A quiet night, a stack of books, a tuna melt on rye

I don't even know what else could go wrong with work this week. Last night I spent at the airport in Alexandria, Louisiana trying to get the rental car whose battery died exchanged for one that worked. That only took two hours. Today, the other crew got locked in a property by the land owner and I had to go rescue them. Monday, it was the ferry that only ran twice a day. Wednesday was when we found out that our hotel only had internet in the lobby or the four rooms that asked for the modems they keep behind the front desk first. Really, I'm typing this sitting right outside the lobby -- and it is rather chilly.

One of my bosses yelled at me today.  I try not to complain about him on here too much, because it is kind of a downer, but I've felt for a while that this boss like to willfully misinterpret it as part of the attitude problem only he thinks I have.  Anyway,  he was getting very agitated that we were not starting to survey to segment that we were at, and I said we needed water.  Unfortunately at that point we both had only part of the information, and the part we each had mad our own positions more right. 

He knew that we were starting at the other side of the field to the east of the vehicle and would therefor be back at the truck in about 20 minutes.  In those 20 minutes he was planning to go get us water so it would be there when we got back -- not a great precedent, but perfectly safe.  I did not know where exactly our start point was.  I really thought that we were starting at the trucks and heading west -- in which case we would not have had any access to water until the end of the day -- not safe at all. 

After he got back with water, I tried to clear the air, and was told to "stop the passive-aggressive shit," that I had "made him look bad in front of the client, and our new employees" and that "the next time I said anything similar he was writing me up for insubordination."  I was rather upset although the new employee who thanked me, saying that if I hadn't spoken up about the water he was going to, really helped (not to mention the one who added that it made him feel that I really cared about their well being).  I really hate being on anyone's bad side -- and I seem to constantly be on this man's bad side -- but if I'm going to be written up for insubordination I really hope it is over a similar safety issue, because I have no problem sticking to my guns when it deals with my safety or that of people around me. 

This morning I was once again made aware of a deficiency in my upbringing, at least as it pertains to my current profession.  I'm a suburban girl by birth and a city-girl by choice so I never learned skills like how to handle farm animals, how to drive through a muddy field without getting the truck stuck, and how to tell by sound where a thunderstorm is.  Unfortunately, these are skill that I'm apparently supposed to possess.  Today I got ganged-up on my a group of eight or so horses while I was trying to dig one of my shovel tests in their pasture.  They used the whole progressively edging closer sneak attack option to surround me, then two went for my screen, three for the shovel, one for my backpack and one just kept coming at me trying to take the clipboard in my hands.  I made a couple of authoritative utterings, varying between "shoo", "no" and "go away, you can't have my screen," but the white horse just kept coming at me.  So, I'm backing up all over the field sure that I'm going to lose a finger or at the very least the paperwork, when my crew chief dispels the congregated horses with no problem.  Apparently I was supposed to walk at the horse; although, it was so close to me that I'm not sure where this walking was supposed to take place. 

Also, the weather is southern Louisiana is really strange. (Note: for the purposes of this paragraph southern Louisiana is defined as anything south of New Orleans.  Yes I realize that this cuts off large portions of the state that other people would consider the southern end -- deal with it.)  Every day we can hear thunder somewhere around us but there is never any rain and the storm never reaches us.  Thunder without rain is really creepy even more creepy then when there is rain while the sun is still shining.

I fell in a bayou again today, which I guess means I am officially back to work in Louisiana after the long sojourn in Mississippi, Florida and Tennessee.  Yeah?  I was going to take a picture of the sexy, sexy get-up I was wearing ('cause really who doesn't love the combination of mudding boots, a tread-bare and torn button down, a very dirty safety vest, and a pink bandanna worn low on the forehead to avoid sweating suntan lotion into the eyes).  Once I was wet, that last thing I wanted to do when we got back to the hotel was take a picture.  Maybe next time. 

The state of Virginia (and to a certain extent Tennessee) is trying to kill me.  There is no reason to require testing at 15m intervals.  Nothing is more depressing than finishing eight hours of shovel testing only to discover that you've covered less than a half a mile.  Boo.  When we're not going ridiculously slow because of the massive amount of shovel tests we get to climb up and down rather steep hills.  Granted, right now any hill would look steep to me, as I've spent the last three years in New Orleans where there is exactly one hill.  It's in the zoo and it's man-made. 

Some time next week we get to climb a mountain.  Honest. Quite possibly we'll get to climb the mountain twice, since the landowner at the very top won't let us on his land.  We will have to walk up one side to the edge of his property and then walk back down and climb up the other side to continue surveying.  Strangely I'm kind of looking forward to it.  I appear to be becoming strangely outdoorsy.  Who knew?

Finally, the hotel (Super 8) we're staying in seems to have hired the worst painters in existence.  Everyday they and their work area are covered in paint. The managed to spray paint all over a bunch of cars in the parking lot because they couldn't be bothered to give advanced warning so people could move their cars.  And one of them spends a lot of time sleeping in his car in the parting lot with the windows down blasting hymns.  It is rather odd.  Currently they are painting all the floors to cover up the many, many paint drips so the crew is waiting for the time that we are either painted into or out of our rooms. 

I was so not ready to go back to line survey again.  I've been spoiled lately by all the access roads, extra work spaces, phase IIs and lab work.  I'd forgotten how tiring digging 20ish meter deep shovel tests and day in the sun could be.  I also, officially declare the beginning of tick season, a I found four after returning from the field today.  Apparently I took my tweezers out of my toiletry bag sometime over the winter, so I got to remove the critters with a set of nail clippers.  Not the most fun experience ever. 

