[PRCo] Re: Emailing: DSC_0123_edited-1, DSC_0116_edited-1, DSC_0117_edited-1, DSC_0118_edited-1, DSC_0119_edited-1, DSC_0120_edited-1, DSC_0121_edited-1

Mon Sep 12 23:46:25 EDT 2011

> Subject: [PRCo] Re: Emailing: DSC_0123_edited-1, DSC_0116_edited-1, DSC_0117_edited-1, DSC_0118_edited-1, DSC_0119_edited-1, DSC_0120_edited-1, DSC_0121_edited-1
> From: fwschneider at comcast.net
> Date: Sat, 10 Sep 2011 14:45:17 -0400
> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementix.org
> 
> My major was in the natural sciences ---- geology. I was married and with child when I graduated from college and you don't go anywhere in the natural sciences (geo., chem, bio, physics, etc.) without at least a masters degree and preferably a doctorate. My choices were a roving live looking for index fossils with an oil company or teaching secondary school earth science. I tried the latter. I had a principal who loved making himself look good at the expense of his faculty ... the kind of guy who would call in all his faculty on Friday afternoon and tell them he mailed letters to all the parents yesterday announcing an open house on Sunday. "You will all be here. I don't care if your daughter is getting married. No excuses." 
> 
> I ended up spending 31 years in labor statistics (and supervision and management) for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania ... a career that I loved. I left as the federal government was changing the financing rules and deciding they wanted to keep all the money in Washington. But the military (3 years) and the teaching (2 years) all worked into the same pension. I left with 36 years. 
> 
> I figured that about 1 person in 10 gets up on Monday and loves going to work. For most of that time I did. It was worth changing! 
> 
> It took me a while Ray to get started. I was one of those lazy kids in high school. Most of my friends were outside of the school. 
> 
> In August 1960 I bumped into a London subway guard who wanted to talk about the U. S. civil war. My God, that man knew more about it than I was ever taught in high school. (Secret? He was trained in a photo school in New York City and couldn't find a photo job in London so he worked for London Transport. I think he also had a secret interest in war history.) Well, I went back to army base and took two American History courses through the University of Maryland. Discovered I could handle college level work. 
> 
> Since then I have spent a lot of time taking courses in German and French. At this point there are four colleges that have seen me. Nothing above a BS was required for my work but the languages were useful for vacations. I never loved guided tours but I always felt the best way to see a country was to do it on your own ... to somehow blunder through it and meet people. Beats the hell out of only knowing that the American in front of you on the tour bus needs a haircut. 
> 
> I'm still going to school. I wanted to take a course in art history to put into perspective all those things in art museums I've seen in Rome, Florence, Berlin, London, New York. A retired art teacher suggested a good option was the very college that awarded me my degree 44 years ago. Well, Art 103 was over filled but the art department chairman and the professor in that class agreed that I could audit it if I wanted .... no tuition, no tests, no credit, no opening my mouth in class. Yesterday I was chatting with the prof after class ... turns out she has two kids 4 and 5. I told her that my great grandchildren were 3 and 4. She said, "Please, call me Amelia." 
> 
> Although I never worked in railroad management, I did have 118 months of employment under railroad retirement board coverage at the Strasburg as a part-time fireman, hostler and brakeman. The firing probably adds up to 6,000 miles. I'm not sure that I would even want to think about spending how summer days behind a 400 degree boiler at my age but in my 20s it was fun. 
> 
> I better go upstairs and read the chapter on Greek Art for Monday. 
> 
> 
> John might have come a little closer but I will let him tell his story. 
> 
> 

My father had told me to "stop playing with trolleys because you'll never be able to make a living at it".  Ended up with an Accounting degree from Point Park College in Pittsburgh.  Along with way went from destitute to turning a profit in college by spending last two summers driving buses for Chicago Transit Authority.  It was a blast.  Wasn't trolleys, but close.

