Yep, the project passed a milestone this week. They've worked ten million work hours with no lost time injuries. It's a very significant achievement in the oilsands. To celebrate, today the chef went all out with a special dinner. They served lobster tails, and carved sirloin steak, and some kind of fish and fancy potatoes and vegetables. And the desserts...oh my. I had a piece of red velvet cake that was as almost as good as any I've made :) And I heard the carrot cake, and the key lime cheesecake were equally as good. They also had to implement restrictions on the dining room, since whenever there was a special dinner, like at Thanksgiving, or other holiday, they would serve anywhere from 400-1000 more dinners than usual. They suppose that was because there are other people working on site that don't stay here, and they'd just stop off for dinner, then go back to their own camp, or town, or wherever they stay. Plays havoc on the food budget. Especially for a special event. Soon the card swipers will be in place, and if your badge beeps when you go through, you can't eat here.
We've also implemented a new procedure for walkdowns here, as a result of the deaths of the two workers in their rooms. Up until now, you could put a "Do Not Disturb" sign on your door if you didn't want service in your room, were making your own bed, etc. Housekeeping would not check these rooms. Well, they were required to enter once every three days. They've collected all the DND signs, and left notes that explain that each room must be entered every day. If you are sleeping in, and have your privacy lock on, the door will flash red. If you don't respond when the housekeeper knocks in the morning, a report will go to Security and they will come back and open the door. It may sound strange, but there are quite a few people who do not want housekeeping in their rooms, thus the signs. So I imagine there will be some upset people complaining about that in the next few days. I understand where this is coming from, and I hope they'll understand too.
We've been lucky with the weather as yet. It's cool, but sunny. I don't think I"m ready yet for the deep cold of real winter.
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
Sunday, October 12, 2014
Happy Thanksgiving!
Well, my Canadian friends will understand this :)
I was pretty disappointed, I didn't get my turkey dinner today. I'm working either day shift, or split shift for 10 days while I'm covering for reservations, and today was a day shift. Means I didn't finish my day until 5:30, and by then the lineups on the main lines were half way back to the doors and growing longer by the second. I evaluated standing in line, or doing an alternate line, and decided I did not want to wait in line. Even for turkey and stuffing. And yams. I had jerk chicken from the healthy line. And a piece of pumpkin pie. No line up for dessert.
There was another death in camp last week. An older gentleman, apparently heart attack. A very well-liked member of that contractor's team, the other guys on his crew were pretty upset. Passed away in his room.
This week was more IT troubles. Cell phone service down again. Our software system down. Right in the middle of Friday checkins. It had been happening on and off for the day, so we were prepared, but still could have been a bit of a disaster. Hoping Monday's big check ins won't see another fail.
The weather here has been just a little cooler than "back home". The forecast calls for maybe some snow by Thursday, but the longer it holds off is fine with me. I actually got outside today, as we had a planned fire drill. And I did it right this time. I did not wait for the actual alarm, since now I know they don't actually set off the alarm. It was a nice sunny day, and with my big heavy fire warden coat and hard hat, I didn't even feel the chill in the air.
Oh, and visit with baby Abigail (and of course my daughter and son-in-law) was great. So nice to have a newborn to snuggle. They make funny faces ;)
Well, that's about all I can think of since I've been back. We've welcomed another new member to the team. He's got hotel experience, so that helps with someone new. Looks like I'll have a few extra days off for the Christmas holidays. I'll have Christmas off, and have to be back on New Year's Eve to work New Year's Day. Yay me!
Hopefully I'll find something interesting to report later on during this rotation.
I was pretty disappointed, I didn't get my turkey dinner today. I'm working either day shift, or split shift for 10 days while I'm covering for reservations, and today was a day shift. Means I didn't finish my day until 5:30, and by then the lineups on the main lines were half way back to the doors and growing longer by the second. I evaluated standing in line, or doing an alternate line, and decided I did not want to wait in line. Even for turkey and stuffing. And yams. I had jerk chicken from the healthy line. And a piece of pumpkin pie. No line up for dessert.
There was another death in camp last week. An older gentleman, apparently heart attack. A very well-liked member of that contractor's team, the other guys on his crew were pretty upset. Passed away in his room.
This week was more IT troubles. Cell phone service down again. Our software system down. Right in the middle of Friday checkins. It had been happening on and off for the day, so we were prepared, but still could have been a bit of a disaster. Hoping Monday's big check ins won't see another fail.
The weather here has been just a little cooler than "back home". The forecast calls for maybe some snow by Thursday, but the longer it holds off is fine with me. I actually got outside today, as we had a planned fire drill. And I did it right this time. I did not wait for the actual alarm, since now I know they don't actually set off the alarm. It was a nice sunny day, and with my big heavy fire warden coat and hard hat, I didn't even feel the chill in the air.
Oh, and visit with baby Abigail (and of course my daughter and son-in-law) was great. So nice to have a newborn to snuggle. They make funny faces ;)
Well, that's about all I can think of since I've been back. We've welcomed another new member to the team. He's got hotel experience, so that helps with someone new. Looks like I'll have a few extra days off for the Christmas holidays. I'll have Christmas off, and have to be back on New Year's Eve to work New Year's Day. Yay me!
Hopefully I'll find something interesting to report later on during this rotation.
Sunday, September 28, 2014
DB in NP
Actually, I shouldn't try to be clever, out of respect for the person who passed. A deceased guest was discovered in a room in NP this morning. If the rumors are to be believed, this person had been deceased for possibly two days. I always thought if someone didn't show up for work, at least here on a remote site, that someone came looking for them. I guess nobody bothered to, and the poor guy's mother called his foreman to say she hadn't heard from him in a couple of days. He had a Do Not Disturb sign on the door, and for housekeeping purposes, the housekeepers are required to enter the room every third day, even when someone puts out the sign. So this unfortunate soul was undetected for a couple of days before a company representative found him this morning. I guess this is about the 4th or 5th time it's happened here at this camp, but still upsetting for the Health & Safety people that are required to attend the scene. As well as anyone else involved. They keep it pretty low-key, but obviously the other people living on that floor were aware, thanks to the police and security presence for most of the day. So things were pretty subdued around camp today.
One more day of work for me, then off to Calgary to spend a week with my new granddaughter. Abigail June, born yesterday, September 27. On my dad's 80th birthday. I can't wait to meet her!
Catch you on the flip side :)
One more day of work for me, then off to Calgary to spend a week with my new granddaughter. Abigail June, born yesterday, September 27. On my dad's 80th birthday. I can't wait to meet her!
Catch you on the flip side :)
Thursday, September 25, 2014
Some afterthoughts....
OK, it's a noted phenomenon here that people coming to the front desk automatically flock to the person with the "Closed" sign in front of them. I mean, when you go to the bank, and the teller has a "Closed" sign in front of them, WHO goes and stands by that person anyway, not believing the "Closed" sign? I've never seen anyone not believe the "Closed" sign. Well, here, if someone is working on a report or doing something that requires your full attention, we put the very nicely glass-framed 8x10 "Closed" sign in front. And then watch how many people look right over top or around it to ask that particular person to do whatever it is they are there for. I was trying to help Sarah, who was doing timesheets for payroll. I printed another 8x10 sign that just had the one word on it, in the largest font possible, and put that over top of the nice, professional "Closed" sign that was there. And used red and everything so it would stand out. Well, before that, I stuck bright orange sticky notes all over the sign. Then put the big one in red lettering. Nothing. Didn't make a difference. In fact, it's like a magnet and more people than ever go to that station.
It was tested again the other afternoon, when there was the general cell phone outage. We printed off nice 8x10 signs to put in nice wood and glass frames, that explained the cell outage was widespread, all networks, and we had no ETA for repair. Then we made a bet on how many people were either not going to see it at all, or else read it and then ask the questions anyway. Well, actually, the bet was how many people would stop and read the sign, then just accept that that was all the information they were going to get, and move on. Taking into account rooms being changed over, and people gone on leave, there are probably approx 2800-3000 people in this building at any given time. Our guesses were anywhere from 4 people up to 16 people. Remember, we were counting only those people that read the signs, and accepted that there was no more information to be had. The time period was from the time the buses started arrived from site with the guys returning to camp after their day of work, which is around 4:30 pm, until service was restore at approx 6. Unfortunately, we didn't keep track of how many people asked anyway, but there were 4 people that accepted the info. It's there for your information, but apparently it just can't be true.
;)
It was tested again the other afternoon, when there was the general cell phone outage. We printed off nice 8x10 signs to put in nice wood and glass frames, that explained the cell outage was widespread, all networks, and we had no ETA for repair. Then we made a bet on how many people were either not going to see it at all, or else read it and then ask the questions anyway. Well, actually, the bet was how many people would stop and read the sign, then just accept that that was all the information they were going to get, and move on. Taking into account rooms being changed over, and people gone on leave, there are probably approx 2800-3000 people in this building at any given time. Our guesses were anywhere from 4 people up to 16 people. Remember, we were counting only those people that read the signs, and accepted that there was no more information to be had. The time period was from the time the buses started arrived from site with the guys returning to camp after their day of work, which is around 4:30 pm, until service was restore at approx 6. Unfortunately, we didn't keep track of how many people asked anyway, but there were 4 people that accepted the info. It's there for your information, but apparently it just can't be true.
;)
Wednesday, September 24, 2014
Northern Lights
I did actually get to see them, a little, last night. By the time my friend Mariola called me outside, they were just barely visible. But they were dancing, and colorful. I'll never get tired of the aurora borealis. :)
Cell phone services was down today. Pretty much every cell phone carrier was out. However, on the bright side, my own U.S. cell phone which has had no service at all for about the last 5 or 6 weeks, was back once the repair to the tower was made. It was painful listening to my buddy Ben calling the problem in to the Telus support line. Trying to explain that no, we do not have an address here. No, there is no postal code. The municipality is Wood Buffalo. W-O-O-D B-U-F-F-A-L-O. Had to spell it several times. Nearest town is Anzac. A-N-Z-A-C. No, there are no street names here. Took him about a half hour, and had to ask for a supervisor, to get the message across. I mean, Telus owns the tower that services this site. They should know how to find it!
