12/23/2023
Earlier this month I had a 25 year milestone at work. I started working there on December 7, 1998. In those 25 years I've worked with many people and in three different capacities. I've made multiple trips to different areas of Europe as well as to Japan once. I've visited many different cities in several different countries. In 2004, I made a few different trips and was in Europe for a total of 18.5 weeks and for the last stretch a total of 9 weeks, returning on December 15. In the three different jobs, I've supervised many people and interfaced with so many more people during these 25 years... I feel fortunate to have been employed with one company this long and afforded so many varied opportunities. That said:
Of all the people I have worked with over the years, only two people and the HR Manager acknowledged my work anniversary on the web site the company uses to celebrate work anniversaries. I'm positive that the HR Manager acknowledges everyone's anniversary. I was a little disappointed at the minimal acknowledgements but honestly, I'm not surprised. The last few years I have felt invisible. The department in which I am Supervisor and QA lead in is key to future business and to after-market product but not in the limelight. All emphasis in our factory is put on the production output. That's where the $$ is made and where the spotlight shines the brightest.
Times have been very strange since the pandemic and industries have been turned upside down, sideways, shaken vigorously and turned over a few times. There are still a lot of people, who had "in-plant" office jobs before the "Covid Days" but who now rarely physically come into the plant to work. My department has had little to no downtime and all of our work is on-site. For the most part, I feel that I have a great group of employees. I feel fortunate to be in a position to have worked with and helped build the team by hiring more than half of them over the last 12 years. The first half of my time with the company was spent in the production Quality Assurance Management. There was a lot more turnover, and we were hit with layoffs a few different times. Stress was never low in the production quality area. I have been gone from that environment since 2010 and there is not a single person left in the group that was there when I was part of it...
I'm not complaining because I have continued to receive a monthly paycheck as well as some very nice bonus checks over the years. My salary has more than doubled over those 25 years and they have never missed paying me... It's been a very good run and I feel fortunate to have made it to 25 years. I've seen several people leave of their own accord, even more get laid off, and more than a few retire. It's a dynamic place to work and a fast-paced environment.
I was 33 years old when I started there and 58 now. I had two young daughters (1 year old and 4 year old) and a wife. My daughters are now 26 and 29 years old and I no longer have a wife, now she is some other guy's wife ;<)) I've sold 2 houses and bought 2 houses since I have been employed there. I've bought 5 different automobiles for my family and countless kayaks and bicycles for the family. There have been 3 different dogs that have been part of the family and now there is only 15-year-old Felix...
On an even more personal note, I have had to grapple with family issues like my father's fight to recover from double pneumonia and a collapsed lung. He was in the hospital for over a month and intubated for about a week. He has fought back and is getting stronger all the time. He had a set back with RPV last week but is doing his best to beat that as well. He is a fighter and never ceases to amaze me. My mother is a rock and continues to keep it all together. I visited last week and tried to help out as best I could. I drove down on my first Holiday, December 22, took them to the emergency room in New Bern where they diagnosed his RPV. Got them back home late that evening and got up the next morning to grocery shop, wash cars, and mulch the leaves in the yard as well as fill up the back of his truck with deadfall. On Christmas Eve I got up and took my mom to the Urgent Care for an unexpected medical issue that she needed addressed. After I got her back home satisfied that she had correctly self-diagnosed, I picked up her prescription and then hit the road going West around lunchtime to get back to Glen Alpine and work on housework to start celebrating Christmas with Starla and get the house ready for Diane's visit.
To comment some on my "active hobbies", aka, reasons to keep moving: I've kayaked, mountain biked and hiked more miles than I could ever calculate or even estimate. I've met and known countless people that I have shared these sports with that have moved on putting their chosen outdoor sport behind them, a few that have passed away and maybe a dozen that have kept on keeping on. It's not a surprise that people change priorities and put things on hold with the intent of getting back into their chosen sports - some actually do make it back. It's always funny to see people pick up a sport and think they are an expert after a couple of years. I feel like there is always something more to learn and new plateaus to reach. The plateaus get harder for me to attain every year, mostly due to priorities. I see a few people who I can say put me to shame in this aspect by pushing their own limits, over and over. Dan Richardson comes to mind with his long MTB rides and ORAM finishes every year. He inspires me to push myself and to try harder, thanks Dan! Keep on turning those cranks...
In 2024, I plan to "step it up" in terms of my physical activity and goal setting and meeting said goals. I will envision as well as meet some of my own personal plateaus and open a new door on the rest of my life. I will start living a "cleaner" lifestyle and set a personal standard for living with an even lighter carbon footprint. I will endeavor to step away from the TV and focus on positive activities that help myself and my loved ones. I will replace the TV with reading, meditation and "getting after it". I quit drinking alcohol on July 3, 2022, and that has been a springboard for getting into better shape, mentally and physically. I had gone alcohol-free from age 40 to 45 and made my best endurance gains I could have ever hoped for. It's a long hard road but nothing comes free and we all get back what we put into it.
2024 has big changes in store for me. I'm not going to elaborate on what I speculate these changes to be right now, but I plan to elaborate with a Chapter Two in later January if not in February... Chapter Two can't be written yet because it has not been lived yet.
Merry Christmas, Happy New Year and Peace Out,
For Now,
Amos
