(written on my PDA while coming home last hitch) It’s 9:59 and I’m an hour and a half out of Oakland. I’m listening to Counting Crows on my headphones. Not sure why I like a band whose lead singer says that his favorite color is gray - I guess they just make me feel mellow. Besides, one of their songs is about a girl who walks into a house and takes her clothes off.
Well, I’m (he quickly counts the little “X”s on his calendar) 20 days into my first 28 day hitch as a rotational worker. It has been interesting, to say the least. I’m finding that there are lots of people who have worked this sort of job for 10+ years, and they all seem to have a little advice to give to those of us who are accustomed to a more conventional work environment. Here are a few quotes: “It’s like the movie Ground Hog Day. The same thing happens, you see the same people, you eat the same food, every single day” “It just doesn’t get any better than this. No, really, this is it. It doesn’t get any better.” “It only feels like prison at first. Oh, would you mind stealing some food from the cafeteria for a secret party we are having? The guards won’t let you take the food out if they catch you.” No matter how you slice it, this is an unusual way to work. Of course, I have yet to have the opportunity to enjoy the other 28 days (well, it’s more like 26, as you have to commute on your own time). Still, the work in interesting and the people are interesting. I have a team of very smart and very enthusiastic Angolans, with a few British, South African and American expatriates sprinkled in. Am I enjoying it? Sure. Would I like to be home with my sweetheart? Absolutely. That will come, with time. Every 28 days, to be exact.
The house is barren, it echos, and the smell of cardboard is in the air. The movers arrived today, boxes, paper and bubble-wrap in hand. We had heard from others that these guys don’t take any chances when it comes to packing – every thing is getting several layers of paper, then bubble wrap, then tape. While I don’t think we will have much damage, I’m not looking forward to unwrapping every glass, plate and knick-nack. Liz likes these moves because it gives us a chance to clean out – we have thrown or given away hundreds of pounds of stuff, from old clothes to charcoal. It still feels like we have a lot left. A lot of things went to locals – we had 6 or 8 bags of clothes that went to our neighbor’s housekeeper. Liz told me tonight that she took it all home and immediately called her friends, who apparently rushed over to her house to pick through it all. We are taking refuge in our bedroom – we even had dinner there tonight. If Liz hadn’t saved a little cooking gear in for our air shipment (we get one “E” carton) we wouldn’t have even had any pans or knives to make dinner with. Seeing how it snowed about 5 inches today, we weren’t that interested in going out tonight. Besides, neither of us were in the mood. Our friends here have been sending us off in grand style. We’ve already had two departure dinners, and at least 3 more are planned for this week. We’ve had some pretty touching moments already – I’m glad we have saved out some tissues to wipe the tears. We will be leaving some wonderful, wonderful friends here. It’s amazing how close we have become with the people here after only a few years. I guess one of the things that you learn in this sort of environment is that it’s not a good idea to take time to develop relationships. I think we have also found a lot of like-minded people here, people who are willing to take a chance and see what the world has to offer. We feel privileged to know these wonderful folks.
Well, I finally heard yesterday. I was unsuccessful at getting the job in Ghana, so I’m off to Angola. We haven’t worked out when I start, but I’m guessing it will be mid to late January. I’m not upset about not getting the Ghana job. I started hearing some things about the company (called “WAPCO”) that made me start wondering what I had gotten myself in for. So, things work out! There are lots of people in Angola who I have worked with before, and the job sounds interesting. They have lots of offshore platforms, and some pretty big technology challenges. I’m not crazy about the rotating bit, but I guess after 16 years of working internationally, I was due. Certainly everyone I talk to about this particular rotational location gets a big smile on their face when I ask them about it. It sounds like a nice camp, with a golf course, beach and good accommodation. We’ll be moving back to San Ramon, at least initially. The house is going to get some new paint and carpet as a minimum, and if we decide to stay, there several other things are going to need upgrading. It’ll keep me occupied while I’m off hitch. It’s almost karmic that our renter has also been re-assigned just now, and will be moving out at the end of December. The good news about rotating is the time off – there’ll be plenty of time to take nice long trips and stay too long visiting everyone we know. First off hitch is already planned – we need to bring the Miata back from Arkansas. Liz is already scheming ways that she can meet me in Houston to start the trip. We have made some very, very good friends during the three years we have been in Atyrau, and we will miss them dearly. It turns out that many are also leaving now for their next jobs, or retirement. I guess if there is a reasonable breaking point, this is as good as any. Still, there are many we will be sad to leave behind in Atyrau. Maybe if we get another residential job somewhere we will see a few of them again. We definitely intend to make time to visit those who have decided to retire.
