A Long Road Ahead

I got a long way to go before I get comfortable in this supervisory role. I was kind of a nutcase at chow this evening.

I think the high temp this afternoon was in the high thirties or low forties. With some pretty intense wind gusts all night long which brought the wind chill down into the low teens.

It's been close to an hour since I got home and I think my earlobes are just now starting to come back online. It was the kind of cold that felt like someone was running a frozen chainsaw up and down your legs, even through the long johns.

As usual when we are running the chow line, there were officers inside the chow hall and some outside doing pat searches and watching the yard. I was worried that they guys outside were getting too cold and I kept running out there to make sure they were okay and then running back inside to make sure things were going well in there.

I'm sure it was mildly amusing to watch.

We had a good crew out on the yard tonight. I had the Fireman and Gray Ham and Snack. The Fireman and Gray Ham are both old yard dawgs and know what to do without me getting on to them. Snack is young and fairly new but has a pretty good head on his shoulders. He'd gone up to watch the med line and I ran up to make sure he went inside and warmed up when he needed it.

The Fireman was inside calling the houses and checking with me about the timing and Gray Ham was out in his insulated bibs wandering the yard watching the movement. He wouldn't have gone inside if I had told him to so I didn't bother.

It should have been a no-brainer. They could have easily run chow without me.

But instead I let it get to me and I ran back and forth like a fool trying to keep an eye on everything all at once. I know better than that but I did it anyway. Not exactly sure why.

Even way back when I first started working for the DOC years ago I always wanted to know where my crew was at all times. It was just a thing with me. Not necessarily for my own safety but for theirs. If I hadn't seen someone for a few minutes, I wanted to know where they were and that they were okay.

And now that I'm a supervisor that has stayed with me. And gotten worse. Or better. Stronger, anyway.

During mainline I had eleven officers and a Lieutenant wandering hither and yon inside and outside of the chow hall. And my mind wouldn't rest until I had located all of them.

Crazy, I know. I really need to learn to relax a little.

I'll get there. I hope. Or I'll get an ulcer. Another one.

So, still no word on where I'll end up or what shift. What with the holidays and all the Major hasn't been in much and alot of people are shifting around. I keep hoping at least two Sergeants on our shift want to go to days and open up a few slots on evenings so I can stay where I'm at.

Keeping my fingers crossed.

Tuesday is going to be Festival of Sleep Day (Ahhh... sweet, blissful sleep!), Drinking Straw Day, JRR Tolkien Day, Momento Mori (Remember You Die) Day and National Chocolate Covered Cherry Day.

Sleep.......