Of This and That

Goodwill – My husband’s had an interesting career at Goodwill of Southwestern Pennsylvania. When he started there seven years ago he was a teacher of deaf adults, helping them acquire basic educational skills in pursuit of gainful employment. After the Commonwealth cut the funds for the educational program Bill took a position of employment specialist, actively working with Pittsburgh companies and deaf adults to find good job opportunities. Although the vast majority of his deaf clients have other physical and/or mental health issues, sometimes the only disability is the inability to hear, or in a couple of cases, neither to hear nor see.

One of his most successful placements was for a deaf and blind man in his fifties from England; the man’s wife was deaf also but they had a hearing son. Bill was able to find him a job in a machine factory assembling anti-static components that fit inside engines. Charles became the machinists’ union’s first deaf/blind member in the Pittsburgh area.

Part of Bill’s job is to work with the deaf clients at their new jobs until he’s helped them and their managers establish come type of communication process. Most of time he also learns their jobs in order to teach them how to do it. He’s been a dishwasher in a corporate cafeteria, a grocery stock clerk quite a few times, a janitor in the county courthouse, a busboy at a mall food court, a food preparer at the local community coller, a waiter at one casino and a cleaner at another, a data entry clerk at several corporations downtown and a truck driver! It will be interesting to see what his resume will look like when he starts to look for employment in Jacksonville.

Weather – Today is a beautiful fall day in Pittsburgh and there are quite a few boats out on the river. For whatever reason, no one seems to be in a hurry and are placidly cruising by. The dragon boats were out practicing this morning and a kayaker just paddled by. But it’s been a rather wet summer and I never use to think much about the inconvenience of rain until most mornings when I trudge to my car through a shower. Integral garages are on my list of things I miss! We’ve also been watching the Jacksonville weather and it seems to not get the wind and rain of the hurricanes very often. I hope that when we begin our two-day drive south at the end of October we won’t run into bad weather; Bill will be towing a small U-Haul behind his Focus.

Wine – I’ve never been a fan of hard liquor or beer, but I do appreciate a good wine. Until we started boating six years ago, though, I drank maybe one glass a week. For some reason, though it’s said that boating and drinking don’t mix…they really do! At least when we’re sitting out on the dock enjoying a nice evening. Bill made a very nice wooden wine rack that sits neatly under the entertainment center in the salon, and it holds five bottles. Currently it holds several from a local winery called Winfield Winery, not too far from Concordia Lutheran Ministries, where Bill is on the board of directors. I think it’s time for a glass!