Went for a walk outside today, the first time since I've started here that I've actually walked outside. A person is required to wear safety stripes, or reflective "suspenders" for those of us that don't have safety vests. The view is actually quite lovely, being up at the elevation we are, gives a good view of the surrounding area, and the lake that's just to the east (I think it's east!) of us. And the leaves are changing color, although the only color we get is yellow. Then dead. No red or orange leaves here. I don't know if it's the type of tree, or the particular weather, but fall colors just aren't the same.
I'm getting a little tired of the food right at the moment. I need to eat more salad and raw vegetables. There's no shortage. You do get tired of the same things all the time. The healthy line is good, but the main line has more variety and sometimes you just want perogies and not steamed chicken. The healthy line always has steamed chicken, usually a steamed fish, usually a noodle bowl, then 7 grain rice or couscous, sometimes whole wheat pasta and tomato sauce and yes, it all sounds good, but after 3 weeks you are definitely ready for a change.
My rotation will be changing to 20/8, instead of 21/7. Doesn't seem like much different, but it does make a difference!
On Monday, I had my first "triple split" shift. I worked a morning shift, 7 am - 1 pm, came back for the evening check ins, 5 pm - 9 pm, then we got word that three buses were going to come in late as they were stuck in London because of a bird strike. Yeah, that stopped us for a few minutes too. A bird strike?? Like, the airplane was on strike? Something hit the airplane?? Guess it was actually a bird hitting a plane and it grounded them for a few hours. Bottom line, I came back in to work at 1 am to help with the check ins of these poor men who had been traveling all day, close to 24 hours for some of them. All went smoothly though, and even though the buses didn't arrive until about 1:40, we had them all checked in by 2:09.
Hey, it was hump day today!
Cell phone services was down today. Pretty much every cell phone carrier was out. However, on the bright side, my own U.S. cell phone which has had no service at all for about the last 5 or 6 weeks, was back once the repair to the tower was made. It was painful listening to my buddy Ben calling the problem in to the Telus support line. Trying to explain that no, we do not have an address here. No, there is no postal code. The municipality is Wood Buffalo. W-O-O-D B-U-F-F-A-L-O. Had to spell it several times. Nearest town is Anzac. A-N-Z-A-C. No, there are no street names here. Took him about a half hour, and had to ask for a supervisor, to get the message across. I mean, Telus owns the tower that services this site. They should know how to find it!
Went for a walk outside today, the first time since I've started here that I've actually walked outside. A person is required to wear safety stripes, or reflective "suspenders" for those of us that don't have safety vests. The view is actually quite lovely, being up at the elevation we are, gives a good view of the surrounding area, and the lake that's just to the east (I think it's east!) of us. And the leaves are changing color, although the only color we get is yellow. Then dead. No red or orange leaves here. I don't know if it's the type of tree, or the particular weather, but fall colors just aren't the same.
I'm getting a little tired of the food right at the moment. I need to eat more salad and raw vegetables. There's no shortage. You do get tired of the same things all the time. The healthy line is good, but the main line has more variety and sometimes you just want perogies and not steamed chicken. The healthy line always has steamed chicken, usually a steamed fish, usually a noodle bowl, then 7 grain rice or couscous, sometimes whole wheat pasta and tomato sauce and yes, it all sounds good, but after 3 weeks you are definitely ready for a change.
My rotation will be changing to 20/8, instead of 21/7. Doesn't seem like much different, but it does make a difference!
On Monday, I had my first "triple split" shift. I worked a morning shift, 7 am - 1 pm, came back for the evening check ins, 5 pm - 9 pm, then we got word that three buses were going to come in late as they were stuck in London because of a bird strike. Yeah, that stopped us for a few minutes too. A bird strike?? Like, the airplane was on strike? Something hit the airplane?? Guess it was actually a bird hitting a plane and it grounded them for a few hours. Bottom line, I came back in to work at 1 am to help with the check ins of these poor men who had been traveling all day, close to 24 hours for some of them. All went smoothly though, and even though the buses didn't arrive until about 1:40, we had them all checked in by 2:09.
Hey, it was hump day today!
Sunday, September 21, 2014
Sundae Sunday
Thanks Aunt Sharon, for giving me a nudge to post. I have been meaning to, really!
Well the snow did not last, nor did the below freezing temperatures. It is actually 81 degrees here today. Yes, that's in Fahrenheit! We had a beautiful almost-double rainbow here the other day, which I surreptitiously took pictures of. Hey, I wasn't the only one!
I spent the last week covering for the girl who does reservations. Definitely a challenge. I was taken aback a bit, when I actually felt some stress. It's been a long time since I've had stress at work :) It's been a nice, busy change though. I will be spending one of my three weeks at it going forward.
Funny questions this week...there are two doors to enter/exit the main building. One is directly in the center, which is where most people enter when arriving to check in, and one set of doors about maybe 50 feet to the right (from the outside) which enters into the boot room, where workers enter when they arrive back from work so they can remove their boots before walking in the main camp. (This camp is boot-free. Along with being alcohol, drugs and weapon free). (Hey, it's in the new hire welcome talk!). This week, maintenance was working on painting the wooden walkways with a type of traction paint, and they blocked off one entry at a time and painted the walkway surrounding it. So...when the bootroom area was blocked off, everyone had to come in the main entryway. Without their boots. Maintenance rigged up a big wooden sign with an arrow that pointed to the "Boot Room" as a reminder not to walk through with their boots on, and in case anyone forgot how to get there (that's sarcasm there.) Then, when the main walkway was blocked off, it was reversed. Well I'm not sure how many asked this question, but I had one guy come to the desk when the main doors were closed off and asked how he was supposed to get out. I guess he overlooked the sign pointing to the boot room, and also the door that he came in everyday after work. :) Another guy came to the desk to ask if the wind was that strong that we had to lock the main doors. Yes, I'm still questioning myself over that one. Um, no, man. They are working on the walkway and you can't go out that way right now. Oh.
A big upset this week was the loss of the wifi for one night. Horror of horrors!! Yes, I was just as upset as the rest of them. No wifi anywhere in the building. Our main computers still worked, because they are connected to the company network via cables, but nothing else. And just when we were recovering from that the next day, the main computers and telephones went down. Yikes! Luckily, the wifi was repaired by then and I was working off a laptop in the back office, and it functions with wifi so that saved check outs for that day.
I have one more split shift after today, then I'm back to afternoons for the remainder of my rotation. Then off to see the new baby in Calgary....still isn't born yet!
Well the snow did not last, nor did the below freezing temperatures. It is actually 81 degrees here today. Yes, that's in Fahrenheit! We had a beautiful almost-double rainbow here the other day, which I surreptitiously took pictures of. Hey, I wasn't the only one!
I spent the last week covering for the girl who does reservations. Definitely a challenge. I was taken aback a bit, when I actually felt some stress. It's been a long time since I've had stress at work :) It's been a nice, busy change though. I will be spending one of my three weeks at it going forward.
Funny questions this week...there are two doors to enter/exit the main building. One is directly in the center, which is where most people enter when arriving to check in, and one set of doors about maybe 50 feet to the right (from the outside) which enters into the boot room, where workers enter when they arrive back from work so they can remove their boots before walking in the main camp. (This camp is boot-free. Along with being alcohol, drugs and weapon free). (Hey, it's in the new hire welcome talk!). This week, maintenance was working on painting the wooden walkways with a type of traction paint, and they blocked off one entry at a time and painted the walkway surrounding it. So...when the bootroom area was blocked off, everyone had to come in the main entryway. Without their boots. Maintenance rigged up a big wooden sign with an arrow that pointed to the "Boot Room" as a reminder not to walk through with their boots on, and in case anyone forgot how to get there (that's sarcasm there.) Then, when the main walkway was blocked off, it was reversed. Well I'm not sure how many asked this question, but I had one guy come to the desk when the main doors were closed off and asked how he was supposed to get out. I guess he overlooked the sign pointing to the boot room, and also the door that he came in everyday after work. :) Another guy came to the desk to ask if the wind was that strong that we had to lock the main doors. Yes, I'm still questioning myself over that one. Um, no, man. They are working on the walkway and you can't go out that way right now. Oh.
A big upset this week was the loss of the wifi for one night. Horror of horrors!! Yes, I was just as upset as the rest of them. No wifi anywhere in the building. Our main computers still worked, because they are connected to the company network via cables, but nothing else. And just when we were recovering from that the next day, the main computers and telephones went down. Yikes! Luckily, the wifi was repaired by then and I was working off a laptop in the back office, and it functions with wifi so that saved check outs for that day.
I have one more split shift after today, then I'm back to afternoons for the remainder of my rotation. Then off to see the new baby in Calgary....still isn't born yet!
Saturday, September 13, 2014
Catching up...
Got back to Calgary (for one night at Aimee's) to snow. Not JUST snow, but LOTS of snow. And so many broken trees! All the deciduous trees were still loaded with green leaves, so the weight of the heavy snow was snapping branches everywhere. You couldn't drive down any street without seeing tree carnage. If there's hadn't been snow, you'd have thought a tornado would have ripped through. Having left Windsor at 80 degrees, it was a shock to the system for everyone getting off that plane!
First night back to work, camp had a special visitor. Matt Minglewood and band. I'd never heard of him, but he's popular with the East Coasters. They play bluesy-folksy-east coast type music :)
The band played for an hour and a half in the evening and attracted quite a crowd! Of course, I was working, so could only hear the music from the front desk, but it was a nice distraction. Oh, by the way, there was no snow here, just in the south, in Calgary.
I was able to move right into a fire warden room inside, which was nice. It's in SQ, so almost as far as being outside, but I won't complain! There is only one dorm farther away than this one.
Camp is full to the rafters these days. Even the outside rooms. We had a big check in last night, and had exactly enough rooms inside and 3 rooms extra outside. Luckily there were a few no shows, so that gave some breathing room.
Haven't seen any mice since I've been back. Before I left, there were a few running around behind the desk. More than once I'd have someone standing at the desk talking to me and all of a sudden point out that a mouse was running around behind me. Good thing I'm not skittish. At least when it comes to mice running amok.
