A LITTLE ABOUT THE AUTHORCHARLES H. TANKERSLEYNick Names: CHTANK or chtank (primary nickname), gramps, Q, dinosaur, and TANK or tank.I am Charles Henry Tankersley, born to Benjamin Arlyn Tankersley and Westlynn Beverly Coates Tankersley in 1933 at the Oklahoma City General Hospital. My father was the youngest son of Benjamin Robert Tankersley and Rachel Catherine Bixler Tankersley; my mother the oldest child of Henry Coates and Mary Alice Garrett Coates. MY DAD'S FAMILY and MY MOM'S FAMILYI retired from Parson's Engineering Corporation on April Fool's Day in 1998, the significance of which escapes me. Too late, I found that my wife had saved up a lifetime of honey-do's for me. I may need to go back to work just to rest up. I was trained in the old school of engineering design, that is, I did all my calculations and documentation manually. Several years before I retired, while leading a crew on a client's site, the client supervisor called me to his office. He told me; "Tank, you are a dinosaur! From now on all our documentation and records will be digitized and stored electronically on the computer. We are entering the paperless society." I was promised to be be trained. A computer placed before me and I was told to use it. I was left to do my own "training". What I know of the computer, whether right or wrong, is self taught. What a monster they created! Although I am somewhat computer literate, I am NOT a programmer, nor do I have any desire to learn any more than is necessary to use this machine. I will help other "dinosaurs" who are in my position if I can. Ask - I will do what I can. I use the computer as a tool, not a toy. The computer is one of the best communication and working tools yet developed by mankind. As such it allows me to use the computer as a THINKTANK where I might "chase the elusive dreams" of my youth. I am been able to complete my move to rootsweb and the Homestead website is now closed. A DINOSAUR'S THINKTANKA Dinosaur's Thinktank is my "Table of Content" where my genealogy material and other thinktank items are listed. It is my entire personal website.I have not forgotten my dreams of youth. Daydreams of the life to come are common to all children, such as: "Will I be a great writer and write the great American novel?" or "Maybe I will be a doctor and discover the cure for all the diseases and win the Nobel Prize." or "I will be a fireman, a policeman, and the president." As far back as I can remember I always wanted to know what made things work. As a teen I was inspired by my dad and his boss, Dr. Van Allen (yes, he is related to the Van Allen belt). I dream of science, space travel, and exploring new worlds at the far ends of the universe. Now that I am retired I can explore all those old but not forgotten dreams. The computer has become the launch-pad of exploration and discovery. It is the space ship to continued education and the fulfillment of my childhood dreams. I use the Internet to study and learn and use my website(s) to record my findings and thoughts, much like a journal. The THINKTANK is the index and outline to my Journal. I am also dedicated to promoting universal education as a God given human right. It is self evident that the only purpose for human existence on this earth is to learn. From the moment of birth, perhaps even before, one must learn to breath, feed, move, communicate, cooperate, reproduce, build, create, love, and sadly, even to hate. The reward of our future existence depends on which lessons and how well the lessons are learned. Should we learn greed, hate, and selfishness, then our reward will be in kind. If we learn love, charity, esteem, and selflessness, then we shall share this same reward. We reap that which we sow. Try it, you will see that I am speaking the truth. Each time I give freely, I am rewarded many times over; just as a grain of wheat returns many grains. The universe is God's creation and as such it is His truth, what more can we do but study His truth. INTRODUCING MY WIFE JEAN L. PARSONSJean and I married shortly after her former husband passed away from a disease he contracted while a prisoner of war during World War II. He was a tail gunner on a B-17 that was shot down over Germany in 1942. They were married in 1946 and moved to Kansas for Ed to take Television and Electronics training on the GI Bill. After he graduated they moved to Houston, Texas, where he helped build the first TV station, now KPRC channel 2, an NBC affiliate, where he remained employed until his retirement. They managed to raise five beautiful daughters, who among them provided 10 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren, so far, with more on the way. Jean now has her own computer and website. I registered, built, and maintain the website for her and she purchased her own computer. It will take some time, but she will have a full album of grand-kids and pugs to show to all who would like to know more of this terrific lady. To reach her web pages, just click INTRODUCING MY WIFE JEAN L. PARSONS. Please E-MAIL ME if you like this page or would like to talk about it.
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