Howdy I'll get in on this, I'm a one man show myself and like a lot of the other's here it seems I myself got my Masters and Contractors License in 1995 at same time. I got mine out of need for some extra cash at the time, was having a slow time on the overtime at reg. job and needed to pay the taxes. I did the military but was only a grunt, no trade exsperience there at all. I've worked on Tuna boats in San Diego, been a Rough Neck on oil/gas Drilling rigs in Texas and Colorado, and went to College for Electrical Eng. in 2nd year of College in one of them huge auditoriums full of people the Electric Utility came and gave a recruitment speech, seems like to stared and talked his whole spill to me and 3 months later I was starting out with them at the bottom of the pole with a shovel on a Line Crew, transfered into the Substations Dept. where we also in the early days worked in the power plants beside the substation's along with doing work in companys office Facilities, we also did the telcommunications sites, but as time went on and all the different parts of the company became there own seperate company's (long corperate BS story) I only worked in the Substations anymore and still seported the elec. generating Hydro's (power plants) so in the substations I worked on not just high voltage's 4kv,13k,25kv,69kv,115kv,138kv,230kv,345kv but on control and protective relaying, well anyhow I did 25 years in the Electric Utility field only out of it because of a motorcycle accident I had 4 years ago and kinda messed my legg up, so it not safe for me to climb on steel or large circuit breakers due to I could fall and get injured on the job(then be a comp.thing on them) so I'm on a semi early medical retirement. but as for my Electrical Contracting thats my bussiness if I fall off a ladder. So in the past 10 years I have remodeled a few small stores, lots of remodel work and wired several new homes, allthough after my accident I did have to stop doing that beings I was layed up for several months, and then I really didnt want to work all the time any more night and weekends. But now I have all the time I want, owe nothing, house payed for etc. So you could say starting out all over again getting back into touch with the contractors that I used to work with etc. not really in a Hurry, and want to get my estimating skills better, I know I was allways underbidding a bit before(not on Purpose i'll mention) so I glad I found this site to read all the post. bye the way my name is Pete
