So now I’m sitting at “La Mission Villanueva” trying to pick up the internet signal from the nearby radio shack. Thus far I’m unsuccessful. The town of Springfield is small. The restaurant I’m sitting in only caught my eye because the rundown sign was marked “café.” I was hoping for coffee. And internet. Though it appears that we are too far away to glean wireless.
Yesterday we worked at the Forest Service work center, doing some chainsaw maintenance, installing radios in the trucks, and cleaning out the work center. Then we watched wild land fire fighting training videos. Not a lot of “getting things done” but we did also go through our fire line packs and make sure we have all the essentials (water, MRE, fire shelter, PPE, compass, fuzees, etc.) and discussed personal items we may wish to include (extra contacts, wool socks, spoons, peanuts, etc).
We have the next two days to spend in the lovely area of 8 miles outside Springfield. Thus far I have visited the local gas station, and this café. There doesn’t seem to be much more of substance in this town. Ayla called the library earlier in the week, and they are supposedly open for a few hours today. However they are currently not picking up the phone, and I don’t have high hopes for that entertainment venue. I’m secretly (ok, not-so-secretly) hoping to find somewhere to buy a couple used books. My book supply is already drying up, and that’s how I intended to entertain myself for another week. Strategy #2: Ask locals. (Strategy # 1 being find internet, use google). I should switch my strategy priorities, I think.
Next week we are relocating to another forest service house for projects in a new area. This new area is even further from civilization. There will be no town like Springfield to seek respite from team living. Russ remarked that we should “stock up on cigarettes before we leave” which leads me to believe there wont even be a gas station within our 25 mile driving distance.
Ok. No spot for used books in town (maybe the library…) I begin to suspect it will be a long weekend.
OH MY! I THINK I’m PICKING UP THE WIRELESS SIGNAL….I’m going to slowly inch toward the door, and hope my computer doesn’t realize what I’m doing…its not working…pretty soon Clay and I will relocate to the truck, which is parked pretty close to Radio Shack.
Saturday, January 30, 2010
Thursday, January 28, 2010
1/28/2010
Today we were working in what felt like the arctic tundra. It was cold. Very cold. I seriously considered amputating my toes in order to survive. It hurt. The feeling in my feet alternated between pins and needles, and burning fires. And its not like I wasn’t prepared. I wore two pairs of pants, two pairs of socks (one of them wool), two long sleeve shirts and a hoodie, under my heavy fire jacket, as well as a hat, and the face/neck covering Americorps provided. Still cold.
We were working on an environmental conservation project. We were working to protect a playa from grazing cattle. A playa is an area of land that naturally collects water during periods of precipitation. At the playa (which, to me is indistinct from the surrounding area of dead grassland and tumbleweeds) there was a barbed wire fence, with the barbed wire mildly tangled, and the posts leaning in from weathering several seasons in this windy area.
First we unclipped and untangled the barbed wire. (We were also to replace the bottom string of barbed wire with unbarbed wire. This is considered more “antelope friendly” because the antelope crawl under barbed wire fences, instead of trying to leap over them). Then we pulled up the posts, and replaced them with straight ones. We worked at this until the auger broke and we couldn’t pull up the wooden corner posts anymore.
Then we drove to a different stretch of barbed wire fence (seriously the only landmarks differentiating pieces of land) to “prairie chicken proof” it. On the way there was a cattle stampeding along with us. No lie…we drove in the middle of a cattle stampede. This slowed us down until Russ stopped, and he, Clay, and Josh got out of the truck and told the cattle to stampede in the other direction. And by told I mean, shouted at the animals, and stared them down. It was probably the most hilarious thing to happen all day.
At our destination we clipped white pieces of leftover siding to the barbed wire. Apparently the prairie chicken, is in danger of becoming an endangered species, so we are making an effort to save them. The prairie chickens often fly into the barbed wire and decapitate themselves. Stupid chickens. Theoretically marking the barbed wire with the pieces of siding (white) will allow them to see it easier and save them from self mutilation.
Because of all the snow we got today, tomorrow we will be able to burn the pile of wood we collected from our first two days tearing down fences. Yay fire!
We were working on an environmental conservation project. We were working to protect a playa from grazing cattle. A playa is an area of land that naturally collects water during periods of precipitation. At the playa (which, to me is indistinct from the surrounding area of dead grassland and tumbleweeds) there was a barbed wire fence, with the barbed wire mildly tangled, and the posts leaning in from weathering several seasons in this windy area.
