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boilermaker
January 2008 
The Other Boilermaker
Posted on Oct 18th, 2007
by 
J.K.
J.K.
Boilermaking doesn't come anywhere near the glamour of fishing for crabs in Alaska. It doesn't approach the 'coolness' of ice road trucking. Nobody would make a television program about it. However, as a career choice it's in there somewhere, and it looks like I'm going to start doing it for a living within the next two weeks.
It seems like an odd match when I consider where I've been, but I think it's a perfect fit for where I am now. I'll be working about six months out of the year, and earning enough to take the rest of the year off if I like. There's no guarantee that I'll go anywhere exotic, but I could easily find myself in Alaska or California for a two month stint. More than likely my first tour will be a little closer to home. We're talking about leaving for the shipyards in Pascagoula, MS on October 28th.
There are still a few hurdles to clear. I have to pass an OSHA test on Monday, and if I pass that I'll need to give notice at my current job, but right now everything seems good to go. For anyone who may be curious about Zaadz and blogging, no worries. I'll be staying in a hotel while I'm at work, and yes, I have a laptop. :)
- Wikipedia, Boilermaker
Access: Public
looks hot…lol…blessings where ever you find yourself…*smiles
very good to hear about the laptop…wouldn't want you to start having zaadz withdrawel pains! rotf…
Thanks, star. Although I'm going to work, this should free up some time for that trip to Dharma Memphis and Magnolia Village that we talked about. Let's hope!
Hey JK,
Much luck to your testing on Monday - and various hurdles !! does this mean i'll lose a study partner ?? Sounds exciting with the travel & time off periods, if on your travels you find yourself in northern california, give me a shout out. Good thing they invented laptops.. wouldn't want to lose your interesting webfinds!
=)
does this mean i'll lose a study partner ??
I think we could still do it. My plans have changed direction, but I enjoy tech enough to consider it a hobby. And besides, I may decide that I've had enough of being hot one day.. lol
Hey J.K., very cool! My dad is a retired mechanical engineer who started his career with an engineering firm testing these giant industrial boilers (used to be sent to places like Kansas and Fort McMurray, Alberta for 6 months at a time), he really had a passion for boilers (and thermodynamics). Good luck with “closing the deal”, and let me know if you need any resignation best practice tips, (don't know if I ever mentioned to you that I'm a recruiter).
You KNOW i'm going to miss you.
Laptop = :-)
Happy Trails
XOXO
Andy, a recruiter? As in headhunter? Now, to me, that's cool–not in the sense that I want to do it, but in the sense that I know if you get in tight with a good one the recruiter can be your best friend. I mentioned my employment history briefly up top and for brevity sake I won't go into much detail it here, but suffice it to say I've worked with several. I was in risk management for about 13 years, and for 10 years I served as the Claims Manager for self-insured Fortune 500.
And Ladybear, thanks for the note, but I'm not going to let you miss me! ;-) This also seems like a good time to mention that I'm not completely out of the woods yet. I bet Andy has twenty dozen stories of things like this coming undone. But today I'm optimistic and it's done enough that I think it's time to talk about it. I'm going to take the well wishes as something that will bring me luck!
Hope you're having a great Friday!
may the Universe unfold…and may we have the awareness to be the experiencing of it's blissfull eternal moment…*
my husband is a boilermaker. How long you been welding? Those tests were not easy to pass. Most people have problems with the math and reading the plans, and then the practice welds have to x-ray without flaws (one tiny speck in a boiler's weld can mean catastrophic disaster)… there's a lot more to it than most people realize. blue-collar don't mean stupid! :-)
Nice to meet you, Stacy! Who knows? Maybe I'll even run into your husband somewhere.
To start, I won't be doing any welding, and I should add that I'm not experienced in it. In fact, they tell me that our crew won't actually be 'making' anything. Rather, we repair after other crews have built. I'm supposed to monitor pipes and replace gaskets when they need attention. I'm told the pipes can be anywhere from a few inches to as big as a Volkswagen and that training will be provided on-site plus safety checks before each task, but that's the extent of what I know. I should know more after Monday. I leave for Baton Rouge this Sunday.
Again, it's nice to meet you and thanks for leaving a comment. Don't be surprised if I come back after Monday with a question.. lol – Cheers!
Hey J.K., yep it's true, I'm a real-life recruiter (in popular jargon a headhunter). Just don't hold it against me!! (I specialize in sales and leadership roles with multinational corp.s in Canada, mostly in the Consumer Packaged Goods, Pharmaceutical, Medical, B2B and Industrial Sales sectors). You're right though, an excellent recruiter can form a very valuable part of your business network and help you grow your career over the years. I should mention an AWESOME site by the way for job seekers is www.asktheheadhunter.net. Written by a retired NYC executive recruiter to give everyone the perspective of a recruiter on how the employment market really works, (the guy's insights into finding and landing great roles are tremendous, and I agree with 99% of what I've read), it is an excellent resource I regularly use. Definitely keep me posted J.K., and feel free to drop me an email if there's anything you need.
Consumer Packaged Goods, Pharmaceutical, Medical […]
drop me an email if there's anything you need.
Maybe - I was with Eckerd Drugs! ;)