Cube Farming

OK, I have to admit it: I am really enjoying my job with GE. I am surrounded by geeky techie engineers at GE. In just the past two days, I have been introduced to such cool acronyms as MTBF (Mean Time Between Failure), MSMS (Mission Stores Management System), MSS (Mission Stores System), BCR (Baseline Change Request) and DFR (Data Flight Recorder). While I am playing "Acronym Bingo," little by little I am understanding what the alphabet soup of letters mean. I also was thrilled to see a couple of people using Hewlett-Packard calculators. These people speak my language.

The downside: I am living this dream in a cubicle. There are three floors of cubicles in the building where I work. Lots of people doing all kinds of hard engineering work, but the majority of us are located in cubicles. Granted, GE does not go low end in cube. These cubes are new and well maintained, but at the end of the day, they are cubes. Most people have added personal touches to their cubes, with a picture of their family or pet or perhaps a college flag. I am still so new at GE that I have yet to add anything to my cube. I want to let the chi flow for a while, and in a week or two I might start adding a few personal touches.

At the end of the day, I am working for a fantastic company, with great people. Each day, so far, that I have met a new co-worker, they have all said to me, "Great to meet you. Welcome to GE. Let me know if I can help you learn more about your job."

Yep, all great people working for a great company.

Wings win!

Our beloved Wings beat the Avs last night to take a 3-0 lead in the Western Conference Semi-finals. The game started at 10PM, so it was way too late for Dee and I to stay up for it. Game 4 is Thursday night and hopefully the Wings can pull off a sweep. Say it with me, "Let's go, Red Wings!"

Day One of a New Adventure

This morning I reported for work at GE Aviation and I am happy to report that today was a good day. As directed, I showed up at 8:15AM and met the receptionist. I told him that I was a new hire, he thrust out his hand and said to me, "Welcome to GE! Can I see your proof of citizenship, please?" I showed him my passport to confirm my identity and ability to work in the US, and he then directed me to Security a few doors down. Tom from Security was at his desk, and I once again had to show him passport, then he directed me to a place behind the counter where I could be photographed for my GE Employee badge. All GE employees are required to display their employee badge whenever they are at work. I smiled for my photo, was handed a sporty blue lanyard to wear around my neck with the badge attached to it. I returned to the front foyer of the reception area where I waited for on of the HR reps to come collect me.

Just a few moments after I sat down in the reception area, Stacey from HR showed up and welcomed me to the company. She then led me back to her offices, where she went over the paperwork I had filled out prior to me arrival, and she gave me a few more forms to fill out and signed. In about 30 minutes I had completed all of the required documents, and I then waited for my new boss to come get me. After a brief wait, Hank arrived and he, too welcomed me to GE. We walked up to the third floor were he showed me my desk. Hank then took me back downstairs where I joined a training class in progress. I spent the rest of the morning in this class, and I met a few of my new co-workers. The class ended a little before noon, and then my "transition buddy," Larry, led me and a few other people out to lunch at a nearby restaurant. I dined on some Hunan Beef, and soon thereafter we were back at GE to finish the rest of my transition events.

We returned to our spaces where I found a new laptop computer waiting for me. I was given the logon information and in a few minutes I was able to access the computer and open my new work e-mail account. I spent the rest of the afternoon getting my computer accounts established, as well as attending to more administrative actions, such as ordering business cards, signing up for a travel charge card, etc.

Time flew by and before I knew it, it was time to call it a day. My first day at GE was an unqualified success. I am signed up for lots of training classes over the course of the next three months, and I will start some on-line training tomorrow. Life agrees with me.

Retirement did not take...

Tomorrow morning at 8:15AM I will end my brief retirement and start my second career with General Electric. I am excited about the possibilities with this company and opportunity to learn and grow. I have received the following advice from family and friends over the course of the past few days as I prepared for my first day at work:




1) Don't be late.
2) Wear a tie.
3) Don't bring your lunch on the first day.
4) Follow directions of the HR people.
5) Have all the employment documents filled out properly.

I have appreciated all the suggestions for my first day at GE. One of the forms I had to fill out was a state of Michigan W4. The last time I had to fill out this form, I was employed by the Grosse Pointe Yacht Club. That was 22 years ago. A lot has happened since then. Updates to follow!

