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 |  I travel the country on business, sometimes the world. Come see where I've been. |
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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 |
| I took a detour/alternate route coming home from Orlando. Since class was done by 11 on Thursday, I left there and drove to Savannah, Georgia. I planned on having a nice dinner (see my notebook entry about that fiasco), but things went haywire due to my 'poor planning'. Friday morning, I went to the Bonaventure Graveyard, a graveyard made famous by the novel, "In The Garden Of Good & Evil". It is beautiful there, the Spanish Moss on trees, the Mandevilla's with the morning's dew on them really set the stage to allow my thoughts to roam. I drove from Savannah to a small town (Hillsville) in Virginia yesterday, after enduring at least 2 hours in slow traffic due to road construction. Today I made a stop in West Virginia to look at a glass warehouse, but it was too packed, lines too long to make a decent purchase. I could have made it home tonight, but decided to stay one more night on my hotel points after realizing I was feeling pretty tired. But another stop was made before I quit for the night. I stopped at the Schimpff Candy Store in Jeffersonville, Indiana. They make candy the old fashioned way there, all types of candy. I could have watched them making that cinnamon hard candy for hours! Not to mentioned Chocolate, Toffee, Lemon Drops, and so much more. I had to force myself to leave.... Here we see Steve, a fourth generation family member rolling the cinnamon candy mix on a metal table, allowing it to slowly cool.  Here's one of the Mandevilla's in the mornings dew. In a different shot, I found a small gecko relaxing on one of the flowers, but it's not this photo.  Tomorrow I will return home for a week before spending four weeks in a row delivering classes in the field. Will be in Alamogordo, Toronto, New York City, and Spokane, then spend six weeks at home before traveling again. |
| Locale:Orlando, Florida This week I'm in Orlando, Florida, delivering a class to the Customs & Border Protection. This is a different group than the people I taught last year in Chantilly, and of course, a different class. I drove here for a couple of reasons, mainly because I enjoy the drive though. I also took the time to play a little 'tourist' along the way, and made a couple of stops I've been wanting to make. I stopped in Bowling Green Kentucky on Saturday afternoon to visit a place I should have seen while delivering a class there last year. I went to the Corvette Museum. You might remember that a sink hole swallowed eight irreplaceable Corvettes in 2014. Of course, that's all been filled in, but the area that was swallowed is outlined on the floor in paint. There's even a manhole cover that looks down into the sinkhole, 30 feet below. (It looks like the sinkhole may actually be part of the Mammoth Cave system that is a few miles NE of Bowling Green). Several of the cars were damaged beyond repair, and I know it I had owned one of them (each car has been donated to the museum by a kind donor), I'd have cried.  I arrived in Orlando yesterday afternoon to sunshine, and warm weather. It was 90 at one point in my drive, which of course felt awesome after this past winter. But traffic is terrible here, my ten mile drive to work takes about 30 minutes. Oh well, it's a short class, I'll be heading home on Thursday afternoon. Besides, I could be back in Illinois where Spring hasn't quite set in yet. Noteworthy Restaurants: http://tibbys.com/uploads/menu.pdf I love Cajun food, so finding a good Cajun restaurant is always a plus. Tibby's food is excellent, and tonight I also had excellent service. The whole experience was a high-point of my trip. Tonight I had Shrimp & Andouille Cheddar Grits. They were excellent. An appetizer of Muffuletta Spring Rolls only enhanced everything. My next trip will be to Alamogordo, New Mexico in two weeks. So for the second time this year, I get to go 'home'. Til then, y'all enjoy the warmer weather we're having.... |
| Locale:Toronto, Ontario This past week found me once again in Toronto, Ontario. The customer this week was the Peel Regional Police. I've been to Toronto many times, and am beginning to know my way around there some. At least I know some of the various suburbs in the area. Class this week was a basic RF Fundamentals class, designed for new technicians. The students were all fairly new to the RF Field, each was eager to learn more so they could advance their knowledge, and maybe move to a different position within the department. It was cold this past week, but then it's winter, so that's no surprise. We had a snowfall of about 10 cm on Tuesday evening which made the drive to work Wednesday a little fun. But the roads were really good overall, so not much slipping and sliding. I had to