Steve the Assiduous

Steve doesn't get much exposure on this blog, probably much to his relief, but I've got two about him today. First, he got a piece of mail today that I couldn't figure out at first, and once I did, it makes me laugh every time I think about it. It was a shiny nice brochure for "The Legacy". What is The Legacy, you might ask? The inside describes it as "A special neighborhood designed for individuals with memory challenges.” Yep, there I go again. :D Okay, no, "memory wards" are Not Funny, not at all. In fact, they are one of the most painful things I can think of. But see, Steve just got a brochure for a "special place" for "memory challenged" people, and I'm sorry, color me callous, but I'm still snickering. (Reality is, I am more "memory challenged" than he is these days.) Wait wait wait a minute, I am married to someone who is old enough to get brochures in the mail for old folks' homes?? :O

;)

Not too long ago I posted a random sampling of things I might be doing when I say I'm "working at home" or "nothing exciting" is going on. You already know what Kaylee does most days. So I thought I'd tell you what Steve does. Of course there is the easily explained, like flight instruction. There is also a computer end of things you don't hear much about. He works with a couple of companies as their "computer guy", setting things up, fixing problems, networking, servers, etc. One of his companies is a pretty large, many multi-million dollar corporation with several locations in a couple of different states, with a lot of computerized setups, security, etc., and he is the one responsible for it. There have been many mornings or nights he has had to run out there and get something working asap, including several times where an issue had to be resolved by the next day or payroll would not go out for anybody in the morning. Or an issue where multi-million dollar bids won't be able to be placed, or networks were down, or security was breached, or whatever. He'll come wandering home sometime after midnight, successfully. That's where he is going this afternoon, in fact, to get something hopefully up and running before Friday. Fortunately it is raining today, so he doesn't have to choose between that and airport business.

Airport business is a lot more than just hopping in an airplane and teaching for an hour and going home, though instructing isn't that easy either. There is of course the accounting end of it, which he mostly does by himself. The taxes-and you would not believe the sheer amount of constant tax forms involved in this stuff-the accounts receivable and payable. I try to help with billing once a month, and the banking runs, but otherwise he does it. There is managing the fuel and oil and pilot supplies for the airport. Knowing what to order and when and how much of it, not being out of what you need even for a day, and timing it all perfectly. Maintenance. This one exhausts me. A dozen airplanes all with things that have to be kept up on, fixed, looked at, moved from one place to another, routine maintenance interspersed with not-so-routine stuff, there is always a massive list of things in constant motion to do, and let me tell you, ordering parts for these things alone is a full time job for somebody. There is no easy place to do it, so you have to figure out the part, the part number, see who has it, who has it for the cheapest price because aviation parts are a fortune, order it properly and get it in, then know where to direct it. Managing the labor on the maintenance work-who is doing what work on what airplane for what and how, and keeping track of it all. Right now he is also planning an air show. We're having a show on July 4th at Kokomo, which includes getting waivered air space, meeting all the FAAs rules and regs, setting up advertising, acts, static displays, taking care of who is doing what as far as food, parking, extra restroom facilities, volunteers, and the legalities. This is one of three events, as he's got a small one at Sheridan and our annual BBQ Bash, too. He makes and takes phone calls and meetings with people to talk to them about learning to fly, selling our airports and our instruction. He did that last night until almost 10 p.m. in fact. He will help appraise and buy and sell airplanes once in awhile, and knows a good deal about that end of it too, sometimes just for friends, and sometimes even for court ordered situations. On top of these various things, there is always the big one: how to make a small aviation business stay afloat. How do you pay for all that fuel, the supplies, the parts, the labor and the insurance?? I am telling you, you would be amazed at what it takes.

There is one last thing I can think of at the moment, though I know I'm missing some. He sits in the office, and he stops and talks to whomever calls in or walks in or sits down to stay, and he can usually do so as if he has absolutely nothing else he needs to do but talk to that person right then. Sometimes people even poke at him about how he does 'nothing' but sit there and talk. Uh-huh. He also works from very early to 9-10 p.m., sometimes much later, up to 6-7 days a week. And while he is talking, off and on he's looking up a part number, or writing down a contact to call, or making a note to look up an AD, or figuring out when to send out a bill, or...

Steve is a very busy boy, and he juggles more literal full-time jobs and pressure than anyone I know. He doesn't complain, he still comes to his daughter's events and spends special time with her one-on-one, he still takes care of her sometimes so I can go do things that are just fun for me, and he doesn't lose perspective, even when things are a...serious challenge. With all that on his plate, I guess he's not ready for "The Legacy" and its "special neighborhood" for "memory challenged" people...just yet. ;)