Nothing to Prove

I spent the day, and yesterday with four guys who will never have to prove their manhood to me ever again. I mean, to say it was cold outside would be an understatement. And the low temperature coupled with the wind that blew for two whole days meant that it was even harder to take with a smile on one's face.


In the morning, at seven, getting out of the truck might have been the hardest thing I've done in a while. But Marshall had a(n illegal) fire going. And I was bundled up. So I stepped out like I have since the eighties when I quit lying to myself that I'd be going back to school some day and thought that maybe swinging a hammer wasn't such a bad thing. At least when skies are sunny...and the temperature's mild.


Did I mention that there's still snow on the ground from a few days ago? It's not deep, but it won't go away! There's a scattering of ice cubes from a drink someone poured out over the weekend while we, the construction crew, weren't there, and it too remains...three days later! I think the high was freezing today, and just a tick above yesterday.


So when the day's high temperature doesn't climb much above freezing, one would think there's the advantage of no mud, and it's true, there isn't, until the ground thaws out a thin skin of mud with the same viscosity as k-y jelly. Since it's good old North Carolina red mud, it'll stay with you until you cut the legs off of your jeans for next summer thus finally removing the mud stains once and for all.


Well, the days can't all be dry and dusty and warm. If they were, the world would be a great place to live and work outside, but then, we'd have no way of proving how tough we are. We wouldn't have an excuse to scream and holler at every gust that sneaks up our backs and pant legs. We wouldn't have license to wander around with snot dripping from and drying on our noses. Try doing that working at Big Blue.


So tomorrow, since it's forecast to be just as cold, and windy, I'll sit there in my truck like the grunt in Apocalypse Now sitting at the door of the Huey screaming, 'I'm not going! I'm not going!" until someone else shows up, builds a(n illegal) fire, glances at me through the glass, walks past and starts unloading tools...in that order.


-rbm