Initially played the accounting card, and first  job was an auditor for federal government.  But had also interviewed at PAT.  After about a half hour, Geissenheimer said that PAT had a job freeze but would I mind if he sent my resume to PennDOT?  I said 'sure' - (what did I know - I was just another clueless young kid).  I had been working as an auditor for feds for 5-6 months when received a job offer at Penndot (was told that Agnus had flooded the civil service computers, which is why the recent flood has brought back memories).  Also that Accounting was not a qualification for Planning Analyst (which was later changed to Mass Transit Analyst), even though it would involve review of applications for state grants.  Ah, the workings of the bureaucracy.       

So the life changing decision in fall of 1972 was whether to continue working as an auditor with feds, or quit and take a public transit related job with state.   That's how I took the fork in the road that led to dealing with free transit for seniors program and rail safety oversight.

Guess I might as well throw in two other forks in the road.  I was in the Marine Reserves in early 1970s.  Geissenheimer mentioned that I should apply for state OCS program.  Only later did I discover that he was recruiting - Harold was the assistant commandant of the school.  
Then several years later there was a phone call from National Guard - would I be interested in taking command of a new transportation detachment - they didn't have any available transportation officers, but at least I worked for PennDOT.  So that's how I became a Transportation Corps officer, which put me on the path to meeting my wife.  And along the way became a budget officer in a transportation unit. 

Suspect the above is what Fred meant by comng a bit closer.  It was all dumb luck.

Cheers
John

> 
> 
> On Sep 10, 2011, at 11:59 AM, Ray wrote:
> 
> > Hel= lo. Just out of curiosity, may I ask what you guys majored in and
> > whatfield you ended up in?
> > Ray On 09/10/11, John Swindler<j_swindler at hotmail.com= >wrote: 
> > 
> > Sometime about a decade ago, about a dozen o= f us were in Fred's family
> > room. Out of curiousity, we surveyed what perce= ntage actually worked in
> > their undergraduate field. Rich was about the onl= y exception - went to
> > pre-med. Just about everyone else ended up working i= n a different field
> > than their undergraduate degree. 
> > 
> > Rich is = one of those persons that you can learn a lot be just listening. I
> > also en= joy his sense of humor. 
> > 
> > Cheers
> > John 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> >> Subject: [PRCo] Re: Emailing: DSC_0123_edit= ed-1, DSC_0116_edited-1,
> > DSC_0117_edited-1, DSC_0118_edited-1, DSC_0119_edi= ted-1,
> > DSC_0120_edited-1,DSC_0121_edited-1
> >> From: fwschne= ider at comcast.net[1]
> >> Date: Sat, 10 Sep 2011 10:17:01 -0400
> > &= gt; To: pittsburgh-railways at dementix.org[2]
> >>> For those who don't know Rich ..
> >> Fred got to know him whe= n he was working on an undergraduate degree at
> > Franklin and Marshall Colleg= e in Lancaster PA. He finished up at one of
> > thefine schools in Boston and = went on for an MD and residency in Boston. I
> > caught up with him again when = he was back in private practice in Allentown
> > in the 1980s. He later worked = at Bryn Mawr Hospital and now at Einstein in
> > Philly. He is one of those doc= tors that seems to love his work so much
> > thatevery time I ask him, "W= hen are you retiring?" he gives me a date way
> > off in the future. I thi= nk his real love was the trolleys of Philadelphia
> > and Boston and Allentown,= which is a natural consequence of living there
> > andknowing the guys there.= 
> >> 
> >> His connection to Pittsburgh? Well, his son went thr= ough the Pittsburgh
> > Presbyterian Seminiary. I think all those visits to see= Steve made him one
> > of us. His many years of friendship with Bob Dietrich, = the other expat
> > Pittsburgher probably also helped. 
> >> 
> >> If= the photo is reduced, which never happens when I attach something, the
> > gra= y haired man in the green shirt is Rich.
> >> 
> >> 
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> >> 
> >> 
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> > h-railways/ecartCwxGe0[4]
> >> 
> >> 
> >> 
> > =09=09 = =09 =09=09 
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > --- Links ---
> > 1 3D"mailto:fwschneider at comcast.net"
> > 2 3D"mailto:pittsburgh-railways at dementi=
> > 3 3D"http://lists.dementix.org/files/pitts=
> > 4 3D"http://lists.dementix.org/files/pittsburgh-railwa=
> > 
> 
> 
> 