Service Learning Week 1 - Getting everything in place

Week 1 - Getting everything in place

At the beginning of this week I thought I was doomed because my service opportunity was agreed upon but the details weren't really fleshed out. A few text messages with my friend and everything was locked down though. Monterey Peninsula College has lots of work to do setting up new equipment and software to get ready for the fall. I'll try to be there once a week because it is a long drive to get there from my house. When Saturday is not an option for my service learning partner then I can take time off work. Overall this is great though and basically what I have been doing for many years. Selecting equipment, purchasing it, installing it, learning it, training others on it, and integrating it into peoples work flows is awesome. Adding new capabilities to this community college will have a long lasting impact on the community. 

With the stress of figuring out my service opportunity melting away into excitement of machinery there was another interesting aspect of this weeks assignments. The other fun assignment I had was to write about the history of my family and technology.  To do this I went to my parents house and sat out on their patio with them. We started at the beginning with my dads first computer, through our first e-mail, and up to my collection of manufacturing robots. It was a really great experience. Combined with our weekly reading though it made me really appreciate my life. I have had a uniquely consistent opportunity to learn and use high end technologies before most people know they exist. This has shaped me as a person and I hope to continue to share the skills I have collected with others.