Then on our first call, we came up with some ideas of classes we would like to have and again were asked to volunteer to take one class on to research and again I spoke up first. Surely I thought this would go better. I volunteered to build a box filled with dirt showing a ground go from one wire to another, this sounded much more interesting than researching standards. So far so good, I build a dirt box and the other suckers get stuck researching standards, jumper policies and the like.
We have our second call and everything is going great, we are paring down the classes and figuring out logistics and so on. Then the boss man doesn't ask, he tells me that I will be teaching a class on metering and grounds to go along with the dirt box. What?!?! eeekkk. Folks let me remind you that I have a little less than 2 years in this department, I am one of about 5 females and I am blonde and polish. I will be teaching this class to the entire east region construction, not new guys but 30+ year guys who were probably working out here before I was born. Oh yes, and did I forget to mention I have to create this class?!?!
I will have some help from managers, and I am sure to learn a lot from this experience, but to say I am a little nervous about this would be a gross understatement. I tell this story just in case you have grown up in a household like mine, where volunteering to vacum was much better than being assigned toilet cleaning. Sometimes volunteering doesn't work out quite the way you planned, be cautious in your hand raising.
Thanks for posting your thoughts on your career as a signalman. I know you're probabaly really busy, but I hope that you're able to keep updating this blog as time goes on. A lot of blogs just die out quickly and I hope that doesn't become the case with you.
ReplyDeleteThe real-world perspective of the life of a railroad signal worker is pretty much something that is in the shadows. The engineers and conductors seem to get all the press when it comes to working for the railroad.
Also, I was considering pursuing a career change into this line of work. I've done a lot of research into it. One thing I was trying to get insider info on was the physical test. Specifically, the vision test. Can you tell exactly what they had you do to test for nearsighted/farsighted, color, and other factors? I can't see without my glasses, so if I can't wear them for tests I can't pass. Some colors also look a bit weird to me in certain lighting conditions. I'm hoping this won't turn out to be a deal-killer.
Hi Brian,
DeleteSorry I haven't updated this in a few weeks. I promise I will get it done this week, since I have some rare time off. I am sorry to tell you that they do have a color vision test. It is basicly a book that has similar colored blobs in it with numbers or paths through it. It is very similar to this http://colorvisiontesting.com/ishihara.htm if you can pass this test you should be fine, if not then you will be turned down. The good news is you can use your glasses for the vision portion of the test. If you plan on working on a construction crew, you will have to get a class A CDL, so check the regs in your state.
Good Luck and thanks for the compliments