On Saturday Tracy was a proud and happy mom, she watched her son, Javier, graduate from Universal Technology Institute ("UTI") with various honors and an excellent GPA. He had been attending UTI for about 18 months learning to get a technical degree in auto mechanics. With his graduation from UTI he is on his way to being a Master Mechanic.

This course was designed to take individuals with the necessary skill sets and improve them well beyond the days of the traditional grease monkey. They learned the inside out of nearly every aspect of automobile repair for ALL the major makes including the likes of BMW, Mercedes, Ford and Toyota. The end result is an individual who could probably field strip a BMW and have the knowledge on how to put it back together again.

I'm very proud of Javier myself. Anyone that knows me knows that while I can turn a screwdriver and hammer a nail, my expertise with things that go VROOM, is well, beyond limited. Changing the oil of my car when I was a teenager was a task, today it's a near impossibility with my 325. I'm not happy we now have a trained mechanic in the family, I'm a at a point in my life that I don't need to rely on family for that talent (besides my car is under warrenty), I'm happy that Javier has a trade that not only could bring him much sucess and maybe a fortune; but that he truly enjoys. He is seldom as happy as when he is muncking about in a car trying to fix this or that, or make the engine hum louder or run faster. Yes folks, it's Javier "Tool Time" Acosta.

So congratulations to Javier on his diploma and on the job he had waiting for him even as he walked across the stage diploma in hand. How many people can say that a job was waiting for them even before they officially graduated. Simply impressive!

Check out the Photo Gallery for Photos of Javier's Graduation.