A couple of nights ago a gentleman who had been growing his hair long had the head shaving ceremony in the front lobby. He was raising money for a group of single parents in Alberta dealing with cancer themselves or had kids with cancer. We wondered what the heck he was doing earlier in the day with his hair in about 10 ponytails. Looked like a little child was playing hairdresser on him. It was to make it easier on the hairdresser cutting it all off and then shaving his head. Since nobody had informed us front desk staff that it was happening, it was a bit shocking to see a couple people spreading out a large plastic sheet on the lobby floor. My first thought was that it must be for easy cleanup and body removal after somebody gets shot. Guess I've watched too many action flicks haha.
Days are getting shorter fast!
First night back to work, camp had a special visitor. Matt Minglewood and band. I'd never heard of him, but he's popular with the East Coasters. They play bluesy-folksy-east coast type music :)
The band played for an hour and a half in the evening and attracted quite a crowd! Of course, I was working, so could only hear the music from the front desk, but it was a nice distraction. Oh, by the way, there was no snow here, just in the south, in Calgary.
I was able to move right into a fire warden room inside, which was nice. It's in SQ, so almost as far as being outside, but I won't complain! There is only one dorm farther away than this one.
Camp is full to the rafters these days. Even the outside rooms. We had a big check in last night, and had exactly enough rooms inside and 3 rooms extra outside. Luckily there were a few no shows, so that gave some breathing room.
Haven't seen any mice since I've been back. Before I left, there were a few running around behind the desk. More than once I'd have someone standing at the desk talking to me and all of a sudden point out that a mouse was running around behind me. Good thing I'm not skittish. At least when it comes to mice running amok.
A couple of nights ago a gentleman who had been growing his hair long had the head shaving ceremony in the front lobby. He was raising money for a group of single parents in Alberta dealing with cancer themselves or had kids with cancer. We wondered what the heck he was doing earlier in the day with his hair in about 10 ponytails. Looked like a little child was playing hairdresser on him. It was to make it easier on the hairdresser cutting it all off and then shaving his head. Since nobody had informed us front desk staff that it was happening, it was a bit shocking to see a couple people spreading out a large plastic sheet on the lobby floor. My first thought was that it must be for easy cleanup and body removal after somebody gets shot. Guess I've watched too many action flicks haha.
Days are getting shorter fast!
Saturday, August 30, 2014
Holy Smokes...it's the end of the summer!
Labo(u)r Day weekend. Wow. Snuck up on me. Only three more sleeps and I'm on my way home!
Here's a front desk story that started out kind of gross and turned into a very funny story...guy comes to the front desk with his toothbrush. He wants EVERYONE to see it, because it has a black hair on it, and it DID NOT HAVE A HAIR ON IT when he left home. He did not know WHAT the housekeeper was doing with his toothbrush but he was PISSED OFF.
Now, yes, it's very gross to find a black hair on your toothbrush, especially when you have almost no dark blonde hair. As a company representative, I felt bad for the guy. I'd be mad too. But no, it didn't stop there. He was ranting. Showing the toothbrush with the hair to everyone around. Seething. Demanding something be done. Demanding to see a manager. While waiting for the manager, he filled out a comment form. In that form, he explained just how disgusted he was, and how he had better get this fixed in ONE DAY or he was calling the RCMP and that housekeeper would have to face the consequences!
OK, now it's laughable. The RCMP??? Get out here now, there's a hair on my toothbrush!! The housekeeping supervisor went over to the commissary and gave him TWO new toothbrushes. Not sure how he felt about all his pain and suffering, And not sure if he kept the original one with the hair for evidence for when the RCMP got here, but at least he had two new toothbrushes.
Other than that, things have been pretty much status quo. Today was belly dancing class at the gym :)
Yeah, if I were thin and toned like the instructor, I might have looked sexy too. Especially with the scarves and jingle skirts we had. Unfortunately, I looked dumpy and kind of like I was slamming a car door shut with my hip. Oh well, it was fun anyway.
It was actually dark when I went to work at 5 am this week....the days are going to shorter very quickly now.
Here's a front desk story that started out kind of gross and turned into a very funny story...guy comes to the front desk with his toothbrush. He wants EVERYONE to see it, because it has a black hair on it, and it DID NOT HAVE A HAIR ON IT when he left home. He did not know WHAT the housekeeper was doing with his toothbrush but he was PISSED OFF.
Now, yes, it's very gross to find a black hair on your toothbrush, especially when you have almost no dark blonde hair. As a company representative, I felt bad for the guy. I'd be mad too. But no, it didn't stop there. He was ranting. Showing the toothbrush with the hair to everyone around. Seething. Demanding something be done. Demanding to see a manager. While waiting for the manager, he filled out a comment form. In that form, he explained just how disgusted he was, and how he had better get this fixed in ONE DAY or he was calling the RCMP and that housekeeper would have to face the consequences!
OK, now it's laughable. The RCMP??? Get out here now, there's a hair on my toothbrush!! The housekeeping supervisor went over to the commissary and gave him TWO new toothbrushes. Not sure how he felt about all his pain and suffering, And not sure if he kept the original one with the hair for evidence for when the RCMP got here, but at least he had two new toothbrushes.
Other than that, things have been pretty much status quo. Today was belly dancing class at the gym :)
Yeah, if I were thin and toned like the instructor, I might have looked sexy too. Especially with the scarves and jingle skirts we had. Unfortunately, I looked dumpy and kind of like I was slamming a car door shut with my hip. Oh well, it was fun anyway.
It was actually dark when I went to work at 5 am this week....the days are going to shorter very quickly now.
Friday, August 22, 2014
Half way
Yep, half way through this rotation. My whole next week will be the same as this week, splits and day shifts. I have to get used to the fact that my nice routine is gone for this one. I'm trying to make myself at least do stretching and floor exercises in my room, but so far have had not much success.
The weather, in one word, is COLD. Tonight it is supposed to get down to 1c (or about 33f). And there are still people complaining that their a/c doesn't work. After smiling nicely, and telling them I'll put a work order in right away, I want to shout at them "IT'S BECAUSE IT'S TOO FRIGGIN' COLD OUTSIDE, THAT'S WHY IT WON'T COME ON!!!" or "JUST OPEN YOUR WINDOW!". Whew, glad I got that out of my system. I refuse to turn on any heat in August.
I was entertained this morning, again, by logging customer complaints. One fella - who did not put his name or room number, therefore we cannot respond - wrote a letter of complaint about steak night last night. I guess the fans over the grills were not working yesterday, so the steaks had to be done on griddles, therefore not "char-broiled". This poor guy, he looks forward to steak night all week and then to have to live with the disappointment of not having his steak char broiled. Why, oh why didn't they check the fans earlier in the day??? His disappointment could have been avoided if only someone would've thought to check the fans at noon, rather than right before dinnertime. And that's all I'll say on that subject.
Full house here this week. Had to start putting people in the overflow trailers. They are jack and jill rooms (two rooms share a bathroom) so, of course, the inevitable grumbling starts. Although I have to say, for the most part, people were not too bad about it. They grimaced and groaned, but at least didn't threaten to quit their job (see previous post).
I'm going to finish napping now, and prepare to go back to work for check-ins tonight :)
The weather, in one word, is COLD. Tonight it is supposed to get down to 1c (or about 33f). And there are still people complaining that their a/c doesn't work. After smiling nicely, and telling them I'll put a work order in right away, I want to shout at them "IT'S BECAUSE IT'S TOO FRIGGIN' COLD OUTSIDE, THAT'S WHY IT WON'T COME ON!!!" or "JUST OPEN YOUR WINDOW!". Whew, glad I got that out of my system. I refuse to turn on any heat in August.
I was entertained this morning, again, by logging customer complaints. One fella - who did not put his name or room number, therefore we cannot respond - wrote a letter of complaint about steak night last night. I guess the fans over the grills were not working yesterday, so the steaks had to be done on griddles, therefore not "char-broiled". This poor guy, he looks forward to steak night all week and then to have to live with the disappointment of not having his steak char broiled. Why, oh why didn't they check the fans earlier in the day??? His disappointment could have been avoided if only someone would've thought to check the fans at noon, rather than right before dinnertime. And that's all I'll say on that subject.
Full house here this week. Had to start putting people in the overflow trailers. They are jack and jill rooms (two rooms share a bathroom) so, of course, the inevitable grumbling starts. Although I have to say, for the most part, people were not too bad about it. They grimaced and groaned, but at least didn't threaten to quit their job (see previous post).
I'm going to finish napping now, and prepare to go back to work for check-ins tonight :)
Tuesday, August 19, 2014
Some very random thoughts...
Ah, the world of split shifts. I can't sleep. With only 8 hours off between the time I get off at night, and the time I have to be in the next morning, I just can't sleep. I have strange, unfamiliar dreams. Usually my dreams feel like "mine", but the ones I've been having lately just don't. I see me in them, but they don't feel like mine. Today, and then Friday, should be the end of my split shifts. For this rotation, anyway.
I think the camp population probably represents a slice of real life personalities. This week seemed to be a larger than normal population that threatened to quit their jobs if they 1. didn't get a better (closer, quieter) room, 2. didn't get their important maintenance issues resolved RIGHT NOW, 3. couldn't get better food selections in the dining room, and my favorite...4. object to the number of minorities working here. A guy actually quit and said he was going to start a chain reaction of people objecting to the various minorities working in this camp. These things come from people who, for the most part, are earning approx $1,000 per day to be here. Hmm. OK, quit. I have no objections. Won't bother or impact me or my company at all. Your employer will definitely find someone else waiting to take your place.
At dinner the other night, I was trying to salt my food and noticed that the holes of the salt shaker were mostly plugged, so I smacked the shaker down on the table to clear it out. Unfortunately, I landed it right on my fork, which was perched on my plate buried in a pile of Chinese noodles. Yeah, most of them landed on me, and luckily I didn't get any of my dinner companions with any. I did have one of the ladies picking the noodles out of my hair for me, though. I decided to be happy that I could make someone - anyone - laugh (taking the hit for the team!) rather than be embarrassed.
