IT'S OFFICIAL

I am now a member of the IBEW local 520 in Austin Texas. Wow. The "getting organized" or inducted part of it was fairly painless. Lot's of forms to fill out and the focus of my organizers talk was one about brotherhood, how it's not just about a job, if you ain't working and need to feed your family, come see us, were brothers, we'll take care of you.
I like this notion, I'll buy into it until proven otherwise.
The guy that hooked me up with this job is going to petition his company to keep me on now that I'm in the fold...things continue to look up. Even if this short call I'm on doesn't turn into a regular call, there is a big demand for apprentices and I won't be out of work for more than a couple of days.
I am officially an I.J., or intermediate journeyman a 50%-er...this is an alternative to the regular apprentice program, which I can transfer into (and the school) after I get my credit in algebra...which I plan to do. When I do that, I am locked into a job for 4 years or until I turn out, which I always associated with a biker term, but turning out in the union has a much more pleasant connotation than the Hells Angels version, which, if I'm not mistaken, involves personal lubricants.
If I could find Neil Young's "Union Man" I'd be blasting it now.