Susie,
I knew you’d be a bit nervous about your first day so I thought I’d share a few nuggets of wisdom with you from back in the day. I know how much you hate it when I say that but promise you’ll read this to the end. You see, us older ladies have been there and you don’t need to reinvent the wheel everytime.
I can remember how exciting it was to pick out my clothes the night before that big day. I’d been given my gear during Orientation Training and my brother had helped me to scuff it all up a bit so that I wouldn’t stand out as a newbie. I chuckle at it now – it probably helps psychologically but there is no getting away from the fact that when you walk in, it will be like aliens have landed . So suck it up sista.
I was told to report to Arnie at Site 9 and some guy pointed him out for me. I thought Arnie was ancient looking – he looked 50. Back when I was 20, it seemed old but now that I’m 50, I’ve changed my mind about that.
I walked over to Arnie and held out my hand and said “Hi, I’m Debbie”. I used my assertive voice like they taught me in the interview workshop. He didn’t even look at me as he yelled out to another guy. “Ted. Get over here!!”
“Ted, this is Donna – she’s going to work with you today.” I could tell that Ted was not so pleased about this and he looked like he was hearing it for the first time. Great!! I found out later that the guys on the site didn’t even know that there was a woman coming into the worksite which made them resent us more. But that’s a topic for another day.
“Debbie, my name is Debbie.” I wasnted to yell. All of a sudden, Ted grabs me and yells out “What the F…..” as he whirls me behind him. I must have looked frightened because he softened up a little.
“Donna, there’s a lot of stuff going on here – keep your eyes and ears peeled at all times.” I looked around then and saw a couple of cranes swinging overhead, trucks everywhere moving supplies in and debris out. It was crazy. People were working together in little clusters minding their own business.
I’m brought back to reality when he says “Grab the end of this board, we’re moving them down into the hole.” I spent the rest of the day moving boards down into a hole, one by one. It didn’t make much sense to me at the time. I thought I’d be reading blueprints, doing layouts, bossing everyone around on the first day. I thought I'd have my own slaves. Carrying boards – are you kidding me????
But it all makes sense Susie – there’ a method to this madness. Back at the college we were taught how everything fit together but we never had the pressure of the real world and we didn’t parachute into the middle of a project. The real world is kind of crazy Susie – you have to hit the ground running. Just do what they tell you to do and it will all make sense after a while.
I can remember picking up one end of a couple of planks we were carrying and as we stepped off, I went to the left and he went to the right – I felt so foolish but Ted just chuckled and said “Donna, listen to what I’m saying.”
I remember thinking at the time that I hadn’t learned anything that first day. But I learned plenty and you will too – I learned that it’s important to be aware of what’s going on around you in an environment with a lot of hazards. I’m a much better listener now because of the mistakes I made that day. I was given a task that I thought was below me – imagine me carrying board around – that’s not what I trained for. But it is so important to learn how to operate in this environment so that I’m safe and my fellow worker is safe – starting with a less demanding task helped me to learn that. You’re getting used to the environment in those early days – there will be plenty of time for challenge later on.
At one point Ted said, “Let’s scab these boards together, Donna.” I had to ask even though I felt like a fool – “What’s a scab?” I thought it was something that I picked off my knee when I was a kid. But scabbing is industry lingo for nailing two pieces of board together. Obviously there are new terms to learn too.
When the day was over, Ted and I walked out together. “You did a good job today Debbie.” Did he really just call me Debbie – now that is progress?
“Tomorrow we’re working on the barge. I never asked what a barge was – I would learn when I saw it. I was starting to trust the process a little.
Susie, enjoy your first day. You’re new, they know you’re new. You have nothing to prove…...yet. lol
Call me when you get home.
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