Open letter from machinist's wife

[PracticalMan]

By Kathy Deren

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It’s 6 a.m. and the wind chill is -45° F. As I watch you get ready for work, your gait is a little slower these days, and I have to talk a little louder because your hearing is not as good after being around loud machinery for more than 30 years. After you go, I settle down with my tea and peruse your latest CTE column. I always try to read them, because you discuss your career, the places you’ve gone and the marvels you’ve seen. I come across the line, “I can’t wait to get to work each day.”

Having been a part of your career, I would like to share some of my insights and experiences. Being the wife of an engineer is different. For one, engineers are a quirky bunch. Not bad quirky, but sometimes it takes patience and fortitude to be married to one. Life is never dull.

You display your technical side when explaining things to laypeople like me. For example, if I ask how a remote setup works, you speak in a language I call “techno-eeze,” which consists of high-tech terms that leave me glassy-eyed and mind-boggled. The question “Why don’t you get it?” can send some marriages to divorce court.

Being married to an engineer means never buying inferior products. For example, assembling a kitchen island from a lesser-quality manufacturer will always produce one screw that wasn’t machined right, which you will then modify to your satisfaction. In addition, home remodeling is not for the faint of heart, as it requires CAD drawings, product procurement, QC and, most of all, project management so it comes in under budget and before the deadline.

I’m like the Marines: I must adapt, overcome and innovate. While you traveled the world, I have held down and sometimes packed up the fort. I used to think I could avoid moving by not hanging the last picture on the wall. It didn’t work. I have juggled my own career, moved with our two children, then teenagers, to three states and handled all the moving arrangements myself.

In one particular instance, while you were traveling for work, I took the kids to a shopping mall in our new city. As I dealt with the moving blues and an argument between hyperactive teenagers, I became distracted and locked the car with the keys still in the ignition—and the motor running. Unfortunately, the spare key was tucked safely in your pocket, at 30,000 ' in the friendly skies.

Another time, I listened to the world news every night while you were in South Africa in 1990 because the U.S. government issued a warning not to go there to avoid possible attacks. I knew you’d go because of your dedication to your job. No matter where your job took you or how tired you were when you arrived safely home, you always had smiles, hugs and kisses for us.

Your travels have enabled me to travel as well, because of all the frequent flier miles. Among other memories, I have crossed the English Channel, seen castles in Scotland, had tea with a scientist in Manchester, England, and sunned by the pool in California while Raul served me breakfast.

Without quirky engineers, America wouldn’t be what it is today. Every day you go to work, helping keep manufacturing in the U.S. and helping our neighbors and friends keep their jobs. We have three grandsons and I notice at least two of them are interested in how things work and are made. Future engineers? I would be proud of them, just as I am proud of you and your accomplishments in the world of manufacturing.

Although it’s freezing outside and I don’t want you out there, I know you can’t wait to get to work today and I am fine with that.

About the Author: Kathy Deren is the wife of Mike Deren, a manufacturing engineer/project manager and a regular CTE contributor. He can be e-mailed at [email protected].

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[hanermo]

I agree with 3 ends.
The american (and other countries) machinist wife is usually a capable, persistent smart cookie.

In SA, most people are also smart, capable and street wise. Of all colours.
I have lots of experience, I grew up in africa speaking many languages. Many countries.

I appreciate engineers (many worked for me), and smart bosses.
I only ever have (had) smart bosses (and very few).

 

[metalwiddler]

I like the letter, she seems to be a good lady just making it work however possible like most of our families have to. I get lost in the thing that around our area Engineers and Machinists are two separate critters completely, most machinists wouldn't 'jet set' around the world where I suppose some engineers likely could/do given the proper job situation. For me the Engineer is a designer type person who likes to come up with fancy or different and sometimes downright odd ideas and ways to make a part or collection of parts work together and the Machinist takes that idea and turns it into something practical that given some tolerance and manufacturing style modifications can be produced in a functional and repeatable (or sometimes not) fashion. We do tend to "engineer" a lot of things on the fly based on need and experience but I don't consider myself one. I have seen in other countries like Australia that the terms seem to be used interchangeably as well.

 

[extropic]

A few days ago I read a thread starting with the same OP. That thread immediately turned south (pun intended) because some zealot took offence at the authors reference to civil unrest in South Africa in 1990. I just searched the forums to find that thread but found this (immaculately clean) one instead.

What happened to that thread?

True enough, the course it was taking was an embarrassment to me but now I'm left with a significant "Big Brother" feeling. I've seen threads closed (or locked), but sanitized?

 

[extropic]

duplicate post

 

[PeteM]

Have to agree with you -- better closed than disappeared.

 

[Zonko]

I like the letter, she seems to be a good lady just making it work however possible like most of our families have to. I get lost in the thing that around our area Engineers and Machinists are two separate critters completely, most machinists wouldn't 'jet set' around the world where I suppose some engineers likely could/do given the proper job situation. For me the Engineer is a designer type person who likes to come up with fancy or different and sometimes downright odd ideas and ways to make a part or collection of parts work together and the Machinist takes that idea and turns it into something practical that given some tolerance and manufacturing style modifications can be produced in a functional and repeatable (or sometimes not) fashion. We do tend to "engineer" a lot of things on the fly based on need and experience but I don't consider myself one. I have seen in other countries like Australia that the terms seem to be used interchangeably as well.

I personally think that it is better the old way. There was a time when there were no engineering studies at universities. The man was called an "art master" (German "Kunstmeister" ) or later an "engineer" who had proven that his competence went beyond craftsmanship and into highly specialized design. Men like Dr. Ernst Alban, a medical doctor turned mechanical engineer (just because "he could") and one of the fathers of the design which ultimately became the babcock/wilcox style watertube boiler.

However, engineer is a professional "trademark" these days and means "degreed" in most counties, how dull.

Regarding the keeping of order: I always think that deleting racist/unconstitutional/dishonorable/outright dangerous threads is a good thing.
A line has to be drawn and we all know that milacron hardly ever deletes stuff.

 

[Admin5]

True enough, the course it was taking was an embarrassment to me but now I'm left with a significant "Big Brother" feeling. I've seen threads closed (or locked), but sanitized?

Even with an assistant telling me what exactly needed deletion, it was simply too time consuming to edit out the worst parts, so most of the responses had to be scraped entirely. There is only so much time in the day.