Life has been busy. After a short break at home I went to pick up an extra 5 days working in Grand Rapids MN then travel to NV for the next 10 days over the Thanksgiving holiday. This craziness will the preamble to an extended time off so I can enjoy the Christmas holiday at home with family.
I flew into Duluth, MN and then drove to Grand Rapids where I would work the next 5 days. Before driving to Grand rapids I took the time to stop into the Duluth Trading store – my favorite clothing store at their original location. Not gonna lie, I was disappointed as the flagship store of the brand is now located in Wisconsin. This store was small compared to the others I have been to and didn’t even have a cool old truck in the lobby and parking was a huge pain. Grand Rapids is a new base for me and I got to work with another float which is a rare treat for me. We even ran into another friend and float when in Fargo, ND. 5 days only 4 calls on the last 2 nights we worked. Yay… nights my favorite.
Next it was on to Reno. Or so I thought.
I often joke that the “D” in Delta stands for delayed. Well it was no different this time. My plan was to get to Reno and work the 10 days there. On my way I was asked to relocate to Elko, NV. I arrived in Reno late, after midnight, and stayed the night there before traveling to Elko which is about 4 hours away.
I spent about 5 days in Elko working with a bunch of great folks and training a new hire a few days before heading back to Reno. I made a new discovery in Elko this time. There is a memorial at the local airport in remembrance of 2 medivac crashes in the area. The monument honors Access Air crash in August 2004 and American Medflight crash in November 2016. It is a sobering sight and makes one slow down and think about what we do has inherent risks.
Back to Reno for the Thanksgiving holiday and a few days after.
Lots of eating, fellowship and flying the next few days. I always try to hit up an In and Out burger when I can. It’s a treat since we don’t have them close to home.
Before long it was time to head home for a break. 18 days gone this round after only about a week home between hitches. I’m ready to be home.
Flew through LAX for the first time in a long time and we raced a 747 to the ground. It was great to finally see the lights of home out of my window.
I’m off to a new to me base next but a state I’ve worked many times.
Seek adventure and get busy living.
-Ben