DESTINY 1

I was 17 years old and had flown through my final year of high school---I didn't have to wait for my results, I knew that I had passed every subject and passed them well.
My parents were pointing me towards a University education but I wanted to earn money--I didn't want another 4 or 5 years of a decent degree---I wanted to be out in the world and raking in the big money ---ha, smart kid.
It wasn't that I didn't know where I wanted to work but as to what I wanted to do, that was another thing.
My maternal grandfather was an engineer in the ship building industry in Scotland, my paternal great grandfather was a master mariner---owning and mastering ships that traded along the coast of Australia and my paternal grandfather was a wharf and jetty builder for all of the Ports of this state.
I was born and lived all of my life on a peninsular with magnificent beaches but great views of our deep water port on one side and an ocean fed river and inner port on the other side.
I was always on boats---I just loved shipping--it was a passion---and I was going to work in some sort of marine industry---which one, I had no idea---but one of them.

My parents insisted that if I wasn't going to University to study, that I should be working as soon as possible---and they instilled into me that if I could.t find the job that I really wanted, I should take a job to earn my way and get some experience---seemed fair to me so I applied for seven jobs--none of them in my chosen field but all not far from home.
I got seven call backs / interviews---good deal, it was easy. Six of them were an absolute coast and I was happy that I had done well but the seventh one was strange---they had aptitude tests, psychological tests and mathematical tests--well, it was in an accounting area.
I turned up for my testing thinking that it would be one on one with an interviewer but there I was in a classroom situation with eleven other people---test booklets were handed out, the clock ticked over and we had a maximum of three hours to complete all testing. About an hour in I had finished and sat there staring into oblivion--the testing officer came to me and asked what was wrong---I told him that I was finished---he looked at me and said "I doubt that---very few people can finish these tests in the three hours allowed, so you have done something drastically wrong--maybe you should take the time to look through them again"
Now that panicked me and I started all over again going through one test after another --it took as long as doing the tests but not long after the two hour point I was sitting there looking at the interviewer---he came to me and I told him I had checked everything and was happy with my work---he took my tests and escorted me from the room and told me that I had done something drastically wrong and that I really shouldn't expect to hear from them again----and I didn't think I would.

I decided which of the jobs I wanted---it was with a nation wide airline and could hold my interest for a while.
I got replies from the original six interviews, five of them offering me a job and of course, the airline said I'd finished second so they couldn't offer me a job right then.
The next day I heard from the the seventh--they wanted me to come in and talk about my testing.
I was sure that I stuffed up---well, the interviewer told me---but I thought that I might as well find out where I went wrong.
I turned up for an interview with the managing director of this major electronics company, expecting to be told that I was stupid----he started of by saying that he couldn't offer me the accounting job--even though I had aced the mathematical testing, the aptitude testing said that my abilities should be used elsewhere---I stood up, shook his hand and thanked him but he stopped me---no Clyde, we wont give you this job but what we want to offer you is a cadetship in Electrical Engineering--we will pay you to go to University and you will work with our engineers here and interstate---you will be fast tracked and from what your testing reveals, you should have a 5 year degree in 3 years.
Now that stopped me in my tracks---I had refused my parents pleas to go to University because I wanted money and here I was being offered the only cadetship in Australia and being paid a full wage to go to University.
It was a lot to think about and I asked for a few days to make a decision.

Two days later I had made up my mind.
I had methodically gone through the pros and cons of every job on offer to me and I had made my decision for the best of reasons.

Ten days later I started work with a British based insurance company.
Why ?
Well the receptionist had a great pair of tits.
Hey, I was 17 years old---and what do 17 year old boys think about.

Turned out that she was 26 and hated younger guys

A week after I started, the Airline contacted me and offered me the job---but I chose to stay---
I only lasted 3 months---it was not challenging in the least and those tits just weren't worth it---I quit and went in search of a job in shipping.

Next time