Yes, I am around.. just mostly lurking.  [;)]

The company is pretty good... I really like my job.  The only drawback to my position is the hours.  I worked 8a-12p yesterday and then went back in again from 10p-2:30am for a retrofit.  Split shifts and night work crop up at a moment's notice and you have to be flexible to provide for "the needs of the switch."  ::wry grin::

Don't forget to get in on your employee cell phone plan.  [:D]

As for firearms... well... this IS Kentucky and it's very good ol' boy.  

Larry, trust me..... is your Nortel phone $5 a month?  The employee plan is worth it!!  

I use my work phone for all local and incoming long distance and use my personal phone for the free outgoing long distance.  

Oh!  And I'm closing on my new house on November 8th.  I found a 1,980 sq ft stone ranch with a basement on 3.1 acres less than 6 miles from work and about 2 miles from my momma.  It hasn't been redecorated since the '70s but that's one of my hobbies... interior design.  It has some great features already existing.... fully cedar-lined closets and a built in solid cherry wood hutch in the dining room.  

I've been buying plants like mad, too.  This is the time of year to buy plants since most nurseries are trying to dump them and slash prices 50-75%.  It killed me to leave the gardens I'd been working on and adding to for five years back in Virginia.

I'll stop blathering on now.... LOL  Glad things are working out for you! [:)]