THE OLD MACHINIST is a 79-year-old male, been married for 60 years, has three sons, and is a great-great-grandfather. He gave up on television thirty years ago. He recently gave up on NPR because he got tired of listening  to endless chin-music about the same old bad news that never seems to get better. He stays “informed” by reading the L.A. Times every day. He wonders why our nation has so many politicians and no statesmen.

THE OLD MACHINIST graduated from Excelsior High School in 1950.  His major accomplishment, other than enjoying Track and Football, was to graduate near the bottom his class of 700. After marriage at nineteen, he spent the next ten years finishing his growing up process which culminated  when he graduated from CSULB in 1961 with a BSc. degree in Physics. THE OLD MACHINIST forthrightly declares “none of the growing up and physics  degree would have been possible without the complete support and encouragement of my best friend-my wife”.

THE OLD MACHINIST is old enough to have accumulated many work and play interests. They include : (1) machinist , (2) laboratory technician, (3) Inertial Guidance Engineer, (4)  Laboratory Manager, (5) builder of railroad models, (6) mountain climber and instructor, (7) mentor to high school science students,(8) adult literacy tutor, (9) railroad museum machinist, (10) digitizing technician for historic railroad drawing collection, (11) model railroad show exhibitor, (12) and now, Blogger.

THE OLD MACHINIST  intends his Blog be an exposition of whatever interests him at Blog time. He will try to make the Posts interesting to potential readers without offending anyone except, of course, those he intends to offend. He states potential offendees will be drawn from the ample numbers of “stuffed shirts”, bigots, incompetent and/or venal politicians,  zealots of all persuasions,  “family values” proponents who cheat on their wives, and public figures who lie for money. He wants to assure the few persons not in the foregoing groups to rest easy. He says he can correctly identify the  members of the different groups using the secret formula given to him by his father. He states “I can tell the good guys from the bad guys”.

THE OLD MACHINIST has far too many interests to find the time to raise himself above dilitante status in most cases; he seems  interested in everything. That’s his big problem. He also admits to “over thinking the obvious” and thus not reaching “final conclusions” in his quest for knowledge. Oh well!