I’ve been moved from the office position I’ve had to a field crew. It has to do with the move: our company expanded into another office building, and they didn’t bother giving me a cubicle in there, so I got moved to the crews in the field. Basically, the office was slowing down (so I’m told), and thus the shift. Plus, it’s “good field experience.” So, now I’m back on a two man crew as the rodman. Back to whacking bush with a machete, as if I didn’t already know how… At least my new machete is totally awesome; it whacks through it all with ease. I tried it out today.
And I have a good crew chief. The second day his number 2 man didn’t show up in time for the umpteenth time, so he got fed up and took me out with him instead on account of me being the spare for the moment. He liked me and my work so much that he asked our manager, Steve, if he could keep me at the end of the day, because 1) I don’t smoke pot which he can’t stand the smell of, 2) I move at a reasonable pace, not shambling along to “make my hours,” and 3) I take care of the equipment and put it back correctly. And, I’m capable of showing up on time. This is all apparently a vast improvement over the other guy. It’s still hard for me to imagine how it is that anyone could goof up stuff as simple as that, but apparently it still happens with dreadful regularity out there in the world. Hard to believe, but the proof to it all is there every day.
So anyway, my crew chief Shiv is a retired Marine. Very laid back, deeply into martial arts for recreation, and an immigrant from the Carribean. He’s a great guy to work with: no nonsense, and we share seem to share alot of values, which is always great. We started out in Homebuilders division, but are now in-between with the Land division, the difference being that Land does stuff involving big areas of dirt while Homebuilders focuses on subdivisions with homes being built in them. It’s in Land that we have to do all the line cutting with machetes. Today, Shiv demonstrated a novel method of clearing line: driving over and through it, several times. It works surprisingly well on the soft, high bushy stuff we were dealing with in that case, and of course it was quite amusing, watching the truck get driven around all crazy to knock the bush down.
Anyhow, all for now. Good night!
“t’s still hard for me to imagine how it is that anyone could goof up stuff as simple as that,” – I felt the same way when I get my outstanding 3 month evaluation and they didn’t have anything they felt I needed to improve on.
I am either crazy well-suited for working at a library, or something.
You picked the right season to wander around outside! I hope you have a desk to drive by the time it gets cold, or summer comes along!