A quick eye update... The latest eye doc appointment put me through a battery of test, all of which created in me a headache you wouldn't believe. Putting dilating drops and numbing drops in your eyes, then flashing a series of bright lights into your eye is... Painful. Result: Cataracts, not bad yet, eye pressure a bit high, no retinal nerve damage or loss of range of vision. Left eye clarity is down about 20% (it's like looking through a dirty window). So now, I'm to meet with a specialist next week. <sigh>
More FAA stupidity. We're short handed (25% fewer controllers now than 5 years ago), with fully 10% of the controllers partially trained/recent hirees. Denver Approach is reaching a critical point with their staffing (too many newbies at the radar), so they went back to procedures that were in place back in the stapleton days to ease the pressure on approach. (which increases our workload dramatically). So, when we have a trio of operational errors last week, what does management do? Take one controller off radar/assistant duties in each area, and put them on the supervisor desk to essentially answer the phone and defer any real decisions to the supervisor, who now must sit in the middle of the control room, "watching". Good idea, reduce staffing by another 10% in order to allow a supervisor to sit in the control room, doing nothing but... Who knows. At least there's no snoring... Yet.) Now to take by anti-cynic pill, I should feel better in about 10 minutes... :-)
Got brainstormed the other night while I was working on Imperfect Hope. The story idea, in brief, involves a retired warrior/now scholar, asked to return to his liege lords service to correct the mistakes made by his lords heir/son. Right now, a short story idea, we'll see if it develops any more...
Anyway, time to go back to work. Keep those cards and letters and comments coming. Or at least post an anonymous note acknowledging that my readership exists...
CLear skies,
Jim
More FAA stupidity. We're short handed (25% fewer controllers now than 5 years ago), with fully 10% of the controllers partially trained/recent hirees. Denver Approach is reaching a critical point with their staffing (too many newbies at the radar), so they went back to procedures that were in place back in the stapleton days to ease the pressure on approach. (which increases our workload dramatically). So, when we have a trio of operational errors last week, what does management do? Take one controller off radar/assistant duties in each area, and put them on the supervisor desk to essentially answer the phone and defer any real decisions to the supervisor, who now must sit in the middle of the control room, "watching". Good idea, reduce staffing by another 10% in order to allow a supervisor to sit in the control room, doing nothing but... Who knows. At least there's no snoring... Yet.) Now to take by anti-cynic pill, I should feel better in about 10 minutes... :-)
Got brainstormed the other night while I was working on Imperfect Hope. The story idea, in brief, involves a retired warrior/now scholar, asked to return to his liege lords service to correct the mistakes made by his lords heir/son. Right now, a short story idea, we'll see if it develops any more...
Anyway, time to go back to work. Keep those cards and letters and comments coming. Or at least post an anonymous note acknowledging that my readership exists...
CLear skies,
Jim
1 comment:
We're out here, I promise. I hope that all goes well with your eyes--we need you to help keep the friendly skies safe!
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