'The Best and Worst of Both Worlds'

Missing Out on Life at Home

One spring afternoon, his daughters Sydney and Rachel, 6 and 4, were spider-walking across the carpet while 2-year-old Daniel Jr. poked his father with a plastic devil's trident. "Play trucks with me," he said, as Tichinel tried to study at the knotty pine table he built with lumber from his uncle's sawmill.

His wife scooped ice cream into a blender for milkshakes, and Tichinel grabbed the keys to pick up the eldest, 10-year-old Brooke, from softball practice. Danny held onto his leg, pleading, "Daddy!"

"I'll be right back," Tichinel said, and tousled his son's blond hair.

It is so hard to leave, he said. "Oh man, is it hard. There's times I feel like I'm pushing them aside; they're growing up while I'm off doing my own thing." Then he wonders if bettering himself and his salary is really going to work out best for them. "I hope so," he said, shook his head, and walked out.

Tammy Tichinel poured the milkshakes into cups. "This is difficult," she said, "very difficult." Money is a constant concern.

"I just keep my vision on the future and what the outcome will be," she said, "because, believe me, the thought has crossed my mind, 'Oh my gosh, you're the one working, with the four kids and all.' " She prays, talks to friends and holds her tears until after the kids are asleep.

But her husband is getting the chances he didn't have when he was younger. "He's just blooming, and going to live his ultimate dream life."

She hopes that life will be nearby. He wants to look for jobs in Charlotte or Atlanta. She knows it won't be easy to find work in Garrett. But she would not be happy in a city, she said, and it's a great place for the children to grow up.

"I don't know about that," he said, joining her. "For me it wasn't that great. I went to school here."

A Glimpse at the Payoff

In the lab during spring semester, evaluating materials such as steel and cement, Tichinel finally felt he was learning something useful. "I'm starting to feel like I'm becoming an engineer, instead of just working my tail off," he said.

And in lab, his construction experience helped. He would blurt things out, like why shingles had to be installed a certain way to avoid corrosion, professor Kelly Salyards said. "He's more aware than most students of how important knowledge is," she said, "and that can be very helpful for the other students, those who are just floating by and not really sure yet why they're here, to see someone excited about soaking it all in."

A new friend made it easier to study and figure out tricky concepts. He started a softball team.

He still thought about quitting. But after finals, a professor offered him a part-time research job for next fall. And he got his final grades: He earned a 3.6 second semester. "Like I died and went to heaven," he said, and laughed.

Now he has summer stretching in front of him, months at home with his family, working construction, earning some money. Finally, a break from the pressure.

One year down. Two to go.