%%USERNAME%%    %%ACCWORDS%% %%ONOFF%% |
 Being Retired now, I thought that it was time for a new name to this Blog |
|
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 2. BangkokThailand, twice 3. Frankfurt Germany, twice 4. Algiers, Algeria 5. Melbourne Australia 6. Bismarck North Dakota, Summer & Winter 7. Los Angeles, 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 |
Meeting Jace When you first meet someone, it can be a little scary. You've seen pictures of them, perhaps exchanged a few short emails/phone calls. Still, it's far different than meeting in person. That wasn't the case when Ja-Ja-JINX   and I met Tuesday. It seemed that we were old friends meeting again after a few years of not seeing each other.His wife wanted to see the Dog Show, wanted to see our Akita (Buddy) being shown. I thought she would sit with my wife so she could explain how the dogs were judged why some dogs were shown a second time, etc. Nope, she sat alone for the most part, taking it all in. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't like she was in isolation, or that she was ignored. Far from it. She just wanted to experience everything is all. Meanwhile, Jace and I chatted up a storm it seemed. They left about 4:15 or so, they had to get some things done. We weren't far behind them too. It had been a while since we had breakfast, so we went to a place called The Dwayne Johnson... I'm sorry, I mean The Rock.  Dinner was very good, even if we both had sandwiches. I think we were too tired to enjoy a full meal.The original plan was to meet Wednesday night at Lambert's Cafe. https://throwedrolls.com/menu It's a pretty unique place, and the home of Throwed Rolls. If you haven't been there, and are anywhere near Springfield or Sikeston, Missouri, and love good down-home cooking, you should go. Let me try to explain about the place a little. Of course there's a menu you order from (Link is above). But there are also employees who walk around with what they call 'Passarounds'. Those Passarounds are those Rolls (and the rolls are only thrown to you, they are not handed to you), Fried Okra, Fried Potatoes & Onions, Macaroni & Tomatoes, Apple Butter, & Black Eyed Peas. Heck, you can make a meal of the Passarounds only! They also had a special appetizer last night. Jowl Bacon, Catfish, Cornbread, and Onions. Needless to say, we ordered that. Like most places in today's America, the serve you far too much food. We had 3 large To-Go containers, I think Jace and his wife had 2, possibly 3 also. There was also a young lady walking around asking if we wanted a Cinnamon Roll (that wasn't free, it was added to our check.) It too is HUGE, and delicious (We saved ours for breakfast). I didn't come close to finishing my BBQ Ribs, and my wife also had a side of Chicken Gizzards with her meal. Yummmmmm. No one leaves Lambert's hungry, I will say that. What I was impressed with, is how easily the four of us got along. Again, it was like meeting old friends Tuesday at the dog show. No one would have known that we were meeting for the first time. When we pass thru SW Missouri again, we plan on getting together then also. Anyone in this area is welcome to join us!  |
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
Non-interchangeable parts - now there's a surprise. There are times you can't interchange parts for two editions of the exact same car that vary "only" by model year.