First we unclipped and untangled the barbed wire. (We were also to replace the bottom string of barbed wire with unbarbed wire. This is considered more “antelope friendly” because the antelope crawl under barbed wire fences, instead of trying to leap over them). Then we pulled up the posts, and replaced them with straight ones. We worked at this until the auger broke and we couldn’t pull up the wooden corner posts anymore.
Then we drove to a different stretch of barbed wire fence (seriously the only landmarks differentiating pieces of land) to “prairie chicken proof” it. On the way there was a cattle stampeding along with us. No lie…we drove in the middle of a cattle stampede. This slowed us down until Russ stopped, and he, Clay, and Josh got out of the truck and told the cattle to stampede in the other direction. And by told I mean, shouted at the animals, and stared them down. It was probably the most hilarious thing to happen all day.
At our destination we clipped white pieces of leftover siding to the barbed wire. Apparently the prairie chicken, is in danger of becoming an endangered species, so we are making an effort to save them. The prairie chickens often fly into the barbed wire and decapitate themselves. Stupid chickens. Theoretically marking the barbed wire with the pieces of siding (white) will allow them to see it easier and save them from self mutilation.
Because of all the snow we got today, tomorrow we will be able to burn the pile of wood we collected from our first two days tearing down fences. Yay fire!
Baking Bread: tips and tricks for the little old ladies who stumble upon my blog.
So I’ve started a bread baking learning experience. For my team’s lunches I’ve been experimenting with creating our own bread. After the first two days of experimenting I think I’ve come upon a solution that will make this feasible.
The Recipe:
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 Tablespoon yeast
1 cup water
1 Tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup honey (substituted maple syrup to make it vegan)
*Mix, knead, oil bowl. Let rise for 1 hour, punch it down, and let it rise for another hour. Shape into a loaf and bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes. (High altitudes, increase liquids by 1-2 Tablespoons).
So in order to use the correct amount of yeast, triple the recipe. This makes the yeast 3 Tablespoons or 4 packets. The recipe needs to be tripled in order to have the correct amount of yeast using full packets. To proof the yeast I stirred all the yeast with a cup of water and a Tablespoon of brown sugar. Then I let that proof for ten minutes, before adding all the other ingredients, kneading it, and allowing it to rise.
For the bread to rise I put the bowl full of dough in a pot full of hot water, and placed it on top of the fridge, to keep it out of the way.
Now the bread, while delicious is difficult to slice. Especially considering we want to use it for sandwiches. So tonight’s batch I’m going to shape into rolls. These should be perfect to cut and turn into scrumptious sandwiches. I’ll have to adjust the temperature and baking time as well.
The Recipe:
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 Tablespoon yeast
1 cup water
1 Tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup honey (substituted maple syrup to make it vegan)
*Mix, knead, oil bowl. Let rise for 1 hour, punch it down, and let it rise for another hour. Shape into a loaf and bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes. (High altitudes, increase liquids by 1-2 Tablespoons).
So in order to use the correct amount of yeast, triple the recipe. This makes the yeast 3 Tablespoons or 4 packets. The recipe needs to be tripled in order to have the correct amount of yeast using full packets. To proof the yeast I stirred all the yeast with a cup of water and a Tablespoon of brown sugar. Then I let that proof for ten minutes, before adding all the other ingredients, kneading it, and allowing it to rise.
For the bread to rise I put the bowl full of dough in a pot full of hot water, and placed it on top of the fridge, to keep it out of the way.
Now the bread, while delicious is difficult to slice. Especially considering we want to use it for sandwiches. So tonight’s batch I’m going to shape into rolls. These should be perfect to cut and turn into scrumptious sandwiches. I’ll have to adjust the temperature and baking time as well.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
1/23/2009
1/23/2009
Last night we moved into a new house. (The water in the other wasn’t working). Is it possible that this house is even better than the last? Yes, yes it is. (five bedrooms, four bathrooms, two ovens, two dishwashers! Four refrigerators, a HUGE common area, and a laundry room that doesn’t flood!)
My tree kill count is up to 7. Yesterday I really honed my skills. I no longer cut through the hinge wood while felling trees! Yay! I’m ready to be certified as a Type A Sawyer, but we ran out of time yesterday, so Ayla, Benn and I are not yet certified. And since Monday we are traveling to the Comanche Grasslands, chances are we wont get a chance to have Russ test us until we return to Woodland Park in two weeks.