laugh though. When I went to Santa Fe in January, I took my warm parka type jacket. I thought I had checked the weather for the week carefully, but didn't do a very good job. I wore only my light coat, and really have used that parka at times. Noteworthy Restaurants: https://chop.ca/restaurant-menu/dinner Since it was snowing hard Tuesday night, I made the short trek (yes, I walked) to the Chop Restaurant. The food was excellent. I ended up having the Crab Cakes for an appetizer, and the Wasabi Encrusted Tuna as my entree. The tuna was about perfect, seared on the edge just a bit, but very rare throughout. Even splurged and had a dessert, their Caribbean Rum Cake. Can you say Yum? My next trip will be to Orlando, Florida, in the middle of Spring Break! Maybe we'll see if I can act the Dirty Grandpa part (movie reference there) on that trip. NOT! Til then, y'all stay warm and comfy. |
| Locale: Santa Fe, New Mexico This past week, I went 'home' to New Mexico, delivering a class in Santa Fe. I grew up in Albuquerque, about 55 miles south of here, so this was a major homecoming for me.  Santa Fe is a beautiful town nestled at the foot of the Sangro De Christo mountains in North Central New Mexico. It is the oldest state capital in the United States, and sits at an elevation of 7000 feet above sea level. It still has an old world type charm to it, with roads that are not like the roads you find in most American cities. For one thing, the roads are not 'north-south' or 'east-west' like they are in many places. Plus, they are narrow, more like roads you'll find in Europe, and maybe the NE corner of New England. Green Chile is the new 'craze' (not all that new anymore, but still a big thing in New Mexico) here, and the state's unofficial question is, Red? or Green? For me, it's almost always green. This past week was pure heaven for a foodie like me. Green Chile Enchilada's, Green Chile Cheesburgers, Green Chile Cheese fries, Green Chile Stew... Do you get the impression I love Green Chiles? I drove this trip, and the drive was everything I expected it to be. I had a little snow on Thursday as I left Illinois, but it was clear and beautiful the rest of the way. Once I was in New Mexico, I had a Green Chile Cheeseburger at a local fast food chain called, Lotaburger. It was pretty spicy, especially for a 'Gringo' like me!  I spend Saturday night in Albuquerque resting up before going on to Santa Fe Sunday. My hotel was about 2 miles north of my high school, so I was in very familiar territory that night, and many fond memories flooded my mind. On Sunday I drove to Santa Fe, and a little beyond. My goal was a contemporary pilgrimage site in a small town. It is 'Santuario De Chimayo', and an amazing place to visit. The faith and belief of the Spanish people never cease to amaze me, this place epitomizes that faith and belief.  See the photo in my travel photo album for a little more info about this place, or visit the website. Once class was done on Friday, I drove back to Albuquerque to visit two of my nieces, and to finally visit my mother's grave. It was a bit sobering, but a great time all the same. On the way, I visited a winery. I couldn't come back to Illinois without some excellent New Mexico wine, could I?  It was really good to see Diana and Marie. I hadn't seen Marie in over 20 years, she has grown to be a beautiful young woman. Both of these women really loved my mother, and take great care of her grave. I am forever grateful to them for doing something I feel I should be doing...  I stayed at the Hilton Santa Fe in the heart of downtown Santa Fe, not two blocks from the Georgia O'Keefe museum, and three blocks from the world famous Loretto Chapel. The Loretto Chapel has a spiral staircase in it that has to be seen to be believed. It is made of pure wood, and has no centerpost. Of course there's a legend around how/why it was built too, but still... Noteworthy Restaurants: http://bluecorncafe.com/brewery-menu/ The food here is exceptional. The chips and dip was so tasty, but the Indian Fry Bread Taco was even better. I also enjoyed a sampling of their beers, in the form of a flight. Six small glasses of different beers they serve. http://tomasitas.com/menus/ The food here was excellent also, I only wish I could had sampled more.... Chile Relleno's were excellent, nuf said....I had to finally leave Friday afternoon, and hated doing so. But all good things must end, and I know I will be home again in the future. I did see one thing on my drive home that was very unique, and well worth a three hour delay in the drive. Who would have thought you'd find a WWII submarine in the middle of Oklahoma? I'm proud to be a Submariner from Muskogee.... Oh wait, that's not quite how it goes. Still, that's where it is.  My next trip will be to Toronto, my 4th or 5th time there in the last 13 months. But that's not til the end of February,. Right now we're in the middle of winter here in the Northern Hemisphere. Y'all stay warm and comfy. Til next time.... Be Good! |