Working splits and days has gotten me out of my gym habit :( (I actually need a crying emoticon there!). I'm not getting there near enough, and I hate how quickly the habit disappears!
I am going to try to add some pictures here. These pictures are of the lunch display for some visitors yesterday. All items are carved from fruit and vegetables.
I think the camp population probably represents a slice of real life personalities. This week seemed to be a larger than normal population that threatened to quit their jobs if they 1. didn't get a better (closer, quieter) room, 2. didn't get their important maintenance issues resolved RIGHT NOW, 3. couldn't get better food selections in the dining room, and my favorite...4. object to the number of minorities working here. A guy actually quit and said he was going to start a chain reaction of people objecting to the various minorities working in this camp. These things come from people who, for the most part, are earning approx $1,000 per day to be here. Hmm. OK, quit. I have no objections. Won't bother or impact me or my company at all. Your employer will definitely find someone else waiting to take your place.
At dinner the other night, I was trying to salt my food and noticed that the holes of the salt shaker were mostly plugged, so I smacked the shaker down on the table to clear it out. Unfortunately, I landed it right on my fork, which was perched on my plate buried in a pile of Chinese noodles. Yeah, most of them landed on me, and luckily I didn't get any of my dinner companions with any. I did have one of the ladies picking the noodles out of my hair for me, though. I decided to be happy that I could make someone - anyone - laugh (taking the hit for the team!) rather than be embarrassed.
Working splits and days has gotten me out of my gym habit :( (I actually need a crying emoticon there!). I'm not getting there near enough, and I hate how quickly the habit disappears!
I am going to try to add some pictures here. These pictures are of the lunch display for some visitors yesterday. All items are carved from fruit and vegetables.
Thursday, August 14, 2014
Oooooh...scary ghost stories
Oh I heard an interesting story today about the "resident ghost" here at camp. Apparently, he frequently makes appearances, in the north wing. He's native, has creeped some people out so much that they won't stay in certain dorms. My supervisor has "met" him. She stays in the north wing. I guess he disappears in the summer, and once the weather turns cool will be back. And he likes to appear to women with dark hair in braids. So guess what! I am going to try my darnedest to be able to stay in the north wing once fall comes creeping in, and wear my long dark hair in braids! I'm pretty excited to have a ghostly experience. D says she wasn't scared or creeped out at all when she had her encounter. I guess he likes to give hugs and snuggles. I forget now if he has a name, I'll have to find out tomorrow.
And I met one of the drug dogs today. She looks somewhat like a springer spaniel, but not quite. Probably a breed I know nothing about. So friendly though. She was tired out, because the day before she worked hard, checking all the bags of incoming guests. I was surprised to be able to pet and cuddle her, since I thought working dogs weren't supposed to be pet. Maybe it's different for drug dogs than it is for seeing-eye dogs or that type. She is a sweetheart, anyway.
I'm working an ugly split tomorrow, have to be back to work in approx 7 hours, so I've got to bed some sleep!
And I met one of the drug dogs today. She looks somewhat like a springer spaniel, but not quite. Probably a breed I know nothing about. So friendly though. She was tired out, because the day before she worked hard, checking all the bags of incoming guests. I was surprised to be able to pet and cuddle her, since I thought working dogs weren't supposed to be pet. Maybe it's different for drug dogs than it is for seeing-eye dogs or that type. She is a sweetheart, anyway.
I'm working an ugly split tomorrow, have to be back to work in approx 7 hours, so I've got to bed some sleep!
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Back at the SRR...
Things are pretty much the same as when I left :)
There has been a lot of rain, as evidenced by the large puddles of water everywhere. But yesterday and today have been very nice. Very warm, humid, by Alberta standards, and lots of sunshine. I checked into an outside trailer room for Monday night only, and moved inside to a fire warden room Tuesday. Two halls closer to work than my last two stays. I don't mind the walk, though, and I'm afraid being closer is going to weaken me, haha.
Speaking of weaken, I think all the Couch 2 5K walking/jogging I was doing has done very bad things to my knee :( I don't think I should be doing that anymore, which is sad, because I really did enjoy it! Pop my headphones on and I could go and go. I tried a bike today, and maybe an elliptical machine tomorrow, plus my studio exercises, and I guess it will make up for not jogging.
What a bunch of whiners at the desk today. We had several demanding room transfers because of "faults" in their rooms. One guy had a loose toilet seat, molding coming off his wall, his desk was scratched so when he wrote it was uneven, and his cupboard drawer didn't open very well. Yeah, OK. I think it had more to do with the room being at the nether regions of the North wing, but still inside, mind you, than all it's "faults". Another guy could hear something scratching in the wall. And he couldn't get internet service. Of course, once we offered to send maintenance to check out the scratching in the wall, he said it really hadn't been that bad, and he'd get back to us. Once again, I think the complaints had more to do with being in the nether regions of North wing than anything else.
It keeps the job interesting! Speaking of interesting...one of my co-workers has gone home ill, and we are now short-staffed. I'll be working all kinds of interesting hours in the next week or two.
Had a wonderful time in Calgary on my days off, visiting with my daughter and helping shop for and set up the baby's room.
Oh, one more funny story. This camp is "boot free", meaning nobody is allowed to wear their workboots into the camp. They are to come in through the boot room, remove their boots and switch to shoes, or just remove their boots and carry them to their room if they want. Many guys elect to just leave their boots in the boot room. Every so often, housekeeping goes through and tags the boots, and if a pair of boots is still sitting there with a tag on after a few weeks, they remove them. They hold on to them for a week, then toss them out. Yesterday was a "remove the tagged boots" day. Today we had a call from security telling us that a guy had gone to them to say his boots had been stolen. (Housekeeping manager was able to rustle up his boots). The really funny part was the woman from Security saying that she sees some guys wearing their boots with the tags on them. Apparently, they never wondered why or noticed that their boots had tags on them for a week or so. I'm not sure about anyone else, but I think I might notice if someone tagged my boots or shoes! Some guys just need mom around to help them with everything :)
There has been a lot of rain, as evidenced by the large puddles of water everywhere. But yesterday and today have been very nice. Very warm, humid, by Alberta standards, and lots of sunshine. I checked into an outside trailer room for Monday night only, and moved inside to a fire warden room Tuesday. Two halls closer to work than my last two stays. I don't mind the walk, though, and I'm afraid being closer is going to weaken me, haha.
Speaking of weaken, I think all the Couch 2 5K walking/jogging I was doing has done very bad things to my knee :( I don't think I should be doing that anymore, which is sad, because I really did enjoy it! Pop my headphones on and I could go and go. I tried a bike today, and maybe an elliptical machine tomorrow, plus my studio exercises, and I guess it will make up for not jogging.
What a bunch of whiners at the desk today. We had several demanding room transfers because of "faults" in their rooms. One guy had a loose toilet seat, molding coming off his wall, his desk was scratched so when he wrote it was uneven, and his cupboard drawer didn't open very well. Yeah, OK. I think it had more to do with the room being at the nether regions of the North wing, but still inside, mind you, than all it's "faults". Another guy could hear something scratching in the wall. And he couldn't get internet service. Of course, once we offered to send maintenance to check out the scratching in the wall, he said it really hadn't been that bad, and he'd get back to us. Once again, I think the complaints had more to do with being in the nether regions of North wing than anything else.
It keeps the job interesting! Speaking of interesting...one of my co-workers has gone home ill, and we are now short-staffed. I'll be working all kinds of interesting hours in the next week or two.
Had a wonderful time in Calgary on my days off, visiting with my daughter and helping shop for and set up the baby's room.
Oh, one more funny story. This camp is "boot free", meaning nobody is allowed to wear their workboots into the camp. They are to come in through the boot room, remove their boots and switch to shoes, or just remove their boots and carry them to their room if they want. Many guys elect to just leave their boots in the boot room. Every so often, housekeeping goes through and tags the boots, and if a pair of boots is still sitting there with a tag on after a few weeks, they remove them. They hold on to them for a week, then toss them out. Yesterday was a "remove the tagged boots" day. Today we had a call from security telling us that a guy had gone to them to say his boots had been stolen. (Housekeeping manager was able to rustle up his boots). The really funny part was the woman from Security saying that she sees some guys wearing their boots with the tags on them. Apparently, they never wondered why or noticed that their boots had tags on them for a week or so. I'm not sure about anyone else, but I think I might notice if someone tagged my boots or shoes! Some guys just need mom around to help them with everything :)
Friday, August 1, 2014
And even MORE weather!!
Well, we had a day or two in between where we had no rain. I think it was one day, Wednesday. Yesterday we had another big, huge, wicked thunderstorm. Huge! The lightning was non-stop for at least an hour. The power went off twice, only for a few minutes at a time, but enough to screw up our computers, of course. There was so much rain coming down so heavily that there were leaks all over the buildings. In the dining room, in the gym, in the worker's lounge, in the manager's lounge. Mind you, some of the big floods were because windows were open. I mean, REALLY!! I went into the lunch bag-up room to grab stuff for my breakfast today, and two windows were open with the rain pounding in. Nobody noticed, or cared. They were going about their business of getting their lunches. Sheesh. I closed the windows and called for a mop-up. How hard is that??
Unfortunately, the storm was all but over by the time I was off work, so I didn't get to enjoy listening to it while I was drifting off to sleep. Although the noise from the pounding rain and the huge, close thunder wouldn't have been conducive to sleeping anyway. There must be a metal roof over the lobby, because the sound of pelting rain is really magnified in there. We had a whole groupie section in there, watching out the windows and doors and by the way, I saw many cell phone cameras recording the event. Where was security on that one??? And their office is right there in the lobby.
We also had some extremely hot weather, for this area anyway. Was 91F or 33C on Wednesday. Fairly low humidity though, comparatively speaking. These people here are always complaining about how humid it is. I just laugh at them, though :) Us mid-westerners know what real humidity is. I hear back home is suffering from lack of rain. It's because there's none left after the clouds leave here!
