Last Thursday Sheila and I got on a plane for San Jose. We were picked up by an old friend of mine that I hadn't seen for a long time, that being Craig P, who I heard described as (and I will describe him as that too) "an amazing guy". He is one of the few from the old days that has remained in San Jose.
The purpose of the trip was to take possession of my dad's pickup truck, and to drive it back to Tucson. We took Craig, Debbie (a friend of my mother's) and my mother out to a favorite Mexican restaurant of mine, after which there was some bank stuff to do and a visit to DMV. I had wanted to take to the road at 2:00 PM to beat the traffic rush, but we were held up and didn't leave until 4:00ish. Traffic was the worst I'd ever seen, but we were able to get into Los Banos for the night.
On most of my road trips, I've taken I-5 down, but with this one, and the previous two, I came down state highway 33 in the central valley. Sometimes you don't want to be on the interstate. It was Sheila's first time seeing that part of California, which is enjoyable (you're away from the urban centers). When we got to Mendota, we headed over to state highway 99, and then it was down that road to state highway 223, through Arvin, and on to Mojave for the night.
It would have been nice to have made Victorville, but I wasn't sure I wanted to attempt I-15 traffic on a Friday afternoon, so Mojave it was. Our motel of choice was across the street from a Subway that is collocated with a Shell station/convenience store, which is nice as that I got to enjoy a beer with my sandwich.
The next day we were on the road again. We realized that if we had made it to Tucson, we would have been dog tired that night and useless the next day, so night number three was in Quartzsite, AZ. I've stayed in Quartzsite a few times and the Super 8 had a room. I really wanted United States soil under me that night which is one reason we didn't stop in Blight......excuse me, Blythe.
We returned home Sunday afternoon at 1:30ish. I was tired but not too tired to indulge two very special cats who were glad to see their daddy. They were on the clingy side that day and the next, (which I had off), and now it's back to work,.
The getaway was nice, but it wasn't long enough. I really wanted to drive down the coast and visit with my dad in his resting place, but I wasn't sure about US101 and the wildfires that some parts of the coast are having.
About work, I'm going to say this. Things there have gotten better since I last mentioned it. I'm seeing the team members work with each other instead of against each other. I think it's a matter of the divergent personalities learning how to grow together. It appears in a few weeks I will be involved in testing UHF/SATCOM radios, which is good. I can't call myself a satellite engineer anymore and that may not happen again, but my desire for that experience is more borne out of a desire to learn some new things.
That's going to be it for the time being. The holidaze are fast sneaking up on us. Right now it's the calm before the storm.
Wednesday, November 13, 2019
Tuesday, November 5, 2019
Living in California? I Don't Think So
Today was a busy day as far as my email inbox went on one of my three accounts. I use one for "social', one for "business", and one for ham radio. The inbox for the business account brings in emails every day for recruiters looking to fill engineering positions, but one recruiter found a way to my personal inbox to ask me to apply for an engineering position in California.....Northridge, to be exact. That employer has a presence in several states (including Arizona) but they, like a lot of employers in California, are hurting for engineers.
I'm somewhat tempted to troll for some information (I've been known to do that), but I don't see myself doing that this time. One, I already know of the incentives they are offering. A $20,000 signing bonus. Relocation assistance. Buying your house out from under you. A one week househunting trip.
Although I could use twenty thousand smackers, I'm not biting. One, the job is in California. Two, 20K doesn't go very far in California. Three, California has some serious problems and I believe it will get much worse there.
Now some Californians will brag online about how great their state is. World's 5th largest economy. Great weather. Great places to visit. Beaches. Mountains. Sand dunes. Redwoods. Wine. Skiing.
I can't argue about the weather and most of what I listed. But world's 5th largest economy? It appears that way, when you look at it strictly in the volume of dollars that are spent there, but does that mean things are golden in the Golden State?
Prices and cost of living are MUCH higher there than elsewhere. The dollar volume, in my estimation, is inflated due to dollars not being worth as much there as they are elsewhere. Sure, I can get a higher salary there, and I might even realize a 30% raise, but what good is that going to do if I don't get to keep it?
I am paying less on a monthly mortgage for a nice house in Tucson than what I would spend on a third rate one bedroom apartment in the Los Angeles basin. I pay anywhere from $1.50 to $2.00 less for a gallon of gas here in Arizona. My property tax bill is about 25% of what that would be for a similar house in CA, I would be in much worse traffic, and I would be in a higher tax bracket. In a per capita sense there might be more dollars available, but what good is it if you have a lower standard of living?
There's more.
I've read where California now has one third of the nation's homeless and one fourth of the nation's illegal aliens. This thing called Proposition 47 has sent property crime through the roof. Photos that I see on the net's top news sites depict rows of tents along the sidewalks of Los Angeles, and I've seen those rows of tents in San Jose.
The state also has trouble keeping their lights on. PG&E has cut off power to tens of thousands of customers so as to prevent their aging infrastructure from setting off more wildfires. There is a convincing argument that they can't replace that infrastructure since the environmentalists won't let them. (There is also an equally convincing argument that PG&E has some corruption amongst their top management). If you do get electricity, you're going to pay a lot more for it.
I will be responding to that email with a thanks, but I will be declining invitations for discussions.
I may not be living in the world's 5th largest economy, but I am living very well.
I'm somewhat tempted to troll for some information (I've been known to do that), but I don't see myself doing that this time. One, I already know of the incentives they are offering. A $20,000 signing bonus. Relocation assistance. Buying your house out from under you. A one week househunting trip.
Although I could use twenty thousand smackers, I'm not biting. One, the job is in California. Two, 20K doesn't go very far in California. Three, California has some serious problems and I believe it will get much worse there.
Now some Californians will brag online about how great their state is. World's 5th largest economy. Great weather. Great places to visit. Beaches. Mountains. Sand dunes. Redwoods. Wine. Skiing.
I can't argue about the weather and most of what I listed. But world's 5th largest economy? It appears that way, when you look at it strictly in the volume of dollars that are spent there, but does that mean things are golden in the Golden State?
Prices and cost of living are MUCH higher there than elsewhere. The dollar volume, in my estimation, is inflated due to dollars not being worth as much there as they are elsewhere. Sure, I can get a higher salary there, and I might even realize a 30% raise, but what good is that going to do if I don't get to keep it?
I am paying less on a monthly mortgage for a nice house in Tucson than what I would spend on a third rate one bedroom apartment in the Los Angeles basin. I pay anywhere from $1.50 to $2.00 less for a gallon of gas here in Arizona. My property tax bill is about 25% of what that would be for a similar house in CA, I would be in much worse traffic, and I would be in a higher tax bracket. In a per capita sense there might be more dollars available, but what good is it if you have a lower standard of living?
There's more.
I've read where California now has one third of the nation's homeless and one fourth of the nation's illegal aliens. This thing called Proposition 47 has sent property crime through the roof. Photos that I see on the net's top news sites depict rows of tents along the sidewalks of Los Angeles, and I've seen those rows of tents in San Jose.
The state also has trouble keeping their lights on. PG&E has cut off power to tens of thousands of customers so as to prevent their aging infrastructure from setting off more wildfires. There is a convincing argument that they can't replace that infrastructure since the environmentalists won't let them. (There is also an equally convincing argument that PG&E has some corruption amongst their top management). If you do get electricity, you're going to pay a lot more for it.
I will be responding to that email with a thanks, but I will be declining invitations for discussions.
I may not be living in the world's 5th largest economy, but I am living very well.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)