I hope everyone had happy holidays, enjoying family and friends after a long productive fall work schedule. This season I’m pausing to think about movement. There are quite a few stories of movement during this season, so if you are finding yourself moving or in transition, you are in good company.

The Mayan celebration of solstice celebrates the movement of the celestial bodies. This year at Tikal many people traveled from throughout the globe to the Mayan Peninsula and gathered for the celebration  December 21st. Solstice is celebrated throughout the world.

In the nativity story, Joseph and Mary were on the move with the Christ-child.  The people on the journey made the trip miserable, but upon their arrival in Bethlehem it all worked out. Mary survived childbirth (not a small feat in those days) and gave the world Jesus.

Hanukkah is in many ways about change and provision. The menorah in the temple had been taken by the Syrians.  The Maccabees liberate Jerusalem from Syria, but a more humble menorah was located. When the Maccabees wanted to light it, they found only a small cruse of pure olive oil bearing the seal of the High Priest Yochanan. There was only enough oil for one day but the oil burns for eight days, a gift from G-d.

Puerto Rican’s have the tradition of the traveling parranda, which consists of a small or large group of friends gathering together to asaltar, or surprise, another friend. Most parranderos play some sort of instrument, either guitarras, tamboriles, güiro maracas, or palitos, and they all sing. The parranderos arrive at the destination and then very quietly gather by the front door. At a signal, they start playing and singing. The parrandas usually begin after 10pm in order to surprise and wake the sleeping friend. The parranderos are invited in; refreshments, music, and dancing follow.

The Vietnamese New Year is called Tet, this year celebrated on Jan 22nd 2012 to Wed, Jan 25th 2012. In the Vietnamese story of Tet, the princes gather for a contest of who can deliver the best gift to the emperor.  The youngest prince Tiet-Lieu, his wife and their children chose the countryside where they farmed the land. Tiet Lieu does not value city life.  He travels throughout the land and gains favor with the Emperor with his simple and humble gift of rice cake, Banh Chung.  The emperor was so impressed with the thoughtfulness and wisdom of the gift, that Tiet Lieu becomes emperor.

I was fortunate enough to see three of these holiday events and experience two of them so far.  As Bill Hicks said, ‘…life is just a ride.’, here is to you and yours this season.  May your ride be interesting and be safe out there.  So where are you traveling this Holiday and who will you visit? Are you changing  jobs or relationships? Wherever you roam you are in good company, just take the time to appreciate the little things and you will be alright, take it from a traveling inspector.

Here is my take on the subject:

1. Experience:

Many of us will be thrown into situations we’ve never encountered before, and those with intuitive adaptation will fare far better.  If you are working in a forge, you can stay at the forge, OR you can hit the road and inspect turbines, power piping, heaters and boilers. 

 2. Networking:

 Contracting is a great way to build your skills and network.  While out on assignments, you will meet people you would have never had the opportunity to meet, if you hadn’t decided to hit the road.  The people you meet will give you advice and guidance in your career you might not have had the opportunity to hear otherwise.  These same people will give you a good reference, if you earn it.  It doesn’t matter if it’s from an apprentice boilermaker or a level III, a good reference from a respected hard worker is a good reference, and you can take that to the bank.

 3. Mobility and Flexibility:

You work when you want, where you want, take courses and get your certifications on your own time.  Do you need to take care of a loved one?  Do you want to take a vacation NOW?  You can’t do these things with a full time position under normal circumstances.

4. Get paid to work out:

 Is your significant other bothering you about your weight?  Have you been simply hitting your 40 hours each week and going home because your company hates to pay overtime?  Go on the road; I guarantee there is some kind project manager that will send you up 150 foot towers all day long, if you like.  If you really need to drop weight, watch those pounds fall off while working in an Alky in the summer and GET PAID TO SWEAT & WORK OUT, just keep hydrated.

5. Build confidence:

When people want you to work for them and you can refuse an offer or accept it, you ARE empowered, you don’t just feel it.  When there is an ethics or perhaps personality conflict, you can choose to terminate your agreement.  If things go well, you may want to negotiate with the client for an internal position.  You can be your own man or woman and make it happen.

You may be saying, “But, Michael, I do call out work and get most of these things.”  If you are happy where you are, don’t leave; however, at least once — just one time — GO CONTRACT, so you don’t wonder what it is like.

