Small mind racing...

Well I finally stopped working...does that sound right? Time-off sounds better so lets go with that. I travelled home the other day. Sad to say the Ford had some teething problems, one day I hopped in it and when it started it sounded like the mice in the flywheel were having a sword fight...so the same old story...my ever loving bias against the dealer in Ft St John meant I was willing to drive out of my way 400 extra kilometers and get it fixed in Rocky Mtn House. I booked it in Thursday morning, but it turns out there are no starters to be had in all of Canada and I was looking at a 3 day wait for one to come out of the States. Luckily the service dept. manager found out and had one taken out of a truck in Edmonton and it was shipped down so I could leave on Friday. I heard they want me to pay for the freight...we'll see if that happens. I seem to remember when I signed the papers, a little service plan was included that cost me over $2000, says I don't pay for ANYthing up to 120,000km's.

I have a lot of thinking to do in the next while, it might be good to get away from everything for a bit and do it somewhere else. A person close to me has offered a new job opportunity, but I am really conflicted over whether or not to take him up on it....It is a really great offer, not quite what I am doing now, but close. I think I am warped though, one of my unbendable requirements is that I get to stay around heavy equipment daily...god I am simple.

Oh and I bought the quad! Yeah! Have not ridden it more than 50 yards yet, but it was great, can't wait to ride it some more. The nice thing about the whole deal is zero payments...yep its ALL mine, got a cashiers' cheque and paid for it all. I didn't bring it north with me, it is snug in a garage in Edson. I did get it registered and insured. My broker asked me if I wanted collision..."Why would I need collision?" I asked her. Well she says: "If it falls out of your pickup thats collision"....hmmm, good point, I should get the collision coverage too.

Never Endings

So it is February 7 2011...halfway into another job. I know one day soon I will be looking back to this post and wondering when the next job will start, but right now I am wondering when this will end. Unlike my old friends and some relatives I don't do long stretches well. 25 days to a month is all I can do of bush work without any breaks. Time off is normal for anyone and I'm not in this to set any records...I haven't been home since Dec 27 2010, what's that? 42 odd days or something and before that was almost 3 straight months since September. Who knows? Math is not my strong suit. I do know that my motel bill is well over $2000 right now. Oh the joys of being self employed.

I have been thinking it would be more logical to get an apartment in Edson Alberta where I am working at the moment. I just don't want to move in and then find I am working in a totally new area, then what do I have? No friends anywhere, a stranger alone in a strange town. I think my original plan of moving back to Rotten Monkey House is much better, at least then I have a few good friends in the area. I have been trying to make the best of bad situation with the move last year back to Ft St John BC, but more and more I realize that I absolutely hate that place with a passion and its better for everyone involved that I limit my time there to one visit a year. We should have some sort of fondness for the place we were born and raised, I don't. In my head it could be any number of things, from the Provincial politics (which is communist and it turns out my accountant from Alberta agrees), to the people in general that I don't want anything to with ever again. The only ones I respect anymore are my parents, brother and sisters and a few that I work with at a contractor I know. Other than that...well I could go on but I won't. Let sleeping dogs lie...and I really do mean dogs.

Anyway back to the job thing: 42 days with another week to go and its very possible that I could stay working in the Republic of Alberta right through and beyond break-up which is fast approaching...then clean-up season starts and I still have to stay one lease ahead of this rig and its going to be here until next fall. Never Ending...

Work Ethic

Imagine you were working in the Alberta oil patch, you have a job less than 15mins from a small city. You get $140 a day to find a motel room and feed yourself. If you are smart you get a buddy to share the room and pocket some easy money. You get to take a taxi to and from the job site, no cost to you. You work 12 hours a day and after 8 you get paid time and a half. Your only responsibility is to get out of bed, get into the taxi and do your job. Don't show up late and don't arrive at the job site with alcohol on your breath. There is room for advancement, here is the latest wage schedule that a Drilling rig worker gets per hour:

 Driller $40.20

Assistant Driller $35.00

Derrickhand $34.00

Motorhand $28.50

Floorhand $26.40

Leasehand $24.00

In less than 4 years you could be the guy at the top of the pile. And you can get this wage with little more than a high school diploma, sometimes not even that is required .Wouldn't you think that was a great opportunity, wouldn't you think you would do everything to protect your job, do it well...do it on a rig that has guaranteed work for the next year under the exact same circumstances that I just described?

Well apparently not. The drilling rig I am building all the sites for lately just had 3 guys walk off their shift because one shit disturber couldn't wake up on time and showed up drunk more than once. These guys have an attitude and very poor work ethic...it will be a good one to reflect on when they are flipping burgers at McDonald's real soon.