The sprawling, Fortune 500 paper mill in which I worked was one of America's prototypical factories. Located in Southern California, it was big (44 acres under roof), busy (three shifts around the clock, 360 days a year), crowded (more than 700 hourly and 300 salaried employees), and self-assertive (represented by a democratic labor union). I eventually became president of that union. The 270 anecdotes contained in this volume span a period of almost 30 years. Because I chose not to confine or categorize them, they are not presented chronologically. Thus, there will be some arbitrary randomness and skipping around. But for anyone interested in what the human face of American manufacturing looked like during the twilight of its glory years, this book represents one honest, impressionistic glimpse.