A DEMOTION & A GRADUATION

Now isn’t that a strange combination: A Demotion & A Graduation.  I bet you are wondering how the heck the two work together in a title and a sentence.  Well I guess I better get the answer out.

First thing first, A Demotion:  Brian has been so helpful to both me and to the rangers in the office.  He is learning how the day pass works and now working on how the camping permits work.  He wants to eventually learn how the fishing license works, and I tell him that’s for me to do and for him to keep an eye on the window.  It’s no offense to him, but a major screw up on the fishing license could spell disaster.  I’m still leery on the procedure, but each time I do one, I get better at it, and I have learned how to back out of it, if I do screw up without charging the customer more money. 

Brian also has been working hard on cleaning the office/gate house.  It’s not like it’s a total messy place, but it’s obvious that no one has had the time to move things around and do a thorough cleaning.  For example our brochure rack was really dusty and dirty-but no more.  The office chairs had lots of grime, and now they are sparkling clean once again.  The doors looked like grease monkeys came in and out, now you can actually see the true color of the paint.  The rangers are liking him in the office to help out and also to do the cleaning that they themselves don’t have time.

But now this week-Brian has received a DEMOTION!   He will now be given a golf cart, a rake, a bucket, gloves, a pooper scooper and garbage bags and will have to go out and do really physical labor.  His duties will be cleaning campsites after campers leave, clean day-use area including the beach area and around the two fishing lakes, plus the two group day-use area after a schedule party has left the area.  He will split his duties with another camp host here in the park.  On top of all that he will sell firewood here at our site.

Brian up and early-ready to go to work

He's making sure the grill is ready for the next person to use

This is all temporary, mind you.  We have two sets of camp host, besides us here in our park.  Our one set has had some heart issue and was in the hospital for a couple of days.  He was fitted with a pace-maker this past week and the park rangers wants to give him a few weeks to regain his strength before going back to the hosting position.  So Brian (and of course I will help when ever I can) will be taking over their duties for now.  Once they are  back in the swing of things, then Brian will go back to office duties and if he’s good maybe a promotion….

Now as for the Graduation:  As I have written that I have had a foot issue with a cyst being removed a couple of weeks ago.  I have had to go back to the doctor a few times for re-checks and each time it’s been a little better.  Last week I graduated from a surgical shoe, to wearing my one pair of tennis shoes and the bandage from being thick to thin.  This week I now have graduated from the thin bandage wrap to simply a band-aide and now being able to wear my hiker shoes once again without pain.  Next week I finally go for one last visit where they will finally take out the stitches.  The doctor was impressed on my healing-as she said it carefully: “for someone of my age”….she really wasn’t saying that I”m getting “old” was she???

Still a little bruising around the toes.

An any case, the foot is doing great and very soon I will be back to hiking once again.  But for now, I’m just getting back into the swing of walking more than just a block.