First of all, my wife passed the practical turnout test! One not-so-little victory, eh? (My fellow fans of Canadian dad rock will understand the reference. Maybe even those my fellow, unavoidably indoctrinated non-fans?) In any case they’re still several hundred on-the-job training hours (OJT) that need to be completed, and a State of Oregon boiler test, but the hardest part is over. Unfortunately, if you fail the turnout test, you have to defend yourself in front of the Junior Apprentice Training Council (JATC). Rather than having a standardized approach for allowing everyone multiple chances to retake it, nepotism and favoritism often gives way to discrimination. Avoiding all of that is a big win!

Speaking of pipefitting, the UA (United Association) has local union groups in Canada, and Mark Carney has repeatedly talked about the importance of the skilled trades (refreshing to see at least one influential liberal politician say so much). I would not be surprised at all if unemployed American UA pipefitters end up traveling to The Great White North to work there. Time will tell. I realize that the Supreme Court ruled against the tariffs, but it added little substantive certainty in an anything-but-certain economy, as last Friday, February 20th’s Marketplace episode illustrated in great depth.

A couple other quick things on my mind:

Speaking of Canada, Rush came out with some new promotional content and an interview. I must say, Geddy Lee mentioning that he’d be the J.Lo to Alex’s Beyonce had me dying and was NOT on my bingo card! Not to mention, the importance of good health, working out, and mastery all were themes o' the day. Both of the following are must-watches: www.youtube.com/watch www.youtube.com/watch

So, given the “good news first,” I thought it’d be a good throw back to 6 years ago today. My favorite live version of Phish’s “Everything’s Right” was performed February 23, 2020 www.youtube.com/watch It was Phish’s last show from the before times. Came up on YouTube, but been a while since I listened to it. What a great jam, all of it. A good reminder to live presently, and appreciate when things are right.