The Last Days with Honeywell

After spending 31 years 7 months and 11 days at Honeywell, I decided to call it quits and retire on Jun 30. I have many fond memories but also lots of frustration on how big business works (not logically sometimes) and some not so fond memories (8 pay freezes, one of which lasted three years and threats of layoffs for most of the time). I have always had excellent performance reviews but that did not always reflect in my paycheck, or promotions, the last of which was 16-20 years ago. So maybe that is the real truth??? I worked my first 14 years at the St Louis Park facility, which was torn down and made into a Costco and Home Depot after a layoff that lasted over six months. Then I landed a job back at Honeywell in the Home and Buildings division, now ACS and my time was bridged. When I was laid off, a co-worker told me, " Oh I heard you were laid off." I said, "What?" "Oops. You better talk to the boss." We had just came back from a two week vacation out west over Labor Day. Now that was a fine how do you do.

The plant that used to have 1.2 million sq ft of factory is at the intersection of Douglas Dr and Duluth St in Golden Valley. Most of the lower factory was converted to offices and labs a few years ago during a $33M renovation of the front offices and about 25-30% of the upper factory is empty (product lines outsourced to Mexico). So will this still remain a US factory? Don't know but a lot of people I talked to said they would also retire within a few months, when the getting is still good.

My office was in the upper factory through this inconspicuous door by Post O26, the Blue zone.

Through the door and turn right, down the isle.

My messy desk was in the back of the room to the right. I used to have five computers on my desk, each doing a different job. I managed to get down to one before leaving.

I had planted a fake video camera with a "Under Video Surveillance" sign. I thought that someone had ripped off a laptop from my desk and was putting the fear in employees. When I first started here, one of my duties was the Novell Network Administrator (added or deleted users and backed up the servers). We also started upgrading the factory network from coax thinnet cable to Ethernet. This meant that I punched down every network connection in the factory. So, even though about eight years ago the server was moved from the factory and outsourced I still retained my knowledge of the factory network system and up until I left I was still getting calls to "fix" something or add a printer or this application doesn't work. Even after I retired I got calls at home to help fix things. Most of what I was doing for the past eight years was illegal for me to do but I could get it done immediately instead of wait the usual three days for the helpdesk to respond. I also maintained all the computer systems on all the factory machine controllers and did yearly backups. So if it had a computer I had my hands in it.

This is one of the testers that I built. I only made one mistake and had a ground wire in the wrong place and burned out an instrument. This may be boring to you but I don't know how many of you actually knew what I did at Honeywell.

I was told years ago to install a common use Kiosk where employees could go to look up Material Safety Data Sheets for chemicals we use. It grew to three.

I had several places all over the factory where I had control. This is my secret Backroom where I build up computer systems and stored factory spares. You see my personal blue electric cart I used all the time.

#101 Blue Cart - the only blue one.

For being a $25B company you would think they would put a little money back into the facilities they own. But No! If the roof leaks, just stick up some plastic to catch the water and drain it into a garbage can. We had several dozen of these in the factory. Since upper management never walks into the factory, they don't have to see these. It is embarrassing to bring customers and vendors into the factory. We were told to remove them when Sec of the Treasury Timothy Geitner came to visit, so he would not see them. Good thing it didn't rain. After he left, they went back up.

I had a pizza lunch a couple weeks before leaving and I was surprised at the number who came. 40, that's forty. It was at LaTuff's Pizzeria in Plymouth, voted the best pizza in the twin cities. My boss Kamar Farishta is in the middle and Barry Monson next to him. Barry retired last year.

Part of the group. This is the Safety team and the plant manager, Larry Pederson, in the purple shirt. I could not get everyone in one photo.

There were several former Honeywellers, laid off or retired, who came. Even Ed and Sue Albee (standing in the back ground), my partner in crime, came all the way from Missouri for the lunch.

There is still a big chunk missing from this photo. Thanks everyone for sharing this lunch with me. Well, I was the only one to get a free meal; everybody else had to pay for their own lunch.

Even the two Kevin's were there. On the left is Kevin Aufderhar who was laid off from Honeywell a few years ago and on the right is Kevin Mangle, one of my former bosses and currently working a Medronic with several other former Honeywellers. Others who retired sent emails congratulating me and saying they could not make it. It is a little far from Rio Rancho, AZ or Seattle WA to go for lunch.

Since I started taking all my stuff home three weeks before, I just grabbed my backpack and made one last walk out the West entrance. I let myself out and turned in my badge. I was surprised because all the other cases, you are walked out by your boss to make sure you are properly checked out. I got my very first pension check the very next day which was also payday - double wammy. But my social security will not come until the end of August. So I have to make it last.

Day at Target Field

Judy was able to get six tickets to a Twins game so a bunch of us went to the game. This would be our first time at Target Field. Target Center is next to Target Field. Is there a theme here?

Some of the attendees.

We were playing the Padres. Just so you know, I have never gone to a Twins game, even when they were playing at The Met Stadium, where they won the game.

Even though they did not want to do it, A & B let us take their picture with the big glove. Charity also took a picture and posted it on FaceBook immediately for all to see.

Then Judy and I got on the glove.

We just happened to be in the nose bleed section, three rows down from the top and to the left of the Megatron screen. Gary and Lisa were also there, same spot but to the right of the screen.

Not many filled the seats, yet.

Right below the flags.

Most of the seats were occupied by the time the game started.

A picture of Minny and Paul with the Minneapolis skyline. Oh BTW. The streak is over. Twins won by the skin of their teeth in the bottom of the 9th with 2 outs.

