Within these few pages, I hope to give you some idea at least of what I do offshore and of what life offshore is like...
But first, I want to tell you a little about me... I'm 41, married with 4 wonderful children. I've been married to my wife Sheryre for 16 years. She is a stay at home mother, a full time student at Wharton County Jr. College and in my opinion, she works at least twice as hard as I do. Raising our children is real work, but it's a task she doesn't hesitate from and she's really a great momma. She was born in South Louisiana, but her parents had the good sense to move to Texas when she was a child. We met while I was living in North East Texas and working in South Texas. We fell in love and the rest is history...
I grew up in Hopkins County, North East Texas. My family had what could be called a really big farm or a small ranch. We had 15 acres there where the house and main barns were, plus 698 acres about 20 miles up the road. We had horses, hogs, goats & chickens... but mostly horses. We didn't mess with cattle much because, well, we just didn't like cows much... John Wayne put it best in the movie "The Cowboys" when he said "a cow isn't anything more than a big bunch of ignorance wrapped up in a leather bag"... Growing up in the country like I did instilled many of the values and work ethics I have carried with me my entire life. I learned early that it didn't matter what the weather was like, no matter how hot, cold, wet, or dry, the animals were dependent on me for their survival. I couldn't sleep in just because I was up late or stay in bed just because I didn't feel good... those animals were penned down in the barn and couldn't eat or drink if I didn't get up and do my job. I have my Dad, Jack Bain, and Larry Reiles (close family friends) to thank for teaching me just how important it is to put personal issues aside and get the job done...
I have a very "old school" attitude in many ways, but not when it comes to safety. I very rarely believe there is an excuse for not doing your job. In my view, so long as it doesn't pose a safety hazard... get your ass to work!
A little about my children...
Hunter is our oldest, he's 16. We couldn't ask for a more responsible young man. He works hard and doesn't quit when it's too hot or too cold, he'll just get out there and get busy. He loves to ride horses, camp out and fish. He's so good with his siblings... he looks after his younger brothers and sister as if they were his children. He's a lot like me in many ways. First and foremost, he's a Cowboy, through and through! He's also a big young man. Now remember he's only 16, but he stands 6' tall and weighs 260 pounds. I'll tell you, he's tougher than boot leather!
Tyler's next, he's 13 years old. What more can I say than "WOW"! Tyler is one of the smartest kids I've ever seen. He's an "A" honor role student and always has been. Tyler finds more joy in reading than anything else. I know everyone thinks their kids are the best (and I'm no different), but when it comes to this young man, it's just the plain truth. We can always depend on Tyler to tell the truth, regardless of the trouble he may get into. We never have to tell him to do his homework or study for a test, and more than that, he will take it upon himself to make sure he's prepared. Sometimes I wish I had been more like him as a boy.
Kinsey Renee is our only girl (she doesn't stand a chance at ever dating!). She's 10 and I have to say, she is the apple of my eye. She is very pretty, but more than that, she's a sweet girl. She loves to get out and get dirty! If there's a mud hole anywhere around, I promise she'll be in it! Kinsey will fight with "her boys" (brothers) and won't think about backing down.
Our littlest boy is Trace... Trace Landon Mathews, but we mostly call him "Crash"... and believe me, the nickname suits him well! He is 6... Trace is into everything and afraid of nothing. For a boy his age, he's quite strong but more than that, he's extremely strong willed. When he puts his little mind to do something, he does it. He sees his older brothers (or sister) do something that he thinks would be fun, by gosh he IS going to do it too (like doing back-flips into the pool to riding his bike without training wheels!).
As you can tell, I'm proud of my children... Everything I do, I do for them!
Enjoy this site and email me if you have any questions
Barry L. Mathews
|
