#6....And a Much Needed Break

Was it 2003 or 2004???
I don't even like thinking about it so I am not going to double check,
Either way It is amazing to me how much time has passed and how much of my life has changed.
I work for the government and for the most part am very proud of what I do ....but like any federal institution my place of employment is a giant clusterfuck..
I realize this now after having been through the fire so to speak.
In 2003 I accepted a position at the public trough. The new job would mean a substantial increase in pay and the shift work would also mean that I would have a ton of time off midweek to fish.
No brainer?!!
Law enforcement for me seemed like a bit of a stretch at the time but surprise surprise ...looking at it now ... I seem to have a knack for it and for the most part I enjoy what I do.
Not many people can honestly say that and in this day and age I realize just how very lucky I am to just have a friggin job!
Part of the condition of my employment was that I successfully complete a 9 week government training program...
...a program with an extremely bad reputation.
9 weeks away from the family in the middle of nowhere....if I fail anything I am out on my ass and the job goes bye bye...
They escort you from the premises and put you on a plane...Thanks for coming out
Ella was 2 months old when I left.
I am the sole source of family income...try that on for size.
:o/
I do not travel well and I hate being away from my family even overnight not to mention I had been removed from a formal educational setting by about 13 yrs.
Obviously I was successful but this
"training"
was far and away the worst experience of my life...(interestingly enough the second worst was another type of government training???)
hmmmmm
Well anyway...enough of that..
On top of the misery of being away the Philistines had the audacity to send me for training through OCT/NOV/DEC....heartless....
The only good thing was that the workload was so heavy nobody really had time to pine for things.
Halfway through the program I thankfully took advantage of a travel weekend.
I believe it was a three day reprieve?
It is funny how the memory is fuzzy...almost like repression.
I don't fly well and chose to drive home on my breaks....all 9hrs.
I remember tearing up when I saw the lights from the chemical valley from the highway....ah Home Sweet Home!!!
I had never failed anything in my life and I am not shy on confidence but the Fed Gov is a wild card and I was stressed out.
I don't know how we managed to swing it but Morin and I got out fishing on that weekend and I will remember that day for the rest of my life.

I don't know what kind of company I was for my friend that day. My heart was aching and the thought of returning to that hell hole of a college was a constant that was almost impossible to shake...but fuck them...that is just what we did.
We caught a lot of fish that day...and like a gift from Heaven ...or wherever..the river was surprisingly quiet.
#6


This fish was the final fish of the day and while to many people it may only appear mediocre .. to me ...because of the circumstances it was monumental.
A beautiful strong clean fish from home....that would carry me through the hellish dirty weeks to come.
I made it...fuck them.
I need that river.
..and friends aren't too bad either I suppose.
;o)