Gong Show!

So yesterday I was up at 315 to go to work.  And by up I mean I got out of bed at that point, I didn't get any sleep that night.  But got up, went to the shop and did all the pretrips.  I had gotten a call the night before saying because it was a rig move, there was to be another medic.  So I had a little help.  We head out there at about 445, to be there for 7 but we get there at 630 which was fine with me.  Rig move trucks don't show up till 730 and they were supposed to be there at 7.  Safety meeting was held at about 745 then we adjourned to our truck to wait for orders.  So once things start moving I got sent to the new location with the first set of trucks, and the other medic was to stay on the old site till everything was off site.  She was excited cuz it was gonna be a 5 hour day tops, cuz that's what most rig moves take. 

We get to new location and there's nice fresh clean matting down and the place is all level and beautiful and stuff.  What we didn't know is that there was a thick layer of mud underneath the matting so once the trucks got onto site and started driving on it, it became a completely and utter sh*t.  They dropped our shack when they were putting it down.  The weight of the truck and shack combined caused the whole thing to displace the mats and sink 5 feet into the mud.  So the matting is sticking out at angles, and left huge dangerous gasp everywhere.  And when they dropped it, a lot of things broke.  My satellite receiver is effed, so no tv for me! All of the cupboards and drawers opened.  My bedroom door no longer closes properly.  The other side of the shack got it worse.  I helped the hoe operator reassemble his side.  The speaker covers had popped off, his shelves were on the floor, the covers over the fluorescent lights were on the desk.  And everything was coated in a light film of dust, from the roads.  The roads dried up nice after the week or so of rain but now they are just huge dust clouds waiting to happen. 

They didn't get the derrick up until about 1030 this morning, but finally have the booster working so I get a signal on my truck phone and I get reliable internet.  *wipes hand across sweaty brow*    But here are some pictures of the truck stuck in mud and my shack right before they dropped it.

5 feet in the mud it sunk.

The tetonic shifting.  That one mat is sticking out so high it's above my head.

 If you look the far left of the first picture, you see a truck.  That was the tool push taking pictures and laughing his butt off at the situation.  Thanks.  I think he should give me his satellite receiver to compensate for the mental anguish.  :P

Singing in the Rain

My site just had a huge rainstorm come through at about 7 in the morning.  I'm hoping that most of the Alberta forest also got this rain, it's much needed, with all the fires.  I know my family was worried that I was in danger of the forest fires, and yes, according to the fire maps that the forestry guys released, I am surrounded by them right now.  But I see no smoke, or ominous orange flickering on the cloud ceiling at night.  So I should be safe, and now with the ground thoroughly soaked with this little storm, there is a buffer.

There is a very happy robin outside the window in the back of my shack at the moment.  He's singing his brains out at the moment, happy for the rain I suspect.  If only all the birds were as happy as him.  I have a raven perched atop my MTC, with his feathers fluffed up, looking rather disgusted.  He's the usually raven we have on site, who always sits on vehicles.  Both morning and night he goes to check out the bed of the crew truck in case the guys left some food behind for him.

I unlike my raven friend love a good rain storm as long as I'm inside and have a pot of tea and a blanket.  Today I just watched it through the window at my desk, and was thankful I'm not one of the crew, soaked in coveralls. Just over a week till I'm home.  Yay!  Can't wait.  And maybe by then I'll have internet and cable hooked up so I can watched Food Network while I cook hahah.

And damnit Jess!  I miss you too :(  If I could take my new apartment, and transplant it and the nice rent back to Edmonton I totally would!

Back at it

Alright so a lot happened over the last couple of weeks.  I finished a tour at work only to go home on days off and pack.  Lots of packing.  Too much packing.  You don't know how much crap you have until you have to put it in boxes and move it somewhere else.  But a good 5 days of packing later with some last minute crap on moving day and it was done.  My parents drove up from Manitoba to help me move on the other end because I moved on a Monday which meant I didn't expect any of my friends to come up there to help move me, as they all have work to go to.  Sunday however a lot of people showed up to help me.  Which was nice.  Got everything on the truck in about 3 hours, then I took my parents out for dinner for a thank you/happy mother's day thing.  We then sat in the middle of an empty apartment and drank wine, a tradition with our family, except when I was a kid it wasn't wine...it was juice. 

Monday morning we were up at 5 to get the last bits on the truck, then it was off to the new apartment.  A 5 hour drive, 85 songs on the iPod, a passenger change, a can of Red Bull and 2 XL DD from Timmie's and we were there.  While my parents tried to figure out where my parking spot was, I went on the walk through with my new land lord and she discussed what I could and couldn't do in the apartment.  With that done, we started to off load.  With the 3 of us going nonstop, we got it done in about 6 hours.  Some of my neighbours are really nice and 2 guys offered to move our couch upstairs which we gladly accepted.  At about 8 we finally collapsed on the couch and realised we needed to eat something, which none of us had thought of all day until then. 

Tuesday my parents stuck around and we ran little errands to get things needed for the new apartment, that I didn't have.  A new garbage can for the kitchen.  Felt pads for furniture so it doesn't scratch the laminate floor.  New tea towels cuz my roommate took all of mine when he moved out.  Little things, you know. 

All in all, as days off go, I didn't get much rest.  I spent most of it packing or lifting or running around.  I'm back at work now, so this will be a bit of a break I guess.  Back to just going to safety meetings twice a day and spending the rest just reading or watching tv.  Ah well. 

Nichts passiert

Well I've made it over a week and have managed to stay relatively sane.  Just a day and a half more and I'll be heading home to start the move.  Being on a drilling rig isn't so bad.  I mean it gets a bit repetitive.  I measured the time during the day by when The Office and Family Guy reruns were on.

The guys are really nice.  Most of them are either shy or don't like medics so they don't talk to me, but the ones that do are funny and willing to answer my questions.  They've been drilling the same hole since I got here (that's what she said!  HAHA!) and they are on the 3rd zone now so they might be done this one soon.  However there are 2 other holes on this surface location.  I'll get 2 weeks off then be sent back up here.

But in any case, there is little to report.  No injuries, not excitement.  It snowed for 3 days but it's been sunny since then and it all melted.  And then turned to mud.  Which I then tracked into the doghouse before a safety meeting and they made me mop it up.  Ah well.

One week till it's bye bye Edmonton!

What am I doing here again?

So before I get the chance to get my stuff packed and moved to the new place, I started a new job.  Moving wasn't enough stress for me apparently, I decided to throw in some new employment.  However said job has me out at work already.

2 weeks as the on site medic for a drilling rig.  Today I woke up, got into my coveralls, read for 3 hours, then watched a movie, or 2.  And some Food Network.  Did some sit ups.  This is my life for 14 days. 

*facedesk* 

The pressure testers brought a dog on site.  This was the most exciting thing yet.  I'll let you know if anything more interesting happens. 

The Endless Box Parade That Haunts My House

Indeed, it feels like a very long time since I've been in this situation.  The hurry up and wait of moving from one city to another.  After some minor calculations that took me far too long since I suck at math, I was able to figure out that I've been in Edmonton for 15 years.  And for an army brat, that is an epically long time.

So as I embark on a major move to another city, this time sans family who usually did all of the important organizing of movers and admin stuff,  I've decided to start this blog.  To explain the fun, the crushing defeats, and the general adventure that I'm embarking on. A fresh start deserves a fresh blog.  None of the old blog that had posts from my youth, cuz frankly I don't think I liked myself back then. 

Sit back, and enjoy what should be hilarious if not humiliating stories that I'm sure will crop up in the coming months.   If you'll excuse me now, I have to keep packing.