| Locale: Tucson, Az Well, I'm really glad I was able to come here this week. I love the Southwest, I grew up over in Albuquerque, so this is coming home for me. Of course, I say that about Seattle and Hawaii too, but this is really where my heart is. Add to it that I woke up each morning to a temperature of 42 degrees or so, while Chicago was at -6, and you can understand part of my joy. It was an interesting two days being here. I was teaching a class on a small device that few know well, myself included. The problem is, there was never a course written for this device, so guess who was given the task of writing it? I wrote it three years ago, but it's only been taught 4 times, all by me of course. So I'm still really learning how this class should flow, and what is important for the students to learn. The customer this week was Creative Communications here in Tucson. They had 12 of the devices to use in class, and a very confined classroom. But it gave the students a chance to configure the devices as they would see them in the field, so it went well really. Of importance to me though, are the student critique sheets, and their comments and grades were excellent. So not only did class go well, it was well received too.Noteworthy Restaurants: http://thundercanyonbrewery.com This is a nice brewery with excellent food and beer. I had their San Pedro Pasta, and I have to say it was a huge portion! There was enough there to feed 3 of us in one meal, and maybe still have leftovers. I fly home to the frozen Midwest tomorrow, so I couldn't bring it back to the hotel with me.  After class today, I visited the Mission San Xavier Del Bac. It's an old Spanish Mission on the south side of the city, and very beautiful. It is still functioning today, administering to the needs of the people. It's beautiful, you have to see it to really appreciate it. Since I know most of you won't get here, a picture of it is below.  Next week I'm in Santa Fe, and really looking forward to that trip. It's cold out right now, so y'all stay safe and warm. Til next week, be good! |
| Locale: Cincinnati, Ohio I have to say, I wasn't all that impressed with Cincinnati. It was probably due to the time of year, where my hotel was located, etc. As usual, I was in a Hilton chain hotel, a somewhat new Hampton Inn near the University of Cincinnati. The customer was the city itself, teaching their technicians how to program our newest radio. I know it sounds simple, I mean how hard can a hand held radio be to program? Well, there are almost 4000 different fields you can modify in this thing, changing one field may affect another, deleting one may have a chain reaction type of effect, so you really have to know your stuff to program one easily. But the class went well, the students were great, anxious to learn, and one took me to one if his favorite places for lunch on Friday. We had Gyro's at a small Greek place about 10 minutes from the training location. Excellent food there, but they only take cash! Cincinnati is smaller than I expected, but I loved the area around it. Rolling hills, the Ohio River, and of course, the Great American Ballpark. But, baseball season is past, so there was no going there. Of course, the Bengals are doing well, they even played a home game on Thursday while I was there. But I didn't go. Something about the price of those tickets keeps me away. I wanted to go to a restaurant called 'The Precinct' near the river, but I don't like driving around a city I'm not real familiar with at night. So I stick close to my hotel for the most part. Walked to dinner two nights, it was warm out, and very nice.My trip home Saturday was a little bit of an adventure. I was scheduled on a 9am flight, but it was delayed due to a mechanical issue. They had us deplane, and immediately started to re-book everyone. I ended up on an American Airlines flight that didn't leave until 3:25! So I had about 5 hours to relax around the airport. I spent most of that time in the nearby USO lounge, which made for a decent day. But instead arriving home at 10:15am, I didn't get here until 4:15pm. Such are the hazards of travel, huh. Noteworthy Restaurants: http://www.bakersfieldtacos.com/menu/ I have to say, there were not very many restaurants nearby. There were a lot of fast food places, but none that I wanted to dine at. I did have dinner at the Mecklenburg Gardens, but thought the food/service, and atmosphere was very average to below-average. However, I did go to a place featured on Diners, Drive-Ins, and Dives. Bakersfield, OTR. I'm still wondering what the OTR stands for. It's not in the best part of town, when I went there the first time, I briefly wondered how safe it would be walking from the parking garage to the restaurant. I never had a problem, and even dined there twice. In fact, it was the feeling that I was safe while strolling around that brought me back. Well, besides the food that is. If you're in that area and choose to dine there, try the Short Rib Taco, or the Huitlacoche Taco. Both are excellent. I ended up having 6 different things my 2 times there (all are served ala-carte), never found something I didn't like.That was my last trip for this year, though I will be going to New York City for a day trip on the 23rd. Leave O'Hare at 6am, returning at 9:30 pm. I will be checking out a training system for a series of future classes next year, probably 4 all total. Til next time, y'all have a great time, good luck to those doing NaNoWriMo, and if I don't make an entry before then, have a great fun-filled Thanksgiving! |
