Monday, September 27, 2010

Getting Adjusted

So I've been with my new contractor for almost 2 months now and it definitely is a different experience. This week has kind of been the lows of my experience thus far. Today after driving to about 50 miles to Quanico marine base we worked about 2 hours only to find out rain was going to prevent us from being able to work the rest of the day. So we spent more time traveling to and from work than we actually spent working which was definitely an unexpected pay cut. This is my second experience with rain causing a pay cut which is beginning to make me not to fond of working outside. Not that I mind the actual work but the rain doesn't stop the bills from coming. Another thing I've really had to adjust to is getting used to different peoples work methods. It seems like a lot of older mechanics have the mentality that all "helpers" were created equal and won't really let you exercise some of your abilities. Now I know there is a lot in this trade I still have to learn but at the same time I feel given the opportunity I am very productive. When a mechanic tries to turn me into just a tool passer my mind begins to go numb and I lose motivation. Don't get me wrong I don't mind taking a backseat when working with something new I might not be unfamiliar with, or working with someone on the same task together. But when there's ways I know I can be productive and I'm prevented from doing so because of someone's preconceived doubt in my abilities I can't help but to feel a bit salty. I'm hoping things change a little more for the better, but I know you have to take the good with the bad.

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Just another aspect of the trade

I've been with my new contractor for about a month now and it's another completely different experience not only working for a smaller shop but type work I've been doing. In my first year with Perl I did a little bit of outside work on rooftops and a little lightning protection but for the past months just about everything I've done has been in the ground. Most of the work consist of running pvc, getting boxes in with the masons, setting up pole bases, and finding pipes that have already been buried in the ground which happens to be one of my least favorites. You can say this is new to me but I've noticed that it's all still pretty much the same thing. I've dug dirt before I've ran plenty of pipe and I've set wire and pulled pipe before so the different circumstances of which they are done doesn't really take much time to adapt to. I kind of expected to feel green again and take a while to get adjusted so I feel much better than I've gotten a chance to get my feet wet in this part of the trade. I find myself talking to a lot of guys about their different experiences and not being able to find envious thinking that I might be missing out on some of the good experiences I need to make myself more valuable. I guess in due time it will all come so I try to breath easy but sometimes my nature just won't let me. All and all I'm enjoying my experiences with the new company and once my raise finally comes which it seems I missed somehow by 40 hours :-\, I'll definitely be a much more happy camper.