Unfortunately, the storm was all but over by the time I was off work, so I didn't get to enjoy listening to it while I was drifting off to sleep. Although the noise from the pounding rain and the huge, close thunder wouldn't have been conducive to sleeping anyway. There must be a metal roof over the lobby, because the sound of pelting rain is really magnified in there. We had a whole groupie section in there, watching out the windows and doors and by the way, I saw many cell phone cameras recording the event. Where was security on that one??? And their office is right there in the lobby.
We also had some extremely hot weather, for this area anyway. Was 91F or 33C on Wednesday. Fairly low humidity though, comparatively speaking. These people here are always complaining about how humid it is. I just laugh at them, though :) Us mid-westerners know what real humidity is. I hear back home is suffering from lack of rain. It's because there's none left after the clouds leave here!
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
More Weather!!!
My goodness, what a crazy crazy storm today. Started out a sunny day, then we could see dark clouds amassing in the east, and next thing you know, it sounded like we were under attack. Lightning that looked and then sounded like it was a direct hit, but it wasn't. Hail. Monsoon winds and heavy, heavy rainfall. The sound of it on the core building, with all the windows, was incredible. My inner panic was just about to rise... It lasted maybe ten, fifteen minutes. Let up for about five, then another ten minutes before it cleared up to sunny again.
Another few days left in July...I can hardly believe how the time is flying! Next thing I know, I'll be on my way to Calgary to do baby shopping with Aimee :)
Another few days left in July...I can hardly believe how the time is flying! Next thing I know, I'll be on my way to Calgary to do baby shopping with Aimee :)
Sunday, July 27, 2014
End of another week...
The most notable thing this week has definitely been the weather. I'm pretty sure that ever since I've been back, it has rained at least once every day. It's crazy...one minute it's sunny, then a quick cloud blows over and we get either a torrential downpour, or some wicked thunder and lightning. Today the site shut down early and all the day shift workers came back to camp a couple of hours early because of the lightning. Big loud booms around the camp, and it looked pretty windy out too. One thing about it, it's pretty much taken the forest fire hazard level to about zero. Usually workers coming back early from the job site means cranky men, because they are Losing Money. And Money is the reason we are all out here. They'll tell you that first thing in orientation.
I've found this rotation is going by fairly quickly. We had a couple of rooms closed down because of pests (i.e. bedbugs). A few rude guests. More pleasant guests. Some bring us candy :) Dinner today was prime rib with Yorkshire pudding in the main lines, but the wait was so long I went right around it and headed for the "Diner" line (basically your fast food line) and settled for a piece of chicken, a hot dog, a few french fries and some macaroni salad. Oh, and a piece of strawberry rhubarb pie because it was Sunday. I haven't taken advantage of the sundaes on Sundays, however a sundae bar is always set up on Sundays.
I had a couple of day shifts, yesterday and today. It really through off my routine and I didn't make it to the gym at all. Back to the routine tomorrow though!
One more week and I'm off again.
I've found this rotation is going by fairly quickly. We had a couple of rooms closed down because of pests (i.e. bedbugs). A few rude guests. More pleasant guests. Some bring us candy :) Dinner today was prime rib with Yorkshire pudding in the main lines, but the wait was so long I went right around it and headed for the "Diner" line (basically your fast food line) and settled for a piece of chicken, a hot dog, a few french fries and some macaroni salad. Oh, and a piece of strawberry rhubarb pie because it was Sunday. I haven't taken advantage of the sundaes on Sundays, however a sundae bar is always set up on Sundays.
I had a couple of day shifts, yesterday and today. It really through off my routine and I didn't make it to the gym at all. Back to the routine tomorrow though!
One more week and I'm off again.
Wednesday, July 23, 2014
Hump day...in the real world :)
One week down, two to go.
Well, to report on my fitness objectives, I have been to the gym 6 of the last 7 days. I asked one of the rec coordinators here to help me with a workout plan, and now I have a customized regime to follow. A side benefit to being in the oilsands :)
Someone recently asked me if I get tired, working so many days in a row. I don't. That's the strange thing about this type of life. When Aimee first started out here and was working 19 days in a row, I was aghast! No weekends ever?? No days to sleep in??? But the reality is that you don't have any of the worries or distractions that you do when you're at home, in the "real" world. No cooking, shopping, cleaning, yard work, errands, the commute to work. So you go to work for your ten hours, then you decide if you're going to read, or go to the gym, or watch TV. Not a lot of choices, and I think that's a huge weight lifted off. Now mind you, when you're getting close to the 21 days, you may start to get a little anxious for your days off.
Luckily, I like and get along well with the people I work with. It's good to have a sense of humor, but I believe that anyway, no matter where you are or what you're doing.
You really need a sense of humor with some guests, even though they may not be aware of it, or appreciate it if they are :) We had a guy come to the desk because he had left his key at work. I gave him the options...we could make him a new key for $5, or he could get security to let him into his room for free. He just stared at me, not saying a word. I repeated, in case he hadn't heard me. Still stared. I made a questioning gesture, and he said No, it's not OK. The whole thing escalated with another staff getting involved, a call to the manager (whom he hung up on) and him storming away to the security office to let him in his room. You have to wonder....I have some idea of what these guys earn, and it's a LOT. And $5 is going to turn into that kind of incident? It's got to be funny, for sure.
At first, I didn't think I liked this shift I'm working, which is either 11 am to 9:30 pm or 12 noon to 10:30 pm, but now I find I really like it. I don't have to set an alarm, I can wake up naturally. I go to the gym and there's nobody there. Maybe one or two people at the most. It's a nice rhythm to settle into for me.
Well, to report on my fitness objectives, I have been to the gym 6 of the last 7 days. I asked one of the rec coordinators here to help me with a workout plan, and now I have a customized regime to follow. A side benefit to being in the oilsands :)
Someone recently asked me if I get tired, working so many days in a row. I don't. That's the strange thing about this type of life. When Aimee first started out here and was working 19 days in a row, I was aghast! No weekends ever?? No days to sleep in??? But the reality is that you don't have any of the worries or distractions that you do when you're at home, in the "real" world. No cooking, shopping, cleaning, yard work, errands, the commute to work. So you go to work for your ten hours, then you decide if you're going to read, or go to the gym, or watch TV. Not a lot of choices, and I think that's a huge weight lifted off. Now mind you, when you're getting close to the 21 days, you may start to get a little anxious for your days off.
Luckily, I like and get along well with the people I work with. It's good to have a sense of humor, but I believe that anyway, no matter where you are or what you're doing.
You really need a sense of humor with some guests, even though they may not be aware of it, or appreciate it if they are :) We had a guy come to the desk because he had left his key at work. I gave him the options...we could make him a new key for $5, or he could get security to let him into his room for free. He just stared at me, not saying a word. I repeated, in case he hadn't heard me. Still stared. I made a questioning gesture, and he said No, it's not OK. The whole thing escalated with another staff getting involved, a call to the manager (whom he hung up on) and him storming away to the security office to let him in his room. You have to wonder....I have some idea of what these guys earn, and it's a LOT. And $5 is going to turn into that kind of incident? It's got to be funny, for sure.
At first, I didn't think I liked this shift I'm working, which is either 11 am to 9:30 pm or 12 noon to 10:30 pm, but now I find I really like it. I don't have to set an alarm, I can wake up naturally. I go to the gym and there's nobody there. Maybe one or two people at the most. It's a nice rhythm to settle into for me.
Friday, July 18, 2014
Little things...
Yes, it's the little things that can make or break a person's day.
Little thing #1 - I lost/forgot my hairbrush at home. I think I either left it at the cottage or at Caitlyn's house. Anyway, no brush here at all. Went to the store, they were out of hairbrushes (really?) until Friday afternoon. But wait...just heard that hairbrushes are on back order. Luckily, one of my co-workers could spare a comb until I can get one. Ouch.
Little thing #2 - as another co-worker said...I'd rather deal with some people than BE some people. Yesterday we got an email from the client saying to allow (I'll call him Joe) to move to another room. No explanation, just another room. Not an upgrade, just another room. He happens to come for his room change to my station. Another room. Well, where? What is the problem with your room? He says that he can hear his next door and across the hall neighbor's A/C or fan running and can't sleep. He's been using earplugs and they just aren't cutting it. OK, now, remember, we're in a CAMP. It's SUMMER. Where are you going to get a room that does not have neighbors that use their A/C??? So I'm trying to get out of him where exactly he thinks he should move to. Keep in mind that this camp runs at almost 100% capacity, so there are not a lot of empty rooms at any time. Well, he thought in a dorm on the end, on the side that faces out so doesn't have another dorm on the other side. OK, we get him a room in NP....farthest one out, facing the outside. It's a long way. He drags his stuff with him and leaves with the new key. Comes back ten or fifteen minutes later saying the room would have been ok, but it's right by the smoking pit. (Not a pit that's smoking, but the area where smokers go to smoke). OK, well.....now what? He's looking at me expectantly. Hmm. There's nothing available across the corridor in NO. Now my co-worker is involved and suggests SS or SQ, which are at the complete farthest end away. He tries a room there. Would have been great except the neighbor was playing music loud. We try one facing the gym. Nope, and I forget what that reason was. Mind you, he's running all over with all his stuff with him, and by now he's got sweat dripping off his face and is getting more agitated. In the end, he decided to stay where he was for the night, then see if he could get permission to transfer today, which is not normally granted because its' a fly day, and we have lots of check-ins. Again, rather be dealing with him than be in his head!
Today was Day 1 of Week 1 (for the second time) of Couch to 5K for me! If you don't know, it's an app that I downloaded to my phone of a program to follow to get from being a couch potato to being able to jog 5k. I did day 1 twice because, you know, I'm really sedentary lately. Baby steps. But two days in a row at the gym!! Go me!
Little thing #1 - I lost/forgot my hairbrush at home. I think I either left it at the cottage or at Caitlyn's house. Anyway, no brush here at all. Went to the store, they were out of hairbrushes (really?) until Friday afternoon. But wait...just heard that hairbrushes are on back order. Luckily, one of my co-workers could spare a comb until I can get one. Ouch.
