Sunday, April 29, 2007

On the flip side

I know quite a few of you have heard me complain about certain aspects of my work, but as this project (hopefully) draws to a close, let me highlight the fun part of being on a plant in the middle of corn fields.

1. The best part, I think, of being away, is the fact that the company picks up the tab for everything. In essence, the only costs I incur this month have been on weekends only. So that should save me a bundle.

2. Another thing I liked about being on a plant site was the ability to be up close and personal to the action. Sitting in an air-conditioned room might be better for your complexion and temperament, but it's kinda exciting to be able to crawl into 20m long drums and climb about inside it. I tell myself I'm spelunking. In industrial caves. And it sometimes feels like I'm running around in a jungle gym made of stainless steel and synthetic insulation.

3. I think I learned about the operations of the equipment quite a bit faster on the job site. Being able to see what a diagrammed equipment layout is in real life was a real plus. Also, I could see how an actual control scheme worked. Which was cool, for the first 3 hours or so.

4. Finally, it was kinda fun to be able to do some workshop kinda stuff. It was the first time I drilled holes into sheet metal (for ventilation) and buffed that same metal (to smoothen out all edges). It was tiring but there's definitely a sense of accomplishment after you manage to do something you've never done in your life.

All in all, there are positive experiences to be had working out of a trailer in the middle of nowhere for 4 weeks and counting. But that's not gonna stop me from complaining some more.

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