What a day today

This morning at 10 my boss and I tried to find yet another place in Santiago where we had a meeting scheduled. We got to a very busy corner in downtwon when he said its close to here, I am gonna walk, park the car and find me. He got out and I turned right and discovered there was no easy way back. All of the streetswere one way, away from where I was going. And hour later I meandered ack to the Sheraton where we have been meeting everyday. I emailed him and told him I was there. Another hour passed and no word, Then another. Started to worry. Finally he called and told me to walk around the corner to a restaurant where we were to have a lunch meeting. I walked. 23 blocks later I found the restaurant. But it was worth it. Best pizza I have ever had hands down. There is a pic of the place on FB.
Afternoon meant a lot of running. Then a dinner meeting. I love having dinner here. Its always like Thanksgiving. So much food and great conversation. I also love a day when I had lunch with people from the US, Great Britain, and Chile, then dinner with colleagues from the US, Canada, Ecuador, and Iran. Such a sampling of people. Such a realization of what a small world we live in.
Came back to the room at 10:30. Worked til midnight on a presentation our Vice President has to give at 8 am. Got it done. Whew.
Tomorrow is going to be a different experience. While quake damage is not abundant here in Santiago, tomorrow I visit a jobsite that was devastated in the tremor. The whole town was. It should be an interesting and humbling experience.
I miss home. Terribly. But its beautiful here. And the international exposure I am gaining and contacts I am making are invaluable to my career. So I will give it my all. Most likely for the forseeable future.
Until tomorrow. Adios and vaya con Dios...............

Comments

  1. UnknownWednesday, March 31, 2010 at 11:51:00 AM EDT

    the place maybe one or two miles on your left or your right..... awww the memories

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownWednesday, March 31, 2010 at 11:59:00 AM EDT

    Mike, I don't know if you've realized this yet, but you are writing stories of experience that sound very much like the stories your mom used to tell us at the reunions. Experiences full of adventure and fun. You remind me of her in that way. Love you cuz, have fun and be careful!!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

My son, the Bully

Last Friday, before I got home from work, there was a knock on my front door. My wife, Tiffany, answered the door and was confronted by an upset father. This man, clearly frustrated and at his wits end, informed her that our son Ben had taken part in the verbal bullying of his son Jordan. And while Ben was not the primary offender, nor had he been involved since the beginning, he was still a part of a group of kids who had been picking on Jordan for 2 years. When Tiffany called me I was floored. For those who do not know Ben, he is a great kid, the last person I had ever imagined would be involved with something like this. Sweet and always caring, Ben often will give up something he wants if someone else wants it more. He asks to help around the house and is a very even keeled kid. Still he is a little awkward, not feeling like he fits in. He is an artist while his older brother is the athlete, so Ben has always felt like his identity needed to be separate from John Michael's. Th
Read more

A Roller Coaster of a Christmas Miracle

Image
Well, I woke up Sunday Morning............... Hey that sounds like a great first line of a song But Tiffany and I got up extra early because she wanted to hit the grocery store before it was packed. So we did, then went to breakfast at Frisch's, all before 8 am. When we got home we woke Tanner up, and we all got ready for church. Right around 9, my phone rang. Ugh, work. Need to dispatch a team to Buckeye Lake. Took a few minutes and got them dispatched, hung up, and it rang again. Another job, in West Virginia. I wound up being on the phone until 9:30, and we needed to get out the door as Little Red was scheduled to work the Guest Services desk at Centerpoint for both Christmas Eve services. We headed to the car. And my phone rang again. Yet another, much bigger emergency job. I had to go. No church for me. I put Tiffany and Tanner in her car and sent them off, then I headed towards the flooded day care center. I decided to take Broad street to get there. As I was in front
Read more

The Finger of God

Image
Have you ever seen the movie Twister? Released in 1996 and starring Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton, the movie followed a group of storm chasers as they got caught up in a harrowing day of following and escaping tornadoes. It was considered cutting edge for the way it depicted the funnel clouds and the scientists who do this everyday. Little did I know how, 24 years later, my work would bring me to a place in Middle Tennessee where real life imitated art, and my latest clients would be grateful to have escaped with their lives. Their story in just a moment. First, I would be remiss if I did not mention the passing of an old friend recently. Kent "WiFi Guy " Pingel worked with me at Belfor, a job he affectionately called "The Dirty Gig". We crossed paths many times at various disaster zones all over the country, and his blog  Ping WiFi  chronicled his journeys, always looking for a good story and a WiFi connection. He was a brilliant writer and better friend, who
Read more