Joe Cramer-More about a father

Being the son of a guy that would tackle just about anything was a real learning experience. I learned as much, if not more from his mistakes than from his successes. Early in his adult life he was a hard drinker. He managed to overcome that and became a responsible, caring and loving husband and father. One of his greatest achievements. He bought a semi tractor and car hauling trailer. Had just enough to buy them, he was going to insure them as soon as he hauled his first load of cars. There was a terrible accident on that first haul, we lost everything! One of his greatest mistakes ever. Scrimped and saved and worked several jobs on very little sleep for over six years living in a cramped apartment with my mom and us kids. Finally, finally, there was enough to buy a rather decrepit older house in the suburbs and start over. Flush toilet? Sure, as long as you had a pail of water. Stay warm in the winter? Sleep on the living room floor next to the space heater. Running water? Absolutely, just grab the pump handle in the kitchen sink and get it done. As a family we were so excited to be there none of these slight inconveniences mattered in any way. The whole idea was that we were a family and attacked any problem, under my dad's careful eye and my mom's calm encouragement and understanding. We were going to make this our castle. So very Cool!