Our Westlake P.O. Box is NOW CLOSED

Ok, all you happy folks.

Those of you who send us snail mail, please note that our WESTLAKE OREGON P.O. Box is now closed.

If you need to send us mail, please comment and I’ll send you the address by private message.   We will be back to that part of an RV’ers normal life where there is a time lag between mail arriving at our address and it ultimately reaching us.  Thanks in advance for your understanding.  🙂

Who Works 10 Hours on Their Last Day

Today is our Last Day  on the “Forest”; more sweet than bittersweet.   There have been moments when this last three weeks seemed months long — but I think that’s the nature of being short-timers.  During this twilight time we’ve successfully finished a couple small projects and further concreted relationships.  So, the last day, day number 1 has arrived and we are ready.

Our only ‘job’ today is to finish up our volunteer goodbyes.  We started at 7:30 and finally finished up about 5:30.   We put on about 110 miles up and down the South ODNRA corridor and:

• Said goodbyes,
• We had a two hour working lunch (no alcohol) with one volunteer couple — a couple we hope to stay in touch with Post-ODNRA.
• Unlocked a remote restroom and fixed the lock to that no visitor might get locked in before Maintenance can get out to fix the lock.
• Did a little more recruiting with a  potential volunteer from Southern California with whom I have been speaking for about a month and a half — who is now in town for Dunefest.
• Before finally stopping off at the office where we turned in uniforms and miscellaneous gear,
• Got quizzed by Da Boss’s boss about various incoming and outgoing volunteers
• Had a brief chat with Da Boss who, after missing work yesterday, showed up today on her scheduled day off in a different car.  We chatted a little about the latest info on which volunteers want to be where.  And…
• Gave Da Boss Peggy’s most recent poem — the first she’s written since being on the Forest.  You can find the poem at the end of this post.

It seemed odd, not to be in uniform.  Some volunteers have never SEEN me out of uniform.

I won’t want to spend any more time in the office on Monday than I have to — 1/2 hour would be ideal.  We are only going in to turn in the car and keys — the keys being needed so we can get in and out of the compound over the weekend before we leave.  All those Yale Forest Service locks you know!  Anyway, on Monday we’ll turn in our vehicle (after giving it a bath and vacuuming over the weekend), our keys, our credit cards and our phone.  And of course get the Deputy District Ranger to sign our termination papers. 🙂 Everything else we left at the office today.

Da Boss said we looked rested (yeah, right, after a 10 hour day) But we are feeling kind of mellow…   It’s kind of like saying goodbye to a dysfunctional family.  But a family we love.

Plans…

When we leave the compound on Monday we are heading for Eugene  (might as well get a couple extra free nights).  We are expecting temps next week in the upper 80’s and low 90’s for the week.  After 10 months of living in the 60’s with RARE excursions into the 70’s this is going to be interesting.  Trial by FIRE!

I’ll fill you in on our solar plans, on a possible return to the dealer, and other up and coming ‘stuff’ in the next few days — some of them we are still figuring out.

Click on the graphic to read the poem

Peggy’s Poem