THE BOLT BLOG

Dreams

Do you ever wonder how one can cook a ribeye steak with a nice char on it and a perfect red interior from end-to-end? If you figure it out, let me know.

This obsession with ribeye started way back when my mom started letting me in the kitchen. She had only one rule for me – I was not allowed to eat the cookie dough. But I could fry, bake, and grill all I wanted. She did not have to worry about fixing meals any longer. Some of you know that I grew up in Coldwater. In Comanche County, you ate anything that moved or grew. Armadillos were just starting to show up in Coldwater when I moved to Pratt. I would have loved to try cooking one of them, but I’m pretty sure that my mom would have vetoed that escapade. No recipe has ever been good enough for me. Changing it and making it better has been my obsession. We all know that change is good for the soul. My dream was to be a James Beard award-winning chef.

Dreams. Everyone has them, but not everyone achieves them. Why is that?
Believe it or not, many people never even voice their dreams, let alone create an actual plan to accomplish them.

Going for it

Do you, as an employee of Stanion Wholesale Electric Co., have dreams? When I started with this company back in 1986, after getting laid off from the oilfield, I had no idea if Stanion was the right choice for me. I started working in the Pratt branch part-time in 1984 while attending Pratt Community College, but I never finished college. About a year later, I opened my mouth and told the Pratt branch manager that I was going to apply for the Junction City Assistant Manager’s job, and I asked him what he thought of that idea. He told me that, if that job was something I was interested in, I should apply. Let’s just say that a clash of personalities kept me from getting that job, fortunately.

From Pratt, I moved east to the Chanute branch in July of 1988 to see if I could help make a positive contribution there. The next stop on my journey was a transfer to the Olathe branch in 1990. After Olathe, I wanted to go out west to Dodge City in 1993. But McPherson is where I landed.

Cybersecurity is a growing concern in our nation. So much so that the Department of Homeland Security has an entire division devoted to cybersecurity, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). CISA was created to reduce cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure vulnerabilities in the U.S. The organization works with businesses, communities and governments to bolster the country’s defenses in key sectors, making them more resilient to cyber and physical threats.

How hot is it?

It's that time of year again, a time where we can pretty much expect heat waves and record temperatures. While many of us welcome the warmer weather, getting overheated on the job is no fun at all. To avoid any heat related incidents, here are a few tips that you can follow to stay safe on hot days:

June is National Safety Month, and here at Stanion Wholesale Electric, we put a little extra emphasis on our safety protocols. Each month, the company has at least one safety training topic. Each employee completes a short safety training course online, and sometimes there are hands-on safety modules. For instance, employees will practice how to properly and safely use a wire cutting machine, change a propane tank, or climb up and down a ladder. Employees are required to complete hands-on trainings that are relevant to their individual positions. They are also required to complete monthly online renewal trainings for standard topics that apply to our company.

“I’m fine, thank you. How are you?” We regularly reply in this manner even though we are feeling something other than fine! This is a response that hides how we really are and might prevent helpful communication before it starts. I suffer from ADHD, anxiety, and depression, and I’m not always fine. Sometimes people don't believe me when I tell them because I’m always smiling and joking. I struggle, and I understand it. I strive my best to regulate my moods. Most days I am strong, however, every now and then I break. So, in case you see me very quiet, I'm not being rude, I'm not mad at you, you are not bothering me, I may simply want a minute to myself. In case you haven't heard, it's okay to not be okay. Please, tell someone you're not okay. (It's okay, I promise.) Mental health conditions are treatable, and by telling others and showing compassion, we can improve (and perhaps even save) lives!

Just like music and fashion, all good things come full circle. We change to improve what we already have, and sometimes we change just for the sake of change. Sometimes this journey takes us back to where we started, but with a greater appreciation for what we already had. From the A19 incandescent, to compact fluorescent, to the LED equivalent of everything, the look of the lamp became stranger every year. Interesting but not attractive. The new CorePro Glass LED HID lamp is another example of the industry moving back to the familiar, to what worked, yet maintaining all the advancements in performance without the visual distractions of its successor, the LED HID equivalent corn cob.

New Day and New Excitement

How many of you recall your first day at a new company? I do—sweaty palms, dry mouth, the feeling of uncertainty welling up inside of me as I mentally sparred with the temptation of knowing my vehicle was only 14 steps away and it’s not too late to change my mind. But my nerves weren’t limited to the typical first day jitters.

Supply Shortages

Over the past two years, we have seen our economy shut down. Some of us became home-schoolers or remote workers. We have seen firsthand as our customers and suppliers have struggled to obtain materials. We also experienced challenges that my grandparents lived through and often spoke of: supply shortages. I never gave supply shortages much thought prior to COVID-19. I had only heard about war rations on things like tires and sugar. That is until I experienced it firsthand in 2020 while trying to buy three-gallon jugs of water for formula. I thought a certain retail institution was going to call security and have me removed from the store for such an outrageous attempt.

How to become a solar installer?

There are multiple paths to becoming a solar photovoltaic (PV) installer, or PV installer. These workers typically need a high school diploma, but some take courses at a technical school or community college; they also receive on-the-job training lasting up to 1 year. Some PV installers learn to install panels as part of an apprenticeship.

What solar system size works for my business or home?

The system cost of solar PV can vary by energy profile and budget. Hard costs like material and labor are typically assessed in cost per rated watt. Solar modules and inverters are also rated and priced by wattage. For consistency, solar is sized by the DC rated capacity of the array. Local net metering interconnection standards will often set a maximum system size by utility customer class, i.e. 15kW residential, 100kW commercial for Kansas Investor Owned Utilities, 200kW commercial and 25kW residential for some municipal utilities and cooperatives.