Buckeye Mike

Another very busy week at work found me at my office this morning, trying to catch up on some paperwork and get organized before the new week begins Monday. Having so many projects going at once means that it is very difficult to find desk time during normal business hours and, when I do, the constant interruptions still prevent me from getting much accomplished. I get more administrative tasks accomplished in a few hours on Saturday morning than I do the rest of the week. As I sat punching in line items on a large fire estimate this morning, one of my colleagues walked into the office to get a little catch up done himself. A seasoned technician, Patrick is currently a project manager in training and we discussed the transition and everything that comes with it. The other project manager, AJ, and I are both anxious to get him fully up to speed, believing that having a third fully functional pm will take a great deal off of our own plates. Similar to me, Patrick came from the restau...

First, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Michael Slusher and I am the Fire Project Manager at PuroClean Restoration Experts in Blacklick, Ohio. I have been writing a blog for about two and a half years. It started when I was overseas, in Santiago, Chile, running a disaster restoration project in the aftermath of a strong earthquake. Originally I began posting here as a way for my family and friends to stay up to date on how I was doing and the progress we were making. But the blog took off from there, giving me the opportunity to journal my experiences and thoughts so I can look back in the years ahead and see where the path has taken me. I shared most posts, and encourage you to go back though the archives and read a few. Some will make you laugh, some will make you cry, and some will convince you that I am just a little crazy. But no matter your reaction, I hope you will enjoy as I now share my thoughts with the people who like our work on facebook, as well as with my loyal re...

A few weeks ago, just before I was settling in to watch a Reds game, the sound went out on the TV. Not that this is a momentous occasion, as the TV wasn't on all that much anyway. With each of the boys having their own set in their rooms, the big one in the den was only watched when Tiffany kicked me out of the bedroom because she was not interested in watching baseball. Never the less, we put a new one in the budget and ordered it last week from Walmart's online store. And yesterday, I got my text that it was ready at the Morse Road store, a few miles from home. My Walmart experience today was probably not unlike many of your own over the years. I made my way through the maze of a parking lot, finally finding a place about 6.72 miles from the front door. I took my online ticket to the service desk and no one was there. I waited a minute or so. The phone on the desk rang and a girl came around to answer. She held up her index finger to show me it would be just a minute and an...

I like helping people, I really do. Taking someone by the hand at ten o' clock at night after their house just burned down and assuring them we can make it all better is one of the greatest feelings in the world. Handing someone a dollar out of the console of the car at a stop light is a no brainer. Giving back a little of the good fortune I have been blessed with is easy when you grew up with the parents I did. The examples the instilled in me are a part of my core values and a major part of what I teach the boys. Its all about Karma. All about paying it forward. So when we were fortunate enough to land an entire inventory of clothing and blankets, we were excited about being able to help out on a larger scale. As we sorted the clothing in the basement, we realized there were a lot of things that the shelters probably wouldn't take. Rabbit fur coats, wedding dresses, and Alfani leather jackets aren't typically something you see a homeless person wearing. So we decided to...