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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 |
| This week, I've been in Barrie, Ontario, Canada. Once again, it's been the basic RF Course I teach that I'm here for. Barrie is a small to mid size town/city about 50 miles north of Toronto. It's still cold here, and quite a bit of snow can be seen. I did find a couple of really nice restaurants to eat at while here. The two I enjoyed the most for dinner, is Donaleigh's Irish Pub, and The Farmhouse. While the Farmhouse is a good place to go, Donaleigh's is outstanding. Both have a limited menu (not really big), but they both have excellent food. I liked Donaleigh's more because of the overall charisma of the place. I did go to breakfast at a place called Cora's. Had a Smoked Salmon Eggs Benedict there. While the food was excellent, the presentation was awesome. It was accompanied by fresh fruit, and it was not just a little bit of berries here, a little sliced strawberry, grapes, etc. It was a half a Banana cut to stand on end, a thick slice of Pineapple, a slice of Canteloupe, sliced Strawberries, Kiwi fruit, and a half of a small Orange or Tangerine. I could have had the fruit alone and been happy.  The class itself went well, the students were new to RF, making them a perfect fit for this class. This format of this class is what's known as a 'Regional Training Workshop', or RTW. As such, I paid for morning coffee/.snacks, afternoon coffee/snacks, and lunch for all ten students every day. They had quite the spread there, and the bill for four days was over $1300! Thank God it's not my dime, that's all I can say. Next week I will be in Bowling Green Kentucky for a short class, and may only have 1 student. Til then, y'all stay warm in this early cool spring, and keep on writing! Jim |
| Okay, so it's not Jacksonville, Florida. Instead, it's Jacksonville, North Carolina. But, it's much warmer here than it was in Sioux Falls last week. Yesterday the temperature was in the mid-60's. Today, not so high. A front has moved in, and right now it's 33 degrees out. Still, that's about 100 degrees warmer than last week. Okay, I exaggerate, but still, it's a lot warmer. I flew into Charlotte for a couple of reasons, and drove 4 hours the next day here to Jacksonville. When I drove through Wilmington, I couldn't resist stopping to see the USS North Carolina, BB55. Having toured other big ships, there's no way I was passing by without stopping for this one. I've been a Navy geek since I was a teen, having read quite a bit about WWII while in high school. I read more about the Pacific Theater than the European one, and am more familiar with those battles. So the North Carolina was known to me long ago.  Class this week will be a little challenging at least. I have just three students, and am teaching what we call ASTRO Networking. But, these three are all Networking Professionals working for Onslow County here, or for the city. But they don't know the equipment we use in our systems, so I have a bit of an advantage there. It will all be fine in the end, and by Saturday I'll be home again in cold Chicago. Fortunately, spring is just around the corner. I'm home for the next three weeks, and will spend two of them upgrading one of our small systems to the current release. Til next time, stay warm, be happy, and write to your hearts content! |
Two weeks ago, I went to Warner-Robins Georgia on short notice. We're talking 24 hours short notice. It was 'only' a two day class, so I had little time to do much, other than go to work each morning, find a place to eat that night, and repeat the following day. I did drive back to Atlanta on Friday night for a Saturday morning flight. I stayed the night in Atlanta because I refused to fly on Friday the 13th.  This past week, I went to Sioux Falls on even shorter notice! i was working with a couple of co-workers on Monday when another instructor came in. He wanted to talk to me about his class he would be delivering this past week. It was the same class I was delivering in Schaumburg, but with a totally different look to it. Our radio systems are designed to be deployed in certain configurations. But there's always something new that we haven't seen before. Such was the case with the system in Sioux Falls. This instructor is relatively new to our systems, and while his knowledge is rock solid, he hasn't seen a lot of variations in system installation. He expressed concern about the delivery, and the next thing I knew, I had been told to arrange to go there in his place. This conversation occurred on Monday at 2:45pm, by three I had my reservations made, and went home to pack. I worked the Pub that night (It was very slow, so I was able to leave early). Sioux Falls is a nice town, a little small, but very nice. The students were great, and I have to say, we made the right choice in sending me. Several others could have gone, but I was the only one around when this all happened, so it fell to me. It was FREEZING when I arrived, with the temperature hovering around zero. With a brisk wind blowing, the wind chill was about -15. Needless to say, I didn't do much outside, other than snap a couple of quick photos of the waterfalls the city is named for. Next week I'm off to Jacksonville, North Carolina. At least this time it's a planned trip, not a last minute thing. It's very cold this winter, stay warm, and keep writing!  |
