Tag Archives: Field Notes

The Forever Chainman

A friend and colleague recently used a phrase I hadn’t heard, but it caught my attention – Forever Chainman. My initial assumption was it was intended as a negative, but that didn’t seem consistent with his prolific positivity. He didn’t disappoint. He said he used it to describe a certain type of self-starting mentality that...

Safety Moments

Safety. It’s often at the top of an organization’s stated priorities and rightly so. It should be a top priority in every aspect of our lives. I know my own safety awareness has increased dramatically with age and experience. Whether running a chainsaw, climbing a ladder, or trout fishing a remote stream in the mountains,...

National Geodetic Survey Age Discrimination?

Now that I am in my 60s, I have become more aware of potential age discrimination, and the reverse thereof. A few years ago, it bothered me when my purchase total was reduced at the last minute and realized I had received the “Senior Discount” without actually qualifying for it. Now it bothers me when...

Just Say No

This article appeared in xyHt‘s e-newsletter, Field Notes. We email it once a month, and it covers a variety of land surveying topics in a conversational tone. You’re welcome to subscribe to the e-newsletter here. (You’ll also receive the Pangaea newsletter with your subscription.) As I have aged and learned, I have worked diligently to improve myself, whether through...

Life Lessons in Surveying

In my Field Notes installments the past few years, I have often written from personal experience, partly to share, but also to stimulate the thoughts and memories of our readers. This will be no different, except these are experiences that have extended to life, in general. Early in my career, well it was a summer...