Ouch!!!!!!!

Kirstin and Jeff wanted a Mom and Dad get away without the kids. So we got them for the weekend. It went pretty well. I was off picking up pizza for dinner and I came home to chaos. Kellan was playing on our (actually Tana's when she was a kid) giraffe riding toy. He was apparently moving and must have leaned over the head of the giraffe, changing the center of gravity and tumbled head over heals onto the asphalt and did a face plant. Kellan's nose and especially his upper lip were very bloody. One tooth cut a lip. Dropping the pizza I took over caring for this terrified little boy. I needed to stop the bleeding but he didn't want anybody to touch it. So a wad of Kleenex in the hand, placed gingerly on the wound, a little squirming, and success. But the bleeding didn't stop for about 15 minutes. But it did stop and he seemed to forget about why he was crying. Mom and dad were called and the situation was explained. They stayed on there get away. I am a pitiful sight. But you know what? Skin grows back. It's one of those miracle things we are blessed with.

Cake decorating 101

Gretchen also had a significant birthday, number 65 minus 60, in early June. So mom thought that it would be fun for each of the kids to decorate their own cakes - with markers. These markers were eatible. Lorelei very carefully started drawing on the cake. We found out that these cake decorating pens don't last very long with all the "grease" in the frosting.

Joseph tried his hand.

Gretchen, the birthday girl, and her creation.

Need to add candles to each cake, light them, make a wish and blow them out. So were there multiple birthdays?

Mom. Need more candles.

The presents come out.

Look at all this art stuff!

Where can I put this sticker?

Picture book time.

Nice outfit! She is Jasmine.

What is all the fuss about?

The big day

I recently had a very significant birthday, number 65, and what a better thing to do than have a picnic with family and friends. It had been raining all night long and was raining all the way up to the 11:00 picnic hour. Then it stopped, just for me. I picked Snail Lake Regional Park. We had looked earlier and thought that was the best one. We wanted a covered area, in case of rain. But if you wanted one you had to reserve it for hundreds of dollars. Since it was raining, we were the only ones in the park so we took over the big covered pavilion. Kellan thought all the hoopla was for him.

Gretchen shared her lunch with Taylor. She just likes older girls.

Smenteks were there.

Larsens were there, the other ones.

Woods and Barnharts also made it.

What's going on here? I need a ride.

Then the dog showed up and took all the attention. I am not in any of these pictures because I was behind the camera. Oh well. You know what I look like. Thanks everybody for coming.

Honoring our family members.

Every year on or close to Memorial Day (we try to avoid the crowds) we visit all the graves of my parents and grand parents. Joseph and Lorelei had never been to a cemetery before so they didn't know what to expect. We told them about cemeteries and why people are buried there. We visited or nephew Jeff Thompson's grave first at Ft Snelling National Cemetery. Joseph got to thinking and it bothered him to the point of tears when he saw the thousands of grave stones there. I don't think he had ever thought about the entire life cycle yet and had never experienced a death of a loved one. We told him that one day we would be there too. It was a very tender moment. But we made more visits to other grave sites he was okay. Just the initial thoughts of dead people buried in the ground got to him.

Then we visited my parents. Lorelei had a tender moment too as we told them these were my mom and dad are buried.

Then we were off the Lakeside Cemetery. We drove past my old house on Dupont Ave S by Lake Harriet and by the Rose Gardens where they attended the wedding of their aunt and uncle Cami and Jared Barnhart. We stopped at my maternal grandparents, Francis and Clarence Bigelow. Notice the big stone in the background? That is how we know we have found the spot.

Then to Hillside Cemetery to take care of my sister Sharon's grave site. Last time we were there it took us 10-15 minutes to find it because it was almost completely covered by grass and had sunk down about four inches. We cleaned it up the best we could and I was temped to life the stone up when we saw some cemetery workers. I asked if I could raise the stone. They said that is why they were there. So in five minutes it was raised to the proper height. Sharon only lived one month and died from spina bifida. My mom never got to touch or hold her because they took her away immediately. She only got to look at her from the other side of the glass. Those were the rules back then.

This cemetery has a civil war section close to Sharon that is the place for the Memorial Day celebrations. Since no one else was there, it was out time on the cannon.

Hi everybody! Get out of the way or I will have to blast ya.

Even girls can climb on it.

Joseph now became the photographer so that Gramma and Grampa could get their picture taken. Good one.

Joseph ventured to the business end of the cannon while I hung on.

Then we were off to visit my paternal grandmother, Gunda Larsen and my auntie Anna Olson and her husband Kunt. My dad Anna and Gunda were on one passport when they came to America. They took the Norwegian boat Stavangerfjord from Kristiansand and one day out into the ocean, the boat sank. Everyone had to abandon ship. The boat was tipping over and most of the life boats on the side closest to the water were already launched. A crew member said there were lots more lifeboats on the other side. They made their way there but had to crawl over the railing and walk from port hole to port hole towards the lifeboat, since the boat was almost laying flat on the water now. They spent 24 hours on the lifeboat before being rescued. They were hungry and cold. That is when one of the rescuers told them there was food and blankets stowed in the lifeboat compartments that they didn't know about (no crew member was with them). They were then placed on the sister ship Bergensfjord. Quite the adventure for coming to the land of the free. Well it is not all free - we still have to pay taxes.

Then it was time for fun pictures.

We did a number on these Keebler cookies. Guess who?

It's me.

We are hiding.

Peek a boo.