Requiem for Sven

Today was the last weekday of my first retirement. On Monday, I start my second career with General Electric. Dee told me that I have been acting like Sven in a Verizon Wireless commercial. In the Verizon commercial, Sven oversaw the actions of a family. Sven would brief each family member on what they could expect during the day, let them know if their stock was up or down. You get the idea. Well, I have been serving Deirdre like Sven the past few months. All of that will change on Monday. I will no longer be able to drive her to work or meet her for lunch, as I will be pretty busy with GE. Thus, Sven is dead, and Paul is back in battery!

GE 1, Dart Container Corporation 0

I am getting closer and closer to coming out of retirement. Sometime on Monday morning, I will start my new career with General Electric. I have received a few e-mails from one of my soon-to-be coworkers, and I have spoken to my division's HR rep to get some information about the forms. In the mail today, however, I received two letters. One was from the CEO of GE, Mr. Jeffery Immelt, and the other was from the Dart Container Corporation. Mr. Immelt's letter was one of welcome to the company. His letter challenges me to be my best at GE and to have fun while doing it. The letter from Dart started out like this:

Dear Paul,
Thank you for your interest in Dart Container of Michigan LLC. While we are unable to offer you employment at this time, we sincerely appreciate you taking the time to express your interest in working with us.

About a month ago I applied for a position with Dart as a program manager. Looks like I did not make the cut with them, but included in Dart's rejection letter, they included a very nice refrigerator magnet for me to use and enjoy... and to be reminded that they were not interested in me.

Not so fast...

In a recent post, I made mention that I might be getting old as I am excited about the new windows which will soon be installed in our home. Just when I thought I was crawling down that dusty corridor towards death, my spirits improved. I was out shopping for some lamb chops for dinner tonight, and I also picked up a bottle of wine to compliment the meal. I got to the check out lane and patiently waited my turn to pay for the lambies and vino. Well, the clerk looked at me and said, "I will need to see your ID."

Seriously. I got carded.

I smiled, got our my wallet and gave my driver's license to the clerk. She looked at my birth date and said to me, "Wow. You were born the same year as my Mom! I guess that you are old enough to buy the wine."

I must say that to get carded when I am well into my 46th year on this planet made me smile. Life agrees with me.

You know you old when...

... you get excited about new windows. Yes, it is official: Deirdre and and I are old. Today I signed a contract with your friends at HWC Homeworks to replace about a dozen windows as well as the two sliding glass doors in our back room. In about a month, the professionals from HWC will return and install the aforementioned windows and sliders. I also signed a contract to have our front door replaced. Dee and I are excited about these new projects. We are old.

I have two new friends: Cole Haan and Joe Banks

One part of my transition from the Navy is that no longer would my choice of career clothing be set by a Uniform Board. From here on out, I will be wearing civilian attire to work until the time of my next retirement. While I had a couple of suits and sport coats, I really needed to update my wardrobe in preparation for my new job with GE. Last week, I went to the local Joseph A. Banks store to purchase some pants and shirts. The attire at GE Aviation is "business casual," so I did not need to buy any more suits or ties. Another thing I needed to do was purchase some new shoes. The last time I bought a pair of civilian dress shoes was in 1990, when I bought a pair of black tassel Bass Monogram shoes for my time at the Naval Postgraduate School. In preparation for my first day at work, I found a great pair of Cole Haan slip-on shoes. From a fashion standpoint, I am ready for my first day at General Electric.

Joining GE is a lot like joining the Navy...

General Electric is a pretty techie company. It makes lots of extremely high technology stuff so it is not surprising that most of its hiring process is on line. After I accepted the position of Engineering Manager with GE, I was instructed to wait five business days and then to try to logon to a corporate website to begin the processes to start work in 28 April. Before my first day at work, I have to go to two websites to either download forms that require my signature, or to read corporate policy regarding illicit drugs, terms of employment, etc.

Last week I subjected to a drug test. My hire is contingent upon me passing the test. Thankfully, I did not start using marijuana or opiates after I retired from the Navy! I then waited the aforementioned five business days and yesterday I attempted to logon to the GE Employee's website. As if it was according to Hoyle, my GE employee logon was activated and started to enter all the information needed by GE in preparation for my first day at work.

