Photo Progress of First NYC Jobsite

Hello everyone! I have been taking progress photos of my first New York City job site. I worked with the tools in the suburbs of New York City for the past 20 years. I am coming up on my one year anniversary of my job learning to become a CAD operator and engineer. It has been filled with lots of learning and new experiences. I have been asked to track the job through photographs. It requires me to also create drawings that reflect how the floor is truly piped out. My job feels somewhat stressful making sure I am just about perfect. This is almost impossible to do under extreme time constraints. I am learning and picking up my speed and more processes will come to me in time. I may get an opportunity to become a project manager in the future. It may seem like a better fit than an engineer. As for now, I work on my project and will do what is required. Here are some photos of the job site. It is a tech school in Brooklyn, New York. As of now, we are pouring the decks on the job. My job has been to: get the blueprints ready for submission, track them, fix and send back to engineering or to the guys in the field, take pictures of the progress, and build drawings to accurately show the drawings on the deck how they look in the photos. I work in a methodical manner and work to get each job done then move to the next one. Enjoy the photos from the job. I will speak to you all soon! Have a great Sunday! Cheers! Leslie M Jasper

My First NYC Jobsite Visit!

Hello everyone! I got to go to my first job site where I've got to work on blueprints for the past year. I went to our school job that is located in Brooklyn, New York City yesterday. I learned how to do autoCAD on this job at the office. I took photos of the C1 basement level. It was good to see a job site but glad to go back to the office. I enjoyed the different job on the site. I was tickled to put work boots on. I will write more about it this weekend. I am thinking about doing a movie trailer for Book Expo 2015 in New York City. I am talking with a company about it. I will give an update this weekend as well. Have a good night! Cheers! Leslie M Jasper

My Son Tom Plans to Follow My Footsteps and Become an Electrician

Hello everyone! I hope your weekend is going well? I told my son's friend, Gary, the news about my Union taking in new apprentices. He was interested and we spoke about the benefits of becoming a member. We discussed the pros and cons of being in my line of work. I told him to save his money for when times are bad. In addition, have a side hustle or a second work plan. There will be times when there is so much overtime, you will be exhausted from it. When a recession hits, you will be scrambling odd jobs just to put food on the table. The most alluring thing about the job is the great wage, even better overtime money, and the retirement package. However, the average electrician used to collect 18 checks before dying. It is a business that abuses your body and subjects you to harmful chemicals and dust. While having this chat, my son Tom decides that he wants to become an apprentice too. He has been studying to become an EMT then a paramedic. Somewhere along the way, his passion for it has fizzled. He thinks that this might be his career path. It is his choice to make. I did tell him that his choice is unique since not many sons decide to go into construction after having their mom in the business. I cannot think of one kid whose mom is in the business. I told him his journey would be unique since his coworkers will more than likely know me. They will either keep an eye on him or use it as an opportunity to tease him. Play with their phone and threaten to call mom if he screws up is one method of teasing. More than likely he cannot complain about anything since people will say your mom did this so you can't complain. He will be expected to learn and work as hard as I did or even more so than my efforts in the field. It may be a big reason why young men decide to not follow their mother into the business. In addition, there may be some assholes who will say stuff about me to get under his skin. I am concerned about that. Another thing to consider is that my son Johnny's father is in the business. He may have to work on the same job as him. I told him to be professional and seek help from the business agent or apprentice director if a situation gets hairy due to an encounter with his former father figure. I want to believe nothing big will happen and keep my fingers crossed. I have enough good people in this business that will keep an eye on my son for me. Lots of guys may guide him just because they have seen him grow up in the union through Union functions over the years. His future apprentice director has known him since he was a toddler through various Union parades and picnics. I am pretty confident he will get in this summer. I hope he likes it and will stick with it. I told him to keep notes so he can write his own memoir on what it is like to follow in my footsteps. He may even be told stories about me that I forgot. I look forward to watching that career path. I am waiting for my oil change. I look forward to speaking to you all soon! Of course, I will give an update on his acceptance and start in this business. Cheers! Leslie M Jasper

