08/13/2026
There are some jobs that change you. Monterey was one of those jobs for me and Nate. It really was a turn boys into men kind of job.
We called it Monterey because it was on Monterey Street, right off Government and basically downtown, under those big oak trees. It was probably over 100 years old, and when we got there, it was in rough shape. The windows were busted out, the house was massive, and I don’t think it had been renovated or painted in many decades. We had to redo the whole house. Drywall, glass, painting, all of it.
Me and Nate were young, and we both had to learn as we went. I had to learn how to glaze windows. We had to take the old glass out, cut new panes and install them. I bought a glass cutter and started figuring it out. Ended up getting stitches on my arm from cutting myself at one point lol. Every day was another problem to solve, and there wasn't an option to just walk away because we were still on the hook to finish the job.
That job took months of hard work, dedication and showing up every day, even when we were tired and didn’t know exactly how we were going to solve the next problem. We put everything we had into that house.
Looking back, that job was probably 10 times beyond what we were capable of when we started, but we figured it out together and got it done. Monterey taught me and Nate what happens when you stay with something long enough.
It helped turn boys into men, and it showed us that sometimes you don’t have to know how to do something when you start. You just have to be willing to work, learn and see it through.
