Today was one of those officey days again. In the morning, I met with the park staff for the day and got them started on their work projects. I retreated to the office to work on my own project. I was compiling a sign order for the park. I had 4 pages of sign notes from various people as well as my own requests... and I'm still not done! The park service has its own sign shop so that we can get consistent and uniform signs at a fair cost. Some of the signs that we are ordering are replacing damaged or missing signs, some are needs that we have identified over time and some are replacing the old-fashioned wooden signs with the standard metal signs. It took me a long time to get all of the signs on my lists onto the appropriate sign order form. I had to check each sign to see if it was an existing sign in the catalog and if it wasn't, I had to provide all the details to get what we wanted. I also had interruptions throughout the day, as is the norm. I checked in with the park staff as they worked and I helped a ranger complete a travel form on the computer, which nearly defeated us both. We were triumphant in the end though! I also had to go out into the field for a little while to check on a few more signs. I didn't see anything exciting though, I didn't get any photos. It was a pretty relaxed and uneventful day. I finished up in the office and prepared my notes for tomorrow at the end of the day. Just as I was headed to my truck, one of my coworkers from the district office came out of her office looking very defeated. She had several deadlines to meet and had just gotten an e-mail from Tallahassee that needed immediate attention. They wanted to check our inventory in a FEMA supply trailer and needed the information right away. I'm guessing that Tallahassee wants to be prepared to send support to the Gulf Coast areas that will be affected by the oil disaster. She really couldn't fit one more thing into her agenda and I have definitely been in that situation before. Without really knowing what I was getting into, I told her that I would take care of it. She gave me an inventory list and I headed to the trailer to check it out. As I began pulling things out of the trailer and marking them off of the list, I quickly realized that I would need some help. There was a lot packed in there and some of it was very heavy. There were generators, tents, sleeping bags, cooking supplies, and tools for 25 people. Fortunately, my fiance was home and he was willing to volunteer his strength. Together we made quick work of the project and I was on my way home in no time.
Thought of the Day #55
I am not looking forward to seeing how the recent disaster in the Gulf is going to effect my state and my fellow parks. I am glad to be inland, but I'm sure that the effects will be far reaching. Keep an eye out for volunteering opportunities in all of the Gulf states. I'm sure that lots of help will be needed as the oil approaches land.
1 comment:
Amy, I feel for all on the Gulf Coast. This spill is bringing back horrible memories for the people I work with as the Exxon Valdez went aground just a few miles from the Village of Tatitlek...the native village for whom I work. The devastation was immense, and to this day, there is still oil on the rocks and beaches, and the herring stock as well as other marine life has not recovered. Most of our fisherman lost their livelihoods, and just got final compensation from Exxon, which was piddly, a few months ago. I cut the checks from the funds we got from the attorneys' so I know. It's just heartbreaking!! Heartbreaking for all the beautiful animals that were killed and for the people who have suffered for years. I pray for all the creatures great and small affected by this latest spill and hope to goodness they can get it contained in the next few days!!!!
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