Sure, it has been a while since I started a job with a new company. OK, it has been 22 years. I had forgotten about all the documents one needs to fill out prior to starting work, and all of the administrative requirements reminded me a lot of forms I had to fill out through out my Navy career. A brief summary of the things I needed to either fill out on line or print out and fax to a GE HR Center:

- I-9
- Beneficiary Designation
- Federal W4
- Michigan W4
- GE Employee PIN Designation
- Conflict of Interest Form
- Backup Withholding form

This is just a partial list of the things I need to do before I start to work for General Electric. I have more work to do on line today in preparation for my first day on the job. As is sometimes said, "It's all good." I am really looking forward to starting with the company.

Wild Turkey Surprise

Dee and I were hoping to sleep in a little today. We had dinner with our friends Dave & AJ last night, and we returned home in time to watch the end of the third period of the Game 5 of Predators-Red Wings game. The Wings pummeled the Preds, outshooting them throughout the game. The score was 1-0, Detroit, leading up to the penultimate moment in the game. With about 1:15 remaining, Nashville pulled their goalie and had six attackers. The Wings never got control of the puck and with 43.4 seconds before the end of the game, the Predators scored. The game went into sudden death overtime. Needless to say, our nerves were a little shot because the Wings are clearly the better team, but they had run into a hot rookie goalie in front of the net for the Predators. Well, Johan Franzen allowed us to enjoy the end of the evening as he stole the puck from one of the Predators, skated into the offensive zone and scored 1:42 into overtime. Now the series shifts back to Nashville for Game Six. The kicker is that in Game Four, the Wings were less than 5 minutes away from taking a 3-1 lead in the series when they stopped attacking. 9 seconds and two goals later, the Preds won Game Four.

You might be wondering, how does the ending of Game Five relate to the Wild Turkey Surprise? Well, Dee and I stayed up until past 11 o'clock PM, which is late for us, to see the end of the game and a few minutes of the Stars-Ducks game. We took Samson out one more time before we went to bed and we were looking forward to sleeping in a little on Saturday morning. Samson had another plan.

It was a delightfully cool night, so we opened our new window to allow for fresh air to waft into our home. Samson settled into his crate for the night and Dee and I feel asleep soon thereafter. A little before 6AM, Samson was up and agitated, and we did not know why. I got up and took him to the back door. I looked out our back slider window and saw why Samson was so spun up. A wild turkey was in the middle of our yard. Wild turkeys are aggressive and nasty birds and I was not about to let Samson out to chase the bird. Samson was beside himself as there was an intruder in his yard. Dee managed to take Samson out, using a leash, to the front of our house. I grabbed Dee's Nikon and snapped a few pictures of the wild turkey before she ran away to an adjacent back yard. This is one large bird!

Samson in the ground cover

Samson has been expressing himself more and more now that the snow has left this area of the Enchanted Mitten. He loves to run through his yard, as well as our neighbor's yard, and look for vermin. In our neighbor's yard there is an oak tree with some ground cover encircling the tree. Recently, Samson has found it fun to waltz through the ground cover and look for lost tennis balls. He simply loves to plop down in the ground cover, relax and take in the world. He also likes to keep an eye open for squirrels and wild turkeys!

Wild Turkey

As previously reported, there was a wild turkey in our backyard yesterday. No, not the world famous Kentucky Bourbon, rather a real wild turkey. Samson was quite interested in this animal trespassing in his yard, but I felt that it would be better for him to remain inside while I took a few photos of the bird. Wild turkeys are large animals, and they are indigenous to this area of the country. I managed to snap a few photos of this magnificent bird before he strutted away. In all the time I have lived here, this was the first time I had seen such a bird in our yard.

Training

There is a Chinese proverb that says, "The longest journey begins with the smallest step." Yesterday, I began my journey in preparation for the 5/3 Riverbank Run. Normally, this preparation would not warrant a mention in this blog, as I have run this race four times in the past six years, but this time, it will be different. This time, I am running on my surgically repaired right knee. before I retired from the Navy, I was diagnosed with a torn meniscus in my right knee. I had surgery back in early September and spent the next month or so slowly recovering from the procedure. I did my rehab work, slowly walking greater distances each day. However, I did not jog or run at all. My knee was constantly a little sore, but nowhere near as painful as it was pre-surgery. Well, last weekend I met with my surgeon, who happens to be my neighbor, and I told him about my symptoms. He told me to go ahead and begin running again. I am happy to report that my knee feels great! I am going to the track at the nearby high school and I am well along in my training for the Riverbank Run. It feels great to get the endorphins pulsing through my veins once again!

