1993 to 1994
Press Secretary: U.S. Senator Alan K. Simpson
Despite my being a life-long Democrat, Alan Simpson hired me to be his press secretary and spokesman at a time when he was GOP Whip of the United States Senate. 

"I don't care about your politics," he said. "I'm hiring you to let people know about my opinions, not yours." Good on 'im, I say.

During my tenure, Senator Simpson's legislative agenda included immigration reform, a full-scale review of entitlement disbursement and health care. At the time, Senator Simpson served as a member of the Senate Judiciary and Environment and Natural Resources committees. I also had the privilege to observe first hand the confirmation hearings of both Justices Ginsburg and Breyer.

While it was an exciting opportunity, coordinating the geographic demands of a dual-career household and the birth of our first child prompted us to return to the Rocky Mountains.

1989 to 1993
Staff Writer: Casper Star-Tribune
I served as the Star-Tribune'sLaramie bureau reporter and as the second reporter in the paper's Capitol bureau in Cheyenne. My initial assignment was to cover the budget and administration of the University of Wyoming, but that was later expanded to include economic, environmental and political issues in the state. I also covered five regular and two special sessions of the Wyoming state legislature and became something of an "expert" on the esoteric subject of legislative redistricting.

Small states offer an amazing opportunity for new reporters, especially when working for a very aggressive statewide paper. At the time, the Star-Tribune had an absolutely amazing collection of editors and reporters. Looking back, I still feel privileged to have been a part a group that produced one of the best small-circulation (50,000) newspapers in the country. Despite the long hours and low pay, I have always regarded my time at the Star-Tribune as the most enjoyable and rewarding of my professional career.

1987 to 1989
Assistant News Director: KUWR-FM
Frank Imhoff, then news director of KUWR-FM in Laramie, Wyoming, took a chance at hiring me despite the fact that I had virtually no experience in radio – or journalism, for that matter. No experience and still Frank allowed me to serve as local anchor for the National Public Radio news program "Morning Edition." He didn't even fire me that morning I started laughing uncontrollably while doing a report on a bovine disease called Blue Tongue. He should have, but I am forever grateful that he did not.

I later also hosted a late-night jazz and blues program and a public affairs television program. Watching myself on television convinced me that my future probably lay in print or radio.

Prior to 1987
Gee. Where do I start? Let's see... I have been a book store clerk, a bike shop manager, an economics researcher, a bike mechanic, a waiter, a cycling coach, a janitor, a guy who cleans operating rooms between surgical cases, a bag boy, a delivery truck driver, a fish cleaner, a freezer rat in a fish factory, a grown-up version of a paper boy, publisher, writer and editor of an underground newspaper, a longshoreman, a construction worker, a telephone salesman, a cage cleaner at a vet's office, a gas station attendant and Forest Service trail crew grunt.

As one interviewer put it in 1988, "Well Mr. Pelkey, it certainly can't be said that you think of yourself as being too good for any kind of work. I guess that's a plus." (That was a compliment, right?)

Education
I attended the University of Wyoming and majored in economics... and yes, I am sorry to say that "attended" does mean that I never finished my degree. I have a huge number of credit hours (202.5), collected across a wide swath of subjects ranging from regulatory economics to film to Chinese, German and Russian languages to radio production and whatever else caught my eye at the time. Indeed, while I haven't formally checked, I believe that I have everything except for that intro' biology class I forgot to take in my freshman year, back in 1976. Embarrassed? Quite.

Despite that rather spotty academic background, I was admitted to the University of Wyoming Law School for the 2006-'07 school year - the first non-degreed admission in nearly 30 years. I am now halfway through law school - with some major help - and appear to be on my way toward my first college degree! Law school is a remarkable experience. It seems to me that it's the only place in the world where you can dive into on a full academic load in a professional degree program, hold down a full-time job, raise a family, struggle to pay tuition and meet financial obligations and still feel both stupid and lazy.

I have also successfully completed all phases of the U.S. State Department Foreign Service Examination (1988/89), which in turn opened up several interesting opportunities, including my job at the Star-Tribune and my position as a member of Senator Simpson's senior staff.

Other Skills: I am well versed in the usual computer skills required of anyone in newspaper and magazine work. I am comfortable using Quark, Adobe PhotoShop and can build and maintain a straight-forward network for a small office. Along the way, I have acquired some basic programming skills, including C++, Java, HTML and (just to prove just how very old I am) Fortran.

Other interests: Bicycling, mountaineering, back-country skiing, a rather odd attempt at restoring a 60-year-old jeep and, above all, our children, Philip and Annika.

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