Who is Patrick Finley anyways?

Why am I writing a blog? Well first, I like to be creative somewhat, and second I do have thoughts every now and then that I would like to share.

So, who am I? I am the son of a Baptist minister who after 32+ years of marriage is still married to my mother who plays the organ for my father on Sundays. I have wonderful parents and I do not thank them enough for what they have provided me with and the opportunities that they have sacrificed to give me things that have enriched my life. I have one brother that is married and they are in the process of adopting two wonderful kids that are brother and sister.

I have moved about 9 times during my life and all in the state of Alabama. I still have friends from just about everywhere I have lived. I graduated high school in 1998. When I graduated I really had no idea what I wanted to do so I took a few years off. During that time, I started a lawn care company with a close friend of mine. It was a small company but it gave us something to do. I liked lawn care somewhat so I thought about being a golf course superintendent. So I went to Auburn University in 2002 to pursue a degree in turfgrass management. After a year at Auburn I found out that I had thought wrong, and also not applied myself very well.

I came back to Birmingham in 2003 to pursue a career in real estate. Real estate had always interest me so I went to real estate school and became a Realtor. During my first month I sold my first house! During the real estate years there were ups and downs. I played around with many sides of real estate including commercial, residential mostly, and land development. At the end of 2007 I started to have doubts about continuing my real estate career. At the end of February 08' I had made up my mind it was time to get out. People asked me why, and it was not the economy that pushed me to this decision. See, from September 07 to April 08, I had a closing every month except March. I just did not care for real estate sales any more.

Also at the beginning of 2008 I started back to school at Jefferson State to get my feet wet again. I then approached close friend and owner of Art Promotional Services about a job. We talked about and he said sure. I thank him for that and I've learned a lot from him about marketing and advertising with promotional products as well as life. During the past year my sales have sucked to my standards. During the past year I have also held a 4.0 gpa and have transferred to Alabama. Business in the first quarter has picked up giving me more confidence as well. Also during this time Trey launched a website called magnetsfast.com which specializes in custom magnets like save the date, schedule, business card, and calendar magnets.

So what's in the cards for 09'? Keeping my grades up, selling magnets and promotional items, mixed in with a little bit of fun.

What can you expect from my blog? Well I guess my interest for example: fishing, golf, wakeboarding, snowboarding(maybe if I get to go), Major League Baseball(Go Sox!!), business, and random events.

So have I answered who I am?