Lord of the Flies

There is some debate as to whether dogs became domesticated because there were hungry wolves who approached our fore bearers ten millennia ago, or instead were some wolf pups taken from their mothers and raised to respect and aid humans. Regardless of the evolutionary path, dogs are our best friends. You could not ask for a more devoted companion, nor could you ask for a more noble beast to submit to human control. The human-canine relationship is like no other in nature. All a dog wants to do is please us and in return, share our meals and companionship. In order to make those meals, we bipeds need basic supplies, such as vegetables, fruit and animal protein. We need food.

Most of us get our food from a local grocery store. Others may go to Sam's Club or Costco when you forage for supplies to feed your family. Perhaps some of you reading this blog might grow your own vegetables, when the season is right. Few, if any of us, hunt down our food. Living with a dog such as Samson has taught me that within his canine brain is an instinct he cannot control: to catch and devour prey. All of his senses are many orders of magnitude greater than mine. His sight is keener, his hearing better and his sense of smell is so much better than any human nose. These senses, combined with quick reflexes, teeth and a jaw powerful enough to crush through bones make a dog perfectly adapted to find its own food. Last weekend, Samson had his first kill. He trapped and mortally wounded a squirrel. He was drawn away from his kill, covered in blood. Not his blood, but rather the blood of the squirrel. If you could have seen his face it was one of triumph. He was telling the world with his expression that he had succeeded and was ready to share his good fortune with the rest of his pack.

Yesterday, his senses and quick reflexes led him to kill again, but this time, the prey was much smaller. His prey was musca domestica, the common housefly. Samson was a rescue dog, so we do not know much about his past. I do not know how his first family treated him, nor do I know if he had ever seen a fly before. Regardless, a fly was inside the house and Samson was bound and determined to catch it. Samson quietly stalked his prey and when the fly made the mistake of getting caught up against out picture window overlooking our yard, Samson made his move. He snapped at the fly and captured him in his mouth. Samson then paraded around the living room, before plopping down by our map table, where he promptly spat out the fly. This fly was dazed and injured, and was unable to take flight. Samson toyed with this fly for a few seconds, barking at it and even pawing at it. In the end, when Samon's patience with his prey was at an end, the fly was gobbled up and consumed. Yep, with all that Iams kibble and soft food for him, Samson still prefers from time to time, to get a little fresh protein on his terms.

A judge called me today...

With all the excitement of the Deb Update, I neglected to update this blog about a phone call I received this morning. A little after 10AM, one of the judges I interviewed with at the 61st District Court a few weeks ago called me. Yesterday, I sent the Chief Judge a letter asking that my name be removed from further consideration for the position (I cc'd the other three judges who interviewed me). The judge said to me, "Paul we received your letter today and I wanted to let you know that you made my job a little easier and a little harder. You were one of the finalists for the position as Administrator and we were going to call you this week and ask you back for a second interview. Since you have removed yourself from consideration, we will be able to offer your interview spot to another person for the position. I really enjoyed meeting you and I wish you well in your new job." I thanked the judge and I told him that I, too, enjoyed meeting him and the other judges. Yep, when it rains, it pours!

DEB UPDATE

Today I drove our friend Deb to meet with Dr. Bohay, the surgeon who operated on her right leg the last day in February. This was her 6 week follow up appointment and I am happy to report that Dr. Bohay was quite pleased with how she is recovering. Deb has been told to put weight on her leg, on a 25-50-75-100 percent progressively each week until her next appointment in mid-May. Deb was very happy with what Dr. Bohay had to say about her recovery.

Samson 1, Squirrel 0

Earlier today, Samson defended his home and yard. There was a squirrel running about and Samson saw him as a clear and present danger to his pack. Deeply seeded canine instincts kicked in, and Samson ran after the squirrel and caught him. The squirrel was perhaps 1 1/2 lbs, while Samson is about 90 lbs. The squirrel never had a chance and Samson caused great injury to him. Dee managed to get Samson away from the squirrel. Samson was covered in blood. Not his blood, rather squirrel blood. Samson was cleaned up and then brought inside. I was sent to "take care of" the squirrel. While Samson caught and disabled the squirrel, he did not kill it. There was blood all over the leaves near the squirrel and it was clear that he had suffered a mortal injury. I did the humane thing and euthanized the squirrel, but it still did not make the act any easier. Samson is fine and Dee is recovering. Samson is chewing on a Nyla-bone as I type this. All is well in the Enchanted Mitten.

