%%USERNAME%%    %%ACCWORDS%% %%ONOFF%% |
 |  I travel the country on business, sometimes the world. Come see where I've been. |
|
Talk about perks, my job has one of the best ones I can think of! I travel in the course of business, delivering classes for my employer. I am a Senior Training Specialist for Motorola Solutions, and teach classes on a wide variety of subjects centered around 2 way radio communications. I'm qualified to deliver approximately 30 different classes, but about half of those are 'Legacy' classes, and are not in demand anymore. My students are technicians, those who maintain, program, calibrate, and repair large 2-way radio systems. Some of these systems are statewide, and use TCP-IP networking to allow sites to communicate with others. Some are small, traditional type radio sites. The size doesn't matter, in each case the systems must be kept operational at all times, since many of them are Public Safety Systems. So I get to travel, sometimes frequently, 3-4 weeks in a row.... where am I this week? This probably won't have daily entries, but I will make entries when I get to go somewhere, and keep an updated list of coming trips. My schedule changes faster than the weather, so don't be too surprised to see me list an upcoming class, only to remark later on that it is cancelled, or delayed. Delays are fine of course, but a later date might mean that someone else gets to go instead of me,,, Well, here we go with this, let's see where it takes us.  Best Cultural And Regional Honorable Mention |
| Locale: Montross, Virginia This week finds me in Montross, Virginia to deliver a class to Westmoreland County. The class is one I've taught many times, that's always good. I found out quite a bit about their system today, one being a bit of a surprise, but nothing I can't teach about. But, being here leaves a lot to be desired. Not that Montross is a bad place. Let me explain. It leaves a lot to be desired for a couple of reasons, and there are a couple of 'different' things about this class. First the different thing. The only student who is a County Employee is not a technician, he's more of an Administrator. Now why do I say Montross leaves a lot to be desired? Montross is more of a village than a town, I hate saying this, but there's just not a lot there. No fast food joints for those of you looking for that (I'm not). But there are no major restaurants either. No Hilton hotels of any kind, nor Marriott, Holiday Inn, and the like. There is of course a couple of small places, but if I had stayed there, where would I find a decent dinner? Richmond? That's an hour away. Fredericksburg? That's an hour away. The class itself has been good, I've answered every question, and explained a lot. As you might guess, I'm not staying in Montross either. My hotel is in Dahlgren, about 30 minutes away. Yep, long commute, but only for three days. I think I can live with that. While there are major chain hotels in Dahlgren, there's not much more here other than the Naval Warfare Center. All the really good places to eat are seasonal, and are closed for the winter. But there's a really good thing that will happen as part of this trip, tomorrow night. I'll mention it by asking a question. What do you call three older grandfatherly ancientmature men who are members of a fantastic Writing Website? We can't be called The Three Stooges, nor The Three Callaberos. Three Blind Mice? No, that's been used also. Hmmmmm. Tomorrow night, three WDC members will meet in Fredericksburg for a drink/meal/whatever. One has an excellent sense of humor, quick wit, and known for a sharp pen. His blog is a joy to read because it always makes me smile. Thank you my friends for thinking of me, but no, it's not me! I'm speaking of Robert Waltz  ! (Applause please)Another one is a great poet. He has entered many contests on WDC, winning far more than often losing. That's not me either, but thank you for thinking of me. (I can't hold a candle to this man when it comes to poetry.) I'm speaking of none other than 🌕 HuntersMoon  ! (Again, Applause please)The third one is known for his (dry) sense of humor also. It is very dry, often hard to grasp, and many of his jokes make you shake your head in disbelief, you wonder where he finds them. Like the other two, he loves WDC, and runs a small forum on the site to boot. Yep, that's me, I'm him. Tomorrow the three of us will meet at a restaurant in Fredericksburg and share a few stories I'm sure. Would be really nice to have a crowd, huh! Might even get an 'open-mic' sort of thing going.... NOT. At least for me. In Closing I will spend the weekend at home before flying to Des Moines for a class next week. That will be my last class for 2019. It all starts again quickly in 2020. Right now, I'm scheduled to teach 37 days in the first quarter! Plus, I'm booked solid through May 1st. That could change though, right? Til next time, be good to yourselves and those you love, and WRITE!  Jim Dorrell |
View Portfolio
Visit Notebook
Send Gift Points
Awards
Badges
Send Email
Community Newsfeed
General Discussion
Sponsored Items
Book of Trinkets
Static Items
Books
Groups
Interactive Stories
Audio
Campfire Creatives
Community Notes
Crossword Puzzles
Documents
Folders
Images
In & Outs
Madlibs
Photo Albums
Polls
Product Reviews
Quizzes
Survey Forms
Web Pages
Word Searches
Enjoy!
I then went to Taiwan for two weeks; but, although that was nice, it wasn't 'home'. 
