Two Months of Madness

The last 2 months have been quite busy to say the least.  While working in Wyoming on a normal job I managed to collide with an antelope. The dumb buck jumped in front of me. But I got the buck that got me! Unfortunately Hank was considered totaled. I have learned some interesting things by this. Number one antelope are very very very dumb. Number two in Wyoming if the repair cost is equal or greater to 75% of the value of the vehicle it’s considered totaled. Number three car shopping is a pain. So while I was working I had to find time to take hank to the shop and then find time to figure out what to do. Finally I found a new vehicle that would serve my needs. The problem was that it was in Denver! So I had one day between working nights and working days where I was completely off for 24 hours. I took a morning red eye from Casper to Denver and test drove about three cars before settling. On a 2010 Nissan Pathfinder. Something else I learned in all this car shopping is not like it used to be and it is not as fun as the commercials make it seem. I wound up paying more than I wanted too but it is the completely right ride for me. After driving Hank for so long this new one is a beast and drives like a tank. Somehow the new name stuck, so introducing my new ride: Tank!

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Now naturally this isn’t the only thing going on at the time. The well we were drilling had more problems than footage at one point. Not only was the drama on the rig excise we had problems with circulation, we got stuck twice, hole collapse and we even had to side track twice! In short a well from hell. The problems were so bad that heads began to role. In total 8 people were run off before I was asked to leave. Yes it finally happened to me too. Without a doubt not my greatest moment.  It was a low point for sure. I had wrecked my car, asked to leave a job, and got a ‘talking to’ by the boss all in the span of a month.  Needless to say I was ready to get out of Casper for a while!

But I survived. Resilient is an understatement. With a great sigh of relief I got on a plane to spend a week exploring Nevada and Arizona with my folks. What a great trip! From Hover Damn to the Grand Canyon to Petrified Forest, to Sedona, to Valley of Fires, to Las Vegas. It was a whirlwind trip and fantastic! So much geology! Everywhere you look rocks! Most of it is sedimentary rock but it’s still pretty cool! But sadly all good things must come to an end and I had to go back to work. When I landed back in Casper to retrieve Tank I had no idea where I was going of when. Before I even finish getting gas the boss calls and says come to the office we have a job for you. So off we go! Go tearing up to billings. Turns out the job is in Colorado but they want me to take the company truck down with all the stuff needed to rig up a new job. So back thru Wyoming I go but this time I take the scenic route and get to stop in Thermopolis for a quick soak. After crossing Wyoming 4 times in less than a week I’m sitting again. This time I’m on a super-secret squirrel project that I can’t talk about. So I will have to wait until we are done to tell you all about it!

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