This week I was sent to Stockton California to deliver a class on Basic RF Theory. Yesterday I saw the news about the coming storm, and thought I'd check the United Website for a possible change in my flight plans. Imagine my surprise when I found that I could get on a flight about 24 hours earlier than planned, with no additional charge! I briefly considered it, and made the decision. I landed at San Francisco International last night about 7:15 or so, and found a hotel for the night. I woke this morning, and saw that 900 flights out of O'Hare had been cancelled already! So I relaxed a little bit, waiting for it to get light before starting my day. Then I did the usual tourist things. Touring the city a little, snapping a few photos, and enjoying being in relative warmth again. It's 20 degrees in Schaumburg right now, snowing, with a blizzard watch in effect for the Chicago area. Hopefully I'll make another entry about this trip once I see the area more. Right now, I'm over in Stockton for the class, but will go back to San Francisco Friday afternoon before flying home Saturday morning. Til then, y'all stay warm and safe during these winter storms. |
| Back at it in Spokane last week, same customer as I taught in November. I like the area, but I have to say that the one way streets in Spokane drive me crazy! Most of downtown seems to be one way streets, and when you couple that with a lot of road construction in the heart of downtown, it can make getting around a bit difficult. And being winter now, it gets dark very early, so I don't explore near as much as I would in the spring and summer. Still, it was a great week. I did visit a German restaurant while there, and have to say I was a bit disappointed. I was hoping for authentic German fare, but it seemed to be a bit average. If you ever get there and happen to eat at 'Das Stein Haus', let me know what you think of it. I did find a place that had decent Sushi, called Sushi.com (couldn't understand why they have a web address as their restaurant name), but the food there was excellent overall. I've come to realize that I am somewhat of a 'food snob' when I travel. I don't mean to be, but I know that for me to really enjoy my dinner, and think well of a place, three things need to be there for me. If it's just one of three, then the meal is so-so, and I may not return. If it's two out of three, it's a nice place, and I will probably return. But if it's three of three, then I will return, guaranteed. What are those three things? Simple things, at least in my eyes. 1. Atmosphere 2. Decent Service 3. Good Food The service doesn't have to be top notch or really quick. The food doesn't have to be five star quality. But it must have an atmosphere, it has to make me feel comfortable and welcomed. Maybe that's why I enjoy Bubba Gump Shrimp so much. Food is very average. Service usually good. But I love the atmosphere. Not sure why, and I'm sure I can't explain it. Okay, enough rambling for this time. Til next time (February as of now!), y'all stay warm in the winter, and enjoy yourselves. |
Well, it was my second weekend in Charlotte last week, and with a couple days of free time on my hands, I thought I'd visit the city where I was born. Off I went to Charleston, SC. My goal wasn't to see much of the city though, I wanted to visit Ft. Sumter. I've been to Ft. McHenry (War of 1812, birth of Star Spangled Banner). I've visited The USS Constitution in Boston Harbor as well as climbing the tower on Bunker Hill (American Revolution). So seeing Ft. Sumter and learning a bit more about the start of the Civil War seemed only natural. I spent the night in Myrtle Beach, and had a really good dinner at Hanser House. If you're ever in that area, visit that place, you won't be disappointed. I'm glad I chose to go on Saturday though, because it rained all day Sunday on my drive back to Charlotte. The hands on lab (make up class for what they missed in Schaumburg) took about 2.5 hours, then it was on the road again to head home. Instead of resting before the holidays, I drove all over the place! or  depending on your outlook on things. Back home in Schaumburg now for 3 weeks, then off to Toronto for one last field class this year.Til next time, stay warm, and enjoy life! Snowing here in Chicago area, lightly, but still, it's covering the ground. Brrrrrrrrr. After Charlotte, this is COLD! Even if it's only 30 degrees out. |
| Well, I had one of those nights at a restaurant. You know, nice upscale place, atmosphere excellent, everything going well. Then your food arrives, and you notice that the fish you've been served isn't right. I remained calm though, and didn't raise a stink. I spoke politely to my server about it, and end up getting it fixed to my satisfaction. Yes, I ate for free. Here is the review I gave them on Trip Advisor. 3 Stars, would have given them less, except the food was excellent, they were polite back to me, and took care of the food portion of the check. Left the server a larger tip than the check balance was! Okay, first let me say that the food I ordered was delicious. The restaurant is very nice, in an upscale area near UNC-Charlotte. My server was very good, but in the end, not very knowledgeable about fish. So let me explain. I went there because I found them on Google maps, and their menu seemed to fit my tastes. I ordered the Due Amici, a dish with Grouper, Shrimp, Rissoto, and Asparagus. When it came out, I noticed that the fillet didn't look a lot like Grouper, but took 2 bites. I loved the meal, it was very good. But the more I looked at the fillet, the more I became convinced it was Tilapia! I spoke to my server, and he checked with the chef in back. The chef assured him that it was Grouper. When he came back and explained, I let it slide, but still didn't eat any more fish. I spoke with my server a second time, and once again he went to the kitchen. When he once again assured me