Working outside everyday is so awesome. It’s tiring, but exhilarating! Not only is using the chainsaws, and swamping out the limbs exhausting, but I’m weighed down with all the clothing I’m wearing. In addition to our heavy fire jackets, and boots we are wearing copious amounts of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) including chaps, helmets, glasses, earplugs (ok the earplugs aren’t heavy), and gloves. I’m deliciously sore at the end of every day; currently stiff in my arms, legs, butt, abs, and the part of my lower back that earlier this week had love-handles. Then after returning home from work we do some awesome PT. In the first house we had a weight room and Josh designed a weekly workout routine that gave us a full body rotation. And Thursday after work the team went on a short hike carrying our fireline packs, to get us used to traveling while carrying a lot of extra weight. Last night I had the sound, sound sleep of exhaustion.
Today, Saturday is our first day off since we arrived in Lake George. So we are going to do some Community mapping, and discover local facilities, and needs in the area. Lake George is tiny…the one restaurant (a pizza place) is also the local wi-fi hotspot…so if you are reading this, chances are I visited it.
Last night we moved into a new house. (The water in the other wasn’t working). Is it possible that this house is even better than the last? Yes, yes it is. (five bedrooms, four bathrooms, two ovens, two dishwashers! Four refrigerators, a HUGE common area, and a laundry room that doesn’t flood!)
My tree kill count is up to 7. Yesterday I really honed my skills. I no longer cut through the hinge wood while felling trees! Yay! I’m ready to be certified as a Type A Sawyer, but we ran out of time yesterday, so Ayla, Benn and I are not yet certified. And since Monday we are traveling to the Comanche Grasslands, chances are we wont get a chance to have Russ test us until we return to Woodland Park in two weeks.
Working outside everyday is so awesome. It’s tiring, but exhilarating! Not only is using the chainsaws, and swamping out the limbs exhausting, but I’m weighed down with all the clothing I’m wearing. In addition to our heavy fire jackets, and boots we are wearing copious amounts of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) including chaps, helmets, glasses, earplugs (ok the earplugs aren’t heavy), and gloves. I’m deliciously sore at the end of every day; currently stiff in my arms, legs, butt, abs, and the part of my lower back that earlier this week had love-handles. Then after returning home from work we do some awesome PT. In the first house we had a weight room and Josh designed a weekly workout routine that gave us a full body rotation. And Thursday after work the team went on a short hike carrying our fireline packs, to get us used to traveling while carrying a lot of extra weight. Last night I had the sound, sound sleep of exhaustion.
Today, Saturday is our first day off since we arrived in Lake George. So we are going to do some Community mapping, and discover local facilities, and needs in the area. Lake George is tiny…the one restaurant (a pizza place) is also the local wi-fi hotspot…so if you are reading this, chances are I visited it.
1/21/2009
1/21/2009
Today I cut down 3 trees with a chainsaw! Man status: up at least 30 percent! It was awesome! Brendan is my chainsaw partner…he cut down four. And we never cut ourselves, or snagged our Kevlar
Today I cut down 3 trees with a chainsaw! Man status: up at least 30 percent! It was awesome! Brendan is my chainsaw partner…he cut down four. And we never cut ourselves, or snagged our Kevlar
1/20/2009
1/20/2009
Last week our team (as well as the other 2 fire management teams) completed the S130 & S190 classes to become certified as Type 2 Wild land Firefighters. After a week of struggling through classes that didn’t exactly mesh with my learning style I found some excellent study buddies (Ben and Noel) and passes the finals with flying colors.
Monday, after the Martin Luther Kind Day Marade the teams packed up and drove to our respective forests.
My team arrived safely at Woodland Park, Colorado, where the Forest Service office is located. We were then escorted to our lodge in Lake George. Our new home is amazing!! Not only is there a well equipped kitchen (tons of pots and pans, a myriad of cabinets, and multiple freezers), but we also have four bedrooms (Ayla and I have our own, no boys allowed space) and a common area complete with a TV and satellite cable. In our basement is a second bathroom, a laundry room, and no lie: a weight room. Our home was built by the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) back during the days of the New Deal. The CCC was the precursor for the NCCC, and one of our goals/ tasks for the rest of our term of service is to contact old CCC members and conduct interviews and collect and compile their histories.
Then, Tuesday , in addition to getting more fire gear (winter boots, firefighter jackets, tools, etc.) we started S212, the Wild land fire chain saw class. After 2 days of classroom work, tomorrow we are going to fire up the chain saws and cut stuff down!!
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
A Rambling
Today Bart left. He's been noticeably off lately. Last night I helped him pack and listened to him ramble on about harmonicas, skyscrapers, and different ways to use the Americorps bandanna. So today he went home, and can get taken care of. We are saddened to lose another team member.
