Two Moves in Two Weeks

A few days after my last post as we were doing laundry in Dickinson, Eric got a call from a Chinese man that he had contacted earlier regarding a job hauling frac sand. We had seen a crew loading the 1,500 kilo bags at the train depot and Eric tried to chat up the forklift driver who knew very little English but gave Eric a phone number. He enlisted the help of our daughter-in- law, who speaks Chinese, who referred us to her aunt who is fluent. Aunt Elaine called the number and made the introduction to the owner of Sea Pacific Inc. Turns out Mike speaks pretty good English and texts it really well. After about 15 exchanges, they struck and deal and we got the job! Thank you Julianna and Elaine for your help!

 I say we got the job because I have been serving as Eric’s co-pilot and swamper almost every day since then. Using our flatbed trailer we strap down sixteen bags as they are loaded, drive three miles then unstrap them and hold up the bag’s loops as the forklift removes them. The average turnaround time was just under an hour but team E got it down to 41 minutes so the boss loves us. The work is repetitive but quick paced and physical so the days fly by, plus it pays well. The only downside is the one hour commute each way on a very busy and dangerous stretch of highway.

 The only way to fix this problem is to move, so all last week we have been moving all of our stuff up north, storing much of it at Sea Pacific’s yard. Sadly, we are leaving behind our friend Joey and his family who have been so warm and kind to us. If it weren’t for Joey’s generosity and help, we may not have been able to last through the winter of sporadic work and slow-to-pay jobs. We will still see him from time to time but will miss our daily laughs and commiserations. Thank you, thank you, Joey!

 We will also leave behind our sun room which we will sorely miss. With the camper gone, Joey can wall off the east end and use the space for a work-out room or whatever else he wants. We are happy to give him a useful parting gift. While Eric works solo, I have been packing, cleaning and consolidating. I took apart the insulated skirting that we worked so hard to install. I find it is much easier to take things apart than put them together.

 Once we find a (semi) permanent spot in Williston, Eric is going to build a wooden bunkhouse type structure on skids so it can be moved. It will have loads of insulation , but be very basic and be over twice the size of the camper. No more sweating walls and freeze-locked doors! No matter what we did to insulate and ventilate the camper, we still had condensation issues which were damaging it. Considering we went through one of the mildest winters in ND history, I’d hate to see what a normal winter would do to our little rolling vacation home.

 Besides moving to Williston, we are also preparing for a trip home, then on to Seattle for Eric’s dad’s 90th birthday celebration. From there we will take the gooseneck trailer down to Portland to pick up bare-root trees for the nursery. After a few days at home, Eric will head back to NoDak with more equipment like the hydroseeder on board, making his round trip journey-slog over 3,000 miles with a total of eleven mountain passes,,,ugh. Then comes the hardest part of the oil boom experience—separation. I know it will be hard for both of us, but I try to imagine what spouses of deployed servicemen and women go through and am grateful that we can talk anytime we want and be together after a one or two day trip. Luckily we will both be super busy, so that will help. My North Dakota experience won’t end just because I’m not in the state. My other half will be here. It’s time to take a deep breath, finish packing and find out what is up the road.

 Scroll down to see some exciting action photos!

A few days after my last post as we were doing laundry in Dickinson, Eric got a call from a Chinese man that he had contacted earlier regarding a job hauling frac sand. We had seen a crew loading the 1,500 kilo bags at the train depot and Eric tried to chat up the forklift driver who knew very little English but gave Eric a phone number. He enlisted the help of our daughter-in- law, who speaks Chinese, who referred us to her aunt who is fluent. Aunt Elaine called the number and made the introduction to the owner of Sea Pacific Inc. Turns out Mike speaks pretty good English and texts it really well. After about 15 exchanges, they struck and deal and we got the job! Thank you Julianna and Elaine for your help! I say we got the job because I have been serving as Eric’s co-pilot and swamper almost every day since then. Using our flatbed trailer we strap down sixteen bags as they are loaded, drive three miles then unstrap them and hold up the bag’s loops as the forklift removes them. The average turnaround time was just under an hour but team E got it down to 41 minutes so the boss loves us. The work is repetitive but quick paced and physical so the days fly by, plus it pays well. The only downside is the one hour commute each way on a very busy and dangerous stretch of highway. The only way to fix this problem is to move, so all last week we have been moving all of our stuff up north, storing much of it at Sea Pacific’s yard. Sadly, we are leaving behind our friend Joey and his family who have been so warm and kind to us. If it weren’t for Joey’s generosity and help, we may not have been able to last through the winter of sporadic work and slow-to-pay jobs. We will still see him from time to time but will miss our daily laughs and commiserations. Thank you, thank you, Joey! We will also leave behind our sun room which we will sorely miss. With the camper gone, Joey can wall off the east end and use the space for a work-out room or whatever else he wants. We are happy to give him a useful parting gift. While Eric works solo, I have been packing, cleaning and consolidating. I took apart the insulated skirting that we worked so hard to install. I find it is much easier to take things apart than put them together. Once we find a (semi) permanent spot in Williston, Eric is going to build a wooden bunkhouse type structure on skids so it can be moved. It will have loads of insulation , but be very basic and be over twice the size of the camper. No more sweating walls and freeze-locked doors! No matter what we did to insulate and ventilate the camper, we still had condensation issues which were damaging it. Considering we went through one of the mildest winters in ND history, I’d hate to see what a normal winter would do to our little rolling vacation home. Besides moving to Williston, we are also preparing for a trip home, then on to Seattle for Eric’s dad’s 90th birthday celebration. From there we will take the gooseneck trailer down to Portland to pick up bare-root trees for the nursery. After a few days at home, Eric will head back to NoDak with more equipment like the hydroseeder on board, making his round trip journey-slog over 3,000 miles with a total of eleven mountain passes,,,ugh. Then comes the hardest part of the oil boom experience—separation. I know it will be hard for both of us, but I try to imagine what spouses of deployed servicemen and women go through and am grateful that we can talk anytime we want and be together after a one or two day trip. Luckily we will both be super busy, so that will help. My North Dakota experience won’t end just because I’m not in the state. My other half will be here. It’s time to take a deep breath, finish packing and find out what is up the road. Scroll down to see some exciting action photos!