Hurray

Today, saturday, Dec. 15 I rec'd in the U.S. mail a self addressed and stamped envelope. It was sent from my math professor indicating my scores, test points, total points and GPA. Well, I am very happy to say I passed, only by the very skin of my teeth, I think, I rec'd a 2.0, I believe it was just barely a 70%. Upon calculating my points I had calculated that I needed 32 correct ques. on the final exam; I correctly answered 31 questions. Apparently that was enough for me to barely make a 70% in the class. On the final itself I only made 61%, I went into the final exam with 73%, so that is why I am of the opinion it was just by the skin of my teeth. I can go on now to the specific classes in my current chosen degree field: electronics or more specifically Biomedical Technology.

Later, Tim

thanksgiving day

This is what our Thanksgiving day table looked like, I couldn't get the whole table into the picture. The Turkey was not on the table, it was over on the counter. We had two tables set up to eat at.

Here the guys are after the feast. They discussed a number of topics, most notably was the civil war and it's generals and commanders. I was not in the picture, since I took it.



All in all, it was a great day! And I did not stuff myself, I can't speak for any of the others. Except for Paul, he ate a couple of bowls of ice cream, I didn't get a picture of that, or how his stomach was sticking out a little afterward; he will run it off on his treadmill anyway, so he's not worried about it. Well, that is all I have for now.

O.K. it seams as though I lost track of myself. Working every other saturday is a big DRAG. This saturday(today) was canceled and we are off all saturdays in Nov. Thank Goodness!! I got taken off the sealer job and was put back on the job I was doing b4 I was taken out of the Paint shop(thankfully it was temperary). So I am lifting liftgates, my shoulder's are feeling it.

I bought me some more WWII DVD's so will be viewing those in the coming weeks or months; don't have time to watch movies or TV very much since I am taking a math class and working from 9 to 10 hours per day. But with more saturdays freed up this month, I'll see.

I've read all the WWII books I have aquired thus far! And I have many!!!

I am looking forward to tomorrow, as I do all Sunday's. I will see all my brother's and sister's in the Lord that I worship with at church, and it is just about the only day of the week, save a few on Wed., that I get to see and talk to most of my friends, because we all have one goal, to get ourselves and each other to heaven, they are cherished friendships.

Well, that is all for now. Later

O.K., Monday, August 27th, I returned to the Paint shop. I am in training to shoot sealer and smooth it into a number of weld seams. Today, I was able to do every other truck, hopefully tomorrow I will be able to do every two trucks, will have to wait until tomorrow to find out.

So Long till next time.

O.K., it's been a couple of months since my last post. I think the browser logging into blogger problem has somehow fixed itself, not sure how; don't you just love technology,
Yeah, Right!

Anyway, since my last post, I was moved out of the Paint Shop and now am in agony, yep that's right, TRIM. My seniority it not too far from the very bottom. Other's with the same Senority Date as me, but who had less senority were sent to other plants in region, they actually have it better, right now, than I do, but I do hope this will pass.

I went with my parents to a family reunion earlier this month. We went to Missouri for the reunion. Stayed with an aunt and uncle in Parma, MO.(they actually live 6 or 7 miles closer to Malden). So I got to talk a little about his time in WWII. Edward was a replacement. Shipped over to England on Jan 1, 1945. Saw combat either late Jan. or early Feb. in around the Roer river Dam before he was wounded. It was a minor wound, but since the war was kinda starting to wind down( this was just after the German's last major attempt at prolonging the war; we know as the battle of the bulge) so, he was only in theater about a month. He went ashore in France from a landing craft on a beach, he told me where, but I can't remember the name of the place. I bought a WWII book, The Longest Battle: September 1944-February 1945: From Aachen to the Roer and Across; it contains the footage of the Division, Regiment and company that uncle Edward was in during his service. He was in the Lightning Division; I can't find my notes I took so can't remember the other information. He did tell me that uncle O'neal, my late uncle, he died earlier this year as mentioned in an earlier blog, was an the Military Policeman, some information I didn't know; so he was able to visit uncle Edward in the hospital(after he'd been wounded). Edward said he was taken to Belgium; France, then England after he was wounded. Uncle O'neal visited him while he was in France I believe he said.

From Missouri we drove to Huntingdon, Tennessee; where we stayed 2 nights at my Uncle David and Aunt MaryLou's. From there we drove to Cookville to visit with Aunt Mary and so mom could let one of her daughters' go home. Her other daughter came to stay with her the day we left to come back to Michigan.

Well, I am going to have to make this be it for now, Later.

Opera

Looks like the Opera web browser works great at allowing me to sign in to blogger and view my blog.  About this DSL connection and Opera though, I feel like I have dialup again.  More Later.

I'm stayin put

Found out yesterday, thursday, I am staying in the Paint Shop and on my current job. That is good news. My Union rep. told me today "you don't even want to see the trim shop". But I am absolute lowest seniority person in the whole paint plant. However, I am working on a good line to work on; I don't install anything permanent, I don't shoot any sealer, I don't spray no paint or clear coat, I don't do any sanding, I don't use any air tools like a DA or Polisher or any of that, so I am on a good line to work on and life is good. I feel blessed; God has truly blessed me. I asked Him to give me peace through all the nail biting everyone else was doing and that is exactly what I had, peace of mind. Well, I guess that about does it for now.

Later.

