What a day! Due to scheduling of everyone concerned, all our visits here in Winter Park happened on the same day. Yesterday. Although this did not diminish in any way the delight we had in seeing friends from the past, it did make for a busy day.
In the morning we met up with Phil. I had worked with Phil in a company that repaired large gas and steam turbines. I managed the northeast and he the southeast. Phil met us at our hotel in the morning for coffee. Had to cut a bit short due to his having a business meeting that involved a three hour drive from Winter Park. Phil is now in charge of commercial operations of a company purchased by his company. I always felt that Phil was destined to do great things in his career.
Next, we met my former commanding officer from the Air Force, Gene. It had been some fifty years since I had seen him. What a wonderful time we had with Gene and his wife Loni. They have made a great life together. Gene taught engineering for many years after he left the Air Force. They raised very accomplished children and now have a very active life in Florida. I got so very involved with the conversation we were having that I neglected to take a photo. I found out that Gene was instrumental in the design of Launch Pad 39 at Cape Kennedy.
That afternoon Tina and I got together with an old client of mine, Subhash, and his wife Madhu. They lived near us in Connecticut before they moved to Florida to be near their son and grandchildren. After cocktails at their lovely home, we went to dinner at a Turkish restaurant in Winter Park. Again, a lovely evening. This time I managed a photo:
Exhausted, Tina and I went back to our hotel and crashed. This has been, indeed, a remarkable and wonderful day, words cannot express the delight I experienced this remarkable day.
Backpacking Bill 