We Do Still Exist!

Well, I did tell you I wouldn't be posting very much while at Amazon, and I sure didn't lie :-). We have been pretty busy here, although our outbound shift hasn't had as much overtime as in previous years and Al's overtime in Amcare didn't start until two weeks ago, unlike previous years where he went to 50 hours a week right away. But rest assured, we are still pretty tired :-0. I feel the most difficult thing we had to deal with this year was Al's schedule, There were a few weeks where he was doing a couple of night shifts and then a couple of day shifts. It wasn't easy to adjust to that at all, and hope he doesn't have to deal with that in coming seasons. I have a healthy respect now for people who work swing shifts on a regular basis, it isn't easy at all.

We have had a few difficulties here at Green River Lake State Park that were unforeseen. Sadly, the emerald ash borer has infested the beautiful trees in the park, and all of the ash trees were slated for removal this fall. They did not know this was happening until mid-October. The consequence of this was mostly for those of us working the night shift, and trying to sleep during the day when the chain saws and bobcats were hard at work :-(. We also ended up having to move sites halfway through our time as the row we were on was slated for tree removal. Not only did they not want to work around us, but we certainly didn't want to take any chances of a tree falling on us!

It has been, shall we say, an interesting season here in Campbellsville. Mid-November they recruited 100 of us Camperforce people working here at SDF1 to move north to there facility in Jeffersonville Indiana. After they left, any of the Camperforce workers who were working on the inbound side of SDF1 were moved to the outbound side of operations. So there was a big influx of new workers in our department, which was pretty nice as we now were working with some of our friends. But then they moved some of us around to other departments as well! I was trained on what they call "problem solving" which involves taking packages that have been "kicked out" of the shipping conveyors for various reasons and trying to figure out what is wrong with the order, and then correcting it. It can be pretty easy, such as just putting a new shipping label on it, to complicated...such as a wrong item was packed and you need to figure out what it was supposed to be and where the wrong item was supposed to go....to completely stressful, such as your label printer going down and the whole conveyor line of packed items getting backed up higher than the Great Wall of China. So, as I say, its been an interesting season.

We have one more week to go. Our release date is Saturday night at 11:45. We will start heading towards Florida and the warm and sunny weather on Monday 12/22, making it home in time for Christmas Eve dinner with Al's family. We are looking forward to it, and the next couple of months when we have many plans of seeing visiting family and friends. Until then, happy shopping...at Amazon :-).

Why We Do What We Do

Amazon nights and cold days....pretty much the sum of our experiences right now. It doesn't sound very exciting, and truly, its not. We have many friends now that we meet up with here in Campbellsville, but unless they are on the same shift as you, there is not too many chances to actually meet up and chat for awhile. We pass in the hallways, campground roads and maybe Krogers or a restaurant, but its sort of a quick "how you doing?" and off you go. Like the rest of the country, its also very cold and dreary for this time of year here. Nights are already going down into the teens and twenties, and it is currently raining to beat the band and turning to snow later. Yes, the life of a workamping full-timer is always sunshine and roses, isn't it?

I was thinking about this the other night, as I was packing away (its not rocket science, you do find your mind wandering!) and thinking I really need to update the blog, but what should I write about? There are plenty of others blogging about the daily experience of working for Amazon as a seasonal temp, I don't really feel the need....although if anyone ever wants to reach out and ask for our experiences and help we are always willing to lend that helping hand...we have several new friends that have reached out to us about Amazon and are now in their second or third seasons of working. So, I was thinking ok, I'm pretty tired tonight, and why did I give up my secure life, business, home, social network, to come out and live in a 320 square foot RV, working various jobs that include this pretty tough warehouse job? Well, I kind of thought I would let some of my pictures from the last four years explain why :-)

Bears in the Smoky Mountains National Park

Hiking and boating on the Au Sable River in Michigan

Dune buggy riding on the sand dunes of Silver Lake Michigan

Niagara Falls, Ontario Canada

Watkins Glen New York

Three Sisters Springs, kayaking with the manatees, Crystal River Florida

Geocaching with friends in Nathrop Colorado

Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado

Jeeping over Imogene Pass, Ouray Colorado

Rocky Mountain National Park Colorado

The Badlands National Park South Dakota

Cumberland Falls State Park Kentucky

Kayaking the Silver River, Ocala Florida

Sponge fishing boats Tarpon Springs, Florida

Fishing villages in Maine

Hiking the carriage roads of Acadia National Park

Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, Canada

Camaraderie at Amazon 2013

Family fun at Walt Disney World

French Quarter, New Orleans

San Antonio, Texas

San Antonio Missions National Historic Park

Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado

Capitol Reef National Park, Utah

Hike to Lower Calf Creek Falls, Utah

Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

Arches National Park, Utah

Island in the Sky section Canyonlands National Park, Utah

Grand Tetons National Park, Wyoming

Geysers at Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming

Kayaking on Yellowstone Lake, Wyoming

Driving the Beartooth Pass, Montana

Hiking and kayaking Grand Tetons National Park

Fly fishing the Snake River, Wyoming

Ok, I guess I found enough reasons to keep on looking around the next bend in the road!

Sad Times

It has been a while since I've posted anything, since we arrived in Kentucky actually. I've alluded to some family issues going on, but don't really like to post such personal issues. My mom has been in poor health for quite some time now, many years in fact, but things became worse this past summer. Since the end of June she had been in and out of the hospital, bouncing between different hospitals, nursing homes and rehabilitation centers in the quest to get her myriad of medical issues under control. The most pressing of these was the need to go on dialysis, which we had been fighting against for several years, but her kidney function lowered to such a degree that it finally became a necessity. She was never able to adjust well to the dialysis, and it also caused several of her other medical conditions to go haywire on her. After battling these past several months, my mom has lost her fight and passed away peacefully yesterday morning.

Luckily, I, along with Al and my brother and sister, were able to get down to Florida in time to see her while she was still conscious and knew we were there. I cannot say enough good things about HPH Hospice in Lecanto Florida. The people who work and volunteer there deserve a special place in heaven for their caring and compassion. They certainly made my mom's last days peaceful and comfortable, as well as being there to help the family through the process, especially my sister who stayed with her until the end.

I will always appreciate everything everyone has done to help this past summer. Al's sister Ginny and our best friend Patti went above and beyond duty in assisting her, visiting her and running endless errands. Their assistance and ability to be my "eyes" were priceless.  My employers Brad and Joann for allowing me unrestricted access to the landline phone at the ranch to call hospitals and doctors as my ATT cell service was basically useless. Mom's friends from her community for visiting her and helping her get to a few appointments, and collecting her mail. And finally my sister Amy, who was willing and able to put her life on hold to give mom comfort and company her last days. Mom was blessed to have all of you in her life, as am I.