Tag: japanfalone

Dear Joe…….

Published on by Brian FarnoLeave a comment

IMG_2082

Well, Friday, March 28, 2014 marked the end of an era here at EXAIR.  It was the official last day of Joe Panfalone, @EXAIR_JP, #DearJoe.  I know Joe has blogged about his retirement, but in case you didn’t know, he has been with EXAIR for 19 years straight.   That is almost longer than Professor Penurious’ Co-Op has been alive.

When I first started here at EXAIR four years ago Joe would always tell me, just remember kid, I voted for you.  The trick is he wouldn’t say whether he voted to hire me or not to hire me, just that he voted.   I have a feeling that I was to Joe, like Dennis the Menace was to Mr. Wilson.

No matter what the question or what he was doing, I wanted to know.  Joe was more than willing to tolerate all the questions, too. It’s almost like he has had kids before and that his patience has been tried before.  No matter what would happen, he would just keep going back to the fact that he voted for me.

Joe hasn’t only taught me a lot about applications, theory behind product, and how to skirt around HR, he has taught me how to be a better manager, not to sweat the small stuff, and that when you find something good you better hold on to it for dear life.

One of the many things Joe is known for around here is his extensive palate; in other words, he’ll eat anything.  Even my wife knows that if we have some leftovers or cake that we don’t want to eat ourselves, just send it in and Joe will eat it.  He even returns Tupperware clean as a whistle with a note saying “More Please”.

IMG_2080

The fact is, I am extremely excited to see Joe move on to the next chapter of his life.   I can only hope that it will be better than he has made all of ours.

One last thing, Joe did make the mistake of promising to meet up this Spring / Summer and help me teach my oldest daughter how to fish.  (Little does he know he’ll pretty much have to teach me, too!)

 

Thanks for everything Joe!

Brian Farno
Application Engineer
BrianFarno@EXAIR.com
@EXAIR_BF

Joe Will be Retiring Soon

Published on by Neal RakerLeave a comment

new paradigm ahead

As the title of my blog states, our long-time friend and colleague, Joe Panfalone will be retiring soon. And as the sign above indicates, that means a new paradigm awaits Joe and how he lives his life from now on. Instead of being awakened each day by a rude alarm clock to signal the beginning of his day, he will get up when he is darn good and ready! And instead of fighting the rush-hour traffic to get to and from work each day, he can leave to go wherever he wants, whenever he wants and however he wants, except maybe for those doctor appointments!

Joe isn’t quite ready for the old folks’ home though. He has plans to do some travelling, go camping, fishing and maybe even hiking with his rather new additions, the bionic knee and a left-handed machete! He has been working on getting his camping gear together over the last year or so. He is a great prepper. Some of the doomsday folks could take a lesson or two from him!

In all seriousness Joe, as you move on to add some new chapters to your already long book of life, it is my sincerest hope that you enjoy every minute of it in high spirits, good health and in the company of good friends and family.

Your young buddy.

Neal Raker
nealraker@exair.com

Office Rule #1

Published on by Leave a comment

Today I was smacked in the face with the reminder of many applications I have helped customers with over the years.  As I walked through the door into our lunch room I was hit in the face with a very strong odor. This is why Office Rule #1 is, “DO NOT microwave fish in a common area microwave.” The odor was microwaved fish.  Now it doesn’t matter who cooked the fish, all that mattered was it had not only worked its’ way through the kitchen but also the entire office and then it was being vented into our manufacturing area.   Needless to say, the force was strong with this one.   That is when I was reminded of the fume evacuation applications I have done through the years.

fume
Air Amplifier Removing Welding Fumes

If only we had a windows that opened, we could have used an EXAIR Super Air Amplifier to quickly and efficiently evacuated the air out of the kitchen area. I have helped many of my customers evacuate fumes from anything from a mining shafts to welding fumes. Using a small amount of compressed air the Super Air Amplifiers move large volumes of air. Super Air Amplifiers are also effective for moving large volumes of air for cooling and blow off applications.

Have a cooling, blowoff, or evacuation application? Call our application engineers and they will help you select the appropriate model air amplifier.

Joe Panfalone
Application Engineer
Phone (513) 671-3322
Fax (513) 671-3363
exair_jp

 

Farewell, So Long, Good-bye

Published on by Leave a comment

If any of you know the lyrics to Neil Diamond’s song “Farewell, So Long, Good-bye” you probably are in in your golden years or approaching them. I have reached the ripe old age of 66 and with much consternation, the question of retirement arises.

When you are young, you fantasize of all the things you will do in your retirement years. But, when that day comes, you may experience an epiphany. Your body is not able to endure the long drive to those far and distant places you wanted to travel to. Mountain climbing and hiking the Appalachian Trail is out of the question. Sleeping out in the cold damp nights makes your arthritis flare up and by now you have had some body part replaced which limits your flexibility.  So all those activities you planned to do after retirement when you were young, take on a new perspective when you are old. Conventional wisdom would say to retire and do what you can while you still can.

On the flip side, there is the decision of actually leaving your job. Being retired you have no job. That’s an unnerving feeling of helplessness. Even though you have set aside a sizeable nest egg, you are vulnerable to the winds of economic change. Most of all, it’s leaving your co-workers that you have made bonds with over the years.  Now that you have the time to play, they don’t. It takes me to mind when I was single and my buddies were married. Family commitments prevented them from engaging in the things we did together when we were all single.

Yes everyone promises to keep in touch but that eventually wanes. So after retirement a new social circle of friends has to be developed. The thought of joining all those old guys for morning coffee at the McDonald’s or Thursday night bingo has absolutely no appeal to me.

So why would anyone want to retire? That is the question facing me.  I love my job, the company I work for, and the people I work with. But, the fact is that time is running out to do the things that I have long desired.  I am not getting any younger and I need to do them while I am still capable.

So it is with much consternation, that I am announcing my retirement. I will miss being with you all.

my-camper1

At the end of the March I will be officially retired.  I am packing up the camper and the dog to start my travels across the country.  Along with this comes the end of an era of the #DearJoe Twitter feed.  @EXAIR_JP will be retired much like myself, so make sure you follow the rest of the EXAIR team, (@EXAIR, @EXAIR_DW, @EXAIR_RB, @EXAIR_BF, @EXAIR_KE, @EXAIR_LE, @EXAIR_NR, @ProfPenurious)  to stay up to date on EXAIR offerings as well as a small amount of humor.  Let’s face it, none of them are as funny as I am, but they do give me most of my material.

Joe Panfalone
Application Engineer
Phone (513) 671-3322
Fax (513) 671-3363
Web: www.exair.com
Twitter: EXAIR_JP