Josh stayed with us this weekend, and we got him a free NC State hat. He is my boy!
We managed to get into the lower level...
Magda and Tomas...
On top of Crowder's...
November 17, 2009
XCO
The weekend was so fulfilling - with a trip to Crowder's Mountain and a Panthers game.
Josh stayed with us this weekend, and we got him a free NC State hat. He is my boy!
We managed to get into the lower level...
Magda and Tomas...
On top of Crowder's...
Josh stayed with us this weekend, and we got him a free NC State hat. He is my boy!
We managed to get into the lower level... Magda and Tomas... On top of Crowder's...
November 4, 2009
Wild Wild West
Quick glimpse into Halloween (B was a lumberjack with all the tools ;) and I was Tiffany, our crazy wonderful friend):
Last week I was in Portland for the trip I had referred to in an earlier post that I was planning. The itinerary went a little something like this:
Monday
7am - 1pm: Flight to Portland
1pm - 3pm: Rental Car, Lunch, Drive
3pm - 5pm: Tour of Bonneville Dam
5pm - 7pm: Drive to Richland
7pm - until: Sleep (or work in my case)
Tuesday
8:30am - 11am: Tour of AREVA Richland Fuel Facility
11:30 - 1pm: Lunch with young generation at plant and presentation for them on NA-YGN
2pm - 4pm: Tour of LIGO (Laser Inferometer Gravitational Observatory
5pm: Wine Bar
6:30pm: Dinner at Anthony's (NW seafood mmm..)
9:30pm: Drinks with the group (and continue to work in my case)
Wednesday
9am-11:30am: Tour Columbia Generating Station
11:30am -1pm: Luncheon provided by NA-YGN at Columbia
1pm: Realize I planned a tour 6 hrs from Portland
1:30pm: Decide to cancel final tour and drive back to Portland
2:30pm: Saw windmills in the distance... went off-roading to find them
6:30pm: Arrive in Portland
7:30pm: Dinner and drinks
2:30am: Finally finish all of my work
Thursday
Return to Charlotte
I loved Bonneville Dam - despite the weather. We got to watch the Sturgeon and the Salmon go through the fish ladder. We apparently had just missed the busy season. While we watch approximately ten fish go through a minute, during busy season there are around 100 a minute.
The fuel facility was really facinating for me since I had worked at our "PWR Fuel Center for Excellence" in Lynchburg the past year and Richland is the "BWR Fuel Center for Excellence". It appeared much more automated than Lynchburg and they do the pelletizing which I had not seen before. The also have an advanced testing center which was actually smaller than I had imagined despite the fact that some of the tests cost 1 million to perform.
LIGO was fascinating for me as a very results oriented person. Its existence is not driven by results (yet), but by a strong belief in the theory of relativity. I had asked the question, "Why do you all sit out here for 2/3 of the day when there have not been any real measurements?" The Physics Ph.D in the lab spoke to me on what it would mean for science and all of the gravitational theories when a collision occurs. He spoke with passion and hope, and I was intrigued by his depth of knowledge and love of the material.
Columbia (BWR) was much different from the three plants I have been in. It was helpful to note the differences and to meet other young people in my field. They provided a feast of salmon (an icon for the area).
When we went on our adventure to see a windmill up close and personal, it was a blast. We had the other two cars blinding following us through fields and shooting ranges. It was hilarious. I cannot put to words how amazing the windmills are. It is certainly intimidating.
Portland was fabulous... just like the stories I had heard in the past. They are way ahead of the game in some areas. The scenery was not like any stories I had heard. I did not expect to see such beauty just outside of the city. The colors, the landscape, the variety... wow.
While the trip was amazing, it did open my eyes to some of my old habits coming back into my life. My whole "I am always right" reared its ugly head, as did my impatience with people. I am thankful for recognizing that, and I just hope that can break those immediately. On top of that, I feel like I am just not that fun anymore. I know some people would say otherwise, but I feel like I am just not being myself. Hopefully I just had a bad dose of birth control playing with my hormones or something this month.
Last week I was in Portland for the trip I had referred to in an earlier post that I was planning. The itinerary went a little something like this:
Monday
7am - 1pm: Flight to Portland
1pm - 3pm: Rental Car, Lunch, Drive
3pm - 5pm: Tour of Bonneville Dam
5pm - 7pm: Drive to Richland
7pm - until: Sleep (or work in my case)
Tuesday
8:30am - 11am: Tour of AREVA Richland Fuel Facility
11:30 - 1pm: Lunch with young generation at plant and presentation for them on NA-YGN
2pm - 4pm: Tour of LIGO (Laser Inferometer Gravitational Observatory
5pm: Wine Bar
6:30pm: Dinner at Anthony's (NW seafood mmm..)
9:30pm: Drinks with the group (and continue to work in my case)
Wednesday
9am-11:30am: Tour Columbia Generating Station
11:30am -1pm: Luncheon provided by NA-YGN at Columbia
1pm: Realize I planned a tour 6 hrs from Portland
1:30pm: Decide to cancel final tour and drive back to Portland
2:30pm: Saw windmills in the distance... went off-roading to find them
6:30pm: Arrive in Portland
7:30pm: Dinner and drinks
2:30am: Finally finish all of my work
Thursday
Return to Charlotte
I loved Bonneville Dam - despite the weather. We got to watch the Sturgeon and the Salmon go through the fish ladder. We apparently had just missed the busy season. While we watch approximately ten fish go through a minute, during busy season there are around 100 a minute.
The fuel facility was really facinating for me since I had worked at our "PWR Fuel Center for Excellence" in Lynchburg the past year and Richland is the "BWR Fuel Center for Excellence". It appeared much more automated than Lynchburg and they do the pelletizing which I had not seen before. The also have an advanced testing center which was actually smaller than I had imagined despite the fact that some of the tests cost 1 million to perform.
LIGO was fascinating for me as a very results oriented person. Its existence is not driven by results (yet), but by a strong belief in the theory of relativity. I had asked the question, "Why do you all sit out here for 2/3 of the day when there have not been any real measurements?" The Physics Ph.D in the lab spoke to me on what it would mean for science and all of the gravitational theories when a collision occurs. He spoke with passion and hope, and I was intrigued by his depth of knowledge and love of the material.
Columbia (BWR) was much different from the three plants I have been in. It was helpful to note the differences and to meet other young people in my field. They provided a feast of salmon (an icon for the area).
When we went on our adventure to see a windmill up close and personal, it was a blast. We had the other two cars blinding following us through fields and shooting ranges. It was hilarious. I cannot put to words how amazing the windmills are. It is certainly intimidating.
Portland was fabulous... just like the stories I had heard in the past. They are way ahead of the game in some areas. The scenery was not like any stories I had heard. I did not expect to see such beauty just outside of the city. The colors, the landscape, the variety... wow.
While the trip was amazing, it did open my eyes to some of my old habits coming back into my life. My whole "I am always right" reared its ugly head, as did my impatience with people. I am thankful for recognizing that, and I just hope that can break those immediately. On top of that, I feel like I am just not that fun anymore. I know some people would say otherwise, but I feel like I am just not being myself. Hopefully I just had a bad dose of birth control playing with my hormones or something this month.
Wise sayings often fall on barren ground....
Billy: Griff, wake up from yo nap!! Take a shot with us!! It is time to drink!
Griff: Ugh, leave me alone.
Billy: Fine, but you miss 100% of the shots you don't take, bitch!
Griff: Ugh, leave me alone.
Billy: Fine, but you miss 100% of the shots you don't take, bitch!
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