A Personal History

Whoa! Hi, there! Strange to see me on a Wednesday, right?

I couldn't wait, though. I needed to take a short break from getting my shop opened back up to just chat with you guys.

As some of you know, I am a full time student right now studying Accounting and Finance (I know-- boring, but I quite like it). With that said, I take some pretty interesting classes. It's not all numbers and spreadsheets, you know.

One of my most recent assignments for my English Reporting class was an email about our personal history. Our professor wanted to know a bit about our prior school life and what brought us to where we are. I thought it was an interesting assignment, and it really made me think about my life in a linear way. If you know anything about me, I'm pretty chaotic in the way I get things done: my train of thought makes many stops and delays if you know what I mean.

This assignment was fun, though. I really enjoyed reflecting on my life even when I wasn't thrilled with a lot of it. It made me take a step back and see that my life didn't start in my 20s, though it does feel like that sometimes.

Here you go! (Professor's name omitted for privacy)

Professor,

I would like to take a moment to tell you a bit about myself.

I attended Richlands High School in Richlands, North Carolina. It’s about an hour and a half outside of Wilmington. While I didn’t particularly enjoy high school, there were some opportunities there that weren’t present at the other schools in my area.

One of these opportunities was the Architectural Technologies program. I took full advantage of this since I was convinced I was going to be an engineer or an architect.

I joined Skills USA and competed in math competitions, architectural drafting competitions, and even a residential wiring competition in Onslow County’s Trades Day. I placed first in drafting and fourth place for state math.

It’s been almost seven years since I’ve graduated, and I am still not an engineer or an architect. I can’t say I will completely give up on that dream, though. I do still love math and science. I started working at a gym at Camp-Lejeune New River the month immediately following my graduation.

I then worked at Michaels as a Custom Framer, stocker, cashier, and warehouse receiving associate and then as a house cleaner in Wilmington. The commute was long, but jobs are always scarce in Jacksonville.

I quit working when the pandemic hit. I was planning to keep my job while in school, but the circumstances landed me in a tough position. I’m currently a Freshman here at Cape Fear, taking solely online classes from my apartment in Jacksonville. It’s only fifteen minutes from the high school I attended.

After years of being unsure where to focus my energy in college, I decided on Accounting and Finance. This decision was sparked by my interest in nonprofit micro-lending organizations, but it was solidified by being an independent author that’s scared of the IRS. I’ve published two picture books and have more releases planned in the coming months and years.

I always get embarrassed talking about my extra curricular activities since I have never been as involved in the community as I feel I should be. However, I do try my best to make an effort where I can. I tutor my sister in math and science (right now it’s calculus and chemistry).

There’s also local arts center that I like to visit. I even participated in my first gallery showing a couple of years ago. It’s a great place to meet creatives.

As you can see, I have a lot of interests. Growing up, it wasn’t easy to stay focused. Now, though, I am proud of the path I am on, and I see it as sustainable in both lasting interest and financial security.

I greatly appreciate you taking the time to read this. Please reach out if you have any questions.

Thank you,

Naomi Landry