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| Nestled in the high elevation and tall, cool ponderosa pines for the summers of 2013 and 2014 |
The two winters were not quite as warm as we had planned for.
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| Frozen In Big Bend the weekend before Thanksgiving 2013 |
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| Moss draped oaks on St. Simons Island |
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| It looks all green and warm but appearances can be deceiving. We had below freezing nighttime temps more nights than not. Enjoying outdoor activities usually was not an option. |
But here we are, panting like dogs in another Atlanta summer. We did not get to stick to our plans of retreating to cooler elevations this year but it was a conscious decision. When we learned we were going to be grandparents all bets were off, we were going to be as close to the new grandbaby as possible for as long as possible. Chattahoochee Bend State Park in Newnan, GA fit the bill. It's hot but it's close.
The summer heat is affecting people around here too. This park has pretty much been a ghost town, nobody is coming out to camp, float the river or even for a Sunday drive. It's just miserable hot. The heat is not just affecting visitors but park employees too. The maintenance crew has started reporting to work at 6:00 AM so that they can be finished for the day and under their air conditioners at home by 2:00 PM. And one of the part-time employees that staffs the entrance station on weekends and holidays decided that her days would be better spent doing something else. Guess who got asked to fill in until the park could hire another person?
Cyndee is now collecting entrance fees for about six hours a day on Saturdays and Sundays.
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| Without the air conditioner this would be a giant easy-bake oven. |
We've been told that the request to fill in will just be until they can hire a replacement, maybe three weeks. They should have someone in place before the 4th of July. They already had somebody in mind for the job they just needed to go through the interview process and background checks. We figured that John could handle all the camp host and janitorial duties alone on the weekends for three weeks. After all, this place has been pretty slow and our loop, the RV loop, is pretty easy on the public bathroom use since they all have their own bathroom with them. Famous last words, we made a rookie mistake by not factoring in that this is a government operation.
The interview of the person that everyone thought would be a shoe-in didn't go well. Plan B was to post the job and quickly get a look at other candidates. The Park's idea was to hire someone in July for weekends and holidays with the job coming to an end after the Labor Day Weekend. People didn't exactly line up for 90 minutes of commuting to the park and back home for just six hours two times a week and then unemployment in less than 90 days.
Plan C: Ask Cyndee, she'll do it. And she did agree with the understanding that it would be over by the end of September and that we would be able to meet some commitments already made.
One thing did come up that was not planned for ahead of time. John's family was having a reunion in Texas on the 4th of July. We knew about it well ahead of time but our understanding was that the park required us to be on duty during weekends and holidays. But after getting through Memorial Day weekend, Mother's Day and Father's Day and all the other weekends with such low attendance we began to entertain the thought of going to Texas for the reunion. But with Cyndee now committed to the entrance station, we became me. Cyndee was adamant that I should go and she would stay and do everything in the campground and entrance station. I protested severely but she turned to me and said; "I'm a Texas woman, I don't need a man around to keep the ranch running." There was nothing but one answer for that; "Yes, Ma'm, I'll pack my bags."
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