Well, since Mike blamed me for this month's question of the month I guess it would be polite to stop dodging it and give an answer.
I'm sort of undecided between Elbert's predestined path and Cadd's pachinko machine...
I thought about a lot of years back looking for a big change in a short period of time and I pick
The Summer of '66.
My life before that was a crooked path leading towards my father's profession as an engineer. I took all the courses and eyeballed the employers and positions available. But as much as I loved the math, physics, and problem solving aspects of the career there were a few things that were definite obstacles to such a professional path.
The first was that I had so little interest in arts and literature and history that my first 2 years of college awful, gradespeakingwise.
I transferred from a liberal arts college to a large university known as "The Big Farm" in the middle of Ohio.
The second obstacle was that I decided as much as I liked the courses I didn't like the actual job of engineer. Poor performance in French and psychology dragged my grades below the threshold of even the state's university system.
In mid '65 the draft board was kind enough to send me an invitation to join the government's education program of patriotism, discipline, weaponry, teamwork and general whipassery.
During the next year basic training, artillery school, clerk typist course, blah blah... assigned to a southeast Asia Arty HQ as clerk. Pretty much had the individualism extracted from me.
FORK IN THE ROAD finally.
I may go into the details later, but let's just say the LT above me wanted to throw me in the stockade. I wanted to demand my right to a court martial because he was so wrong, but my CO talked me out of it saying the worst I would get out of it was and Article 15 with 7 days of extra duty with no loss of grade or pay. That was a lot better than taking the chance of getting convicted and being labeled a Federal Offender. [ <-- good advice]
So to get out of my untenable position I asked my LT if I could get reassigned. [What he didn't know that I knew of every personnel opening in the unit from HQ down to the battery level.] He said, "If you can find somebody who would want you to work for him... fine!"
So I slapped a reassignment order on his desk sending myself to the Aviation Detachment as a Huey crewchief/machinegunner. I was over there in day.
My life changed from aimless to focused in a day. My BIGGEST FORK.
It was that move that led me toward my professional interest in flying. Got into civilian flying, instruction, airline, air traffic control and emergency operations. Over 30 years with the FAA.