Labor Day Weekend 2011

A weekend of surfing, bonfires on the beach, triathlon, Barton Springs, Downtown Austin night life and the Guadalupe River with a touch of forest fires, widespread devastation, new opportunities and sleepless nights.  There are many people to thank for the great weekend and good vibes that were all around, and lets face it its hard to not have a good time at the beach in South Texas or a weekend in Austin. Get ready for the breakdown as I light up this blog with local reviews, links and photos.

Word was that a serious swell was about to hit the South Texas coast on Friday (September 2nd), that rolled into Saturday and found the crowd at South Packery, TX looking more like Trestles, CA. To say that it was an immediate risk to life and health to drop in Saturday morning at South Packery would not be an exaggeration. The crowd was thick and the kooks were out in force, dropping in on you and not following etiquette.  These tourists would paddle out, not next to the jetty, but directly in the drop zone, in front of the peak just asking for some serious injuries. The crews from North Packery 207 and South Packery Beach Bums were in full force though, doing their best to ensure a safe surf session for everyone. Thanks also to Covered Up Surf and Skate for participating / sponsoring the Surfrider Foundation beach clean up Saturday Things mellowed out in the afternoon thankfully and the surf continued to crank in before tailing off at about six in the evening. The day was head and one-half in the morning and dropped to waist high by evening, the sets were consistent and the surf was clean . . . it was as perfect as anyone here could wish for. It was Saturday night, I had been out in the water for six hours, time to head over to North Packery for some bonfire, brews and music.

You never know what to expect at North Packery and September 3 2011 was no different.  A once local now lolo haole in Hawaii was down and his Pidgin kept making me smile.  Perfect sets had rolled in all day and I’m sitting at a bonfire with this guy speaking Pidgin, this wasn’t Texas. So soon enough the beer began flowing and the musicians took the stage one of which couldn’t have been more than eleven; playing Hendrix behind his head. “A Padre Island party to remember…”, I mused as a cover of Zeppelin’s Going to California filled the air and the embers of the bonfire floating past me and the stars light glittered on the last of the storm swell.

Its Sunday morning and the surf has gone flat, the last of the crew begins to pack up and I couldn’t help but go for a swim. Next I was off to Flour Bluff to see a friend about his event in Austin, The AVIA Austin Triathlon.  As usual I was off to Barton Springs as soon as I rolled into town and what a day to be there. The Spring was a turquoise fountain enveloped by a warm meadow where warm bodies lay sprawled in color, tanning ,teasing and transmitting @twitter.  After a refreshing swim I was off for a bite to eat and The Gingerman with Scott Hanright and Ivy Seeds. The next day was going to be an incredible display as over 3000 athletes participate in the AVIA Austin Triathlon.

It’s a perfect morning at fifty-eight degrees as I wind my way over to Auditorium Shores in the pre dawn dark, the streets are vacant as much of Austin recovers from another evening out.  The hardcore were out in force this morning as elite triatheletes like James Bonney, Jamie Cleveland, Stephan Lips, Geoffrey Whitfield, Sarah Lear and Lisa Ansin began their arrival. This is Austin and this event had some talented performers on stage, in the water, on the bike and hitting the road. The event itself is a positive experience and will inspire anyone who attends, so if you’ve never attended  triathlon, get out there; even better sign up for the next one: The Toyota Open Triathlon in Rockwall, TX October, 2 or for the hardcore: Nickel City Tri – Buffalo, NY September 24th.

At the same time the triathlon was in full swing, a raging fire was consuming thousands of acres South of Austin.  Although you could not smell the smoke due to the wind direction, there was quite a bit of devastation just South of the race, a reminder of how fortunate so many of us are.  My heart goes out to all of those affected by the Texas wildfires.

Exhausted from the pre-dawn rise and event, it was time some good eats. My friends opted for an Austin staple, Chuy’s while I made my way back to the coast, stopping off in San Marcos at The Root Cellar’s A-La Carte parked just next to Aquarena Spring. Unbelievable wraps and great mint limeaide are served at the mobile location, but do not miss the Root Cellar in the square where Kyle Mylius serves up cuisine that rivals much of what is offered in Austin.

Then it was off to Citgo Refining for a week of work, a stark change from my glorious weekend; however not all that bad. Thank you to the operators in the Four Plat; Dan, Beto and the gang for some great food and cold iced tea during the week. As I’m wrapping up this blog which should have hit last weekend I am in Kansas City, Missouri getting ready for a great week . . . read me next Sunday.

