22 October 2015

I Like This Extended Indian Summer

Today is a most pleasant day to be out on my off day from work. It's sunny and nearly 80 degrees F (27 degrees C) today. It's been that way the past week. Cool overnight--getting down to about 55 degrees F (13 degrees C) at night--and then unseasonably warm by midday. Not that I'm complaining, though. We did get a bit of frost last weekend, and it looks like we'll get some much-needed rain this weekend.

Work has been fine at the branch. Hectic at times, but definitely manageable. We're getting a new employee at the branch today--I'll meet her tomorrow morning--which should help with staffing at busy times. Overall, we're moving forward.

Last Thursday (15 October), I updated my resume into versions aimed at public relations (PR) and publishing fields. One copy was sent to a staffing firm, for a PR opening, and I also sent it to several trusted friends asking for their critique. I have heard back from a few, who said overall it was very good, with only minor adjustments needed. One I am hoping to hear back from soon has experience with many resumes, so I will wait until I hear back from him before making the changes. I'm laying the groundwork for an active pursuit of full time opportunities in those areas (although I am keeping my present job in the meantime).

Also on Thursday, I got my hair cut (thanks for a great job, Great Clips), and that night was at Creve Coeur Airport (http://www.crevecoeurairport.com/) for the Missouri Aviation Historical Society (MOAVHIST; http://moavhist.org/) meeting. Air Force veteran and flight instructor Brian Kissinger spoke at the meeting, where he presented clips from "Fly Now! The Movie" (http://flynowmovie.com/), a reality aviation documentary he executive produced and starred in. The film--based on Kissinger's book "Life Short, Fly Now!"--tells of Kissinger's experiences flying around St. Louis and attending airshows around the country, while expressing the basic spirit of flight. It's also an inspirational story of going after your dreams, be it through flying or some other passion. Kissinger told the attendees of his recovery from brain cancer about 10 years ago and how that has affected his outlook on life. Jeff Wilson, director of "Fly Now! The Movie," also spoke at the MOAVHIST meeting.

Kissinger invited the attendees to a screening of the movie, which was that Saturday (17 October) at the Hi-Pointe Theatre (http://hi-pointetheatre.com/) in Clayton, Missouri. About 75 people attended the screening, which followed brief remarks from Kissinger. Afterward, I joined Kissinger and some others for lunch in the Dart Room of Blueberry Hill (http://blueberryhill.com/) in the Delmar Loop. We had sandwiches and beer, and I joined Kissinger and two others in playing darts. Not having played darts in a few years, I felt I did fine. A good time was had by all.

Right after I came home from Blueberry Hill, I got dressed in a more formal outfit and joined several refereeing colleagues at the St. Louis Soccer Hall of Fame (http://www.stlsoccerhalloffame.com/) induction dinner, which was held at America's Center (http://explorestlouis.com/meetings-conventions/americas-center/) in downtown St. Louis. Nearly 1000 people attended the event, in which 11 St. Louis soccer greats were inducted and several players, coaches and teams were honored. This was poignant for me (and others, I'm sure) in that one of this year's inductees was my late acquaintance and refereeing colleague Paul Dueker, who died last year. He was a goalkeeper for school and club teams, and he was a great fan of the sport, both locally and internationally. My group had to leave early--one of our party had an early game to referee the next morning--but it was most enjoyable and a wonderful way to celebrate soccer in St. Louis.

Sunday found me at home clearing out hundreds of email messages from my inbox, dating back nearly a month. It was a long effort, but worth it. I just need to be more proactive in culling my inbox daily or at least during the week.

After flexing out of work Tuesday (20 October), I got some cell phone storage hints from a salesman at Best Buy Mobile at South County Center, then went home to relax a bit before going to Calvary Presbyterian Church (http://calvarypresbyterianchurch.org/) in Mehlville for this month's IPMS/Gateway (http://www.ipms-gateway.com/) meeting. We had a nice crowd and a good turnout for the Model of the Month "Beauty Contest," plus a demo on marking models for painting, which was very informative.

Off work today, I went to my dentist in Kirkwood for a minor procedure relating to a tooth that was pulled some months ago. I was out of the office within a half hour and then visited three Enterprise branches where former Ellisville colleagues worked, bearing cookies for their respective office staffs. First, I saw Maggie and Melissa at the Kirkwood branch and chatted with them briefly. Then, I drove to the Truck Rental office in Earth City to see Adeline, who's assistant manager there, and get caught up with things. Finally, I went to our Airport location and chatted with Kerry. After these visits, I shopped a bit at The Boeing Store (http://www.boeingstore.com) in Hazelwood. On the way home, I stopped to get gas and a wash for my car. All that occurred between 8:00 am and noon. Rather productive.

I have some stuff going on later today that I'll mention in my next post.

Later.

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