St Patrick's Union Parade White Plains, New York-Saturday March 15, 2015

Arello everyone! I'm sharing photos from a rain soaked parade I attended today in White Plains, NY. Despite the rain, brothers and sisters came out in support of our labor organization. It was great to see apprentices come in numbers to show support. The work picture for New York has been bleak since the recession. It is still important to show solidarity in bad times. I have always instilled in my boys the need to be a part of the organization. One should not walk into a place thinking others should do all the work while you all reap the benefits. After a couple years of college, my son, Tom, has decided to become an electrician like his mother. He is applying to become an apprentice this year. He may start working this summer. He will join with his good friend, Gary. My son Will have to deal with typical teasing from coworkers about telling his mom on the stuff he does or doesn't do at work. He has to do as well or better than my reputation at work. He has his work cut out for him. I told him he will have to write about going into a male-dominated trade following his mother's footsteps. That is unique and so will be his journey. Look out for his book, in the future, that will be worked on along his way through his apprenticeship. I will be very interested in his journey into this business. He said he plans to be a better electrician than me. I said I certainly hope so..no better person to pass the torch to than my own son. Here are some photos from the parade. I'm now warm and dry since it was a wet and cold day in New York. Till I write again, have a great weekend! Cheers! Leslie M. Jasper (Stakley)

Rigid Pipe Install Photos-Metro North Railroad

Hello everyone! I wanted to share some photos I found from around 2003. I worked on the railroad for Metro North. We were involved in replacing the platforms at many train stations that took commuters into New York City for work and pleasure. I will write about those experiences in my next book. I worked on the railroad pregnant too...interesting stories. I will talk to you all later! Cheers! Leslie M Jasper (Stakley)

