Bobby,
I came really, really close to coming back to Portland.    I was recently asked to help get the Ercot (TEXAS) region off of the ground by organizing,  training and motivating the Real Time group.   I declined initially, as I had previously turned this job down from Portland.    I came to Houston to trade cash.    Bait and Switch.
  Anyway,  I was looking to return to PDX to work in Mid Mkt or Services, wherever I could have an impact (positive impact, jackie).    
Once I expressed to Houston that my bags were packed, more opportunity presented itself;   I am going to get experience in managing our assets in Texas.   We have an agreement with Teco to manage a 480 mw combined cycle facility in South Texas.   We have some other interesting arrangements as well.

I will be working with Doug Gilbert-Smith, who is the term trader in Ercot.    Good, solid technical guy.   These guys are in a tight spot and due to the timing of all of this,  I agreed to finish the rest of the year in Houston and get this thing up and running.    Ercot is currently not short nor volatile.    Not much fun yet, we'll see how the pool works.
I am working with Smith and Jeff Miller as well.

For all of its sound, fury and ego's the Houston office is actually disorganized and short on morale.    
My transition could have been handled better by a monkey man.      My gut tells me that if I stay with the company,  I will be moving back to Portland early next year if they will have me.

Let me know when you will be in town and I'll set up some golf and margaritas.   No boat anymore,  I'm bumming a ride with my friends.

Later,
JMF






 -----Original Message-----
From: 	Badeer, Robert  
Sent:	Tuesday, June 19, 2001 9:32 AM
To:	Forney, John M.
Subject:	WHAT UP

what up?