We can’t help but wince at this week’s turn of events. The tension began to build after Irene passed by Puerto Rico last week. Then the rumbling began a little further North.  Buildings and monuments shaking in D.C., 115 mph gusts with the landfall of Hurricane Irene at Cape Lookout North Carolina, the Hudson River overflowing its banks in Lower Manhattan and the damage is continuing.  Then across the globe another war makes these tragedies at home look like a walk in the park while an island nation endures the worst nuclear disaster in history. My weekend was mild in comparison to these tragedies and I hope yours was too.

So Texans lets not complain about the heat, or tourists or the end of tourist season here on the coast, there are far worse realities on this spinning globe.  Lets just keep others in our thoughts, but more importantly do something to help.  The whole Eastern Seaboard has taken a beating so if you can lend a hand, get out there.

That’s right I’m posting this a bit early; however, for some of us it couldn’t come sooner. Here in South Texas the bars are still relatively full and the fishing captains are still making a killing on charters, but very soon it will end.  It will end for the servers in your favorite dives, whose feet ache each night after a few tourist’s five spots, the bartenders and bar backs who will head on back to school or to another gig in the off-season.

So for many, the end of tourist season is a real downer; however, I will enjoy a few things. I will enjoy walking the beach without seeing so many cigarette butts littering the beach, the seagulls often build nests with the damn things (perhaps a marketing opportunity for big tobacco). During my walks back to my vehicle I will not have to avert my eyes from the beached high fructose, diabetes ridden cellulose bathing on my beach. I will also not miss having to pick up after adult sized juveniles who cannot pick up after themselves or their progeny.

So I welcome fall and winter with open arms here on the coast, as I’m sure many of you beach natives all over the world will welcome the end to whatever tourist season hails you each year. So I raise my glass to my fellow beach bums around the world, “Cheers, Okole maluna (Hawaii), Salud (Spanish America), Salut (Spain), Saúde (Brazil), Sláinte and Guid forder! (Ireland), Santé (France), Bisochtak (Egypt), Keskun (Lebanon) Pro, (Indonesia), Mabuhay (Phillipines), Can chén or Can ly (Vietnam) Sawadekaa or Sawadekap (Thailand), Kampai (Japan),  Gesondheid (South Africa), Auf uns!, Auf Dich! (Germany), Budem zdorovy (Russian), Eis Igian (Greece), Na zdravje! (Macedonian), Kia Ora (New Zealand), Sanda bashi (Pakistan)!”

Gallery on Flickr

Driving into Austin, its 104 degrees and the doors open at 8. Speeding past cattle which slowly amble across green fields. Flying past Aquarena Springs and the town of Kyle to cool off at Barton Springs, full of the sights and ardor of late Summer, warm bodies on the green lawn with the turquoise bath just beyond. Then its a brief swim and a pint before the show.

When I arrived Mark Sultan, Rob Fitzpatrick and the many others at the merchandise booth were administered some delicious pizza to stave our hunger, a ritual which then moved into the Green Room. Lee Blackwell of The Night Beats politely said hello before sauntering on stage to join Tarek and James.  An incredible set ensued and a few of us were dancing, then it was over and Mark Sultan performed. Mark channeled Link Wray and out came “I’ll be Lovin You”, a favorite of Sultan’s fans.

Next up was The Dum Dum Girls, an incredible set with “Relax Catholics” followed with “Rest of Our Lives”. It was off to The Green Room for pizza and the bar where Briana Purser’s work was featured on projection. Next up downstairs, Shapes Have Fangs with “Ghost In the Mirror” and more great music. The final set was why we were there, The UFO Club which was incredible to say the least with “Hex” and “My Love is Waiting”.

The entire night was a success on so many levels with each musician, friends, family and total strangers; one of which happened to be wearing the very same Cult of Dom Keller shirt. A great weekend with great memories.

Then the morning at a crash pad in Austin with the long drive home to the coast, what a weekend.

There is something to be said for the South Texas environment.  The surrounding areas of Rockport, Aransas Pass, Port Aransas, Mustang Island and Padre Island provide the ideal location for surfing, kyaking, kite boarding, sport fishing and sailing. It also is the home to some of the largest refineries, industrial ports and marine yards like Kiewit, Gulf Marine and Flint Hills Resources (KOCH).  It is a land of extremes which I have been happy to call home for these past ten months.