On the clock...

Since I have accepted a position with GE Aviation, my time to dither and dather around the house is fast coming to an end. I have been looking at my honey-doo list and I am prioritizing the things I need to do in the course of the next two weeks. Top dead center project is repainting our guest bedroom. When we moved in here in 2001, I painted the room a color that can be best described as dusty rose. The color we selected in Home Depot looked nothing like what I applied to the walls that day long ago. We settled in the color because at the time we thought we would repaint it soon. Well, soon turned into seven years and now is a good time to right the wrong of dusty rose. There was some minor collateral damage done to the wall in that bedroom when our main bathroom was remodeled, so there is a streak of spackle and dry wall mud along one of the walls. Thus, now is the time to get the room ready for our next visitor. We will be purchasing Olympic paint for the ceiling and the walls. The plan is to paint the ceiling and edges white this morning, and then attack the walls this afternoon once the ceiling is dry. It is all about the process, baby!

Two wins towards Sixteen

Our beloved Red Wings beat the Nashville Predators this afternoon at Joe Louis Arena, 4-2. The Wings are up 2 games to 0 against the Predators. The first round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs are always wild and we are hopeful that the the Detroit Wings will continue its winning ways. Say it with me, "Let's go, Red Wings!"

I used to work for an Admiral...

But as of Monday, 28 April, I will be working for the General. Technically, I will be working for General Electric. Yesterday I received an offer letter from GE and today I accepted the position of Engineering Manager for the Systems Division of GE Aviation in Grand Rapids. Earlier today I received a call from my future boss, Hank, welcoming me to the GE Team. He said that he he was very excited that I accepted the position and that everyone in the group is looking forward to me starting work. When I was speaking to Hank I had to ask him, "So, when do I start? All of the acceptance procedures are done on line and I need to know my start date is." Hank told me that it takes about two weeks for GE to generate a pay record, personnel file, etc., before I can start working. Hank also told me that GE's policy is for new hires to start work on a Monday, so we decided that my start date will be on April 28.

A few moments ago, one of the other members of the team I will be joining, Larry, called me to welcome me to GE and to his team. Larry re-iterated how happy he and the rest of the team members were that I accepted the offer and that "Everyone is looking forward to your arrival." I told Larry that I really appreciated the call and that I was looking forward to starting work at GE. Larry and I spoke about what I can expect my first week or two at GE, he told me that there is a group of people who run at lunch and asked me if I would be interested in joining that group. I told him that I was training for the 5/3 Riverbank Run and the I am definitely looking forward to running with them. Yep, this is going to be a great job.

However, this weekend I will need to write a few letters to the other organizations who have interviewed me but have yet to make me an offer. Between the job offer from GE, the notification from the VA that I am 30 percent disabled, it was a very interesting week for me in the Enchanted Mitten.

My first offer letter

Today I received my first offer letter for a position with General Electric. Life is definitely getting interesting here in the western edge of the Enchanted Mitten!

It is official: I am disabled

Part of the process involved with retiring from the military is an physical evaluation from the Department of Veterans Affairs. All of us who served received an entrance physical when we joined the military, which is used as a baseline for when leave the service. As the saying goes, "Navy. It is not just a job, it is an adventure." Speaking from personal experience, this is true. There were a lot of times during my career that it was a little too much adventure and not enough job, as I was exposed to loud sounds, explosives, fuels, hazardous chemicals, ionizing radiation, nuclear fuel, etc. I also subjected my body to all sorts of physical stresses and events that, well, affected my hearing and joints. Before I retired, I entered the VA medical system, where I was seen by a host of specialists who poked and prodded me to see the affect the 22 years I spent on active duty had on my body. Well, this afternoon Jane from the VA called to tell me that my disability rating had been determined. She told me that I was 30 percent disabled. I will get the official letter in a few weeks, but she called me to let me know what my disability rating was going to be. Wow. 30 percent. I wonder if I will need a walker or a wheelchair anytime soon...

