Myself on my 20th Birthday March 8th 2011

Well the big two zero, I just turned 20 and I’m to the age where I don’t want to go back but I wouldn’t mind it if the age clock stopped either! Every year on my birthday I always take the time to write a little about my past and how my interests came to be. This year instead of writing about my past, I would like to write about what I’m planning on in the future.

I’ve always had a huge interest in both meteorology and horticulture my entire life, but just recently I had to make a choice in what I wanted to peruse in for a career. I’ve decided that meteorology would be a bit too difficult for me to study because it takes quite a lot of knowledge to pass. So I’ve decided I want to take my interest in plants and further my education on them, as everyone knows I’ve been interested in horticulture for a long time and I remember planting my first plant outside when I was half as tall as the shovel! My many years of interest and knowledge this subject is why I’ve been looking to further my education in it.

I’m still working very hard on my HS-GED, and after more then a year of work I am getting very close to passing. After looking at potential collages for horticulture from as close right here in Wisconsin to as far away as Alabama. I’ve decided after I get my diploma, I will for sure be going to Rochester community collage in Rochester,Minnesota. There they have a 2 year degree class which offers studies to get careers in landscaping, tree care, greenhouse management, and golf course management. I’ve wanted to work in a greenhouse for as long as I can remember, and I would love to become a professional in tree care. So I’ve decided this class will be perfect for me!

During the time I take this class I will be moving to a family members house in Rochester Minnesota for a few years, the only question is when. The class starts in August, but recently I’ve been given the idea that I could move down there for summer work, and begin working before classes start. So if I can not find any greenhouse work anywhere around where I live now, I may go down and try to find it down there. I’ve already begun calling local greenhouses for jobs, and if I find a job there, I would likely be moving to Rochester shortly after I finish my HS-GED, which will be in the next month or two. After I get my diploma from Rochester Community collage I am hoping to get a long term career in greenhouse work, landscaping, tree care, or even all three!

I would like to mention, even though I plan on perusing an education and a career in horticulture, I will never loose interest in following the weather, it will always be close to me, and It will be something I can never stop loving, as mother nature can be sometimes predicable to extremely un forgiving and just awesome, and I really think keeping a high interest in weather will actually really help the other, since weather can greatly effect plants! When I move, I plan to take a new spotter class down there so I can continue to be an official spotter for the NWS and report severe weather and snowfall reports. I will also be sure to have a weather station set up and I will be keeping all the weather records I do here currently at home, I even hope to do a little storm chasing in the summer while I’m there!

Announcement

I’m sure many people have been awaiting my decision on what I will be doing with my blog. Although I’m still open to ideas and changes in my plan, I think I’ve decided I will likely be transferring this blog to cover weather in a few counties in southeastern Minnesota, I would do exactly what I do now with reports and pictures, I will also do the same as I do now with taking pictures from my new location and writing stories from my point of view in weather, and depending on how much time I have, I may even do some forecasting! Also with the changes would also likely be a blog name change.

It’s also important for me to mention I will be providing full coverage to Western Wisconsin like I have been the past years, until right before I move. I will make an official announcement letting everyone know when I make the change and move to Rochester.

Thanks to anyone who took the time to learn about my future, I know I am very excited to get started in collage and to try living in a new community, but at the same time I will never forget my hometown and where I came from!

Blog owner,
Derek McKay