Changing Gears

Changing gears is a term I first came to know as literally shifting a transmission from one gear to another. With the advent of automatic transmissions coming standard on most cars, the younger generations are probably lost on the root of the phrase. Even so, changing gears means something entirely different to me. You see, at 50 years of age, after a satisfying thirty year career in law enforcement, I "changed gears."

I still remember the 1999 Police/Fire Associations' Christmas Dinner. My wife and I sat next to a charming man who began to chat with us as easily as if we had known him forever. His name is Ted and to this day, is a dear friend.

Ted retired from the Fire Department and was young enough in mind and physique to take on another full-time job. He had always been interested in BIG machines like bulldozers, fire trucks, semi-tractor trailer rigs and so it seemed appropriate when he was lured to the call of the road as a Public Transit Operator for the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District.

He sang the praises of the district and of the job; my curiosity was instantly piqued. Ted invited me to ride along with him on one of his morning commuter buses and I did. The only term I can use to explain what happened next is "viral." You see, one ride is all it took and I was convinced, even though my retirement was three years in the future, that I would one day be a proud driver for Golden Gate Transit.

I was hired by the district in October of 2002, went through the twelve-week training class and graduated as a full-fledged bus driving cadet in January 2003, but by May, lay-offs began due to monies needed for required bridge retrofit projects and I knew that the axe would land and it wasn't a matter of if, it was a matter of when.

Our eldest daughter was to be wed at the end of May, our son was at San Jose State and our youngest daughter was at Sacramento State. The thought of losing my job was tough because I needed the paycheck to balance the lives of my family. So, with great reluctance, I resigned from the district and went to work for Sonoma County Transit. What's so interesting about these two transit entities are that I left the best job ever and took on the worst job I have ever had.

The three years at Sonoma County Transit were a desert experience for me: dry, unhappy, unfulfilling, draining ... and many other negatives. I might blog about that sometime but for now, I choose to not dwell on the mundane as life is too short.

In January of 2006, I received a call from one of the district managers, informing me that Golden Gate was to resume hiring and asked if I would be interested in getting my job back. Is the Pope Catholic? Heck yeah I wanted my job back. The rub was that I would have to re-apply, re-test and if hired, go through another entire twelve-week training course.

I would have done it even if I had to stand on my head for twelve weeks because to me, Golden Gate was the promised land and I was about to escape the shackles of Sonoma County Transit.

And so it was, in May 2006, I was re-hired by the district and once more resumed the "best job I have ever had."

Seven years' worth of experience, stories, vignettes, and so on have transpired and much has been forgotten. I have been proded by many to use my gift of writing to share my life with others but until now, I haven't found a forum or medium suitable for the on-going chronicle of my life: that is until I found BLOGGER.

So here goes ... I hope you all enjoy reading and commenting as much as I have fun composing and posting. And why the name: Sonomarinsco? Because my buses drive through Sonoma, Marin and San Francisco counties. Clever eh? I thought so.

Ciao