Deb update

I wanted to let everyone know that Deb continues to improve. Her leg is still in a walking cast and she cannot put weight on her leg, but she is hobbling around using a scooter and crutches. Next week, I will be taking her to next follow up appointment with her surgeon. Hopefully, she will get the "OK" to put weight on her leg and drive once again.

Mea Culpa

In all the excitement yesterday, I did something a little whacky. While poking around Blogger, I discovered that I could use a transliteration function which turned my words into Hindi text. Apparently, this was not viewed favorably by some people who view this blog. Thus, I have disabled this feature. Mea culpa.

दोएस अन्योने आउट तेरे स्पेअक हिन्दी?

इ दिस्कोवेरेड अ फेअतुरे इन ब्लॉगर कॉल्ड ट्रांस्लितेरेशन। एवेर्य्ह्टिंग इ टाइप इन थिस पोस्ट इस इन हिन्दी। सो, दोएस अन्य्बोद्य आउट तेरे रीड हिन्दी?

Monday was a very interesting day...

Before my bride left for work this morning, I told her that today was going to be a very interesting day. I felt that today was going to be interesting because I expected to hear back from GE regarding employment with them, and I also had an interview with the U.S. State Department for a position in Lansing. A little after 10AM, our phone rang and it was Hank from GE. He was formally offering me a position with GE. He said that I should see an offer letter by the end of the week and that he was looking forward to me joining his team.

If that was not exciting enough, I drove to Lansing to interview with the State Department. I used Google Maps to get me directions (60 miles one way... ouch!), and I was able to quickly find the place where the National Passport Center was located. I sort of expected it to be in your typical grey stone federal building. Boy, was I wrong. The National Passport Information Center is located in an industrial strip mall on the outskirts of Lansing. The interviewer flew in from DC (where she works) to meet with me. We spoke for perhaps 45 minutes and she seemed quite interested in me and my qualifications. Before I left, I asked the interviewer, "How soon do you expect to make a hiring decision?" She said that she expected to make a hiring decision within 2-3 weeks.

Yep, never a dull moment in the Enchanted Mitten!

Monday will be a busy day East of the Equator...

Yep, today is going to be interesting. I am patiently waiting for a call from GE regarding the possibility of employment with the company. Yesterday, my next door neighbor called me (he is on vacation in California) and asked me if I could fax a couple of documents to his accountant. I will need to contact his accountant, find out what he needs and then transmit the documents to him.

There is also the issue of another job interview for me. A few months ago, I applied for the position of Director of the National Passport Information Center (NPIC). NPIC is located in Lansing and the job looked interesting, plus I was just starting my job search. OK, truth be told, I was halfway through the second bathroom remodeling project and I applied for the job on a whim. I am fortunate enough to have something the job requires: a current government security clearance. Anyway, 10 days ago Amanda from the State Department called me and asked me if I was still interested in the position. Since I had received a grand total of zero job offers to date, I told Amanda that I was still interested in the position. Last week, Amanda called me again and confirmed my interview date and time (2PM on 7 April). A little after noon today I will hit the road for Lansing, go the National Passport Information Center and interview for the job. Full report to follow after this interview

Yes, it is never a dull moment East of the Equator in the Enchanted Mitten.

Spring has sprung in the Enchanted Mitten

Nothing says spring here in the Motherland like warmer days, muddy grass and Bell's Oberon Beer. It is a Spring and Summer beer, best enjoyed cold. Tonight for dinner, I fired up our grill and cooked a couple of rib eye steaks and enjoyed a bottle of Oberon. Life agrees with us here in the Enchanted Mitten.

Goat Stink

For my good friends at Marble and Mud, to the right of this text is the chemical structure of caproic acid. The accepted nomenclature for this substance by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry is Hexanoic acid. It is a carboxylic acid derived from hexane with the general formula C₅H₁₁COOH. It is a colorless oily liquid with an odor reminiscent of goats or other barnyard animals. It is a fatty acid found naturally in various animal fats and oils, and is one of the chemicals that gives the decomposing fleshy seed coat of the ginkgo its characteristic unpleasant odor.

You know you are a grown-up when...

