Letters to the Power Plant #112 — Happy Dellidays

After I left the power plant and went to work for Dell on August 20, 2001, I wrote letters back to my friends at the plant letting them know how things were going.  This is the one hundred and twelfth letter I wrote.

12/15/04 – Happy Dellidays

Dear friends from Sooner Plant and friends from afar,

I hope all is going well up there at the ol’ plant.  I suppose you know that someone left the gate open at the Red River and some of that cold air actually blew all the way down here to Austin.  That’s ok.  I guess it’s expected to happen during this time of the year.  We actually went down into the 20s last night for the first time.

Well.  If I’m not mistaken, tomorrow is the big day for you guys.  At least that’s when the party is taking place for the “big day”.  I suppose you have hired all sorts of caterers to come out (Bad Brad’s BBQ or something similar), to celebrate the passing of a legend (in his own mind).  I wish I had a present to give him…..Maybe a picture of him waving goodbye as he is about to board Air Force 1 with his favorite HR Supervisor.

Note to Reader:  To learn more about the Equipment Support Supervisor and the HR Supervisor waving goodbye from Air Force 1, see the post Power Plant Final Presentation.

Well.  In about 20 minutes I am putting a “Change” into Production.  So I have both my computers poised to start processing as soon as the clock strikes 5pm.  That is when I thought.  Gee.  I have time to write to all my friends up north.

I have been trying to stay awake all afternoon.  After our manager took us all out to the Olive Garden for lunch (it was a “Happy Holidays” thing), and I ate a big meal and even a bigger dessert, it has been very difficult keeping my eyes open.

A little while ago a project manager dropped by my cubicle and said that we were all going to the Cheesecake Factory on Monday to celebrate the successful completion of another project that I have been on.  —  So you see what I have to look forward to.  —  Yep.  Another afternoon of struggling to stay awake.

I plan on being in Stillwater late Monday night December 27th and leaving early Thursday Morning on December 30.  So maybe while I’m in town I will have the pleasure of running into some of you guys.  It has been a long time since I have seen most of you, so you probably wouldn’t recognize me since Thanksgiving was just a few weeks ago, and I haven’t “downsized” yet.

The day after tomorrow I will finish with my MBA (Masters of Business Administration).  I will finally graduate after about 2 1/2 years of working on this.  That will be a great relief, and I have told Kelly that I will start exercising more since I won’t have to be doing homework every night.

The excitement has been building up the last couple of weeks in anticipation of finishing that it is almost driving me crazy.  —  But then again, driving me crazy is about as hard as driving from my garage to the end of my driveway, so what do you expect.

Well.  Let me know if any of you guys are going to be around the week after Christmas.  Maybe I can drop by the plant if it is on a day when “you-know-him” and “you-know-her” are gone on vacation (You know.  The two waving goodbye as they were entering Air Force 1) and one of you guys invite me out there.  —  I would like to see the plant to see what kind of changes have been taking place.

Well.  I have about 10 minutes before my changes go into production, so I better go mentally prepare myself for the improvements that are about to take place.

I’ll write later.  Let me know how things are going up there.

Your friendly Dell Programmer,

Kevin James Anthony Breazile

______________________

Kevin J. Breazile

Global Financial Services I/T

Dell Inc.

(512) 728-1527