Jonathan Lathrop's Page
This website was written in 1998 and reflects my pets and interests at that time.
1953-1976
Originally from Plainville
Connecticut, My dad was a Cattle
Dealer and Auctioneer who died when I was twelve. Mother was a Home
Economics teacher who mainly worked as a substitute. While in high
school I started and ran Citadel Coffeehouse every Friday night in the
basement of Trinity United Methodist Church
in New Britain Connecticut.
I graduated Magna Cum Laude from Tunxis
Community College with an AA in Liberal Arts. At the University
of Connecticut I majored in Psychology
and graduated with a BA.
1977-1980
I worked as a Community
Organizer in Chicago for two
years and in Mt Rainier,
Maryland for two years. Organizing was exciting and had it’s own rewards
but I found the internal organizational conflicts disconcerting. It seems
as though almost every neighborhood organization I have ever seen has either
blown up or died out. This experience is the principal reason I have vowed
to be self employed and to keep it small. It is hard to have office politics
in an organization of two or three.
1981-Present
After
collecting unemployment
for a couple of weeks I decided that was not for me and ran an ad in the
Washington
Post reading "Have Pick-Up Truck Will
Travel." I was busy almost immediatelyA few months later I had the
opportunity to buy a larger truck for $150. I out bid the scrap man by
$50. A couple thousand in parts and repairs later I changed my ad to "Have
Truck Will Haul." It has made me a living ever since. I still have
the same Truck a 68 GMC 4500
though every moving part has been replaced or rebuilt with the aid and
advice of my brother Ellsworth. Now I am working on replacing parts that
don't move.
Our Family
Also
in 1981 I met Diane Sitar, now my wife. We have been married since 1986.
We have a dog named Kujo and a cat named Goofy. Little Miss Goofy
was exactly that. when she was kitten. She couldn't look at you straight
on for more than a moment. If she stared at you her head would slowly rotate
until she was looking at you upside down Now that she's grown up she is
haughty and very dignified. She always holds the high ground and can either
be found on top of the refrigerator or on the seat of the stationary bicycle.
She is a friendly cat and likes company but disdains touching. Any more
than a single finger under the chin or behind the ear and she gives you
a gentle swat and runs away. It took her a while to get used to Kujo but
she has convinced him that she's the boss and she rules the roost quite
effectively. Here she is saying "Hi!"
Kujo is the opposite of his name. He was given to us by a customer. We think
they wanted a mean guard dog and named him Kujo for the killer dog of the
movies. But he turned out to be such a sweetheart that they gave him to
us. . We don't know what breed he is except for the obvious German Shepherd.
People have guessed part husky, part border collie, part retriever, even
part chow. He's very happy-go-lucky and affectionate and we love him dearly.
Hobbies and Interests
I have lots of interests and hobbies. I enjoy listening
to radio generally especially NPR. I also like playing with my DX390 Short-wave.
I am able to receive stations from all over the world including:
Britain, France, Germany, Chezch Republic, Slovakia,
Russia,
Kuwait, Egypt, Israel, Nigeria, China, Japan, New Zealand, Australia, Costa
Rica, Ecuador, Canada, Mexico and many in the US. A good place to find
out more about this hobby is the Usenet news group rec.radio.shortwave.
I also enjoy mechanical puzzles. for years I
made some every year for Christmas. I haven’t this year but still enjoy
them greatly. “Puzzles Old and New, How to Make and Solve Them” by Jerry
Slocum et al is a wonderful book for any one interested in making their
own puzzles. Slocum bases it on his own extensive collection. One of my
favorite puzzles is pentominoes. Pentominoes
are the twelve basic shapes which can be formed by five
square tiles arranged adjacently. They can be made from 1 X 1 stock
cut and glued together. Then try to fit the twelve pieces in to a 6 X 10
tray. There are 2339 ways to do it or so say the mathematicians. It takes
a while to find even one.
Sign
My GuestbookView
My Guestbook
p>