Book Synopsis- For Los Angeles Film Crew Project

Hello everyone, I figured I would share my synopsis that I created to help a film student friend, I met a few years ago, pitch the book to her film crew. I am hoping it is what she is looking for to help the team see the vision that is the project. I am sure it will have to be fine-tuned. I will keep you posted on the status of the project when I get news. The book is going to be created into a webisode. Once created, it will be submitted to 3 Hollywood studios for submission and feedback. I am excited about seeing the project come to live on television/film. Have a great work week coming up and speak to you all soon! Cheers! Leslie M Jasper (Stakley) Construction Tales: Volume I: A Woman’s Journey to Become an Electrican by Leslie M. Jasper Construction Tales takes you on a real journey of what it is like to step foot onto a male-dominated, dirt crusted construction site as a young woman. You will see what it was like to become an apprentice electrician in New York almost 20 years ago. My co-workers are the last warriors of the wild west who shoot from the hip. Middle aged, grey haired co-workers, like Chester, say and act exactly what is on their mind. The filter on their mouth is missing and the content is explicit and outrageous. Many of them believe that the jobsite is their domain to do exactly what pleases them. Anything from drinking beer or smoking weed to catcalling women walking past the jobsite is their duty to fullfill. If you mess up, you and everyone around you will be the first ones to know the error of your ways. If you have a little meat on your bones, the boys will remind you that you are either favorable on the eyes or in need of your mouth being stapled shut. Despite the raw dialogue on any given day, I learned my trade from these skilled craftsmen. I also learned, over time, how to develop a thick skin and produce rapid fire retorts to any smart ass shot fired my way. Back Cover Summary Strap on your work boots and put on your hard hat. Let me take you on a sheetrock dusted journey to see what it is like to work within the construction industry. The work is hard, the environment is unforgiving, and the jobsite can be either extremely hot or cold. Over 19 years ago, I stepped foot into a male-dominated work environment. Despite the lack of a warm embrace, I pushed my way into this world to learn the trade. I showed my many mentors that I wanted to be here and was ready to learn and work. After some grit and sweat, I worked my way out of my apprenticeship to become a journeywoman electrician. I earned a great working reputation within my trade and some aches and pains along the way. I work with guys from all backgrounds and all walks of life; and a few females that share my goal to be called journeywomen. Construction workers do not care that you do not feel up to the challenge that day. You must suck it up and get the job done! You will witness what it is like on a weekly basis to work within my industry. Every story in this book is real. The names of my co-workers have been changed to protect the innocent….or the guilty! I must wa Chapter 7: Working With Chauvinist Pigs (Excerpt) I will never forget my first day meeting Chester on a job in White Plains. He shook my hand and commented on my “manly” handshake. Chester then explained, in a long, dragged out, theatrical manner, that there were two things that just don’t happen. There is no crying in baseball and there are no women in construction. As soon as I heard this come out of his mouth, I thought to myself that this was going to be a very tough job to work on. Imagine a guy who is very tall with a big basketball for a belly that he rubs often. Chester has a giant head of curly salt and pepper hair with an overgrown mustache and a five o’clock shadow. Chester usually wears a cheap netted baseball hat, worn out solid color t-shirts, Dockers pleated knit pants, and moccasins. He does look like an odd character when you first see him and definitely when he opens his mouth and talks to people. When Chester latches onto someone, he usually makes a statement and will walk back and forth repeating that statement intended to take a swipe and zing someone. I came onto a job and there were a few workers. One guy who introduced himself was a short and muscular black guy, named Ron. Ron was very nice and explained what we were working on in the space. When I first got there, I was given a very easy task since they didn’t trust the new girl helper on the job. After awhile, I was gradually trusted more and more. That is one thing I still face in this business. Each new job I come to I run into the new foreman who is gun shy about giving me work that requires skills. What is good is that I usually end up on a job with guys I have worked with before. This and my reputation for being a good, competent worker will sometimes help me out. On this job, my reputation did not precede me. As a result, I had to work very hard to create a reputation and win over Chester, who clearly didn’t like me from the beginning. I started my journey in this new shop by following Chester around and handing him whatever he needed for the job he was working on. I think this surprised him since he probably expected me to be clueless. Whatever he needed, I moved to help him make the job at hand happen. With my hard, consistent work, I started winning him over. I could tell from his comments about me that he was shocked with himself that he preferred me over a male helper. I must warn you that this book is not for the faint of heart! (cont.) Chapter 3: The Big Job (Excerpt) I was sent to work on a brand new job coming out of the ground in Connecticut. This job would provide massive amounts of overtime and help my living situation tremendously. I learned real quickly that the pace on this job was very different from my last job. It was more of a laid back, easy-going work environment. I would have never guessed that I was about to meet a whole group of characters on this very large job. I set foot on the largest construction job I had ever witnessed at this point in my apprenticeship. By this moment in time, the country was coming out of a recession and this massive deck job was going to catapult many trades’ people into a good financial position. My first day was in a giant room that was in the process of becoming the data center for a very large trading floor. As an apprentice, my first three hours of the day were all about getting coffee for a third of the crew of roughly 100 electricians. There were no elevators so two other apprentices and I had to walk up a minimum of six (up to thirteen) flights of stairs and provide coffee for the group of hungry and hung-over electricians each day. The coffee trek was a half-mile walk to the deli each morning. I placed my order and sat there with the other apprentices until the order was ready. I had to make sure I had proper change for each person who ordered and double-checked all orders for accuracy. Coffee was the most important part of the day and screwing up the order could ruin the entire day. This was especially true when we went into overtime. If you got the coffee order wrong, plenty of these guys would react like spoiled children and have an actual temper tantrum. I started to get to know two fellow apprentices, Ryan and Todd, very well while getting our daily orders of coffee. I will never forget my friendship with these two fellow apprentices. Ryan was a tall, dark-haired, and very hairy guy from a community normally filled with rich and upper-class folk. Ryan often reeked of body odor, cigarette smoke, or booze from the night before. He was and probably still is clearly a fish out of water in his community, yet he fit right in on a construction site. Ryan played in a band. He was very rough around the edges, with plenty of piercings all over his face. Ryan came in to work on a regular basis hung-over, often stinking as if a keg of beer had been splashed all over him….(cont.) Summary: Despite the harsh conditions and raw commentary from my co-workers, I did enjoy my apprenticeship overall. It was rather memorable and helped to generate my tough exterior and hardened work ethic. I embrace the most difficult coworkers and work to soften up their shell and make the exception for my presence. My collection of jobsite stories should inspire women and minorities to pick up the trade and to not take “no” for an answer. A great career with benefits lies ahead if people can push past the few negative co-workers and tough jobsite conditions. The jobsites I have worked on have served to provide the most humor anyone can experience while on the clock earning a paycheck. The overall tone of the project should project a new learning experience of raw and edgy co-workers while they learn that it is not that bad working with a woman. Most guys who get to know me will figure out that I work harder than a lot of men. I am also funnier and able to make the men cringe more than they could ever do to me. The story should convey a jobsite experience that pushes me past my normal limits for a woman. I like to surprise co-workers with my ability to work with my skilled hands. As a woman in construction, I enjoy the ability to break down barriers in the minds of my male co-workers-one job at a time. About the Author: Leslie is a journeywoman electrician who works within Westchester County, New York, Fairfield County, Connecticut, and the five boroughs of New York City. Leslie has worked within the construction industry for the past 19 years. She is also an evening OSHA instructor/writing coach working part time for Empire College. Leslie recently graduated and received an MBA with honors at Iona College in New Rochelle, New York. She lives with her two sons, Tom and Johnny, in Lake Carmel, New York. Leslie enjoys spending quality time with her sons such as snowboarding and visiting haunted houses throughout New England. She also enjoys cruise ship traveling around the world, renovating her home, and spending time lifting weights in the gym. Leslie M Jasper jntlez@verizon.net (914) 424-2645 31 Vernon Drive Carmel, NY 10512 Construction Tales: Volume I is registered with the Writers Guild of America and copyrighted with U.S. Copyright Office www.lesliemjasper.com www.lesliemjasper.blogspot.com

