New Respect

I have the privilege of working with my brother on the railraod. He is the foreman of our gang (crew). He has taken a vacation this week and my seniority moves me into the foreman slot while he is out. The line our bridge is on sees quite a bit of traffic. Double tracks to single tracks and so on and so forth. We are installing new bridge ties. By the way, the bridge is 312 feet from the top of the ties to the earth below. Dispatchers are wanting us to get out of the way of the trains. Supervisors wanting the ties to be installed as quickly but as SAFELY as possible. The safety of your co-workers that are also your good friends, and asking them to work their tales off at the same time. The forms, forms you need to keep up with. With all the dotted "I"s, boxes checked, "T"s crossed. My big brother has a tough job. I'm trying my best to fill his steel toed boots while he's at the beach for a well deserved vacation. I'm ready for him to be back so maybe I can go. You never know what people go through until you experience it yourself. Even then, I reckon, it's not quite the same. I have new respect for my brother, in whom I've always had respect. I guess I'm trying to say, it's important to give people the benefit of the doubt instead of always giving them down the road.

Suds

Important, becareful when you inhale through your nose with head slightly tilted back while rinsing shampoo. In 30 years of remembered showering, this was the first and hopefully the last time.

Got Your Back

My 15 year old recieved his first roadway verbal critism by someone from another vehicle. He took it better than I did. However, as I calmed down he let it get to him a little. I told him he didn't do anything wrong, the other dude must have been having a lousy day. The important thing that I let my son know was, I always have his back. That seemed to make a difference. We all can make a difference, tell friends and family we've got their back. Just as important, maybe even more so, pray for the others that seem to be having a lousy day.

Following?

I was going to follow another blog. I clicked a few things, now I'm following my own blog instead of the other one. It's important to be smarter than what you're fooling with, if you are expecting the desired results. But more importantly, try to be cool to everybody you run into today, huh!

All That Jazz

I'm not a real musician, but I can carry a tune. What I mean is I dig music. Growing up, I was steeped in classic rock, heavy on the Southern kind. Some blue grass, quite a bit of blues. Driving home I landed on public radio, apparently jazz hour. I discovered it is important for me to expand my listening pleasures. Although I've had trouble with jazz in the past, every tune I heard this evening was fantastic.

We'll See

Alot of people have differing views on what's important. What I find important you might dismiss, then again maybe not. Anyway, we'll see. Let me collect my thoughts, meager as they might seem and I'll get back to you. Until then, any thoughts?