I'm really hoping I'm in the lab next ten-day.  I was there last ten-day, and the lab director said if I was there this ten-day he'd teach me to analyze the lithics.  I wasn't.  Instead I was sent to do pick up work in southern Florida.  Right before I left, he said he knew how much I wanted to learn and that if I was in the lab within the next month there would still be the opportunity.  I think I have a good shot for next ten-day.  Since I requested four days off in the middle to attend my cousin's graduation.    Fingers crossed. 

Today I did the ritual watching of the Godspell and Jesus Christ Superstar movies in honor of Good Friday.   This was the old 70s version of Superstar not the newer version that I didn't even know existed until today, but which I now need to rent in order to compare "wussy, baptist-Jesus" to "wonky-eyed-Jesus".  What? It's not at all unreasonable to spend a movie discussing the main actor's wonky eye and parental obsessions with odd songs.  Apparently Arynne's father is all about Simon the Zealot, while my mother cracks up every time the "then when we retire/We can write the Gospels/So they'll all talk about us when we die" bit. 

I did not sit outside and wait for the sky to get dark as a fiend's mom made me do as a teenager.   I'm not sure whether there was supposed to be a wave of darkness that descended as each time zone reached noon or if my friends mother just forgot to take into account the time difference between Jerusalem and West Chester, but the sky never did turn dark. 

I also managed to find these shoes at the Buffalo Exchange for $15, which made me ridiculously happy.  There was even an Easter Egg hidden nearby, so I got a piece of gum. 

Finally, for work this week I get to fly to Nashville on Tuesday.  Kat and I wii do some previous investigation research, take a look at a parking lot, and then fly back Wednesday.  Quite possibly this will be the most pointless project I've ever been on, but It will add another entry to the list of states I've worked in. 

I'd like to know what it is about being a pedestrian that makes people think you want them to behave like an ass.  Now, I spend a lot of time walking around both because I like to walk and because I like to leave the truck available to my co-workers if I'm not going very far.  Usually I'm walking on a side walk or at the very least I'm well off to the side of the road, so I'm pretty sure the drivers don't think they need to warn me of their presence.  Yet, some how I've had multiple people who are driving by me honk their horns right as they get to me.  Thanks for the scare!  There is also apparently the need in people to yell things out their windows.  It's usually things I can't even hear, but which I assume are jerk-y in nature. 

The people in the unit next to me found the coolest piece of pre-historic pottery I've ever seen today.  Now, I'm not terribly interested in pre-historics, so me saying it's cool means a lot. (In fact it made Cori's day, since she is always trying to show up Jesse in his finds.  She rarely succeeds.) The pottery was approximately 10 x 5 cm and decorated.  Now we find a lot of check-stamped or ones with incised lines, this sherd had some sort of free hand design that Greg swears is either an eye or a sun.  I don't know about that, but certainly it's a design I've never seen before. 

Some random things from the past week or so in bullet point form:

• I had a lesson in "be careful what you wish for..."  For a while I've been saying how I wished they would go back to rotating field people into the lab periodically to help out with lab work.  Partly I'm selfish and I like doing lab work and living in my own apartment for more than four days in a row.  I also think it helps the field staff remember how (and understand why it's important) to correctly fill out our paperwork and artifact bags.  I looks like this will be happening.  Unfortunately, it will be happening at the expense of my favorite labbies job.  Something I obviously never would have wished for.  
• I love crawfish season.  I always forget how good crawfish is when its out of season, but there really are few things more fun than sitting out in the courtyard of The Bulldog drinking beer and eating crawfish.  It's also amusing the reactions that you get from other people.  I actually had a tourist ask my friend and me if she could watch us eat.  Presumably she just wanted to see the technique but hearing the words "Do you mind if I watch you eat?" is rather disconcerting. 
• Yesterday, I went to a Lenten/Easter concert that a couple of friends were putting on.  Now, I have a rocky relationship with the composer Samuel Barber.  He grew up in the same town I did (although much earlier than I did as he died the year before I was born).   I've spent alot of time in choirs (especially at church) singing his music because we had to celebrate out local artist -- also he wrote my high school Alma Matter.  Unfortunately, I don't like most of his music, but surprisingly yesterday I thought his "The Crucifixion" was the best piece done in the concert.  I also find it funny that his piece on the Crucifixion is beautiful and soaring while his piece for Easter morning is extremely dissident and I think depressing.  It's like he got confused which one is the celebration. 
• Today on the way to Perry, Florida I stopped at two exits in a row where the Shell station (the one I had a gas card for) was closed before I broke down and just payed for the field vehicle gas myself.  I really wish they would give me a company credit card so I could more easily do the job I'm supposed to be doing. 

Last Wednesday I was asked if I wanted to spend another week it house, so this week I've once again been working in the office instead of the field.  Unfortunately this particular in house session was not as great as the last, and not really because of what I am doing.  I've wanted to get a chance to do site forms and that's what we've been doing.  What is annoying me is that instead of being able to work on the site forms from the beginning, I was sent to do some copying first and then got to do clean up on the forms.  Instead of being shown once how to do the whole form, I get and explanation of one little segment and then have to wait around for some one to assign me another section when I'm done.  I'm learning that I don't like being dependent on other people to set up my work.  I like knowing what I'm expected to do, so I can tuck right in when I arrive and continue working with minimal interruptions until it's time to leave.  I think this preference is why I'm so good at doing tasks that other people find extremely boring. 

Anyway, tomorrow I get to do cleanup work in the field.  There are two access roads that we need to take pictures of.  One is three hours away and the other an hours drive past that.  So, I will spending an entire work day driving in order to take a maximum of eight pictures.  Hopefully, I'll be able to get some knitting done when I'm not actually driving.