Knowing C Students: My best friend in grade school was several years older than I was, yet we were in the same grade, because I had been pushed ahead and she had been kept behind. She was a sweet person who liked following me around. I had to come up with all the ideas, but she was always up for them.
Knowing Religious People: Something about my line of work seems to draw Mormons, evangelicals, and observant Jews, among others. I've had all sorts of interesting discussions.
I've read the Book of Mormon. I love their idea that Christ didn't just hang around Israel, but came to the New World to save more people.
One of my Jewish bosses told me that Leviticus is a "requirements document" for how he is supposed to live his life. The idea of God as a systems engineer just tickled me.
Another boss was an engineer who personally started a local school where only Creationism is taught, so his 3 kids wouldn't be poisoned by godless scientific teachings. I asked him once how they dealt with geological evidence, and he said the Devil put the fossils there to test our faith. Personally I doubt the Devil has to go to that much trouble to make us misbehave.
Pickup Truck: Mr. A. and I bought a pickup truck when we moved to an "estate home" built on a 3-acre lot. The lot was completely bare except for a few "builder shrubs" which, naturally, started dying the minute the builder stuck them in the ground. We planted more than 100 trees and shrubs, driving that little truck all over the yard and using it to haul sand, rocks, topsoil, you name it.
Oh, and I knew who Jimmie Johnson is because...I READ!!
There can be many paths to the same place...
Amethyst