VOICES OF OUR REGION
Eric Miazga
Transcript
My name is Eric. I grew up in Erie, PA. I was born in 1975. I had a pretty normal life. I went to school in a regular elementary school with a special home room. And high school was the same way. In the high school, I wrestled and I also was in the Chess Club. From high school I went in to college. I studied computers at Edinboro University, graduated in ’91; looked for a job for about two years in Erie. Couldn’t find nothin’.
They ran a special program for the handicapped at CCAC. I went through that program, set me up with an internship with the city as a programmer and it ended up that they hired me at the end of the internship.
Interviewer: So you came down to Pittsburgh by yourself?
Yeah. I came all the without my family. They’re still up in Erie, but I mean, I’m a man. I need to work, and in Erie they was nothing in the field. So I basically dove in head first. I learned to swim all by myself.
Interviewer: So how long have you been working for the city?
I started my fourteenth year last week. (Laughing) I’m a programmer on—I develop basically web applications for internal and external use. We’re now in the process of rebuilding a whole website so we been busy for quite a while. And that’s a whole new aspect of the field for me. I decided that I had to support myself. I’m being just—being human. I mean this is just something you have to do.
The good part is, I met my wife here, and I am married, we’ve been married four years and that was actually two weeks ago we were married four years and that is working out very well Very happy.
Interviewer: What’s your family think about you getting married?
They were ecstatic. I mean no one ever thought I would get a job, let alone getting married, owning a house and having a dog.
Interviewer: Eric who’s had the biggest influence on your life?
I think my Dad He always told me I could do whatever I wanted to do. And he always tried to push me in the right direction and I always think he’d be very proud, proud of me.
Interviewer: What are you most proud of?
I think being married and owning a house. And knowing I’m making it with my own smarts. And no one, no one else’s.
Interviewer: That’s true. You ought to be a mentor. No?
No (laughter), that would be scary.
Interviewer: Scary?
Eric: (laughing)
Interviewer: Yeah. When you retire at 52 you are going to have to do something!
I’ll go play golf.
Interviewer: Are ya? Is that what you do when you retire? Just pick up golf?
I golf now. I like golf.
Interviewer: Do you?
I just don’t have the time to do it. I get home about 5 we go home and I cook. And I’m kinda old fashioned because I don’t go home and pull a TV dinner out. I go home and I make mashed potatoes and gravy and chicken or
beef or whatever and it takes a while. We eat. And then we clean up and basically go to bed.
Interviewer: But what do you do for recreation on the weekends?
Well, we bowl, we like movies, we like concerts. I mean, we live a normal life and basically whatever we want to do, we do. I mean, like, if we need help we get help. If we don’t we do it ourselves.
When I bought, I bought a ranch house for myself. Not knowing ever going to get married. I did have two steps to get in, umm. But when we did plan to get married, we went to OVR and they helped us make the entrance accessible and we also have accessible bathrooms for my wife.
When I bought the house I guess. I guess. I mean and the funny thing is her parents live a eighth of a mile away. Because the funny thing is, see, we were so close together really, we all rode together but you could be on ACCESS for days. And I mean, we started talking and then she asked me to go bowling, to watch her bowl. She didn’t think I’d be able to come because it was Saturday morning, very early, but when I showed up, I think I shocked her and the rest is history. (laughter)
Interviewer: What do you see for your future?
I know I’ll probably never be rich. I just want to have a comfortable life with my wife and my dog. And I mean live life as comfortable as I can. And me, I’m very lucky because I know that there are, quote/unquote normal people that don’t have a job, can’t find a job. And I don’t know what I would do if I needed a new job.
Interviewer: Do you golf from the chair or do you stand?
I stand up, I hit the ball and my wife, after she laughs because I hope to take her to the driving range, one day, and she laughed.
Interviewer: Have you seen changes at work? Improvements?
I’ve seen changes. And some are good, some are bad. I mean, I guess being ambulatory you don’t really know that this much. I started noticing more when I got married because of my wife being in the chair. And things that I take for granted, like going up stairs and she can’t, and “why’d you put that there?” And that opened my eyes. Other than…I guess they get better and they get worse at the same time.
Interviewer: What about your speech? Has that ever been a problem for work?
At the very very beginning it was. I mean, funny thing is, when I started here, and people were, I would be speaking, there were times when you could tell me to who really listening, and being ignored at. Oh yeah, uh huh. And that used to make me angry, but as people got to know me, I mean, they got used to my voice. And my favorite word was ‘what?’ Because if you say to me ‘what did you say?’ I know you’re listening, or trying to, at least.
Interviewer; Any final words you want to say to anybody?
I’m deeply happy with my life. Do what makes you happy.