Only Seven More Fridays To Go - (Chester, CA)

Let's see. I got up and out just in time for Randy and I to start Honey Wagon duty at 8:00. It took two trips to do that and a third to pump out and clean the porta-potties.

A little girl riding her bike was paying attention to us and not where she was going and wiped out. Fortunately, she was going slow, she was wearing a helmet, and her dad was right there to hug away the pain.

We got started on cleaning bathrooms at noon and finished around 1:00.

Most people are friendly to us bathroom cleaners, but some people won't talk to us or even look at us. Just a guess, but it seems we might be "beneath" them. :)

There was an episode on a sitcom one time where the dad took his boys and their friend to a basketball game. The dad told the boys to go ahead and throw their peanut shells on the floor - "the janitor will clean it up". Turns out the friend's father was a janitor. Hmmm.

I wonder how often in our past we've thought the same thing. "The janitor will clean it up." "The maid will clean it up." "They pay someone to clean it up, it's their job." I'm sure we have had those thoughts, but even if they are true, I hope we haven't made or left a bigger mess because of that fact.

Sometimes, that's how I feel working the dirty jobs in this campground. I feel like people leave bigger messes because they know someone has to clean it up.

And it's also that "visual permission" thing. Once one person throws a paper towel on the bathroom floor, then others do it. Once one person uses their firepit for a trash can, then others do it. Once one person throws their trash on top of the dumpster rather than in it, then others do it.

Anyway, my intent is not to complain about the jobs - we knew what we were getting into when we signed on. My intent is to shine a light on the people in our lives that clean up after us. They deserve our respect for making our lives better, and a little praise and a "thank you" once in awhile goes a long way.

And here is a little tip for those that do the dirty jobs. The people that know your name have a tendency to be less messy where it affects you. So if you are in a situation where you can get to know the people that make the messes you clean up, the easier your job will be.

A nametag, a quick "hello" or "How's your day?", and a smile are all easy ways I've transferred myself from the anonymous "janitor" or "maintenance guy" to "Howard" in the eyes of at least our longer-term guests. Trust me, it makes a difference. :)

Well, enough of that little tangent. We finished the bathrooms and took lunch.

After lunch, I got a list of things to do from Des.

I mowed a cabin lawn, watered several new trees and shrubs, and cleaned the bugs out of light fixtures on the office porch. In addition, I helped Randy juggle trash so he could take a load to the dump. And I helped Randy move the canoes and kayaks from their location near the office to the docks. Then I rented a canoe.

As of July 1, PG&E started releasing water from the lake for downstream purposes, whatever those might be. The edge of the lake is getting farther and farther from the campground and the water around the docks is getting shallow.

We've stopped renting our motorboats for the season due the aquatic weeds that always seem to end up wrapped around the props. And we have to constantly monitor the docks. They are getting close to being out as far as we can get them, and we have to keep an eye on which slips are rentable and which ones are too shallow.

With all my chores and Linda busily checking in guests, we hardly had a chance to speak today. But I knew she did laundry and set out some chicken for dinner this morning.

When I got home, I got my shower, threw on some music - "Rod Stewart: Uplugged", updated our financial spreadsheets for the month, grilled the chicken, and baked some potatoes so dinner would be ready when Linda got home.

Linda arrived in a much better mood than last Friday evening. It's still a busy weekend, but the people seem to be more pleasant. Hopefully, it will be that way through the rest of our stint here - only seven more Fridays to go. :)