From goofing off to lifting off

As children, our parents tell us we can do anything we set our minds to, from becoming the first female president of the United States to starting center fielder for the St. Louis Cardinals.

Space shuttle pilot Duane Carey proves their point exceptionally well.

Carey rose through the ranks of NASA despite what can be described as a less-than-stellar start. A motorcycle bum, Carey slept through high school because he was working 40 hours a week to buy a Suzuki. Ignoring college, he later spent the next few years bumming around, hitchhiking and jumping freight trains from state to state.

But Carey turned himself around, earned a few engineering degrees, joined the Air Force and became a combat pilot in the Gulf War. He even home-schooled his two children in math and science.

When he was interviewed by NASA, he was honest and told them about his wild and woolly youth, hardly even getting to his accomplishments. NASA took a chance on the St. Paul, Minn., native, and eventually Carey went on to be a pilot of shuttle Columbia, flying to the Hubble Space Telescope. The successful repair job earned the crew a ticket to the White House and a meeting with the president.

Carey has come a long way from being a slacker.

Many people get off to bad starts. But Carey provides a superb example of a person who can shake off the shaky start, reach for the stars and obtain them. It's a good lesson.