The Ray Mine

I love these people that want to argue with me about humidity versus heat.  I hate high humidity, but that doesn't make high humidity the end-all when it comes to heat.

Today, for example. I down in a mine waiting to get the truck loaded up with machinery.  I was there for an hour and 15 minutes before they finally started loading the truck. Turn out mine inspectors from the State showed up out of the blue, no forewarning, and were conducting a review and on-site inspection.  When they show up, apparently, everything else is done.  They are going to do what they are going to do and no work will take place until they are done.

Hence, the sitting there in the truck for 75 minutes waiting for them to show up.  When they did show up, the  crew that is, the mine inspectors weren't far behind them.  It was blistering hot on the deck of my trailer.  The metal on the trailer was so hot that it burned my flesh after only a few seconds contact.  I was sweating so hard my sunglasses were covered with it and I could hardly see out of them. But, those are safety-glasses and in mines, you have to have glasses on at all times.  I was in the direct sunlight and it's MUCH hotter in direct sunlight than temperature readings that are taken in the shade.

I think that's what really doesn't compute with people. Temperature readings are taken in the shade, not direct sunlight.  Well, I work almost always in direct sunlight.  It's HOT, just plain hot.  Everything you touch is hot.  Kneeling down on the deck of trailer to pull the chains through the slots?  My legs burned even with pants on, heat went right through them and I found myself crouching instead.

I wanted to get it over with and though I was well hydrated before I got out of the truck to get all these machines tied down, I was definitely not in such state afterwards.  I pulled my hard hat off and an immense amount of fluid came pouring out of it.  Gross? Perhaps, but that was my body fluids accumulating in there that I didn't even know was going on.

The worst of it was those mine inspectors.  They were standing there watching me the entire time. They were talking with the crew's foreman and mine officials, yes, but they were just standing there, scrutinizing my every move.  I was watching my every move, everything done in complete regard to safety.  I didn't want them coming after me, please just leave me alone and fool with them, thank you.  This went on for well over an hour, them standing there discussing whatever but having me in full view.

I called the salesman on that account afterwards and told him what had been happening, he started laughing. "Dude, if you had done anything wrong, they would have jumped all over your @$$ and written you a ticket with a fine, ANYTHING at all".  Whatever.  People get injured and killed at mines, always have and undoubtedly it will continue on as long as there are mines - which I don't see any end of in any near future.  Hence the over-zealous safety regulations.  I get it, but I didn't really enjoy having them standing there watching my every move.

It's 4 hours later and I still have a massive heat headache.  Enough so that I am calling it quits MUCH earlier than normal tonight.  In fact, it's not even nighttime and I am thinking of heading to bed.

ben

Tuesday

Temps starting to come back down. Today's high will be 112 and then after today down below 110.  This is good news cause' those really hot days just wear on my AC, it basically runs all afternoon long and into the evening to keep it cool in here.

I am planning on heading up north this weekend.  Still getting warm during the day up there, but going down into the 60's at night, which is perfect.  I want to install that fence I have been thinking about doing for some time.

I am finding that I need not go up there "all the time".  Just when the feeling hits.  But my visits up there are throughout the year, my mom goes up for 3 weeks at a time during the summer and then comes back down for a week, but she will not venture up there during the winter.

I am not sure how much of the fencing project I will get done - it really needs to rain nicely up there so the ground will be a bit easier to drive those stakes in - but I am going to give it a good try, lol.

Well, off to the mountains today in the semi.  A nice little trip up to one of the mines to pick up a giant fusion machine and it's generator.  Our company rents them and when the customer is finished, they like us to get them back quickly.  Fix/repair any damage and have them ready for the next rental. They are quite expensive to rent.  However, to buy one?  A new one lists at just under 500k, which doesn't include the generator to power it.

Anyway, off to work.

ben