Little thing #2 - as another co-worker said...I'd rather deal with some people than BE some people. Yesterday we got an email from the client saying to allow (I'll call him Joe) to move to another room. No explanation, just another room. Not an upgrade, just another room. He happens to come for his room change to my station. Another room. Well, where? What is the problem with your room? He says that he can hear his next door and across the hall neighbor's A/C or fan running and can't sleep. He's been using earplugs and they just aren't cutting it. OK, now, remember, we're in a CAMP. It's SUMMER. Where are you going to get a room that does not have neighbors that use their A/C??? So I'm trying to get out of him where exactly he thinks he should move to. Keep in mind that this camp runs at almost 100% capacity, so there are not a lot of empty rooms at any time. Well, he thought in a dorm on the end, on the side that faces out so doesn't have another dorm on the other side. OK, we get him a room in NP....farthest one out, facing the outside. It's a long way. He drags his stuff with him and leaves with the new key. Comes back ten or fifteen minutes later saying the room would have been ok, but it's right by the smoking pit. (Not a pit that's smoking, but the area where smokers go to smoke). OK, well.....now what? He's looking at me expectantly. Hmm. There's nothing available across the corridor in NO. Now my co-worker is involved and suggests SS or SQ, which are at the complete farthest end away. He tries a room there. Would have been great except the neighbor was playing music loud. We try one facing the gym. Nope, and I forget what that reason was. Mind you, he's running all over with all his stuff with him, and by now he's got sweat dripping off his face and is getting more agitated. In the end, he decided to stay where he was for the night, then see if he could get permission to transfer today, which is not normally granted because its' a fly day, and we have lots of check-ins. Again, rather be dealing with him than be in his head!
Today was Day 1 of Week 1 (for the second time) of Couch to 5K for me! If you don't know, it's an app that I downloaded to my phone of a program to follow to get from being a couch potato to being able to jog 5k. I did day 1 twice because, you know, I'm really sedentary lately. Baby steps. But two days in a row at the gym!! Go me!
Tuesday, July 15, 2014
Camp Life, where every day is a Monday
Until the last day of your rotation. Then it's a Friday. I can't believe how brain-dead I felt today. Granted, I was only here 13 days, and 2 of those days were entirely training, but still...I felt like I had to start all over again.
The weather here is HOT. Forest fires are starting to grow, and there's a big one at Banff National Park. No danger here yet, but I suppose this is a reality in this area with lots and lots of trees, and lots and lots of thunder and lightning storms.
I was checked into the same room I checked out of when I left. So it almost felt like coming home :)
Home away from home, anyway.
I'm really lucky that the AC unit in my room works great; I keep it about meat locker temperature. Which of course I keep to myself when I have someone at the desk complaining that theirs doesn't work and it's unbearably hot in his/her room. And I'm sure it would be. Metal trailers. Full sun. Yep, it would be hot! Cross my fingers that I stay lucky.
Well, first day back and I'm working a full rotation of 11 am - 9:30 pm shifts. I'm a little tired and there really isn't anything to report today, so I'll sign off for now!
The weather here is HOT. Forest fires are starting to grow, and there's a big one at Banff National Park. No danger here yet, but I suppose this is a reality in this area with lots and lots of trees, and lots and lots of thunder and lightning storms.
I was checked into the same room I checked out of when I left. So it almost felt like coming home :)
Home away from home, anyway.
I'm really lucky that the AC unit in my room works great; I keep it about meat locker temperature. Which of course I keep to myself when I have someone at the desk complaining that theirs doesn't work and it's unbearably hot in his/her room. And I'm sure it would be. Metal trailers. Full sun. Yep, it would be hot! Cross my fingers that I stay lucky.
Well, first day back and I'm working a full rotation of 11 am - 9:30 pm shifts. I'm a little tired and there really isn't anything to report today, so I'll sign off for now!
Monday, July 7, 2014
Home tomorrow!
Well, I know it's only been two weeks as of tomorrow, but it did go by very quickly. Please, remind me of this when I'm whining about day 16 when I get back :)
We've had some wicked weather. A couple of nights ago it was a fierce thunderstorm and pounding rain and hail. Yesterday, it was sunny one minute, then about a half hour later again with the pounding rain. Of course, that's played havoc with the WiFi and last night there was a steady stream of guys at the front desk complaining that they had no service. Don't know what to say, as I had service ;)
I've also seen a few people around stealthily snapping pics of the weather, etc. Actually, the day we had the party with the mechanical surf board etc, one of the managers (who has a camera pass) was snapping away, and caught me stuffing food in my mouth not once, but twice. And of course, the slide show is showing on one of the big TVs in the hall. So I get to enjoy that very flattering picture on occasion as I walk by.
Mmm, bread pudding for dessert yesterday. It was a surprise and it did make my day :)
I've given one of the boys that I work with permission to kick my butt to get to the gym everyday. Starting next rotation, of course. We'll see if he follows through. I'm actually enjoying my boy co-workers. Young guys, early (very early) 20's and are quite intelligent and we've had some interesting conversations. They're buddies from the same town, and I find them very entertaining.
I found my iPod, by the way. After checking the lost and found, and whining with a pouty lip stuck out. It was hiding in my backpack. I seriously did empty it out and check out all the corners! Or so I thought, anyway. Now just to rustle up a AAA battery for my headphones and I'll be all set for my flight tomorrow. FlightS. Tomorrow it's an easy one, Fort Mac to Calgary, a one hour layover, then directly to Windsor. Hopefully that one works out for a while. Big planes for both trips, which is good. Yay for Westjet. With Air Canada, there's always a small prop plane in there somewhere. I've got all my flights booked right through October, so I can give that search a rest for a bit.
Well, I hope this weather is good for my days off, and I'll be back a week from today to check in. Have a good week, all!
We've had some wicked weather. A couple of nights ago it was a fierce thunderstorm and pounding rain and hail. Yesterday, it was sunny one minute, then about a half hour later again with the pounding rain. Of course, that's played havoc with the WiFi and last night there was a steady stream of guys at the front desk complaining that they had no service. Don't know what to say, as I had service ;)
I've also seen a few people around stealthily snapping pics of the weather, etc. Actually, the day we had the party with the mechanical surf board etc, one of the managers (who has a camera pass) was snapping away, and caught me stuffing food in my mouth not once, but twice. And of course, the slide show is showing on one of the big TVs in the hall. So I get to enjoy that very flattering picture on occasion as I walk by.
Mmm, bread pudding for dessert yesterday. It was a surprise and it did make my day :)
I've given one of the boys that I work with permission to kick my butt to get to the gym everyday. Starting next rotation, of course. We'll see if he follows through. I'm actually enjoying my boy co-workers. Young guys, early (very early) 20's and are quite intelligent and we've had some interesting conversations. They're buddies from the same town, and I find them very entertaining.
I found my iPod, by the way. After checking the lost and found, and whining with a pouty lip stuck out. It was hiding in my backpack. I seriously did empty it out and check out all the corners! Or so I thought, anyway. Now just to rustle up a AAA battery for my headphones and I'll be all set for my flight tomorrow. FlightS. Tomorrow it's an easy one, Fort Mac to Calgary, a one hour layover, then directly to Windsor. Hopefully that one works out for a while. Big planes for both trips, which is good. Yay for Westjet. With Air Canada, there's always a small prop plane in there somewhere. I've got all my flights booked right through October, so I can give that search a rest for a bit.
Well, I hope this weather is good for my days off, and I'll be back a week from today to check in. Have a good week, all!
Saturday, July 5, 2014
Happy Post-Independence Day!
Another weekend at Surmont. The calm before the Monday storm. And tomorrow is casual day again. And I didn't bring hardly any casual clothes. Oh well, at least I don't have to wear a uniform shirt. I really only have one that fits me, one that's too small to be buttoned up so I wear it over another shirt, and two that are so huge it looks like I'm wearing tents. Maybe I'll just have to do laundry more often.
Have I mentioned that I really enjoy having my own bathroom?? Funny how little things get taken for granted, until we don't have them :)
As I get settled in and more comfortable, and recognize more people, I find I really am enjoying the biggest part of this job, and that's people. You meet the guys that are first timers; and seem uncertain and have a lot of questions about camp life. Then there are the guys that have been around to a few camps and always have comparisons to make, good and bad. You meet the angry complainers, the polite "hate-to-complain-but....and-it's-ok-if-it-doesn't-get-done-today" guys, the friendly guys that just stop by to say hi, or have a little chat when they come to fax or mail something. As anywhere in life, you see the ones with the sense of entitlement, and the ones that drop off a candy whenever he goes by in the hopes of getting a "better" room whenever he checks in. Some guys will come with a litany of everything they found "wrong" in their room, so they don't get blamed for it when they leave, and the others that just want to let you know something was amiss, and it's ok, but maybe the next guy will want it fixed. For the most part, it's good interactions during the day. If there's a bad one, well, we commiserate with each other and make jokes ;)
I've gotten lazy working this 11 am-9:30 pm shift. I keep thinking I'll go to bed as early as I can so I get up early and go to the gym, or get laundry or blogging done. Then I end up lazing around and wasting time before work and tell myself I'll do it after work. Then once I get to my room after work, I don't want to leave it. I have TV! I have internet! I have books! I can't find my iPod though :(
That really makes me sad because I really like to put my headphones on for my entire plane ride. I've lost it before, for about a year, and it turned up, so I'm hoping I'll eventually find it.
Oh, here's a funny. So on Thursdays at 11:30 am, everyone must attend a big safety meeting in the cafeteria. This past Thursday, we got in, signed in, and Carmelo asked who was a fire warden in a fire warden room. We raised our hands. He shuffled us off to one side of the room. Then he told us we were to go back to our rooms and were going to have a fire drill. He said they were going to do it at 11:40. Had to hustle out to get back to our rooms by 11:40. So I put on my vest and my hat and grab my clipboard and wait for the signal. And wait. And wait. And wait. And about ten, then twenty, then thirty minutes go by. I thought back to when I was at Albian, remembering one fire drill that we knew about ahead of time where they couldn't get the alarms to go off. Then I thought, here I am in my room with no phone, I don't have my cell phone on me....how would anyone reach me if there was a problem or anything? I sent an e-mail to PG who stayed back to man the front desk, and couldn't wait any longer. I put the safety things away and headed back to find out what was going on. I see people milling about, going about their business. I see another fire warden, carrying her vest etc. I stopped her and asked what was going on...and she said "we just had a fire drill". But I didn't hear it...what the heck??? She said they didn't actually pull the alarm, we were just supposed to start at 11:40. So there. Epic fail on my first fire drill. And I had to wonder...didn't anyone miss me??? Did they think I just took a nap or something?? Hmm.
