Verse 3 - Hello Heidelberg!! Welcome to the real world.

This post is a continuation of The Bowery Station Story.

Graduating Champlain I was fortunate enough to immediately land a job with a tech firm that did contract work with the Army known as Vermont Systems, Inc. (An outstanding company I might add... and one that is the essence of true American capitalism... driven by creative individuals who out worked any competition!  I learned a lot about going the distance in customer service and dedication from the gang at VSI.)

In that job I traveled three weeks a month, found myself working 60 hrs a week on various military installations, and all for only about half of what I had previously been making taking pictures of Santa Clause.  I suppose that defines progress, right?  Regardless, the job did take me, and us, to Europe.  There I met a few folks that wanted to hire me directly for the Army, working out of Germany.  Who could have imagined... something that never could have happened had I stuck with the golf...and skiing...and odd jobs.  Could I possibly leave the town where I had gone to Grade school, High School, and multiple Colleges all within a mile of each other for a job overseas??  Could we leave family and lifelong friends for an experience of different cultures and travel?
Mom would get postcards, we bolted.

My job in Germany was based out of Heidelberg, but I traveled to most every Army post in Europe training folks on a proprietary software developed by my former employer VSI in VT.  Lisa joined me, and headed on down to the DoD schools to find employment.  They were very excited to discuss her employment...until they found out we weren't married.  Sorry, but unless we tied the knot, there was very little chance they could work her into a slot in the DoD school system.  We didn't feel it was the most romantic and sentimental reason to get hitched, so Lisa took a teaching position at the University of Maryland located just off post, and even did some online instructing.

Conveniently, after a year or so, a contract opened up for a position to join me in my efforts to deploy the program I was working with at the time.  Lisa applied, and was awarded the contract and suddenly we were both on the road together, working hand in hand at the same task for the Department of Defense.

So then, as more recently with Bowery Station, people frequently asked, "How can you live, work and travel together 24/7?"  Amazingly, we did quite well.  For some reason, we found a good synergy, and our strengths were compliments to the other's faults... well in other words, Lisa covered my ass.  We did quite well, where other couples may have disintegrated.  That was quite telling, and in the long run...may have started the story of the BS that is Bowery Station, or should I say... gave us the confidence that we could take on such an endeavor.

We traveled and we worked.  When we weren't traveling for work, we were traveling for pleasure.  It was a great couple of years...at a time when the borders were being erased and the EU was becoming a reality.   We were there for the advent of the Euro...one day we were using Deutschmark and Lira, and the next we would go to an ATM and out popped Euros.  Ryan Air ruled with low cost flights around Europe, and we were fortunate enough to get to the hometowns of most of our immigrant grandfolks....to say we had a great time would be the understatement of a lifetime.

But as all good things must come to an end, Lisa's contract was up, we missed our family and friends, and we found ourselves yearning for the good ol' US of A.  So we decided it was time to head back across the pond and see what awaited us there.

Our new found exploratory spirit begged us of the question..."But where too?"  Should we return to VT, and the freezing cold we always wished to escape...or...should we head to the Florida Keys and spend our vacations visiting the frozen north. After taking about a beer to think about these options, we decided.... Key West...here we come.

Stay tuned as The Bowery Station Story unfolds in our next episode.... The Move to Key West and Gardi's Internet Cafe!