to attend Northwood.
In between my sophomore and junior year Tammy graduated high school and we got married. I graduated in 1990 with a AA in Banking and Finance and a BBA in Business Administration with an economics/language arts; Tammy, who also attended Northwood, graduates in 1993.
The irony is Northwood is known and respected as the leading school in Automotive Management. I really wanted nothing to do with the automotive industry -- yet, when I graduated I had one marketable skill, I had worked as a parts manager at a small independent repair shop. I had just graduated, I had a wife and a one year old daughter, it was 1990 and there were no jobs. One fateful day I saw an ad for a parts manager at a local Subaru dealership. In another good decision I answered the ad and I got the job. I still remember sitting on the hide-away bed in the living room of our one-bedroom apartment (Ahmetia as baby had the only room) when I got the call that I was hired. I haven't left automotive since.
But it was the early nineties and the times were tough for dealerships, especially the small import ones I worked for. Yet, I was lucky in a number of ways. One, I was surrounded by people who really understood the business and they taught me a lot. Two, by closing two dealerships taught me how fragile business was. Three, working for small stores gave me a chance to learn every job in a dealership. And four, things always worked out for me; when one door slammed shut, another better one always opened up. Again, I was lucky. It might not have felt so at the time - but it's funny how life can find a way to make it if you let it.
But working in a dealership wasn't exactly where I wanted to be. I was bored and I wasn't making a lot of money; I wanted something new. I took a job at a warranty processing company named J&L Services. I processed warranty claims for GM dealers and after a while was given the opportunity to learn more about the business. Within a short time I was teaching others, and soon I was giving seminars across the country on how to process GM warranty claims. J&L published a newsletter about processing that was sold to dealerships, and after a while I ended up as the editor.
I enjoyed my job, but was slightly depressed at the pay. I knew what I was worth and when I realized I was never going to get it at J&L I considered leaving. At the same time, Tammy was getting sick of working as part of the management team at Target and we both knew one of us should be home with the kids. And, we both wanted to explore the world outside of mid-Michigan.
Then one day I got a e-mail. It was from J&L's main competitor WD&S Publishing. I was intrigued by the offer, but politely turned it down. Then something happened at J&L which was the "last straw" and at the same time I got a second e-mail asking me to reconsider. I already had. So, on July 1, 1996 Tammy, the kids, and I packed our shit and we headed to New Jersey.
And here we are. It is now eight years later and my life in NJ has been a blur. I have learned to like all NJ has to offer. If nothing else it is easy to make a good living here compared to Michigan, but I do miss Midwestern life quite a bit. Let's just say I enjoy New Jersey and look forward to the next few years until life's next adventure.
Home PageTammy's PageKid's PageFun Stuff Page
§ Robert W. Campbell Originally written on November 15, 1997 § Updated/revised on Jan 2, 2004