I mostly just got lucky. Yeah, I worked my ass off - but not any harder than someone lugging concrete forms around on their shoulder. (I've done that work. It was horrible.) My business was suddenly valuable and I was offered the chance to sell. I'd have had to have been fucking retarded to not sell.
What type business? You were juggling performing and something else?
I'm a mathematician. I modeled traffic. In fact, I helped take traffic modeling from the barbaric days to the age of computers.
No, I didn't tell them where to put traffic signs. I told 'em what would happen if they put a sign there. I did employ traffic engineers who would advise them and offer a complete solution.
We'd later expand to model pedestrian traffic - think an arena or a skyscraper needing to be able to allow safe exit in a fire.
The economy went to hell. They announced they'd be spending trillions of dollars - including billions and billions of dollars on infrastructure. That made traffic modeling really lucrative. I was offered a bunch of money to sell and I jumped on it.
I was still performing when I could. I used to live off my musicianship. I no longer needed to perform at that stage in my life, but I kept doing it because I enjoyed it.
You are really lucky, more like blessed.
I know you're thankful. Pretty neat stuff..
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