O.K. well, I haven't tried Opera yet. I am told I will be working in the Trim department at work starting next week; I am also told that I am still in the bubble to transfer to another plant, probably Wayne Assembly, if more people decide not to take the buyout that have not vacated the company yet. So, I feel like I am in limbo sort of, although I am still working which is a good thing.

I have a final exam left to take in my Psyc. class, it has not been posted yet and I haven't read all the chapters I need to read for the exam. All other excercizes and papers have been completed though, so I am happy about that. I will have to take the math class that I took last fall over as I failed it first time around.

I am going to be working 10 hrs/day until last of June, with a couple of weeks of 8 hr work days thrown in. Also a saturday is scheduled in May.

I bought me an HDTV not too long ago and have been experimenting with antenna systems; seems as though the amplifiers or signal preamps. degrade digital signals I am finding out, this is unfortunate; I obviously have more experimentation to conduct. I have other UHF TV antenna's ordered and am going to have to try and install and experiment with one of those as well. I am wondering if the 1's and 0's which make up the digital signal are colliding with each other when a VHF and UHF antenna are being combined into one RG-6 cable?

In Case anyone is interested, WXYZ in Detroit has 3 digital channels, I am not able to pick up the third, but have read it is from a camera on the Windsor side of the river showing the Detroit riverfront skyline. The second one is a 24 hour weather radar channel. WDIV regular HD channel and 24 hour digital weather channel feed from NBC's weatherplus, with local weather content as well. WJBK, 1 HD channel, same content as the current analog channel.

Well, this is getting too long, and the time is continuing to slide into the night, so I will say later for now.

O.K., well, I am FINALLY able to get logged into Blogger. I am having to use Galeon, a gnome browser based on Mozilla, why Firefox and Linspire Mozilla browsers won't let me log in is beyond me. I may try Opera next.

To bring all up to date. My uncle, who fought under Patton in WWII, died back in February. I think he was up in his 80's.

Still don't know where I am going to be working in a couple of months; I'd like to transfer to Dearborn Truck Plant, but may end up at ISA or Wayne Assembly Plant so I am not getting to anxious, or trying not too.

I got me a new cellphone and provider. T-Mobile prepay, hopefully I can stay within 1100 minutes for the year, I will see.

Well, I think that is all for now.
More Later,

Tim

hello,

Well, thought I'd get back in here and update everyone on the job situation. I finally was able to get off the job I was on, whew. My new job, which really isn't new, I was assigned to back in February of 1995, only I was on afternoons at that time, and obviously didn't have any seniority for much of anything. So I worked that job(starting back in '95) for about 6 or 7 years. Well, I am happy to be back on the job now, and on day shift. The reason I like the job, even though it has changed alot in the last 12 years and is more work now than it was back then(but not as much work as the job I was just able to get off of), I don't have to put lint free coveralls on(that is mandatory for working most jobs in the paint shop) I only have to work with one person, instead of 6 to 8 different personalities, and the boss doesn't like climbing all the stairs to get up to the job station; also, it is a straight shot down the stairs, the main hallway and out the front door at the end of the shift, so I get to my car faster so I can beat everyone else out of the parking lot and onto Michigan Ave.
I didn't mention anywhere yet, but I am wiring my house up for highspeed data, voice, and video. Using Cat 5e wire, for most of the phone and all data ports, I used cat. 3 for the kitchen wall phone. All the static I was getting on the phones should be all gone now, having upgraded to twisted pair to canell out all the crosstalk I was getting on the regular phone wires. I ran a homerun of cat. 5e from a structured media center to the telephone demarkation point on the outside of the house. I switched to TDS metrocom telephone service and DSL, so thier tech. came out to check out and test the connections to make sure I was getting what I am paying for, 1Meg download 512K upload. Well, I guess that is about all I have this time,

Hello,

Not sure how long I'll be back. Since my last post, alot has happened.

I had a long vacation last wk of June and first couple of weeks of July; went down south to see relatives, aunts, uncles, cousins, 2nd cousins, etc. some of which I couldn't remember. Talked to an uncle who was under Patton in WWII. He talked about the long train ride to make the break through the German lines which surrounded Bastogne, it was pretty interesting, but I didn't keep digging for information. If I go to Cookville again this year, I will have to ask him some more questions if he is able to answer.

Helped another Uncle, this one in Missouri, who has a never ending project he's been working on for a really long time, an addition on his house. My dad volunteered me for that one. He showed me his Purple Heart and other insignia that he wore during the war. I didn't ask him any questions, he hadn't been in very long before he was wounded and discharged. I think he was discharged because the war was over, not sure how bad the wound was, but it was in the hand so I tend to believe not very serious wound, I could be wrong though; I will have to ask him more questions as well.

Came back home, went back to work. We launched our new 2007 model in July when we returned.

Boy, ever since then, I've been thinking I need a new job!!

Worked some 9 and 9.5 hour days in November, mainly to make up for all the holidays we had in Nov. I believe. We had Election Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving and day after T.G. Then December rolled around and they extended our overtime schedule right up to the Christmas holiday vacation, which by the way, this was actually nice of them, we recieved an extra week off, another down week really.

So now it is the 14 of January, one week after starting back, and I am still thinking I need a new job. I guess the consolation for this week is, tomorrow is MLK Jr. Holiday, another day off, yea. well, I think this is a pretty long read so I think I better end it now before it gets longer.

Later,

Tim