OH MY GOODNESS............2 full days of health & safety training has taken it's toll. This will be a short one.
OK - my job is front desk/housing associate. I'll be working at the front desk, checking people in and out. Other than that I'm not really sure, but apparently it's busy. 10 hour shifts. Actually, Aimee's office is right behind the front desk, so I'll be right close :)
Now, the room situation. No, I do not share a room. Everyone gets their own room with a shared bathroom. There are some management rooms available with their own bathrooms, but I am not entitled to one of those. Aimee is, but she chooses not to take it. I tried to talk her into taking it anyway and giving it to me, but she was not receptive to that idea. The shared bathroom takes some thought. When you need to go in there, you unlock your bathroom door. When you get in, you lock the door on your neighbour's side. When you leave, you have to remember to unlock the neighbour side door, and lock your own door from the outside, to make sure nobody comes in your room. A lot of locking and unlocking to remember. There is lots of signage to help you remember, but I'm wondering how soon it will be that I forget something.....
It was raining today, no idea of the temperature and I'm just too lazy/tired to look it up. Hopefully I'll be in better shape tomorrow.
Oh yes, I did force myself to do 19 laps on the gym walkway (1 mile) tonight. It's nice walking. Not much in the way of scenery, haha, but a nice surface to walk on.
Ta ta!
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
clear blue skies....
My first full day today. I didn't have to start until 9 am, and the online Construction Safety Training System took about 7 hours. If I had to do that kind of stuff all day, every day, I wouldn't be here!!! But I can capably answer questions about trenching, scaffolding, fall arrest, defensive driving, ladder safety and a few other safety subjects. Now tomorrow I have to be at the Shell orientation at 6:15. AM. Yes, as in, 6:15 in the morning. Apparently that will last a few hours, then I have to do the ESS (my employer) orientation, THEN I begin training on my actual job. I did get a few pictures, I think all the titles explain. The map sort of gives an idea of the layout. Each of these wings are 3 stories, and each floor has 44 rooms. And each floor has a laundry room (which is free. They supply detergent too, but Aimee says it's harsh (for work clothes I guess) and she brings her own). Also each floor has two fire wardens and it's their job to make sure everyone gets out if there's a fire alarm.
I guess I had better clear up some misconceptions here....I did not move here! I am working here, and I will do a 21 day stint, then have 7 days off when I will fly home. The company gives a travel allowance to help cover the cost of flights home. Probably won't cover it all, but a good chunk of it. I am expected to stay at least 6 months, but there were no length of service clauses in my contract. I think a big part of the decision to come here was for the money, because it's a little better than decent :) Also, the challenge of it. I'm really excited to be a part of it, it seems like everyone does have fun and enjoys being here, or they wouldn't be! The people I've met so far all seem really nice, friendly and easy to get along with.
The weather today was very nice, although I don't go outside at all. Temp is 15 degrees now, (59 for you Fahrenheit people) and clear blue skies. I understand that there's a real heatwave going on back home! Enjoy!
Take care all, and I'll check in again tomorrow.
I guess I had better clear up some misconceptions here....I did not move here! I am working here, and I will do a 21 day stint, then have 7 days off when I will fly home. The company gives a travel allowance to help cover the cost of flights home. Probably won't cover it all, but a good chunk of it. I am expected to stay at least 6 months, but there were no length of service clauses in my contract. I think a big part of the decision to come here was for the money, because it's a little better than decent :) Also, the challenge of it. I'm really excited to be a part of it, it seems like everyone does have fun and enjoys being here, or they wouldn't be! The people I've met so far all seem really nice, friendly and easy to get along with.
The weather today was very nice, although I don't go outside at all. Temp is 15 degrees now, (59 for you Fahrenheit people) and clear blue skies. I understand that there's a real heatwave going on back home! Enjoy!
Take care all, and I'll check in again tomorrow.
Getting there....
Wow, the last week has been a whirwind in my life! But ok, I'll start with yesterday. Arrived at London airport around 6:15 a.m., driving through intermittent fog. I thought, wouldn't it be great if the flight was delayed, since I had a 4 hour layover in Calgary (more time for breakfast in London, less time twiddling my thumbs in Calgary). As it turned out, they rushed us on board, only to have the fog worsen and us sit on the runway for an hour. Anyway, flight to Calgary was approximately 3 1/2 hours and the on-board TV system wasn't working, so I finished a whole novel :)
The wait in Calgary wasn't bad, I had free internet so could surf the net, and I had lunch. Then on to Ft. McMurray, another hour in the air. Arrived at the airport there (very small...smaller than London airport) and now had to search for my ride in to camp. All I had was that his name was Mark, he was fairly tall, wearing a cap and a red safety vest. After sitting out front and texting/calling Aimee at camp, Mark arrived and off we went. The drive to the camp is about 50-60 minutes from the airport. I got a bit of a glimpse of "town" as it's called....apparently it's around 70,000 population, and has a Wal-Mart! We passed by several other sites, but you can't really see much from the road. The area is densely forested, with many rivers snaking through. And dusty!!! You couldn't really tell the colour of most of the vehicles that we passed on the road for the dust and dirt. Mark was an excellent tour guide, and answered all my questions readily and had lots of his own input. So if anyway wants to place where I am on a map...go to google maps, type in Ft. MacKay, Alberta and that will get you within about 10 km or so of this camp. I'm not sure how to place it any more accurately than that, but if I figure it out, you can google earth the area and see it.