... you are excited about purchasing new flatware. When I was living in Chicago, I purchased some cheap cutlery at IKEA, and it served us well the past three years or so. However, four of the forks have experienced what the engineer in me would call "catastrophic failure," and a couple of the knives had the same fate. So, today we are going to Bed Bath & Beyond to purchase new cutlery. I wanted to get new cutlery months ago, but Deirdre would have none of it. I think that it has something to do with her being frugal. At least she let me look at the different styles of flatware a month or so ago when we were in BB & B.

The search continues...

I met with Jerry from GE today for lunch. He is one of the division leaders and he wanted to meet me and talk to me about a position he needs to fill. I met him at 11:30AM and we went to a local restaurant for our meal. Jerry did mot of the talking at first, telling me about the position and what he was expecting me to do in it. He asked me a few questions about the things I had done in the Navy, and I gave him a few examples of projects and programs I oversaw during my career. I asked Jerry a string of questions about the position and what he expected. We were at the restaurant for darn near two hours, and I think that I made a very favorable impression upon him. Based on the last phone call I had from GE earlier in the week, I sort of thought that that this interview was a final "fit test" by him, but that was not the case. Jerry told me that he had to review the applications of two internal candidates. Jerry also told me that he would be out of town all next week, so the earliest that he would come to a decision would be the week after next. So, I wait to hear from GE.

However, before I met with GE, I had a call from Bob at Gentex. I had applied for a position with this company, based in Zeeland, on Sunday and I was sort of surprised how quickly I heard back from the company. Bob was very pleasant and was quite interested in what I had done in the Navy. He had my resume in front of him and he said to me, "You are over-qualified for the position you applied for. However, I have over 60 open positions and I want to try to find a good fit for you here. Usually, when will bring people in for an interview, we will find that they are better suited for a different position. I will shop your resume around to a few of the directors and VPs here. I think that you would be a great addition to Gentex. Can you give me a call back in a week or so, if I do not call you first?"

Bob seemed genuinely interested in my knowledge, skills and ability and while I wait for the GE issue to unfold, I plan on contacting Gentex mid-week or so. Yep, it is never a dull moment here in the western edges of the Enchanted Mitten!

GE: Electric Lunch?

Yesterday I took a phone call from Hank, one of the people who interviewed me at my last visit to GE Aviation. Hank said to me that he had an offer letter for me, but that another manager wanted to talk to me. Hank said that he wanted me to talk to Jerry (the other manager) and determine where I felt I might fit best. This other manager was the director of the group who first interviewed me, and I called Jerry as soon as I got off the phone with Hank. Jerry was away from his desk, so I left him a voice mail. The afternoon turned to evening and I felt that Jerry would call me on Wednesday. Well, a little before 8PM, Jerry called me. He and I spoke for almost 45 minutes and he said that he wanted to meet me in person. Thus, I am meeting him for lunch on Thursday at 11:30. I also have a phone interview with a person from Gentex at 10:15, so I had better talk fast to him. Never a dull moment here in the Enchanted Mitten!

Does my brother Eric have a doppleganger?

This morning I drove Deirdre to work. Clearly, when I find a job, this will come to an end, so Dee is enjoying it as much as she can! Well, when I got home there was a message on our answering machine. A woman named Kristi called from Allied Waste Management, and she said, "Hi, I am Kristi and I was wondering if you are related to Eric. He has not been at work the past few days and we are getting concerned about him." I called Kristi back and told her that I do have a brother named Eric, that he is not an employee of Allied Waste Management. She thanked me for calling her and I wished her well in their search for their employee. I called my brother Eric and I confirmed that he did not now or ever work for Allied Waste Management, but he told me that he was aware of another Eric living in A2. If our last name were Smith or Jones or Green, I could see a whole host of Eric Smiths or Jones or Greens, but given our last name, I was very surprised that there is another Eric K. out there. I wonder if this guy is a doppleganger...

Another interview...

I stopped by our pet supply store where I purchased Samson a couple of new Nyla-bones. He loves to chew on them and it keeps him busy when we are not in the house. Well, no sooner had I walked in the door when our land line phone rang. On the other end of the line was a person calling on behalf of Gentex Corporation, and she wanted to know if I would be available for a phone interview sometime this week. This past weekend I applied for a position as a Manufacturing Support Engineer with Gentex. My phone interview is scheduled for Thursday morning. Yep, it is another interesting day in my job search!