...which is today.
Yesterday was my final day at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where I have been employed for the past five years. The feelings of separation did not take hold until I walked my way to the West Lot and through a turnstile I could never go through again, unless I was employed or a ghost. Initially, I had been putting those feelings aside for as long as possible so that the transition from the lab to unemployed to employed by First5LA would be smooth. Mission somewhat accomplished.
I'm not really prepared to provide a complete "retrospective" or a postmortem yet, as I'm a little preoccupied. A couple of days ago, my home PC was struck hard by a trojan/malware that some 30-something, geeky, virgin, who lives in the moldy basement of his step-mother's house, that is decorated with anime and Sport Illustrated Swimsuit model posters that he pretends are all his girlfriends, hacker made. As a result, I've been up before dawn, formatting and reinstalling Windows XP... now I'm downloading and installing all the applications I'm used to using... I'm four hours into the campaign and I'd like to meet the guy who designed the "Vundo" virus, so I can kick him in his mouth.
Ranting aside, I do have a good blog post in me regarding the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. It will probably be rather verbose, funny, and maybe have some pictures. But it will be entertaining.
Speaking of pictures, this is an excellent time to share a few shots from my farewell party at the lab. I'm not going to put up images of all the people that were there because some of the ladies will be upset that they didn't approve the images prior to publication (they hate how they look in pictures) and some of the men may have outstanding warrants in other states.
The party was well attended - I'm guessing about twenty people showed up to say good-bye. Personally, I would have been happy if five people showed up, so twenty was impressive (and with all the sincerity possible, moving for me). Those people represented friendships and working relationships I worked very hard to establish in my five years of service. Those people contributed to my development as a professional, so I'm well aware of my debt to each one of them (except Govind Deshpande - he owes me lunch).
The party was MC'd by a WWII veteran and general nice guy, Robert Chandler. Bob delivered some funny lines and expressed his respect for me - "When I first met Adrian, we spoke about World War II. After our conversation, I discovered he knew more about World War II than I did. And I was in the damn war!" He spoke about my work with the youth of L.A. and how important an organization First5LA happened to be. He then did me the honor of a salute -
Usually the man salutes me with his left hand because "...that's how they do it in Japan... I think. I'm not sure what side I fought on now." It was an honor to be saluted by a man who saw war at Iwo Jima while serving in the U.S. Navy. Bob's life is a very interesting one, so if you ever run across this salty ex-sailor, ask him about his history and be prepared to be amazed. Someone should write a book and not titled it "Old Man and the Sea." That's been done already.
After Bob wrapped up his routine, Dr. Moustafa Chahine spoke to the room. He explained how I helped him and the AIRS Project navigate through what is a cumbersome information release process at JPL. For those not clear about what that means, I'll give a simple explanation - information regarding spacecraft and science produced at the lab must go through a review process to make sure the lab is not releasing "sensitive" material. Not secret stuff, but the kind of information that could help a competitor (and a terrorist, if you want to get down to detail) or simply freak the public out.
For instance, some of the missions JPL operates involve spacecraft that use plutonium for power purposes. Consider the impact that piece of information would have on a neighborhood where a spacecraft is being launched nearby. "What if it explodes? Will my baby be born with three arms?" No... but you can see where wild speculation could lead someone.
So, take it from me, there's a lot of regulations controlling information at the lab and everyone is required to follow them. Imagine the delays. Now understand that a project needs to publish information in order to generate money to support itself. NASA doesn't just throw money at its research centers, so researchers have to get their own money at times - and the only way to do that is to show what they have been working on and how cool it is. That kind of communication has to be approved by my former office. So again, imagine the delays in having to get everything reviewed and the urgency associated with "publish or perish."
"Mous" spoke to that and expressed his gratitude for my hard work in moving his project's information through. His project being the Atmospheric Infrared Sounder or AIRS, for short. Now, I've forgotten to explain who Mous is. I'll explain this in my own terms first - to me, and many others, he's a JPL legend. He's one of those guys you initially here about, over and over again from different people... and then you meet him. The only thing you want to do is listen to what he has to say.
"That's Mous to me."
This is what other people think about him -
He [Mous] was awarded the NASA Medal for Exceptional Scientific Achievements in 1969, and the NASA Outstanding Leadership Medal in 1984. In 1989, he received the William T. Pecora Award from NASA and the U.S. Department of the Interior, in 1991 he received the Jule G. Charney Award of the American Meteorological Society. In 1993 he received the Losey Atmospheric Sciences Award of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) and in 2000 he received the NASA Exceptional Achievement Medal. In 2002 he will be receiving the William Nordberg Medal in space science from the international Committee on Space Research (COSPAR). - Dr. Moustafa Chahine Bio
In case you're wondering, those awards are not just given out liberally. They are absolutely earned.
It was a tremendous honor to have such a person tell a room full of my peers, that I did good things at the lab. Tremendous. At this moment, I can't think of a more prestigious professional honor I have received. To top that honor off, Mous presented me with a physical representation of his current project mantra -
"Always Make Progress." In life, there are times where one will be struck or motivated by words. I love words. I live words everyday. When I heard these words spoken by Tom Pagano, AIRS Project Manager, at the five year anniversary of AIRS spaceflight, as he detailed Mous' use of those words for the AIRS Science Team, I was struck. The message behind those words is very deep and should speak to anyone who is goal oriented. My dad used similar words in my upbringing as well.
This will be the first item that will be placed in my new office. Thank you, Mous.
Josette Bellan, a senior research scientist (read: big leaguer) also spoke about how I aided her in the process and how I would be missed. Josette is a brilliant and sweet woman and an avid opera fan. She doesn't care too much for Carmen, by Bizet though, but that's okay. I forgive her. She has a Masters and a P.H.D. from Princeton... she wins.
Angela Smythe, who I had a wonderful relationship with, was very complimentary of me. She works as the AIRS Project secretary. Initially, I didn't know what to make of her, but after she quoted Animal House in an email, I knew we'd be fast friends. I will miss her sense of humor and her honesty. I'll miss that entire project... no one was nicer to me than the AIRS staff.
The presentation portion of the event wound down as people came and went. I got to shake hands and give hugs to people I'll undoubtedly miss. I got to express myself "I won't miss the job, but I will miss the people," and managed to get my Section Manager to cringe in horror. But most importantly, I got to see the results of all my hard work. Those results are not in your paycheck, nor do they hang on your walls, they appear in front of you and say thank you. That's success.
Which brings me to my final picture. After a great lunch with Tom (and Antonio) Pagano, Ed Olsen, and Angela of AIRS the Monday after my farewell party, they presented me with this (click image to see full size):
A very generous gesture from a very classy group of people. Thank you again, AIRS.
Thank you Krystal, Kathy, Adria, Matt, Mous, Angela, Susan, Susanne, Mickey, Dave, Susan H., Barbara, Kay, Lora, Mary Sue, Donna, Thomas, Tom P., Nelson, Mary Y., Michael G., Mary Beth, Karen, Govind, Bill, Petra, Sarath, Sumith, Jason K., Venkat, John C., Paul, Witold, Tibor, and everyone else I've had the chance to work with.... and if I forgot your name, you can complain via the Shoutbox or Comments below.
What's on the horizon? I've got to get my new suits tailored; buy shirts and ties and shoes and belts; and a new cell phone. A new career awaits.