| Locale: Gravenhurst, Ontario, Canada This trip is a very interesting one for me. It's not a 'normal' class for me to deliver, in f act one small portion of it is brand new to me. But the instructor (Canadian) who's been delivering it is on vacation, so a 'substitute' is needed. I'm the one who's most qualified for it all, so not knowing this one small part is fine. I know a lot about it, it's just that I've never taught it to others. Class this week is at the Beavercreek Institution near Gravenhurst. It's a medium security prison, but getting in and out is a chore, and requires a bit of patience. There's only two students, but one has been pre-occupied with getting the new system (the one I'm here to teach them about) installation off the ground. Hopefully things will pick up tomorrow, because I've really only taught maybe 5 hours in the last 2 days. Tourist Activities Muskoka Steamships & Lake Muskoka http://realmuskoka.com/muskoka-steamships/ This area is very rural. It's about 2 hours north of Toronto, Gravenhurst sits right on Lake Muskoka, my hotel is next to a Boating & Heritage center, as well as the Muskoka Steamships. This HMS Segwun is the oldest operating steamship in North America. It was built in 1887 and is still going strong! I love this area, and find myself wanting to live here. But then I look around, and know I'd never fit in. If only I could have gotten here 30 years ago or so, things would be different.  Noteworthy Restaurants: The Oar & Paddle Restaurant http://www.northinmuskoka.com/ A very laid back place, just the kind of atmosphere I love to have when dining. I met Paul Dixon there for dinner, he's the Motorola Project Manager for this project, and is staying in the same hotel. So we decided to have dinner together. We had some excellent wings to start, but I couldn't resist what I chose for my main entree. A Wild Boar, Venison and Blueberry Burger; with Bacon and Sundried Tomato Mayo, Maple Chevre, Arugula on a Toasted Bun. Yummmmm. That's it for now. Til next time, keep writing, and enjoy the fall weather! |
| Locale: Toronto, Ontario, Canada This is the last of four classes in a row, teaching the same class each time. This is very unusual for me; I am glad the end is near in teaching this class. My customer this week is the Toronto Police Services. It's been a good week with a lot of discussion in this class. I've been to Toronto before, but was to the west in Mississauga. I've flown in and out of Toronto several times, but have never been in the city center near the CN Tower. This trip was no exception, for one main reason. Traffic here is about the same as any major city in the states. Drivers are aggressive in some ways, but very polite in others. So driving from my hotel in Markham to the waterfront area was out of the question.I did have a nice time driving here, my last entry details part of that. But on Sunday, I drove from Syracuse, NY to Toronto. I chose to drive north from Syracuse to Watertown NY, and cross into Canada there. The bridge across the St. Lawrence Seaway is very tall, but needs to be if you think about it. Ocean freighters ply the waters of this seaway to gain access to the ports along the Great Lakes. This bridge is near the 1000 Islands region (bet you thought that was just a salad dressing, huh), with gorgeous views as you cross. It's definitely a place I need to visit again! While I didn't take an photo's while in Toronto, I did on Friday as I was leaving. I planned my route to go more south instead of across Canada to Detroit. This allowed me time to visit Niagara Falls from the Canadian side. I've seen the falls several times before, but never crossed in to Canada for some reason. The falls mesmerize me. Think about it. Millions of gallons of water flow over these falls every day. It drains water from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario, which then flows down the St. Lawrence Seaway to the Atlantic Ocean. What I find amazing is the thought, "Where does all this water come from?" Obviously the rivers and lakes of North America. So why don't they dry up? Well, one answer is rain. Another is springs. Springs bring water up through the ground where it bubbles to the surface, and is the start of a river. On the other end, once at the ocean, think about the amount of evaporation that occurs to cause the rain, and repeat this cycle. I am no scientist, especially when it comes to geography, and sciences like this. So, I find this kind of stuff amazing. I've seen water springing from the Earth in Montana, and right near Niagara Falls. I'm just astounded that it never stops, never dries up.  Tourist Activities Niagara Falls http://www.niagarafallsstatepark.com/ My next trip takes me back to Toronto next Sunday (10/18), where I will then drive 2 hours north to the small town of Gravenhurst, Ontario. I'm looking forward to that trip! |
