On the road again...this is what I do for a living

Well as some of you may know, (I'm assuming the only ones reading this would be family and friends), I work in the oil field. Or the "Patch" as some of the old timers would call it. The oil field is a little bit different than any other job I have ever had. But the closest job that I can relate it to would be the Army. Like the Army, the oil field is based out in the field, duh. But it also can take you to remote destinations where you may never have even thought to go. It kind of reminds me of the Army cadence "C-130"...

C-130, rollin down the strip!
64 troopers on a one way trip!
Mission top secret, destination unkown!
They don't even know if they're ever coming home!

Wow, that took me back a few years! I almost felt like running! NOT! But sometimes I feel like those 64 troopers because at a new job I'm headed out to a place that I've never been to before and not quite sure when I'm coming home. Like the Army, I know that there is a job that needs to be done and I'm not going anywhere until it's complete. But other than that, that's probably the closest this job is related to the Army! LOL Because in the Army the chances of me sitting on my ass watching movies or surfing the internet was pretty slim. In the Army I would've been up at 0530 to get ready for PT (Physical Training). We would be freezing right about now because the only clothes we'd be wearing right now would be some sweats, gloves and a patrol cover (beanie cap). Everyone would be huddled together waiting for everyone to show up, then our Platoon Sergeants would call us to formation. We would line up like good little Soldiers and dress right dress. First Sergeant would call the Company to attention and we would salute the flag. Then we'd all make a mass formation and stretch, warm up and start doing pushups, situps and run. This was done 5 days a week, rain, snow or shine. Then after PT we would go shower, change and get ready for work by 8 or 9 depending on your job.

Here in the oil field, we don't do all that! It would probably be a good thing for some of us tubbier folks (myself included), but it doesn't happen. phew! Luckily for me, this job entitles some of my favorite things, sitting on my ass, eating, catching up on movies, playing video games and having time to get on the internet blogging huge entries, lol. But this job does have it's downfalls as well. Boredom, possible crappy working conditions, possible idiots to work with, remote locations where the nearest civilization is about 2-3 hours away, boredom (oh I said that already) and the biggest one of them all, being away from family and friends for long periods of time. That reason right there is probably the deal breaker for most people. I mean I've been on a job where I haven't seen my family for a month straight with just a few days of being home and then going back out for another month. Then again I've been home for 3 weeks straight, so it all balances out eventually. Just have to learn to deal with it. My family learned to deal with it because of being in the Army I could be gone for long periods of time until I come back home. But it made us a stronger family I think. I wouldn't trade it for anything, then again I wish I never had to do it. We definitely learned a lot about ourselves during my 8 years in the Army.

Wow, this has gone on way too long. I was initially planning on telling you guys what I do for my job. But it ended up being a short summary of my military life compared to this job. It's funny how you can plan on one thing and get something else sometimes, right? Well, maybe next time.