Only two more days of work and then I'm heading home for 7. Well, because of my flights, I'm actually only going to BE home for 6 nights, 5 days. Will be nice to have my own bed though, for a couple of those!
Have I mentioned that I really enjoy having my own bathroom?? Funny how little things get taken for granted, until we don't have them :)
As I get settled in and more comfortable, and recognize more people, I find I really am enjoying the biggest part of this job, and that's people. You meet the guys that are first timers; and seem uncertain and have a lot of questions about camp life. Then there are the guys that have been around to a few camps and always have comparisons to make, good and bad. You meet the angry complainers, the polite "hate-to-complain-but....and-it's-ok-if-it-doesn't-get-done-today" guys, the friendly guys that just stop by to say hi, or have a little chat when they come to fax or mail something. As anywhere in life, you see the ones with the sense of entitlement, and the ones that drop off a candy whenever he goes by in the hopes of getting a "better" room whenever he checks in. Some guys will come with a litany of everything they found "wrong" in their room, so they don't get blamed for it when they leave, and the others that just want to let you know something was amiss, and it's ok, but maybe the next guy will want it fixed. For the most part, it's good interactions during the day. If there's a bad one, well, we commiserate with each other and make jokes ;)
I've gotten lazy working this 11 am-9:30 pm shift. I keep thinking I'll go to bed as early as I can so I get up early and go to the gym, or get laundry or blogging done. Then I end up lazing around and wasting time before work and tell myself I'll do it after work. Then once I get to my room after work, I don't want to leave it. I have TV! I have internet! I have books! I can't find my iPod though :(
That really makes me sad because I really like to put my headphones on for my entire plane ride. I've lost it before, for about a year, and it turned up, so I'm hoping I'll eventually find it.
Oh, here's a funny. So on Thursdays at 11:30 am, everyone must attend a big safety meeting in the cafeteria. This past Thursday, we got in, signed in, and Carmelo asked who was a fire warden in a fire warden room. We raised our hands. He shuffled us off to one side of the room. Then he told us we were to go back to our rooms and were going to have a fire drill. He said they were going to do it at 11:40. Had to hustle out to get back to our rooms by 11:40. So I put on my vest and my hat and grab my clipboard and wait for the signal. And wait. And wait. And wait. And about ten, then twenty, then thirty minutes go by. I thought back to when I was at Albian, remembering one fire drill that we knew about ahead of time where they couldn't get the alarms to go off. Then I thought, here I am in my room with no phone, I don't have my cell phone on me....how would anyone reach me if there was a problem or anything? I sent an e-mail to PG who stayed back to man the front desk, and couldn't wait any longer. I put the safety things away and headed back to find out what was going on. I see people milling about, going about their business. I see another fire warden, carrying her vest etc. I stopped her and asked what was going on...and she said "we just had a fire drill". But I didn't hear it...what the heck??? She said they didn't actually pull the alarm, we were just supposed to start at 11:40. So there. Epic fail on my first fire drill. And I had to wonder...didn't anyone miss me??? Did they think I just took a nap or something?? Hmm.
Only two more days of work and then I'm heading home for 7. Well, because of my flights, I'm actually only going to BE home for 6 nights, 5 days. Will be nice to have my own bed though, for a couple of those!
Tuesday, July 1, 2014
A p.s. to today...
So, funny thing happened after my post. I grabbed my ID badged (where I keep my room key) and went to the laundry room to grab my laundry. But I hadn't put my key back so I was locked out of my room. So, had to walk all the way in to the front desk, get a key, quickly throw my laundry in my room and get dressed for work. I was late. Then, a little later, my supervisor asked if I wanted to transfer into a firewarden room inside the building. I wasn't going to, since I only have a week left here, but when she told me the AC was better, I grabbed the chance. My room had been feeling stuffy and hot. So....I went back out to my room, packed up, and moved into the fire warden room in SO. Didn't really get to see it as it was still being cleaned so I just dropped my stuff and ran back to work. When I arrived back at my room after work tonight, I got to fully appreciate my new amenities. A double bed! A hotel-style heat/AC unit that cooled this room down like crazy! A black-out blind that actually darkens the room! A private bathroom! Ok, it was a good day, despite all my running around. :)
Week 1
I've been here a week already! Hard to believe. Oh well, having the time fly by is a good thing.
So, Manic Monday. Well, it wasn't a typical one, I've been told. Instead of having the 700 arrivals within about 2 hours, there were flight delays galore and they trickled in through the evening. It made for a long day though. I worked 7 am - 1 pm, then went back at 5 pm supposed to be until 9 pm, but because of the delays etc, worked until 9:50, took an hour off, then went back at 10:50 for the last two buses and off at 12:30 am. Oh, and today is a holiday. Happy Canada Day!
I was with PG in the conference room checking in the new hires. PG is an old pro, and has a big booming voice, so directed all new hires to the conference room to give me their photo IDs. There is rarely ever a no reservation guest, and with keys all made up ahead of time, and no pen pads to sign, and the ability to check in on a laptop computer, it was great. PG herded them in, I started with the IDs and checking in, he gave the speech, passed out the new hire sign in sheets, and by the time they were finished that, for the most part I had everyone checked in and keys ready. Oh, and guess what, ladies from Albian...if a guest comes in with no reservation, we can put one in and check him in that way for one night, then the company takes care of it from there. The last group was large, 21 at once, so I was a little behind in the check in process, but other than that, the two of us missed all the hustle bustle of the front desk. Cool beans for my first Monday :) And bonus...by the time I got to my room well after midnight, it was pitch dark and conducive to sleep. So, all in all, a good day.
I took a quick shot of the view outside my bunkhouse, looking out towards the lake (don't freak out, Shirley...no identifiers!) but it wasn't a very good one. I'll try again later.
So this morning, being able to wake up without an alarm was nice. I have a couple loads of laundry in, and took a walk one end to the other of the building, and stopped in at the gym and did a little weight work. Baby steps, it's been a long time! I don't think I'll mind this 11am-9:30 pm shift. One drawback though, there are no classes in the gym for the hours that I'm not at work, so that kind of sucks, since I wanted to try yoga and maybe an ab class. Oh well, I'll be on my honor to do some workout every day.
Guess what I was working on yesterday....walkdowns! I never thought I'd ever have to worry about one of those ever again. About my third day here they decide that the front desk audit the walkdowns every day. Sheesh. However, we don't have to do the legwork, only the paperwork. It was good, actually, because I still don't know enough about the tasks that can be done during downtime to keep me busy so I'll take on any of the mundane stuff that nobody likes to do.
While I was typing this, I was eating my breakfast. I brought back a cup of instant oatmeal yesterday, and just put the hot water in (the water cooler/heater is right outside my room). It was great, except for no milk and I forgot to get a spoon. So for the first time ever, I ate my oatmeal with a plastic knife :)
I really wish I could get some comments on here. It's nice to know if someone is reading, and if they have anything to add.
Again, happy Canada day!
So, Manic Monday. Well, it wasn't a typical one, I've been told. Instead of having the 700 arrivals within about 2 hours, there were flight delays galore and they trickled in through the evening. It made for a long day though. I worked 7 am - 1 pm, then went back at 5 pm supposed to be until 9 pm, but because of the delays etc, worked until 9:50, took an hour off, then went back at 10:50 for the last two buses and off at 12:30 am. Oh, and today is a holiday. Happy Canada Day!
I was with PG in the conference room checking in the new hires. PG is an old pro, and has a big booming voice, so directed all new hires to the conference room to give me their photo IDs. There is rarely ever a no reservation guest, and with keys all made up ahead of time, and no pen pads to sign, and the ability to check in on a laptop computer, it was great. PG herded them in, I started with the IDs and checking in, he gave the speech, passed out the new hire sign in sheets, and by the time they were finished that, for the most part I had everyone checked in and keys ready. Oh, and guess what, ladies from Albian...if a guest comes in with no reservation, we can put one in and check him in that way for one night, then the company takes care of it from there. The last group was large, 21 at once, so I was a little behind in the check in process, but other than that, the two of us missed all the hustle bustle of the front desk. Cool beans for my first Monday :) And bonus...by the time I got to my room well after midnight, it was pitch dark and conducive to sleep. So, all in all, a good day.
I took a quick shot of the view outside my bunkhouse, looking out towards the lake (don't freak out, Shirley...no identifiers!) but it wasn't a very good one. I'll try again later.
So this morning, being able to wake up without an alarm was nice. I have a couple loads of laundry in, and took a walk one end to the other of the building, and stopped in at the gym and did a little weight work. Baby steps, it's been a long time! I don't think I'll mind this 11am-9:30 pm shift. One drawback though, there are no classes in the gym for the hours that I'm not at work, so that kind of sucks, since I wanted to try yoga and maybe an ab class. Oh well, I'll be on my honor to do some workout every day.
Guess what I was working on yesterday....walkdowns! I never thought I'd ever have to worry about one of those ever again. About my third day here they decide that the front desk audit the walkdowns every day. Sheesh. However, we don't have to do the legwork, only the paperwork. It was good, actually, because I still don't know enough about the tasks that can be done during downtime to keep me busy so I'll take on any of the mundane stuff that nobody likes to do.
While I was typing this, I was eating my breakfast. I brought back a cup of instant oatmeal yesterday, and just put the hot water in (the water cooler/heater is right outside my room). It was great, except for no milk and I forgot to get a spoon. So for the first time ever, I ate my oatmeal with a plastic knife :)
I really wish I could get some comments on here. It's nice to know if someone is reading, and if they have anything to add.
