| General Fiction posted May 22, 2018 | Chapters: |
2 3 -4- 5... 
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His college days
A chapter in the book The High Tundra Drifter
The Drifter Grows Up
by F Scott Hafner
| Background This chapter describes the Drifter's years as a student. I was with him in Alaska and spent with him since so all details have a ring of truth. |
By the time The Drifter gave his valedictorian speech at his high school, his optimism about the state of the world was quite low. His speech was full of anger and foreboding about the future. DDT was killing his birds. He wanted to do something about it.
The Drifter wanted to go to a top university. The Drifter had straight A's in all the right classes and field research to back it up - reality struck. He needed a scholarship. And that required information about how much money his father made. In the Heartland, a man's privacy was next to honor. There would be no scholarship. San Diego State University was the least expensive university in the area and that is where the Drifter began his studies.
It was at San Diego State where he began his arctic field research. He seemed quite a man underneath his black Stetson. But he usually kept to himself. Camp was 104 miles Northeast of Fairbanks Alaska. His research required him to stay awake over 48-hour stretches. He could be seen walking about camp trying to convince the other researchers that people do not need sleep. The less he slept, the more he talked.
Near camp lived a very famous gold miner by the name of Alice. One day The Drifter was walking down the dirt road towards Alice's cabin. She said, "Look at that no good varmit coming down yonder, best I go get my Ought 6." It is what she called her high-powered rifle. She was assured Steve was safe although she did not quite believe it. She left her ought 6 in the cabin.
The Drifter was in Grisly Bear country. Any researcher coming up from the University of Alaska always had a high-powered rifle. There were no guns at The Drifter's camp. They were as wild as the grisly bears.
The Drifter finished up his Master's degree at San Diego State and moved on to Duke. In keeping with his boots, The Drifter committed to a professor and line of research in graduate school. When he had the opportunity to change course to a professor he greatly admired and a topic more directed towards his interests, he stayed the course. Once he makes a commitment, you can depend on him.
And when he speaks, there is wisdom in his words.
The Drifter wanted to go to a top university. The Drifter had straight A's in all the right classes and field research to back it up - reality struck. He needed a scholarship. And that required information about how much money his father made. In the Heartland, a man's privacy was next to honor. There would be no scholarship. San Diego State University was the least expensive university in the area and that is where the Drifter began his studies.
It was at San Diego State where he began his arctic field research. He seemed quite a man underneath his black Stetson. But he usually kept to himself. Camp was 104 miles Northeast of Fairbanks Alaska. His research required him to stay awake over 48-hour stretches. He could be seen walking about camp trying to convince the other researchers that people do not need sleep. The less he slept, the more he talked.
Near camp lived a very famous gold miner by the name of Alice. One day The Drifter was walking down the dirt road towards Alice's cabin. She said, "Look at that no good varmit coming down yonder, best I go get my Ought 6." It is what she called her high-powered rifle. She was assured Steve was safe although she did not quite believe it. She left her ought 6 in the cabin.
The Drifter was in Grisly Bear country. Any researcher coming up from the University of Alaska always had a high-powered rifle. There were no guns at The Drifter's camp. They were as wild as the grisly bears.
The Drifter finished up his Master's degree at San Diego State and moved on to Duke. In keeping with his boots, The Drifter committed to a professor and line of research in graduate school. When he had the opportunity to change course to a professor he greatly admired and a topic more directed towards his interests, he stayed the course. Once he makes a commitment, you can depend on him.
And when he speaks, there is wisdom in his words.
A pretty accurate description of The Drifter's college days. This is a chapter in a book and is intended to paint a picture of what he was like as a person.
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