| I was born on a hot summer morning in
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| | delivery man at our door. "Some woman
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| Minneapolis, MN. Six months later I was
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| | ordered it," he said. It was Clint. Later
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| adopted. I grew up in a working-class
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| | he started to run afoul of the law by
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| neighborhood in south Minneapolis, just a
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| | stealing hubcaps and escalated to
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| few blocks away from the Mississippi
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| | frequent trips to the Anoka County Jail.
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| River and Lake Street. Evie was born 23
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| | He finally was sentenced to a community
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| months later and grew up in the "poor
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| | corrections program, where they forced
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| section" of the Washburn High School
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| | him to attend school and finish his high
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| district. Our fathers were middle-class
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| | school degree. Since then he has worked
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| workers, my Dad with the Minneapolis Gas
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| | in any number of jobs, including owning
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| Company, and hers as an inspector with
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| | and running his own businesses, and has
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| the City of Minneapolis. My Mom was a
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| | added numerous certificates for car and
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| full-time homemaker, hers, a working mom
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| | computer repair, as well as a low-voltage
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| doing part-time bookkeeping during the
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| | electrician license. Besides being unlike
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| war. We each have an adoptive sibling,
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| | us in interests, he is also unlike us
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| Evie a brother, Jim. I have a sister,
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| | politically. He is a hard-core Republican
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| Mary.At some time early in my life my
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| | and we are life-long Democrats.Our
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| parents told me I was adopted. I didn't
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| | daughter Katie is totally unlike him, and
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| understand what that meant and didn't
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| | us. She is bright, sweet and artistic.
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| think much about it. I could never
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| | Like Clint, she hated school. An
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| understand why some kids laughed at me
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| | undiagnosed ear infection caused hearing
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| when they found out. One even called me a
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| | problems during the crucial language
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| bastard. I just shrugged my shoulders and
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| | development stage. Her speech is fine,
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| walked away. For me, being adopted was
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| | but she has difficulty understanding
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| just a fact of life.Unfortunately for my
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| | figurative language. She also was
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| sister, it wasn't. She learned when she
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| | diagnosed as learning disabled, but not
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| was seven and it destroyed her. I asked
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| | at a severe enough degree to require
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| my parents why they hadn't told her and
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| | Special Education classes. (To me, this
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| they said that she wasn't ready to find
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| | always sounded like having only one leg,
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| out. I never was able to understand why I
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| | but not being eligible for services
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| was ready to know at three and she wasn't
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| | because you didn't limp badly enough.)
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| at seven.Evie learned early on and
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| | Her academic problems were compensated by
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| fantasized that she was the lost daughter
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| | her artistic gifts. She is a very
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| of a princess. Her parents regularly read
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| | talented writer and keeps a diary. Once,
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| her The Chosen Child, which dealt with
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| | when little, she described an extended
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| adoption. We both led normal lives, but
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| | trip to northern Minnesota. "We drove and
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| I had a strange experience when I was
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| | we drove and we drove." She also won an
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| four-years-old. I was told from the
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| | award for a statue she made in a school
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| beginning that no one knew who my other
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| | art's class. She also has high moral
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| mother was. But one day I came in from
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| | standards, and went through her teens
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| playing and found her crying. "your other
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| | drug and tobacco-free. We couldn't be
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| mother died," she said. How could she
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| | more proud of her. After she finishes a
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| have known if nobody knew who she was I
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| | course in aesthesiology she intends to
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| wondered. I still wonder to this day, but
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| | become a make-up artist. We're sure
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| I did find out that my birth-mother
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| | she'll do a wonderful job.
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| wasn't as anonymous as I was led to
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| | Like us, she's an animal lover. She
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| believe. More of that in Part II.Evie and
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| | graciously is leaving two dogs for us to
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| I lived through the 'Forties and 'Fifties
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| | care for.In short, being adopted doesn't
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| and graduated from High School. Evie went
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| | seem to have been such a big thing for
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| to Washburn and I attended Minnehaha
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| | our family. As we grew up, Evie and I
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| Academy, then went on to college. Evie
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| | would have liked to know more about
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| went to Hamline University and the
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| | family health issues. That problem has
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| University of Minnesota. I graduated from
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| | been solved because we both have found
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| the University with a three-year break
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| | our birth-families. Neither of us have
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| with the Army after my Freshman year. We
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| | had abandonment issues, or at least not
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| met in 1966 and married in 1967. In 1973
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| | conscious ones, and I don't think Katie
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| our son Clint came along.Clint was
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| | or Clint do either. Since we have met out
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| healthy and happy, but definitely like
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| | birth-families, it has been nice to know
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| neither of us. He shares our facility
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| | people who look like us. Our children
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| with language, speaking full sentences at
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| | seem to be comfortable that they are
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| 9 months and able to carry on adult
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| | adopted, and we can always think that the
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| conversations from the age of seven. But
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| | really good things about them are due to
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| while Evie and I have trouble changing a
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| | their upbringing, and the things we don't
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| lightbulb, Clint is literally a
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| | like, to heredity.The discovery of our
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| mechanical genius, scoring at the 9999th
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| | birth families is told in Part II.John
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| percentile in an mechanical aptitude
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| | Anderson is very anxious to learn of
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| test. From the beginning he was
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| | adoption experiences/issues and invites
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| fascinated with cars. I've always liked
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| | you to contact him at He is the author
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| them, but I didn't have to have one next
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| | of a mystery-thriller, The Cellini
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| to me on my pillow when I went to sleep.
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| | Masterpiece, written under the pen name
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| His intelligence has worked against him.
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| | of Raymond John. If you would like to
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| Bored in school, he began to get in
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| | read the first chapter of the book, it is
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| trouble from an early age. When he was
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| | available at the above web-site.
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| seven we were surprised to find a pizza
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|