A dark day

My last 7 or so years at A80 I did this every week with a good amount of forced cancelation of A/L tossed in.

1400-0000
1100-2100
0700-1700
0600-1600
1100-2100 OT
0600-1600 OT

September 18, 2015 I turned 50, and at 1100 I unplugged and have never been or looked back.

Money was fantastic, the way I was treating others around me and my general health from that schedule, was not so fantastic.
 
It’s odd, in some ways, that as time passes one’s perspective tends to narrow.

I lived through a lot of “dark days,” personally. The first TV event of importance that I recall was the assassination of John Kennedy, rapidly followed by others of note. We lived with a bomb shelter in the basement of our rural home during the Cuban mussel crisis (of little worth, certainly, should either Pease AFB or the Topsfield Nike missile site be nuked). We debated everything from changing the high school dress code to Kent State while we buried neighborhood kids who died in Vietnam, as major cities burned during riots, and we learned that politicians actually had feet of clay and that some, at least, were more corrupt than others. Our favorite cartoons changed then, too, and there were veiled hints that Walt Disney wasn’t simply “doing it all” for the children. Still, it was a grand time to be alive if you were born into the “right” neighborhood and economic background.

There were the usual personal tragedies and challenges, of course, through which people had to navigate and grow and we learned (slowly) to be more able to deal with grief, divorce, ”coming out,” and a bunch of other things that sharpened the soul or dulled the heart.

It strikes me, looking back, that things really aren’t so very different today.

A good debate can be entertaining and possibly even cause someone to reflect (or even change) their own dearly-held opinions but, frankly, I’m not sure I’ve seen that very often - sadly. Mostly we want to change the minds of other people to the way we see the world and refuse the notion that it’s OUR way of thinking which better might be adjusted.

Although I have no particular reason, save the passing of time, to think of a world through which I’ll no longer wander, the fact is that most of my life now lies behind me. That simple reality tends to color the scope of any debate, however interesting, passionate or compelling it may be; hence the “narrowing“ of perspective and focus.

We have ever struggled and survived - even grown a bit (if not quickly). I believe we will continue to do so despite the struggles of our own particular age, as individuals, a society, and a Republic.

Of course, YMMV.
 
except when you show up to work at 0630, leave at 1430, and then come back for your mid at 2230

also y’all gotta vote for a new schedule. That chit is terrible

Ive been trying to get people into voting a new Schedule, everybody at the Facility was happier on the straight swings/days we were on for 5 on/5 off. Im sure the 5 consecutive off days was a big factor too, especially because we've been on 6 day work weeks for 4-5 years, but the more standard schedule had to help too. Unfortunately everybody is so obsessed with the "long weekend" you get by getting off at 130PM on your Friday and not coming back until 3PM on your Monday that theyre willing to schedule themselves into exhaustion.

Hope the return to BWS isnt too bad for you out there! The first 2-3 quickturns kicked my ass haha.
 
Unfortunately everybody is so obsessed with the "long weekend" you get by getting off at 130PM on your Friday and not coming back until 3PM on your Monday that theyre willing to schedule themselves into exhaustion.

which I’ve never understood because I’m too damned tired to enjoy that long weekend
 
It’s odd, in some ways, that as time passes one’s perspective tends to narrow.

I lived through a lot of “dark days,” personally. The first TV event of importance that I recall was the assassination of John Kennedy, rapidly followed by others of note. We lived with a bomb shelter in the basement of our rural home during the Cuban mussel crisis (of little worth, certainly, should either Pease AFB or the Topsfield Nike missile site be nuked). We debated everything from changing the high school dress code to Kent State while we buried neighborhood kids who died in Vietnam, as major cities burned during riots, and we learned that politicians actually had feet of clay and that some, at least, were more corrupt than others. Our favorite cartoons changed then, too, and there were veiled hints that Walt Disney wasn’t simply “doing it all” for the children. Still, it was a grand time to be alive if you were born into the “right” neighborhood and economic background.

There were the usual personal tragedies and challenges, of course, through which people had to navigate and grow and we learned (slowly) to be more able to deal with grief, divorce, ”coming out,” and a bunch of other things that sharpened the soul or dulled the heart.

It strikes me, looking back, that things really aren’t so very different today.

A good debate can be entertaining and possibly even cause someone to reflect (or even change) their own dearly-held opinions but, frankly, I’m not sure I’ve seen that very often - sadly. Mostly we want to change the minds of other people to the way we see the world and refuse the notion that it’s OUR way of thinking which better might be adjusted.

Although I have no particular reason, save the passing of time, to think of a world through which I’ll no longer wander, the fact is that most of my life now lies behind me. That simple reality tends to color the scope of any debate, however interesting, passionate or compelling it may be; hence the “narrowing“ of perspective and focus.

We have ever struggled and survived - even grown a bit (if not quickly). I believe we will continue to do so despite the struggles of our own particular age, as individuals, a society, and a Republic.

Of course, YMMV.
I agree that every generation has its challenges. However, what we're experiencing today is fundamentally different from previous generations, because a good portion of the country today thinks that the United States is the problem in the world. We are no longer united by our common belief in the fundamental greatness of the country. It's difficult to solve a problem when half the people think people the country isn't worth saving.
 
precisely

Honestly, I miss those days sometimes. I feel about missing them.

Went to fly one day early in the pandemic and was SHOCKED at how clear the air was.

Because no one was driving, or had been driving, for a week or two. It was amazing.
 
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