Construction Tales- To Become a Webisode!/Reading Hard Hatted Women- A Compilation of Jobsite Stories Told by Women!!

Hello everyone! I am excited to share some news that I received on Friday!! I had met up with a woman outside of Los Angeles, two summers ago, while taking an OSHA 500 course. She is a student in film school out in Los Angeles. Come to find out, she was interested in my project. She has to produce a few webisodes and submit them to a Hollywood studio for feedback and a grade. I have not heard from her in a while. She just called me to tell me she is going to work on my project next! She needs me to create an overview of the book while covering who each character is and how life was like as a female helper in construction. I must get it ready for her by February 21, 2015 so she can present it to her team. She is excited to start the project. I am excited to see the final results. The feedback from Hollywood will be what I am real interested to see. I cannot reveal much more information than that at the moment. I need to get to work on creating Volume 2. I started writing it then stopped. I have a lot on my plate that involves moving, getting married, and getting my house ready to sell on the real estate market. I am going through a lot of change that is positive. Therefore, writing has been put on hold for the moment. I would like to try to do some writing when I go away in a few weeks on vacation. We shall see if I end up doing that or not. I started reading Hard Hatted Women. It is a compilation of stories shared by women from different trades. The struggles they faced were from the 80’s and before. I plan to digest the book and then write about it here in the blog. Their stories do reflect my experiences. However, I think their experiences were way more intense than mine. I will discuss in more detail when I finish reading. I have 2 other books written by women in construction that I plan to read and share as well. It will help me when I am writing Volume 2 of Construction Tales. Well, off to work on a cold and snowy/freezing rain kind of day in New York City. It is warm in my office so I cannot complain. No more working outside for me is my goal. Thanks for stopping by to read my blog! It is much appreciated! Cheers! Leslie M Jasper (Stakley)