We arrived here at camp around 4:30-ish, and of course Aimee had to leave for the airport for her ELEVEN DAYS OFF right away at 5. I was quickly introduced around, and got my room assignment and towels, and a very brief tour around my work area, Aimee made a mad escape back to the airport and I joined my new co-workers for dinner.
The dining room holds about 1,100 people, and is set up very much like the dining areas on cruise ships, (for anyone familiar with that set up). There are several different stations, self serve for salads and the "fast food" items, and stand in line for service on the hot food specialties of the day. Last night the offerings were roast turkey, beef stew with dumplings, fish cakes, and all the trimmings such as dressing, mashed potatoes, peas, carrots, gravy, and I just forget everything else. I didn't check out the other lines, and didn't have room for salad or anything on my plate either (haha). There were also a decent selection of desserts, which I did not partake of either. There are also several drink areas, and pretty much anything you could ask for is available. Milk, juices, pop, coffee, tea, etc. The dining room is kept very clean and they have strict rules about no work clothes or boots, no cell phones, laptops etc. At the one end of the dining room is what they call the lunch station, and there they have anything you could want for late night snacking or lunch, since the dining room is not open for lunch.
I was exhausted, and headed back to my room after dinner. I got unpacked, and was in bed by 8 pm (local time.) I'm in Mountain Time here and all the times I mention are local time, so that's two hours earlier from you Eastern Standard Time people. The bed is very comfortable, and I did wake up a couple of times but went right back to sleep and didn't get up until almost 6 am. And no fire drill in the night!
I would just like to state that I was a bit nervous about being in a remote camp where the men outnumber the women about 13:1 or so, and Aimee leaving right away, but since I've arrived I've felt totally safe and comfortable. The people I'll be working with are very friendly and I've never felt uncomfortable, even this morning going to breakfast alone. I'm off to start my training this morning, and I'll catch up and hopefully add some pictures later on.
The wait in Calgary wasn't bad, I had free internet so could surf the net, and I had lunch. Then on to Ft. McMurray, another hour in the air. Arrived at the airport there (very small...smaller than London airport) and now had to search for my ride in to camp. All I had was that his name was Mark, he was fairly tall, wearing a cap and a red safety vest. After sitting out front and texting/calling Aimee at camp, Mark arrived and off we went. The drive to the camp is about 50-60 minutes from the airport. I got a bit of a glimpse of "town" as it's called....apparently it's around 70,000 population, and has a Wal-Mart! We passed by several other sites, but you can't really see much from the road. The area is densely forested, with many rivers snaking through. And dusty!!! You couldn't really tell the colour of most of the vehicles that we passed on the road for the dust and dirt. Mark was an excellent tour guide, and answered all my questions readily and had lots of his own input. So if anyway wants to place where I am on a map...go to google maps, type in Ft. MacKay, Alberta and that will get you within about 10 km or so of this camp. I'm not sure how to place it any more accurately than that, but if I figure it out, you can google earth the area and see it.
We arrived here at camp around 4:30-ish, and of course Aimee had to leave for the airport for her ELEVEN DAYS OFF right away at 5. I was quickly introduced around, and got my room assignment and towels, and a very brief tour around my work area, Aimee made a mad escape back to the airport and I joined my new co-workers for dinner.
The dining room holds about 1,100 people, and is set up very much like the dining areas on cruise ships, (for anyone familiar with that set up). There are several different stations, self serve for salads and the "fast food" items, and stand in line for service on the hot food specialties of the day. Last night the offerings were roast turkey, beef stew with dumplings, fish cakes, and all the trimmings such as dressing, mashed potatoes, peas, carrots, gravy, and I just forget everything else. I didn't check out the other lines, and didn't have room for salad or anything on my plate either (haha). There were also a decent selection of desserts, which I did not partake of either. There are also several drink areas, and pretty much anything you could ask for is available. Milk, juices, pop, coffee, tea, etc. The dining room is kept very clean and they have strict rules about no work clothes or boots, no cell phones, laptops etc. At the one end of the dining room is what they call the lunch station, and there they have anything you could want for late night snacking or lunch, since the dining room is not open for lunch.
I was exhausted, and headed back to my room after dinner. I got unpacked, and was in bed by 8 pm (local time.) I'm in Mountain Time here and all the times I mention are local time, so that's two hours earlier from you Eastern Standard Time people. The bed is very comfortable, and I did wake up a couple of times but went right back to sleep and didn't get up until almost 6 am. And no fire drill in the night!
I would just like to state that I was a bit nervous about being in a remote camp where the men outnumber the women about 13:1 or so, and Aimee leaving right away, but since I've arrived I've felt totally safe and comfortable. The people I'll be working with are very friendly and I've never felt uncomfortable, even this morning going to breakfast alone. I'm off to start my training this morning, and I'll catch up and hopefully add some pictures later on.
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