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“Okay. Let’s get to it, then. Jay, please stand.”
He does, and everyone’s eyes go to him.
“Jay is your First Whip. Anything you need to know, he is the man to ask. Jay, show them where the gear lockers are and get them outfitted. We head out in one hour,” I inform. “Oh, and, guys, rule number one is, don’t drink the water.”
We spent the last four hours running standard firehouse and street drills. Basically, we ran the firefighters through different scenarios to see how they would handle it. It helps us to gauge response time, learn procedure and protocol for each situation, and gets the men and women used to wearing gear, using proper ventilation, and crawling through tight spaces so they know what to do in an actual burn.
They did pretty well. There was only one instance where a recruit ran out of gas and almost passed out.
Now, we are assembled at the kitchen table. Jay and Mike put in the table extension leaf, and we grab a few extra folding chairs from storage.
“You guys cook every night?” one recruit asks.
“We do. Every morning too. All of you need to learn at least two recipes. Memorize them. Practice them. Get good at them because we all take turns. And the rule is, whoever cooks doesn’t clean, so you guys will be doing dishes tonight,” I explain.
“How do we do sleeping? Do we take turns?” another asks.
“We can all settle down at the same time. Trust me, if the alarm goes off, you’ll hear it. The dorm has separate bunk rooms for males and females. If everything is done for the day and you’re tired, go sleep.”
“Can we have visitors during shift? Like if my wife wants to bring the baby by to say hello?”
“I don’t mind an occasional drop-in, especially if your wife needs you and if we are not busy, but this is not a social club, and I don’t want it to become one. I want you guys to be focused, and I want you to use your time here to bond with one another. The best rule of thumb is to leave your home life at the door, and on the flip side, don’t take work stress home to your family. They deserve to have a hundred percent of you when you’re not on shift,” I explain.
“No family—got it,” the guy states.
“It’s not that. Family is important. We have lots of activities that involve our families. In fact, we’re hosting a fair next week for all the firemen’s spouses and their kids. Sometimes, we get together for barbecues and other parties. Chief is just saying not to have your wife up here, yelling at you for leaving your wet towel on the floor. We know the shifts are long. We understand that you are a husband and father. But it’s important to have your mind here and on the task at hand. There has to be boundaries,” Jay adds.
After dinner, the guys get to cleaning, and I retreat to my office.
All in all, it was a successful day.
Hopefully, the word got out about the burn ban and weather conditions remain stable through the night.
Maxi
Erin called me this afternoon to see what my plans were for the evening. I told her that I was going to go out to my land and paint a few old buoys that my grandfather had collected, and she insisted that she and the girls come help me.
I’m not sure what sounded exciting about those plans, but she seemed eager to help.
So, here we are, unpacking our vehicles.
I took the buoys home and sanded them and added new rope to the ones that had rotted. I purchased a collection of bright-colored paints and brushes.
Taeli helps me spread a tarp on the ground under one of the shady trees by the water. Ansley pulls out five old aprons that are paint-splattered.
“Here we go. I have one for each of us,” she says as she passes them out to us.
“Where did you get these?” I ask.
“I bought them when these girls were helping me get the café ready. They came in handy, so I stored them just in case we ever had another painting project.”
She leans into the trunk of her car and pulls out a large paper bag. “I also stopped into the craft store and picked up a few fun stencils you might like. There’s a crab, lobster, seashell, mermaid silhouette, an American flag, a lighthouse, an anchor, and a sailboat. Oh, and I have some spare fairy lights.”
I just planned to paint the buoys in colorful striped bars.
I take the bag from her arms. “Thank you,” I say, not sure how I feel about the items.
“It’s okay if you don’t want to use them. I thought they were cool, but it’s your home, so you can think about it,” she explains.
