Hello from Everett, WA
Friday morning – March 8, 2019 (First post of this travelogue)
Well, I am once again back in Everett, teaching at Boeing. This week I taught two classes: Bearings (a Boeing one day class) and Mechanical Drives (3 days). I like teaching at the Everett facility, as it seems to be more laid back than the Auburn plant. The only issue is that the classes start at 6:00 AM.
Both classes went well. This group seemed to be more involved than some of the other groups. They also set a fun level of “give and take” on lots of fun discussions.
I almost was not able to teach this class. Saturday I went to the hospital emergency room to address a pretty significant relapse of the vertigo I have been dealing with for 5 months. All of the tests (including an MRI) eliminated any “terrible” cause. It apparently is an inner-ear issue. Then Saturday night I became very sick to my stomach several times. However, Sunday morning I felt good enough to try to travel. That turned out to be an OK decision. Both my stomach problem and my vertigo became minimal issues.
As is always the case when I have a choice, I am staying at a Holiday Inn Express facility. I have stayed at this one several times and they always give me a good upgrade.
I have been renting my cars from National for the past year or two, if I am renting at the airport. I am a member of their Emerald club (sounds impressive but it is the first level). In Seattle, and many locations, you simply go to the rental area and select any car from the Emerald island. They always have a good variety. This time I chose a Nissan Frontier truck. It is a great little truck with lots of power. I did some checking and it is not highly rated in its class, but I think it is a great vehicle and fun to drive.
The weather here this time of year can be less than perfect. This time it is not only cold and wet, but they had some significant snow. The snow melted rather quickly, but the folks here are not used to snow and tend to panic rather easily.
As I did last time, I scheduled my flight home the day after the class. Everett is only 40 miles from the airport, but the traffic can be horrific. The route is right through downtown Seattle where terrible traffic jams are the norm. Besides that, I get to relax in my room and enjoy a somewhat leisure morning – as opposed to the 4:00 AM wake-up alarm for the days I am teaching.
That is all for this trip.