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 What the heck am I doing today? Shenanigans, General Tomfoolery or What? You never know |
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Talk about perks, my career had one of the best I can think of! I traveled in the course of business, delivering classes for my employer. I was a Senior Training Specialist for Motorola Solutions, and taught classes on a wide variety of subjects centered around 2-way radio communications. I knew that when the time arrived that I would retire, and I have. I've always said that if you can't stand the heat in the kitchen, get out! I can't handle the heat anymore. I was qualified to deliver approximately 32 different classes, but about half of those were 'Legacy' classes, and were not in demand anymore. My students were technicians, those who maintained, programmed, calibrated, and repaired 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 traveled, sometimes frequently, 3-4 weeks in a row.... where have I been? Some of the places I've been (I can't list them all here, the list would be too long) are pretty interesting. 1. Hawaii - Four times, Oahu, Maui (twice), and the Big Island, Plus I lived on Oahu from 74-83. 2. Bangkok Thailand, twice 3. Frankfurt Germany, twice 4. Algiers, Algeria 5. Melbourne Australia 6. Bismarck North Dakota, Summer & Winter 7. California, especially the Los Angeles area, Too many times to count 8. Washington DC, Too many times to count 9. Seattle three or four times 10. Texas, all over the state 11. Florida, all over the state 12. New Mexico, HOME! Several times  Best Cultural And Regional Honorable Mention |
| Locale: Helena, Montana Week of: December 14, 2020 This week I was in Seattle first, now Helena, Montana. It's a one day class that consists entirely of hands-on activities for the students. We started this after the Pandemic halted all classes for about seven weeks. Right now, we do a class online using Adobe connect that is all theory and discussion. Then we go to the customer's site and conduct one day of hands on training. We can do more days if needed, but for these two classes, one day was sufficient. As much as I was disappointed in the hotel restaurant in Seattle, I couldn't be more pleased with my dining options in Helena. Surprisingly you were allowed to dine in at Helena restaurants. I arrived Wednesday afternoon and found a place that appealed to me, and went there. It was so good, I went back Thursday night before flying out Friday morning. I had hoped to meet Kåre เลียม Enga  in Great Falls this trip. Great Falls was the original location of the training, but when I called last week (after that last minute change to my schedule), I found out it would be in Helena. It would have been nice to meet up, but sadly that wasn't possible....  There's always a chance I'll be scheduled to go back, they have a lot more training they need, so we'll see what happens.The class was held at a radio site on a mountaintop about 30 miles south of Helena. The mountain wasn't all that high compared to the surrounding terrain, but still, it was beautiful up there. The building that houses the radio equipment was heated of course, so it was very comfy there. The class itself went very well, I used my portable projector to show my computer screen on a blank wall, and had the students access the software while I directed them on what to do. There was a lot of discussion, questions, and note taking throughout the day. Noteworthy Restaurants: Hokkaido Ramen & Isakaya https://hokkaidoramen.life/helena/ I didn't expect to find this caliber of Japanese/Oriental restaurant in Helena, but I did. Their Tantanken Ramen was excellent, as was their 'Crazy Roll' Sushi. I had to have Edamame also, and could have dined there all week if this had been a week long class. I wouldn't have done that in actuality, because I really like trying different places to see what is out there. Excellent food really, and a nice, relaxing atmosphere. Photo's From Visit:  Mountaintop Training Site  Naked Mountaintop Tree In Closing I will spend the weekend at home before going to Schaumburg for two days next week. After that, my year is done, except there are things I need to get done to be ready for the New Year. It never stops, and that's fine with me. Til next time, be good to yourselves and those you love, and WRITE!  Jim Dorrell |
| Locale: Seattle, Washington Week of: December 14, 2020 Here I am in the beautiful city of Seattle, and no place to go. You might wonder how that's possible, so let me explain. I'm only here for 1 day. I'm here to work with the customer in completing the hands-on activities for this course. It only takes one day to do all that, so here I am. Being such a short trip, working in the airport itself, plus having the pandemic still going on, it seemed to make sense to not have a car. Restaurants are open for carry-out only, so I can't even go to the city for dinner. Many of you have it a lot tougher than this, so I don't feel I should complain too much. Since the class was conducted at the airport, I chose to stay at the Hilton across the street, but I have to confess that I wouldn't stay here again. Why? It's an old hotel, comfy, clean, but in need of an update. That isn't the reason though. There's a Spencer's Restaurant that is part of the hotel; it's supposed to be a good place to dine. They may have changed things due to the pandemic, I'm not sure. What I do know, is that the price you pay (well, my company pays) for a meal is not worth what you get. I arrived Monday and being somewhat tied to the hotel, I went there for my carryout dinner. I love Fish n Chips, so I ordered that, and a Caesar Salad, along with a plastic up of beer, and for later, one of those hard cider things. I won't say the price here, that's not important. But the fish was 3 'logs', about the size of a cigar in diameter, and maybe 3-4 inches in length, and a ton of fries. That dish alone was close to $30! That's what I mean about the price not being in line with what you get. Don't get me wrong, I'm not looking for a larger portion, what I had was plenty. I don't think it should have cost that much. The meal was good (for being a take-out order), nothing wrong with it, just overpriced. So, I