Liz has been part of the Rough Riders for about a week now. We still see her all day, everyday, so it wont actually be like she's gone until we get to Lake George.
I'm sad to lose both of them. Bart and Liz were two of our kindest most dedicated teammates. I hope our team remains intact from this point. And that means not only not losing any more members, and that I hope no one needs to be moved from another team to ours. We are down to nine people including our TL. I'm feeling pretty low about the blows to our team dynamics.
We've started our fire management training. Wild fire fighting seems like a really exciting and fast paced job, while on the fireline. Today we learned about safety and the hazards associated with the job.
PT has been stressed to be of great importance. Currently my team is allowing PT to be done on an individual basis. Which is fantastic, because I can get up early and run at my own pace while I'm fresh, instead of trying to run at someone else's pace after a full day.
Last night I didn't get enough sleep. And once again I'm up late. And I haven't studied today's materials for tomorrow's quiz.
Liz has been part of the Rough Riders for about a week now. We still see her all day, everyday, so it wont actually be like she's gone until we get to Lake George.
I'm sad to lose both of them. Bart and Liz were two of our kindest most dedicated teammates. I hope our team remains intact from this point. And that means not only not losing any more members, and that I hope no one needs to be moved from another team to ours. We are down to nine people including our TL. I'm feeling pretty low about the blows to our team dynamics.
We've started our fire management training. Wild fire fighting seems like a really exciting and fast paced job, while on the fireline. Today we learned about safety and the hazards associated with the job.
PT has been stressed to be of great importance. Currently my team is allowing PT to be done on an individual basis. Which is fantastic, because I can get up early and run at my own pace while I'm fresh, instead of trying to run at someone else's pace after a full day.
Last night I didn't get enough sleep. And once again I'm up late. And I haven't studied today's materials for tomorrow's quiz.
Friday, January 8, 2010
Transition Week
Its Friday of Transition Week.
Which of course means there are plenty of people to play nerd games with. Last night we played "Battle of the Sexes" and "Catchphrase." The night before we played Munchkin, then a ridiculously large game of "I'm thinking of a..."
The wireless internet in Walsh Hall is not working. I'm camped out in the cafeteria so I can download some audiobooks.
This week we've done our debriefing and briefing, and have started talking about our future life living in the woods. It appears that there are four bedrooms, not two (yay!) And that there is a weight room in the basement. Internet accessibility seems sketchy at best, so blog posts may be sporadic. However I did manage to convince the team that we should keep doing the team blog, because it was beneficial to our Project Portfolio during the last round. Also Ayla and I (mostly Ayla) created a chore chart. And I definitely encourage everyone to gamble using their chores as currency. (Nerd reference alert).
Next week we begin our fire management training. We have a week of classes with the forest services, before heading up to Lake George where we will continue with on-the-job training.
Liz has been spending the second half of this week with her new team. Alas we have lost her as our ISP coordinator. I know now how we will survive without her. However Benn has set up an ISP for us for tomorrow. We will be going to the Denver Children's Home and painting. Liz will be accompanying us (yay!)
Tomorrow most teams deploy for their SPIKE projects. Which means the dorm is going to be crowded tonight as no one can go out and drink before SPIKE travel. And then tomorrow the dorms will be deserted.
Which of course means there are plenty of people to play nerd games with. Last night we played "Battle of the Sexes" and "Catchphrase." The night before we played Munchkin, then a ridiculously large game of "I'm thinking of a..."
The wireless internet in Walsh Hall is not working. I'm camped out in the cafeteria so I can download some audiobooks.
This week we've done our debriefing and briefing, and have started talking about our future life living in the woods. It appears that there are four bedrooms, not two (yay!) And that there is a weight room in the basement. Internet accessibility seems sketchy at best, so blog posts may be sporadic. However I did manage to convince the team that we should keep doing the team blog, because it was beneficial to our Project Portfolio during the last round. Also Ayla and I (mostly Ayla) created a chore chart. And I definitely encourage everyone to gamble using their chores as currency. (Nerd reference alert).
Next week we begin our fire management training. We have a week of classes with the forest services, before heading up to Lake George where we will continue with on-the-job training.
Liz has been spending the second half of this week with her new team. Alas we have lost her as our ISP coordinator. I know now how we will survive without her. However Benn has set up an ISP for us for tomorrow. We will be going to the Denver Children's Home and painting. Liz will be accompanying us (yay!)
Tomorrow most teams deploy for their SPIKE projects. Which means the dorm is going to be crowded tonight as no one can go out and drink before SPIKE travel. And then tomorrow the dorms will be deserted.
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