My new Mass Spectrometer

During the Fall semester of 1976, the Chemistry Department bought a brand new Mass Spectrometer. It was a Japanese-made Joel Spectrometer and was a general purpose machine with an easy maintenance schedule. We hired a young lady as a part-time operator and I was responsible to train her. Over the years, we had many operators and we purchased more new spectrometers with new features. The last one the Department bought was a GC-Mass Spectrometer with computer identification. For most of them, I was in charge of their maintenance. I enjoyed playing with them - it was not a burden to me. I used to make the filament for the spectrometer myself, a measure to save money for the Department. Unfortunately, no one was interested in replacing me after I retired. There is no longer a spectrometer in the Department any more!