Hello to Those That Find Their Way Here:
My name is Tim Prindall. I figure I should start by telling you a little bit about me. I am currently employed as a full-time Associate Broker at the Harpswell Realty Group up in Maine, as well as working part-time at Starbucks for health insurance purposes. But that is not where this story begins; as a young boy, barely 14, I witnessed my father lose what was supposed to be a stable job, close to home for the first time in years, all because of a financial crisis I yet had the ability to understand. Approaching high school and with an older brother going into college, I could feel the tension as my father started what would prove to be a desperate battle to find a new job, crossing state borders and splitting our family apart.
Throughout this tumultuous time, my coming-of-age story was written. Witnessing families in mental peril, seeing people lose their homes, and being subjected to a prolonged and dismal recovery. While I was still young, it was evident from the news that the world was dark and the light was still far away…
Eventually, stability was found, and after being successful enough in High School, I started to look at College. I settled on Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida. An excellent school that I recommend to everyone; unfortunately, due to financial constraints, I had to leave after only two years. Thankfully while there, I attended a course in Environmental Economics that has influenced me for the rest of my life. Understanding how the resources around us can be valued in ways other than money (and learning how to express these values in dollar teams) helped change the way I look at the world around me. To this day, I challenge myself when I begin to look at commodities as only that; many products come with experiences and memories (positive externalities) that cannot be overlooked. However, I will talk more about the economics forming the basis of my beliefs in another post.
From Eckerd, I moved on to my State College, University of Maine Orono, which proved to be an unhealthy environment for my learning. After only one year, I switched to the University of Southern Maine’s Online Schooling. Still, due to financial constraints, I was taking only one course at a time, paying it off by working at LL Bean and local restaurants. During this time, I was offered the position as an Administrative Assistant (fancy title for receptionist) at a local Real Estate Agency, allowing me the opportunity to learn the beginnings of what would later become my career.
After working in Real Estate for a few years and with a new desire to pursue my love for economics, philosophy, and policy, I began looking at returning to school and finally finishing my bachelor’s degree. To make this more affordable (as well as secure health insurance for myself), I got a job at Starbucks five days a week for five hours. As these changes began to occur in my life, I found myself in need of more flexible hours, encouraging me to move on from the Administrative side of Real Estate and onto Sales. Changing agencies to the one I am still working with to this day.
This catches us up to the present day; from here, there is almost no way of knowing where I will go. What I hope to convey is, throughout this story lies one underlying constant, my desire to understand why our systems had failed us and what we can do to channel those resources into more productive means. This blog will be an accumulation of years of reading, as well as my take on what it means in consideration of current political, social, and economic events. While I lack any formal accreditation, I hope that it helps you explore how you see the world around you and maybe even teach you a thing or two along the way.
My Maine Musings 