The highest office in a democracy is 'citizen'.

They poured the roof at Metropolitan Place today.  YEE HAW!  We will tension the cables tomorrow, & we are out of there.  9months, 1 week, putting them almost 3 months ahead of schedule.  I can't give my crew enough kudos.  We set the pace & the bar.  Simply the best crew of Ironworkers I have ever had the pleasure of working with.  So Al, Todd, Bill, Randy, Craig, John, Tye, Joe, Ryan, Brad, Doug, Thanks, you guys showed  what Union Ironworkers are all about.  I have some pics I'll post on my pbase account.  

I got rained out today.  We got an all day soaker.  So I thought I'd update.  Metro Place is cruising along.  We have  4 more pours on the superstructure.  Then we're "topped" out.  I'll be done there by the first week of August.   I'll have spent 9 months 1 week there. I will have nearly 1700 work hours. We will have installed almost 500 ton of rebar & nearly 500000 feet of post tensioned cable.  By far the largest project I have run.  As it stands now, myself & 1 other guy have been there from the ground.  I'll have topping out pictures no doubt.
On the home front.  We decided to paint the house this summer.  so our off time has been spent scraping.  Due to our lack of progress I bought a pressure washer last weekend.  Speeding up the proccess considerably.  My neighbor loaned me his snorkel lift, but it has constantly not run.  It is a big lawn ornament for the most part.  H is working full time, filling in for vacations.  N's piano playing just keeps getting better.  This weekend is H's birthday, she & I are going away for the weekend.  A romantic getaway.
  In just over a month I'll be heading to DC for a week.  I managed to book a nonstop roundtrip flight out of Milwaukee to Reagan National, which is no mean feat.  My return flight is early Sat.(6 am), but I lose my hotel on Fri.  looks like an allnighter for my final night out there.  I'm hoping my bud from Philly will come down & take in the night with me.

Well my last entry didn't come out at all like I had hoped.  Here is the link for the original shot.  I have had a bit of down time since it has rained here 5 of the last 6 days. 
Friday was our biggest union meeting of the year.  I was elected to go to the International convention in D.C. in August.  Quite an honor, I am looking forward to it.  We also decided on our raise.   Our apprenticeship coordinator asked me to teach a class on Rebar & Post Tensioning.  It will be one night a week for 18  weeks.  After discussing it with H I'm going to do it.  Also I am now on the state apprenticeship commitee.
Metro place is past the halfway point.  When the weather breaks we will be going full bore until the superstructure is poured out.  I am beginning to see the end, & I can't wait to get there.
H is working 2 12 1/2 shifts a week, plus filling for vacations.  She loves her job, which is wonderful.  The kids are front toothless.   N has a lisp, because  3 of her 4 front teeth are out.  School is winding up for them, only 3 weeks left.  N's summer school class was cancelled due to lack of enrollment.  Too bad, she really wants to learn more sign langauage.  She has a piano recital coming up middle of next month.  S is learning division in math.  She really likes it.  But fractions are still a trouble spot.  Of course the new math method isn't the way I was taught, so I am not much help.

The project I'm running the iron is at the halfway point.  The job is in full swing now.  I have a crew of 12 working around 50 hours a week.  I had a chance to get atop the tower crane a week or so ago.  I shot a panorama of the Madison Skyline.  I haven't had time to do anything with it though.  I am hopeful it will turn out good.  The project should top out about the beginning of August.  The company I'm working for just picked up a huge project down on the UW campus.  Looks like the overtime won't being going away anytime soon. 
In other news I have been nominated to go to our International convention this August in D.C.  I am cautiously optimistic that I'll get selected.  Would be  a great oppurtunity for me to meet with other Ironworkers from all over North America.