by Jan Chaffin

• Disclaimer: The views expressed are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employers.

Chapter Twelve – The Conversation

After a few weeks of running up and down the technical canyon trails that connect campground to day use, I feel myself getting stronger and more sure-footed. The terrain transitions from shady needles in the redwoods to deep exposed sand and railroad ties near the observation deck. It feels good to know I can still run those same trails almost twenty years later.

What doesn’t feel good is yesterday’s conversation. My day started out well. I’d logged a whopping ten-mile run in mid-day heat and was still feeling the adrenaline rush as I began my late shift at the campground kiosk.

The two early shift aides and I were surprised to see our boss drive up. We are paid by a non-profit that staffs some State Park positions but we never interact with them. We joked that he was hand-delivering some long-awaited privacy shades for one of the exposed kiosk windows or my special order x-small tactical jacket. We then laughed maybe it was one of our turns to get the axe. Haha. In the back of my mind, I fretted when I heard he was meeting with the Supervising Ranger. Surely, it couldn’t involve me…

The Ranger phone rang and the Supervising Ranger requested I walk over to the ampitheatre and meet with them there. I looked at my co-workers and said, oh well, I guess this is it. They looked somewhat dismayed at the reality of the visit’s consequences and wished me strength.

What followed felt like a grilling-a petty one at that. My boss called it a conversation and asked me about comments I had made to a Senior Aide as long ago as my first day as well as several incidents including the Ranger Phone Hang-up. I explained my side of the story in each case, and they both nodded as if understanding. Then he asked about other aspects of my job knowledge and performance and I indicated I felt I was performing those tasks well. He asked if I felt prepared for the workload I was encountering. I said, no, not at first, but I felt more confident now. He asked if I needed more training and I said perhaps with one specific aspect.

Then my boss said there had been reports from a couple of co-workers that I was short with them when busy. I asked for context but he wouldn’t give me details. I was surprised and hurt by this approach. Now I had to wonder which of my co-workers felt strongly enough about my behavior to contact my boss instead of me or a Senior Aide. At the end, I had to sign a piece of paper. He said he would check back in a week and if he gets any more reports meanwhile, we would have a different conversation. The Supervising Ranger was mostly silent throughout. Wondering how many other Service Aides had gone through this ordeal, I felt deflated.

I finished my shift somewhat shaken up and not sure I wanted to keep working where I apparently wasn’t wanted. I made a few defensive references to the discussion with coworkers then tried to get beyond it but kept circling back to my irritation at being singled out. Ironically, I had given up hours at a better paying job to take this “fun” summer job. I considered ditching Parks and going full time as a Sears Appliance Sales Consultant. Ugh. There were was much to like about spending paid hours in a redwood forest. I decided, I’d fight to make the Aide job work, at least for a little while.

Chapter Thirteen – The Longest Shift

 The awaited JULY FOURTH WEEKEND arrives. Saturday July 1, a bit before 7am I unlock the campground kiosk and begin my opening preparations, fuelled by a greasy Burger King bacon egg and cheese croissant, hash browns and a diet coke. Yum! Not my usual faire, but the demands of the day seem to warrant the fast food support.

Ten pages of camper tags take extra long to print out. More than twice as many campers as usual are arriving with no extra staffing scheduled. Oh boy! Over all, the morning moves smoothly and doesn’t start ramping into hyperdrive until about 10am. A Senior Aide and an off-duty Aide help out so things are manageable. When the closing shift Aide arrives, we are in full swing. I feel like I should work a bit longer to help him. After a half hour more, the Senior Aide says I am good to go. Whew, after 9.5 hours, I’m ready. I’d made it through my last scheduled solo opening shift of the summer! Whether I will be permitted to keep my job still remains to be seen.

http://gravesitestories.com/my-state-park-summer-pt-7/