Again, happy Canada day!
Sunday, June 29, 2014
The calm before the storm...
Casual Sunday is also extremely quiet Sunday. Although I'm sure I'm going to love the quiet weekends once I get a taste of the busy weekdays. We enjoyed Bob Marley radio today, jammin' to the tunes and wished for a tropical vacation.
Hey, I actually made it to and from work today and did not trip over my own feet! I really want to try and sneak in a picture of the mail corridor. The map there, which is not to scale, does not give an idea of the sprawl of this place. It's the looooong loooooong walk. If I'm not brave enough to get that shot, I might try a view from the back where my Bunkhouse A is.
I put in some time recording customer service surveys the last couple of days. I tell ya, they do make me chuckle. Some people give low marks for the food, since they don't have their usual diet of buttermilk, goat cheese, spring mix, avocados, blueberries, (and a few other things I've forgotten) available to them. Or that whole wheat pancakes, waffles and pasta are not available more often. What is this, the Ritz Carlton?? It does make me laugh to myself while entering them, which of course makes people wonder what the heck I'm chuckling at. Might as well bring my sanity into question quickly :)
Speaking of food, today for dinner I had roast turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, yams, gravy, peas and carrots. This is a camp. Feeds over 3,000 people per day. I'm impressed.
Still haven't checked out the recreational facilities yet. Or the laundry facilities. But the cable or satellite TV is great. I don't have TV at home, (live TV, I do subscribe to Netflix) so I'm enjoying movies and commercials and channel selection.
My can-mate left, and I've had the bathroom to myself for the last two days. Just like a private suite :)
Well, my brain is all out of blog material today, I'll check in again. Thanks for reading!
Hey, I actually made it to and from work today and did not trip over my own feet! I really want to try and sneak in a picture of the mail corridor. The map there, which is not to scale, does not give an idea of the sprawl of this place. It's the looooong loooooong walk. If I'm not brave enough to get that shot, I might try a view from the back where my Bunkhouse A is.
I put in some time recording customer service surveys the last couple of days. I tell ya, they do make me chuckle. Some people give low marks for the food, since they don't have their usual diet of buttermilk, goat cheese, spring mix, avocados, blueberries, (and a few other things I've forgotten) available to them. Or that whole wheat pancakes, waffles and pasta are not available more often. What is this, the Ritz Carlton?? It does make me laugh to myself while entering them, which of course makes people wonder what the heck I'm chuckling at. Might as well bring my sanity into question quickly :)
Speaking of food, today for dinner I had roast turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, yams, gravy, peas and carrots. This is a camp. Feeds over 3,000 people per day. I'm impressed.
Still haven't checked out the recreational facilities yet. Or the laundry facilities. But the cable or satellite TV is great. I don't have TV at home, (live TV, I do subscribe to Netflix) so I'm enjoying movies and commercials and channel selection.
My can-mate left, and I've had the bathroom to myself for the last two days. Just like a private suite :)
Well, my brain is all out of blog material today, I'll check in again. Thanks for reading!
Saturday, June 28, 2014
Another round...
Saturday night in the oil sands. Anybody that read my first blog about camp life knows that days have no meaning here. Every day is Monday. Until your last day of work. Then it's Friday :)
I'm not going to mention any specifics about the company I work for or my location, just because I don't want this to pop up if anyone is looking for "contraband" pictures or words. It's not allowed to post any specifics about the camp, and pictures are not allowed. If anyone reading this wants any specific information, you can just email or Facebook (private message) me. And if anyone is interested in the specifics I e-mailed out a couple of days ago, just let me know and I'll forward that e-mail.
I am including a map of the complex, because I've made sure that no identifiable information is on the picture. I've marked out the front desk with a red star, the kitchen/dining/lunch room area with a pink box, and my route from my room to the front desk - the yellow line is outside, then the green line is inside. As you can see, I am in the furthest trailer from my work area. Well, maybe T5 is further away. All the T bunks are not connected by arctic corridor, and the other three between mine and the inside corridors are the outside trailers. T for temporary. Once this camp has completed construction, the plan is to get rid of the outside trailers.
The rooms in the outside trailers are the Jack and Jill variety, where two rooms share access to a toilet and shower. Each room has it's own sink, desk, bed, tv and armoire. Rooms are small. WiFi is provided as well as satellite TV. No phones in the rooms. The inside standard rooms all have private baths. There are no shared baths for any of the inside rooms. They're small, but nice to have your own bathroom. There are some Executive class rooms, which are smaller than the one I had at the previous camp, and then Operator class rooms. These rooms are set up for "hot swapping", or, having two people on opposite shifts using/keeping the room. They have two separate locking armoires, the desk has two lockable sides. One person leaves and the other comes in on the same day (thus the "hot swapping"). They are the nicest of the rooms here. The operating company gets these rooms.
Outside of the dining room area, in the central core, there are coolers set up where you can pick up a sandwich, juice, milk, maybe a corn dog or pot pie any time of the day or night. Also coffee/tea stations, and a variety of teas and hot chocolate also available 24/7. There are high bar-type tables in the corridor as well, to sit and eat lunch or have break or something when the dining room is closed.
I like the efficiency of the front desk here. More "guests". Less staff. The check in process is remarkably smooth and fast, compared to my previous experience. I'll really get to see it in action on Monday evening, when 700 arrivals are expected.
There are basically 4 shift times. Day shift, which is usually 7-5:30. Split shift, which, depending on the day, is 7am-1pm, then 5pm-9:30 pm. Or it could start at 5 am. The afternoon shift is 11 am - 9:30 pm, and the night audit shift is 9:00pm - 7:30 am. I've only done days and splits so far. Monday I believe I start the afternoon shift for the rest of my rotation.
The area around is quite lovely. No big huge piles of earth, since there is no open mining going on. There is a lake visible from my bunkhouse, and just a few miles away is a beautiful lake and provincial park.
This is a "boot free" facility, meaning when returning from shift, the workers must enter through the boot room area, remove their boots and outerwear and leave it there. Or carry it to their rooms. It still gets dirty, but nothing like when the muddy boots are tromping through.
One little anecdote and then I'm going to end for the evening. As I was returning along the outside walkway, or boardwalk, to my room after dinner, I inexplicably stumbled on something and took a tumble. Hard. Right in front of the crowded smoking pit. Sigh. To his credit, the nearest person came over to ask if I was ok and offer help up, which I did not take, trying to find a little dignity somewhere. I have a bruised shin just below the knee, scraped elbow, bruised hip and hand. And I'm probably going to have to report it as an "incident".
Tomorrow is casual Sunday, no work clothes required. And I didn't bring my jeans.
I'm not going to mention any specifics about the company I work for or my location, just because I don't want this to pop up if anyone is looking for "contraband" pictures or words. It's not allowed to post any specifics about the camp, and pictures are not allowed. If anyone reading this wants any specific information, you can just email or Facebook (private message) me. And if anyone is interested in the specifics I e-mailed out a couple of days ago, just let me know and I'll forward that e-mail.
I am including a map of the complex, because I've made sure that no identifiable information is on the picture. I've marked out the front desk with a red star, the kitchen/dining/lunch room area with a pink box, and my route from my room to the front desk - the yellow line is outside, then the green line is inside. As you can see, I am in the furthest trailer from my work area. Well, maybe T5 is further away. All the T bunks are not connected by arctic corridor, and the other three between mine and the inside corridors are the outside trailers. T for temporary. Once this camp has completed construction, the plan is to get rid of the outside trailers.
The rooms in the outside trailers are the Jack and Jill variety, where two rooms share access to a toilet and shower. Each room has it's own sink, desk, bed, tv and armoire. Rooms are small. WiFi is provided as well as satellite TV. No phones in the rooms. The inside standard rooms all have private baths. There are no shared baths for any of the inside rooms. They're small, but nice to have your own bathroom. There are some Executive class rooms, which are smaller than the one I had at the previous camp, and then Operator class rooms. These rooms are set up for "hot swapping", or, having two people on opposite shifts using/keeping the room. They have two separate locking armoires, the desk has two lockable sides. One person leaves and the other comes in on the same day (thus the "hot swapping"). They are the nicest of the rooms here. The operating company gets these rooms.
Outside of the dining room area, in the central core, there are coolers set up where you can pick up a sandwich, juice, milk, maybe a corn dog or pot pie any time of the day or night. Also coffee/tea stations, and a variety of teas and hot chocolate also available 24/7. There are high bar-type tables in the corridor as well, to sit and eat lunch or have break or something when the dining room is closed.
I like the efficiency of the front desk here. More "guests". Less staff. The check in process is remarkably smooth and fast, compared to my previous experience. I'll really get to see it in action on Monday evening, when 700 arrivals are expected.
There are basically 4 shift times. Day shift, which is usually 7-5:30. Split shift, which, depending on the day, is 7am-1pm, then 5pm-9:30 pm. Or it could start at 5 am. The afternoon shift is 11 am - 9:30 pm, and the night audit shift is 9:00pm - 7:30 am. I've only done days and splits so far. Monday I believe I start the afternoon shift for the rest of my rotation.
The area around is quite lovely. No big huge piles of earth, since there is no open mining going on. There is a lake visible from my bunkhouse, and just a few miles away is a beautiful lake and provincial park.
This is a "boot free" facility, meaning when returning from shift, the workers must enter through the boot room area, remove their boots and outerwear and leave it there. Or carry it to their rooms. It still gets dirty, but nothing like when the muddy boots are tromping through.
One little anecdote and then I'm going to end for the evening. As I was returning along the outside walkway, or boardwalk, to my room after dinner, I inexplicably stumbled on something and took a tumble. Hard. Right in front of the crowded smoking pit. Sigh. To his credit, the nearest person came over to ask if I was ok and offer help up, which I did not take, trying to find a little dignity somewhere. I have a bruised shin just below the knee, scraped elbow, bruised hip and hand. And I'm probably going to have to report it as an "incident".
Tomorrow is casual Sunday, no work clothes required. And I didn't bring my jeans.
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