Drawdy probably wouldn’t have had this problem if he’d stayed and finished school. His attendance record was about 50 percent, and he had the attention span of a gnat, and he quit school in the middle of the ninth grade.

Drawdy never got in trouble with the police, but when people see him coming they generally go the other way. The episode in Drawdy’s life I’m writing about now involves Drawdy’s latest "home improvement" plan.

Drawdy goes to Home Depot and buys numerous sheets of plywood and two-by-fours for a project he’s working on to surprise his mom. He’ll surprise her all right.

The manager at the Home Depot is so concerned about the huge load Drawdy is attempting to carry with his compact car he makes the boy sign a waiver.

Drawdy drives less than a mile before the cops stop him and tell him to pull "that piece of junk" off the road. He pulls over in front of a fast-food store. That’s when the two back tires explode! The wheel rims bend and the rear shocks spike up through the floorboard.

I think I forgot to mention that Drawdy also has ten 80 pound bags of concrete on the back seat. The load probably weighs as much as "that piece of junk" itself.

Did I mention that Drawdy never passed a math course during his abbreviated education? Here’s a scary thought: Drawdy will be eligible to vote in the 2008 presidential election. Our government should be concerned.