it was Grouper, I told him he should have a manager come talk to me. The reason I was sure it was Tilapia, is that I worked in a good seafood restaurant for 4 years, and I know a Tilapia fillet when I see one. The chef came out and saw my dish, and immediately started back-pedaling, explaining that the cook may have grabbed the fillet from the wrong drawer. I told him I wasn't interested in a free meal, I was quite willing to pay for it, but at Tilapia prices (and I was willing to accept the fact that it was an honest accident, and not an intentional effort on their part to sell a customer Tilapia at Grouper prices). In the end, I ate for free, and of course was happy about that. So why the three star rating? There were three failures on the restaurant's part. The cook grabbed the wrong fillet. The expediter on the line did not notice the wrong fillet. The person who delivered my fish didn't recognize the wrong fillet, nor did my server when he checked on my meal. I would give them two stars, but to be honest, it was very good, and in my eyes, all a mistake. Would I go back? Probably not. |
| I left Spokane early Saturday morning, and spent the weekend working once I got home. Had to work the restaurant both nights, as well as put in time at Motorola to get a few things done there. My supervisor wasn't happy I worked Sunday, but hey, things have to get done you know. (I'm salaried, so I don't get overtime for working weekends). I got a rental car on Monday, and left for Charlotte on Tuesday. I drove this trip because of a special project, a special class I'll deliver while here. Here's what went on to get me on this special class. First, I'm delivering a scheduled class, or classes, to the city of Charlotte. Radio programming, and radio maintenance. However, a little while back we had two instructors deliver the same class in separate weeks in Schaumburg. That's not unusual at all. But, in this case, both instructors failed to have the class do one of the labs that week. As it turns out, the same lab in both classes. Not sure what happened after all that, but the end result is that we were (are) going to make up that class for them, and do it at their location. Since I was already scheduled to be here, makes sense for me to do it, especially since I'm qualified that class also. But I drove because our department manager said we'd do it with our equipment. The thing we're going to align in this hands on lab is worth about $15,000, and the piece of gear used to align it costs over $40,000! I told him there was no way we were shipping that Fed Ex, and that I'd drive. Just makes sense. I stopped in Lexington, Kentucky for a short rest, and to look up a University I knew was there. Yep, there's an actual school named Transylvania University. I was going to get a haircut also while there, but when the barber offered to cut slice shave my neck, I decided against it. Come to think of it, he did have rather long teeth.  After this, I will be home for a couple of weeks, before going to Toronto to deliver my last field class of the year. Til then, stay warm, and keep writing!  Jim Dorrell |
This week finds me in Spokane, Washington, delivering a class to the city, and county. It was a good week, especially yesterday afternoon when I went to Steptoe Butte a second time. Steptoe Butte is an upthrust of Quartzite in the Palouse Hills of Eastern Washington State. The rock that forms the butte is 400 million years old, while the hills of the Palouse around it are 'only' 7-15 million years old. The view from there is beautiful, the rolling hills of the Palouse cast some very interesting shadows at sunrise and sunset. While I was there yesterday though, I made a new friend, and snapped a few photo's of him. He was just too cute not to take pictures of! Spokane itself is a really nice city, a little on the smallish side. The only thing I dislike about it, is that a lot of streets downtown are one way streets, so for a visitor like me, it is hard to get around that first day or so. Other than that, I loved the area. Next week I will be in Charlotte, NC for 2 weeks. Until that time, stay warm as the weather gets colder, and write all you can. Especially you NaNoWriMo people! |
| Well, for the first time in about three months, I'm once again traveling. It's not that I haven't been busy, because I've been as busy, or busier than I am while on the road. And I'm not here a week, only two days. El Centro is a pretty small town off I-8 in Southern California. It's about 5 miles from the Mexican border, with a large population of Chinese, and Mexicans of course. I'm here to teach the Imperial Irrigation District radio programming. You might be surprised to learn this, but the radios used by police, most large utility companies, the FBI, and any major industry (as well as the Military) are programmed using computers. The students range from very experienced to apprentices, but all are eager to learn. I may be back here in January, we'll see. At that point, I would teach them radio maintenance. How to check proper operation, tune/align the radios, and basic maintenance. Unfortunately, because most of the electronic components in a radio are as small or smaller than the ones in your computer, little hands on repair is done by shops. So I teach first echelon maintenance, things they can easily do before deciding to send it back to Motorola Solutions. Next week it's Spokane, before going to Charlotte NC the following week. I'll spend almost two weeks there, teaching two different classes, then doing a make up lab for them from a third course. Long story there, don't ask. |
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