It was 20 years ago today that I arrived in Tucson. It was Wednesday, the 24th of February, 1999 that I came here to begin a new chapter in life. I was in the townhouse that afternoon accompanied only by my cat Sylvia, a mattress, and some odds and ends. The rest of the stuff was delivered on Friday the 26th, and I spent the weekend unpacking. I reported for work the following Monday, and by Friday I either had AZ plates on the truck or the new driver license. I know I did them in two separate visits but I can't remember which one I did first.
I had no idea how long my stay here would be. There was no where else in the United States where I wanted to live at that time and it was that way for some time (I can now be talked into relocating to New Mexico, or elsewhere within Arizona). I was in the process of recovering from some adverse circumstances and I think coming here accelerated that process.
I have, for some time, lived longer in Tucson than anywhere else, and yes, that includes that 15 month exile that I had in Las Vegas. Although there were 23 years in California, 16 of them were spent in San Jose, and another 7 elsewhere. I don't miss San Jose, I never have, and although I can reminisce about the good times I had there, most of the people I had them with have left too. I told Mark a few months ago that six days in San Jose is seven days too long. And that's a shame, as that there was a time where San Jose was one neat city to live in. That was many years ago. By the late 1980s it had already become unlivable.
Unfortunately Tucson isn't what it used to be. I like my house, I like the scenery here, I like the cuisine here, and I like the attractions here, but Pima County is on its way to becoming a third world country (we might already be). The roads are in poor condition, law enforcement won't respond to a call unless someone is killed (not necessarily their fault; the fatass politicians are more interested in illegal aliens), and I don't see things getting any better.
I could move to Phoenix metro, but I don't think I would like it much better. I'd consider Prescott, but the cost of living there started going thru the roof years ago, as it is in Flagstaff. There's not much to do in Kingman, Yuma is unbearable in the summer, and I'm not a fan of Sorry Vista.....excuse me....Sierra Vista. Casa Grande has some problems I don't want to deal with, and I don't think Sheila would like the other areas I haven't mentioned.
That said, coming here 20 years ago was the right thing to do. It changed my life, and very much so for the better. I had to learn some lessons about some things during my time here, but not at a cost that others would have had to pay.
That said, I think I'm staying here. Maybe not in this house. I could move farther out, and yet be close enough. The local ham radio scene here is a good one and I'm much more involved with the local ham clubs (note the plural) than I have ever been before in my life.
I remain grateful to the Good Lord for bringing me here.
Sunday, February 24, 2019
Monday, February 18, 2019
Global Warming? Not Here.
Some winters down here are mild. The last three were. This one isn't. We had snow earlier this month, which can and does happen in Tucson, and it wouldn't surprise me if it happens again this week.
We've had cold temperatures, and rain......a lot of rain as far as a February goes. It's drizzling outside as I write this. We had some last Friday. We have another installment this coming Friday. And once again, we're in for some freeze warnings this year.
Last year about this time, we had a few days where it was in the lower 80s. I remember talking to another ham in Cold Lake, Alberta. He told me what the weather was doing there and yes, Cold Lake was living up to its name. When he turned it over to me, I said "Mike, you might not want to hear this, but it's 80 Fahrenheit right now". I explained that those temps were unusual for Tucson in February.
I haven't talked to him since. The three Alberta hams I've talked to have been great guys; one of them I've chatted with a few times and he has relatives down here in Tucson.
There's been some chaos at work. The customer I'm supporting has abruptly decided that there won't be any environmental testing for a unit we're supplying them that monitors other aircraft components. I was told today I'm being furloughed for one month, though there's a possibility of my returning to help out another customer we have in Oro Valley.
To be honest, I could use some time off......but not a whole lot of time off. I have a week's worth of ham radio projects to work on. Two of these are antenna related. And I need to work on the coin collection some.
When our Phoenix customer decides they want my services again, then my employer will have to make a decision on who gets me if I'm tied up in Oro Valley. My preference at this point is the Oro Valley gig, even though the commute is a pain. (I support the Phoenix customer from our business office right here in Tucson). I have a very good friend working there in OV and we and our wives get together once a month or so for a Saturday night dinner.
As it is though, my employer will put me where they need me the most, and our Phoenix customer lacks the expertise in environmental testing. It's also possible that my furlough may be delayed as that I might be needed for an odd job.
I wouldn't mind a situation where I work three months, and then take one month off. I could do that for the next five years. That's not how it works, as that we're task-driven and work at the whim of our customer(s).
We've had cold temperatures, and rain......a lot of rain as far as a February goes. It's drizzling outside as I write this. We had some last Friday. We have another installment this coming Friday. And once again, we're in for some freeze warnings this year.
Last year about this time, we had a few days where it was in the lower 80s. I remember talking to another ham in Cold Lake, Alberta. He told me what the weather was doing there and yes, Cold Lake was living up to its name. When he turned it over to me, I said "Mike, you might not want to hear this, but it's 80 Fahrenheit right now". I explained that those temps were unusual for Tucson in February.
I haven't talked to him since. The three Alberta hams I've talked to have been great guys; one of them I've chatted with a few times and he has relatives down here in Tucson.
* * * * * * *
There's been some chaos at work. The customer I'm supporting has abruptly decided that there won't be any environmental testing for a unit we're supplying them that monitors other aircraft components. I was told today I'm being furloughed for one month, though there's a possibility of my returning to help out another customer we have in Oro Valley.
To be honest, I could use some time off......but not a whole lot of time off. I have a week's worth of ham radio projects to work on. Two of these are antenna related. And I need to work on the coin collection some.
When our Phoenix customer decides they want my services again, then my employer will have to make a decision on who gets me if I'm tied up in Oro Valley. My preference at this point is the Oro Valley gig, even though the commute is a pain. (I support the Phoenix customer from our business office right here in Tucson). I have a very good friend working there in OV and we and our wives get together once a month or so for a Saturday night dinner.
As it is though, my employer will put me where they need me the most, and our Phoenix customer lacks the expertise in environmental testing. It's also possible that my furlough may be delayed as that I might be needed for an odd job.
I wouldn't mind a situation where I work three months, and then take one month off. I could do that for the next five years. That's not how it works, as that we're task-driven and work at the whim of our customer(s).
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