So far, so good...

Training is progressing well. Once again, I believe I have much to learn, but know more than I thought. Looking forward to actually doing the work. It has been nice to chat with my coworker about the conditions and work environment. He is a fountain of information and has many years of experience in country and with the company. To top that, he is easy going and easy to get along with. A nice bonus indeed.
Leslie and I have been having a great time in the evenings. Visiting old friends, seeing the sights and in general enjoying each others company. All in all, having a great time in Colorado.

Awesome weekend

Picked Leslie up from the airport Saturday. My friend Tom from Longmont came along for the ride and we went to dinner at Johnny Carinos in Longmont, Co. Awesome Lasagna.

Sunday we went up to Cheyenne and visited all the old homes we used to live in... well, all but one... (there were four total). Went to church with some friends, had an unbelievably good lunch at their house, and then relaxed for a bit before we returned to the hotel. Another awesome day!

Ready for training to begin tomorrow. I should be tired, but for some reason, I am not... go figure.

Back in "Old Town"... Colorado Style...

Made it to Colorado late Thursday night after completing my training in Huntsville, Alabama a day early.

I managed a decent nights sleep and got a lot done Friday morning. Late morning, decided to take a drive up the back roads from the hotel in Lousiville, Co. to Fort Collins. Did a little car tour of places from my past. Did a little shopping, and went to my favorite Colorado coffee shop (where I am at this moment) Starry Nights in Old Town Fort Collins. Had a great sandwich, sipping some really awesome coffee and enjoying the afternoon.

Typical Colorado front range weather. A little snow, none sticking, then sunny and beautiful. Heading over to a friend's house this evening and will be attending a Colorado Eagles hockey game tonight. Really looking forward to that.

Leslie will be joining me in Colorado for the week. I pick her up at the airport Saturday afternoon. Looking forward to hanging out with her and visiting a lot of old friends. Good times indeed.

Also, looking forward to my training next week. Get to work with the guy I will be working with overseas. Hoping that things all mesh together there. I think they will if our phone conversations of the past are any indication.

Very much enjoying my time in Colorado.

I may actually be able to do this...

Orientation went well yesterday. Not every day you get to attend a meeting with a retired NASA shuttle astronaut. Went to the Air and Space Museum, 3 mile run outdoors with temps in the upper 60s, what a good day.

Today was the first day of training. I knew more than I thought I did. Much more to learn, but I am gaining confidence that I will actually be able to do this job. Time will tell...

Plan on attending a "Southern Professional Hockey League" game on Thursday evening. That should be entertaining and from what I have heard, will lend credence to the saying, "I attended a fight and a hockey game broke out." Looking forward to it.

Weather was awesome, saw some awesome things today. This new job is amazing and I feel so blessed to have it... Like I said, I think I can do this...

Last night of hockey in Minnesota (for now)

Last night was my last night of hockey with the OTDHL in Rochester.

I sent the following note to the boys the morning after:

I can't tell you how much I have enjoyed playing hockey and

getting to know you guys. You will be missed. I was feeling

a bit down last night about it all...

However, this morning, by sheer chance, I got an email from

the Hockey GM in Jeddah. He sent an email to everyone

announcing that starting in February their hockey will be

changing for the better. They have their nets built, they

will have goalies and they will have consistent ice times

every month of the year except for mid winter, which is fine.

While this bit of news only took a little of the sting off

of our last skate together last night, it is good to know

that we will have someplace to play down there.

Again, stay in touch and I fully expect that we can slip

back into our goalie spots when we return!

Take care you knuckleheads!!!

It was bittersweet last night, but I am still excited about 

the prospects and adventures that lie ahead. 

I will indeed be posting some pictures the first time I hit

the ice in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Who would have thought...

New job, new way of life on the horizon.

Started at Raytheon Missile Systems this week. Training at a couple different locations over the course of the next couple weeks, then off to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia for a couple years. Looking forward to the adventure... Leslie will join me after a month or so. Patty and Josh are living at the farm as caretakers... Big changes for everyone. Excited.

Pretty good first week thus far...

Started the new career this week. Pretty laid back so far. Actually do not miss the old job. Yet. Like many things, it's not so much the place or the position, but the people. Had a business trip to the Cities, lunch with a former colleague, a little shopping and some fun with Leslie, all good stuff.
Trying to get paperwork done and signed in or up for a few things. Moved out of my office upstairs at the farm for good. A little surreal, but good. I needed to take that last step at the home office.

Looking forward to my training classes next week down South and to the one the following week out West. Actually, I am looking forward to some warmer weather. I used to really love winter, but this year, not so much.

Last day at Freescale...

Here is what I sent to my coworkers at Freescale.

All,

Today is my last day at Freescale and I am finding it a difficult task to sum up my Freescale career in one brief email.

So, hang in there with me as I ramble through this. This may not be so brief.

Apologies to anyone I may have inadvertently left off this list.

As many or most of you know, I am a former U.S. Marine.This is relevant, because in my opinion, there is no better place to be prepared for, and be trained to manage all the challenges that life offers. Once you have been through Marine boot camp, all the rest of life seems pretty easy. Since I left the Corps in 1981, much like the Corps, I have approached my career with a high level of dedication and service. 

I always placed my customer’s needs first and the company’s and many times my own needs second. In my nearly 17 year career at Freescale/Motorola, I have watched numerous business units come and go, start and fail. I have been a part of many successes and a few failures, some of them spectacular! But, as I tell my now married daughter, (man I am getting old) there’s a lesson in there somewhere and if you are not doing anything, then you are not learning anything…

I watched as Motorola Semiconductor evolved into Freescale Semiconductor and then was  spun off from Motorola. Every expectation from outside the company  was that this venture would fail. It did not.

I watched as Freescale went from a public to a private company and again every expectation from outside the company was that it would fail. And again, it did not.

And recently, I watched as Freescale went from a private to a public company and you guessed it, every expectation from outside the company was that it would fail again. And once again, it did not.

Freescale has taught me all about resilience, patience and steadfastness. I am proud to have  been an employee of this company for so long and It has taken a truly extraordinary and once in a lifetime opportunity to get me to leave.

I am proud to have worked with ZigBee/802.15.4 products since the very beginning. To Tom Balph, Mark Williams, Frank Latona, Ryan Kelly, Luis Briones, and many others no longer at Freescale, you guys were there, pretty much from the beginning. I wish you all the best moving forward and I want to add that it has been a true honor to work with all of you for nearly a decade as this product line was brought from its infancy to where it is today.

To all the rest, I wish you continued success at Freescale.

Good luck Molly.  

The team won the documentation lottery and is lucky to have you!

Warmest regards,

Tim Lincoln

Just a little more time

Only one week remains until the next chapter begins. Had an encouraging phone call with my new manager and I could not feel better... All good stuff.

Time off is fun. Duh!!!

I really do enjoy the holidays. Lots of time off, Christmas, New Years, lots of food. Friends, family, and all that. Went to the Mall of America today. A coffee stop at Starbucks, lots of horsing around and laughter. Mall of America was busy but it amazes me how many people that place can swallow and still not be a zoo. Simply amazing.