| Locale: Driving from Chantilly, Va. to Toronto Ontario After class was done yesterday at 11, I left Chantilly to start heading to Toronto. I stopped for the night in New Jersey and had a wonderful meal. This morning I woke at 5:30 and did a little work on WDC, mainly mentoring a new person on how to write reviews better. I left about 8 and headed for Saratoga Springs. Silly me. I forgot my GPS was set to avoid toll roads, and ended up on highway 9W. That wasn't bad though, it was a nice drive along the Hudson River. It also allowed me the opportunity to stop along the way and investigate a lighthouse. (See Tourist Activities below)It did delay me quite a bit, and what should have been a 3 hour drive took five instead. I was only going to Saratoga Springs to get a German Growler (a 2 liter jug that holds beer). I had gotten one there long ago, and figured since it was essentially on my way to Toronto, I'd stop by. Instead of spending the night in Buffalo as I'd planned, I'm staying in Syracuse. Had an outstanding meal at the Flat Iron Grill. I had one of my favorite dishes, Bouillabaisse. It was excellent and hit the spot nicely., Tourist Activities Saugerties Lighthouse/Bed & Breakfast http://www.saugertieslighthouse.com/  This is a really cool lighthouse, though it sits much lower than other lighthouses I've seen. Then again, it's on the Hudson River, so it doesn't have to be seen for as many miles as it would if on the coast. It's only $225 per night for two, with breakfast provided of course. Additional people in the room are $40 each. My thoughts were, "What a great place for a few people to meet who share a love. A love of writing!" Imagine meeting about 5-6 of your closest WDC friends there, and spend the weekend chatting about writing, ideas you have for a story, or maybe even working on something together. What a dream, huh! Tomorrow I head to Toronto, it's about 4 hours from here. That's it for now, I will post more later, particularly a couple of photo's I snapped in the museum. Til then, keep writing, and enjoy the fall! |
| Locale: Chantilly, Virginia I didn't make an entry for my last trip here, so will make it now, and include a few comments about this trip. This is my third time here, second in three weeks. I'm delivering the same class each time, a class that is usually delivered about three times a year. This year, I'm delivering it seven times in the field alone! And of course, I'm seeing more and more issues with it, things that need to be corrected, etc. What I have found in doing this, is a profound respect for a school teacher who teaches the same class year after year. I realize that it's over a year's time, with new students each year, but the same subject(s) all the time? Wow! Tourist Activities Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center http://airandspace.si.edu/visit/udvar-hazy-center/ This is part of the Smithsonian Institute of Museums sitting just south of Dulles Airport, and well worth your time to visit. It is a bit crowded inside. Crowded in that if there's a large plane on display, there a small planes tucked in as close as possible. Entry is free, but parking is $15, so not entirely free. But is it ever? There are quite a few noteworthy displays you can't miss. An SR-71 Blackbird, Space Shuttle Discovery, The Gondola used for the first balloon flight across the Atlantic, and too many others to remember, or mention here. One thing I did see, was a large model of the mother-ship from "Close Encounters Of The Third Kind". However, one of the things I didn't get to see, because it was no longer on display, was a scale model of the Starship Enterprise from Star Trek. Noteworthy Restaurants: The Ice House Cafe http://www.icehousecafe.com/ A small place in Herndon, Va, with excellent beer and food. While I'm cutting down on my beer consumption, I had to have a particular one here. A Jalapeno IPA. It was delicious, with the flavor of Jalapeno's without the heat. For dinner I had the Grilled Ostrich Steak. While the portion was a bit small, it was excellent. Nice and lean. That's it for now, I will post more later, particularly a couple of photo's I snapped in the museum. Til then, keep writing, and enjoy the fall! |
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