Indiana Update.

.....It was the first day of our Battery Conference here in the outlands of Indiana. It was definitely a long day. I pulled into the parking lot at about 6AM and pulled out at about 6PM. But we plowed through amazing amounts of Action Items that had been hanging out there since 2007. I feel pretty good. But tired. I grabbed a quick bite to eat and took a soak in the tub. Now I think I'll just vegitate in front of the T.V. for a while and lose a few brain cells in something mindless.

.....Good news from the home desk. Last week the Project Manager and I were taking a lot of heat from the Mid Level Boss (and the Big Boss from afar) on our cost projections. Our cost returns were not looking that good and we were scrambling to do the research to figure out what was happening and correct. We tunneled through a lot of databases. We moved a lot of resources around. We made a lot of phone calls and had a lot of meetings and conversations. And it paid off. We looked much better this week. Which means the level of phone calls from the Mid Level and Big Boss have dropped off significantly. Excellent! Last week was pretty bad. No repeats, please. :-)

.....Although, I do have to say that I have a rather refreshed view of government work. Watching contractors in their behind-the-scenes planning and execution efforts this weeks reminds me that we may resemble the proverbial Keystone Cops at work sometimes, but in reality we do a pretty good job. I need the reminder every now and then.

.....Indiana is definitely an interesting place. The land looks like one huge manicured park. Washington is a wild place with lots of underbrush and tangled vines and ferns and 'stuff'. Here in Indiana there seems to be lots of grass and open space with groves of trees everywhere. Have they been grooming the place for hundreds of years? Or is this just the way things grow around here? :-)

.....The people here are actually rather warm and friendly, but their politics are not! I keep forgetting just how left-leaning we are in Western Washington (even in red-neck Kitsap County). The T.V. is full of advertisements for people running for various political offices. Every single one of them has named their affiliations with the local 'Right-To-Life' group and all of their endorsements. They also mention all of their conservative connections. There was even a news story about the local 'Right-To-Life' group withdrawing their support for one of the local candidates because he was critical of some of the things they have said lately. I found it interesting that this was of special interest in the local news. Definitely a different outlook here.

.....I am highly envious of Bloomington itself! His Holiness, The Dalai Lama, is going to be here for a speaking engagement in mid-May! He is giving a speech at the local sports arena. Tickets are still available! I really, really wish I could get the Crane guys to schedule another Battery Conference for mid-May! :-)

.....I think it is time for bed as my head is falling on to the keyboard. I have made the required call to TBT. It is time to go to sleep. :-)

.....Aaron / Arontius.