I'm out of town again, this time headed towards Jackson Hole for a week of skiing with my buddy, Ethan. I rarely just go somewhere on vacation without trying to finagle work into paying for it, so I'm in Glenwood now, Meeker in a few hours, and Rock Springs tonight. Before I ski at the foot of the Tetons, I make a quick trip over to Grand Rapids, MI for a funeral. Busy busy.
I want to share a couple of quick ideas before I hop into Abby and hit the road. First, there have been requests from a few readers to post a "Thought of the Day" or some other kind of half-baked idea. Not necessarily a full blown blog post, but certainly something that The Voyeurs can check in on and hopefully get a quick laugh. I like it, and I'm going to try it out. I'll play with the headers so you'll know what to look for, but maybe TD/HBI or something...
I might not be able to get something posted each and every day, but without the pressure of needing to come up with a full blown story, it should be easy to get three or four of these each week, in addition to my regular posting.
Now one quick story about this current journey to the West Slope and Wyoming. I work with this team of surveyors and engineers out of Rock Springs, WY, but I've never met them face to face. I thought that since I'd be through town, I would love to stop in their office. This way, I could introduce myself and put faces with the names and voices I talk to on a daily basis.
In this survey/engineer team, there are really two individuals I have consistent contact with. There is a crusty, wizened old man who seems like he knows every answer to any technical question, and his sidekick, a woman who does a ton of the drawings and finished products (maps and spreadsheets.) I use their documents all the time, and feel like I'm asking them for all kinds of help on design questions.
I called the woman to tell her my travel plans, and ask if they'd be in the office Thursday night around 5 or 6. She said they would, and we both agreed that it would be nice to meet up. I suggested I take the two of them out to dinner to say thanks for all the work they do for Williams. When they're not churning out drawings for pipelines, the older gentleman will occasionally send out emails detailing his vacation plans, and I have talked to her on the phone now for over a year, slowly learning some of the details of her life, as well. She'll talk about family vacations, as well, and tell me about her two sons, both my age.
After our phone conversation, I got an email from the woman, and she was pretty flustered. She wasn't sure what the context was that I had asked her to dinner. I sent back an email trying to diffuse any embarrassment or confusion, simply stating that I'd love to meet anyone from the office and that things were very informal. To have kids my age, she has to be at least 50, and I realized that she'd never met me. I like to think that I can handle myself on the phone like a proper adult, but she has no idea I'm 28 and look like I'm about 22. It might come as a surprise to her. I guess she thought I was asking her out on a date....oops.
Tonight might be an interesting dinner....I'll keep you posted.
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