I have been keeping a journal since I was 15 years old. Over 35 years and hundreds of pages later, I decided to transcribe my chicken-scratch handwriting into typed form. Then I thought I needed to put my journal entries into context so I wrote a narration of events leading up to each entry. Many people had told me I should write a book when I regaled them with some of my life's adventures and experiences so all of a sudden, a memoir was taking shape. A memoir, as opposed to an autobiography describes a journey and it dawned on me that I indeed had a journey to convey. What is unique about this memoir is the inclusion of my actual journal entries, until now locked away from others describing in real time my feelings, thoughts, and desires in raw detail.