Wednesday evening – May 24, 2017 (First post of this travelogue)
As you can probably guess, I am back in the Seattle area teaching another Boeing class. This class is a 5 day class called 3 Axis/Machine Tool Alignment Concepts. The class involves learning about and performing all of the test necessary to completely align a massive machining center. It has not been one of my favorite classes in the past, but I put a lot of work into “taking my presentation to the next level”. That has helped me feel much more comfortable teaching the class. It probably helps that I have some great students.
Part of the class involves touring the huge manufacturing plant in Auburn, WA where I am teaching. The plant machines many of the parts for the planes that Boeing makes. Without question their equipment is mind boggling (both in terms of numbers, but more importantly – variety). They have a lot of huge equipment that is specially designed for their needs. Those of you who know me, know that I hate that kind of tour – yeah right!! I probably embarrass the students because of my jaw dragging on the floor {grin}.
For the past several posts, I have noted the terrible weather and the huge amount of rain that western Washington has experienced over the past several months. Well, the weather this week has been pretty good. One of the benefits of good weather out here is the beautiful view of Mt Rainer. With all the snow cover, it is magnificent. The attached photo does not begin to do it justice.
The class this week is on day shift, which means we begin class at 6:00 AM. That makes for a strange day for me. Plus I have to be careful to make sure I get a reasonable amount of sleep. I save a bit of time by eating dinner in the room most of the time. I stop by Trader Joe’s and pick up salads for lunch and some sort of meal that I can microwave for dinner. That works out pretty well. I can come back to the motel and relax and do not have to leave again for dinner. The food is pretty good and easy to fix.
That is all for this post