wouldn't stay here again if that's my main dining option. The hands-on activities went well, there were only 2 students, so it was nice to teach almost one-on-one. It wasn't classroom teaching, no lecturing. It was all demo's, them actually logging on to devices and viewing it's configuration, learning how to do this or that to maintain the system and devices. This was my first time doing the hands-on activities only, and my first time doing this class since August of 2019. I get to do this class in person in about 4 weeks in Flagler County Florida, so it was also a nice refresher, if you will. In Closing Today I fly to Montana to do this again, a slightly different course, but in reality, about the same stuff. I will be in Helena, and I'm told the radio site is on top of a mountain. I just hope the shelter that houses the radios is decently warm! Til next time, be good to yourselves and those you love, and WRITE! Jim Dorrell |
| Locale: Bloomington, Illinois Week of: December 7, 2020 This week finds me at home once again teaching in my basement. It's something I've gotten used to, and learned to enjoy a bit. This class was one I haven't taught since April 2019, but I needed a refresher. Why? Because next week I will be in Seattle and Helena Montana doing the supervising the hands-on activities of this course. Plus, I have to deliver this again in person in Flagler County Florida in three weeks, so this really helped refresh my memory on it. As in every class I deliver, I learned something new, which is always good. Despite the pandemic, this has been a very busy year for me. A normal 'fully loaded' schedule for us is 110-115 days of delivery. Why so little? That's actually about six months of classroom time, and the other six months is meant to be spent learning/qualifying new courses, upgrading course materials (there's always room for improvement!), and in some ways, relaxing. Well, it wasn't until this week that I realized exactly how busy I've been delivering classes in 2020. In March & April, we lost seven weeks of delivery due to the Pandemic. Since then, other than taking PTO in October, and having the US Holiday weeks 'off' from teaching, I've only had one week of non-delivery. What this means, is that out of a possible 32 weeks we've delivered classes since late April, I've delivered classes in 28 of them! Remember that 110-115 days per year being a full schedule? This year, I will deliver 152 days of classes. That's when I realized exactly how busy I've been. But that's good if you ask me.  In Closing I will spend next week in those two places mentioned above, then at least 1-2 nights in Schaumburg to cross-train on a new course. After that, I have two weeks on holiday before hitting it again the first of the year. Til next time, be good to yourselves and those you love, and WRITE! |
| Locale: Springfield, Missouri Week of: November 30, 2020 This week finds me in Springfield Missouri for a Networking class with the city. I was in Springfield in 2002, and have a few fond memories of being here. Don't ask where I dined though, because I couldn't tell you. Other than Lambert Throwed Rolls that is. I drove there, it was only a 5 hour drive or so, and a nice one at that. I have to say that for there being a Pandemic going on, there sure was a lot of people heading home on the highways from a family weekend. I didn't mind, I'm glad they were able to get together, assuming that was the reason there were so many on the road. The class itself was good, I may be invited back for a different class too. For me, that's always an honor. An honor that someone thinks well enough of me to ask for me to come back for another class. We'll see what happens. It seems that the instructor who owns this course has changed it a little... again. There were at least 2 hands-on exercises that we did, and I don't recall seeing them before. So I have some studying to do so I have them down solid. But really, things went well. At least there were no questions asked that I couldn't answer. It's amazing how these systems can change, the new capabilities that are being configured. It can be quite the chore to keep up with all the changes, but somehow we manage to stay even with the curve at least. Noteworthy Restaurants: Cafe Cusco https://www.cafecusco.com/menu This is a Peruvian/Chilean inspired restaurant, and I thought the food was very good. I went there twice, the first time I had their Fried Guacamole appetizer, and Olive Trout. On my second visit, I wanted the Drunk Goat, but they were out of that, so I settled for the Fried Rabbit. Everything was very good as I said, though I forgot to order the Ceviche Miami on my second visit. Ocean Zen https://www.eatoceanzen.com/menu I had to visit this place, their menu looked terrific, and I was in the mood for Sushi. I wasn't disappointed one bit. I will admit that their Tuna Poke was a little on the small side, but it was still very good. I forget which Sushi roll I had, but it really hit the spot. I thought about having a second appetizer, but didn't want to overdo it and get too full. Historic/Interesting Places Visited: Uranus, Missouri I can't drive west on I-44 without stopping here. I found a few things I wanted, and when I approached the cashier, the sweet young lady said, "It's nice to see you! We're glad you picked Uranus!" You can see that this could go on and on. I wanted to say something like, "Well, I can't drive past here without visiting Uranus, it's always a pleasure." but figured she was 21-22 at most, and since I could be her grandfather, I decided not to say anything too outlandish. You can get several knick-knacks there, so I settled on a glass with their logo that reads, "Packing Fudge Fresh In Uranus Since 2015". I also picked up a jar of Garlic Stuffed Green Olives that also stated, "Fresh from the farm to Uranus". Boy do I have a warped sense of humor!  In Closing I will spend the rest of the year at home, with at least 1-2 nights in Schaumburg to cross-train on a new course. I teach online the next two weeks, then have two weeks on holiday before hitting it again the first of the year. Til next time, be good to yourselves and those you love, and WRITE! Jim Dorrell |
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