Time for a drink!

Today was a very bittersweet day for me. See, nearly half the line crew on the dock that I work at retired today! These were the guys that showed me the ropes (and the knots to hold the ropes), taught me how to climb, how to glove and all the "tricks" I'm not going to post on here.

I've spent many nights out in the snow, rain, ice and wind working side by side with these greats and Monday morning when I get to work, there will be a real hollow feeling.

The two oldest guys left with 88 years of line experience between them. If you add the others, 265 years of line experience walked out the front door of our shop for the last time!

So I raise my glass...to Norm, Dana, John V, Rick, David, Joe, and Biz, May you live long, enjoy what you earned, and may you buy the best damn generators money can buy...'cause the few of us left on the Lewiston line dock will never keep up with what you were able to do!

Linemen dont cry...but they sure can get a lump in their throat!

I'm sure that there will be a toast in your honor one day given by those that you guided and mentored along the way.

It's a tough time. I learned from WWII guys that were tough as nails. I understand exactly how you feel. You're them now Camp. The younger guys are looking to you to teach them what you were taught. They just passed the hard hat and the hot stick down to you.

I'm kinda like Rick. All the linemen and splicers I worked with were WWII vets, tough as nails and you had to prove yourself every day. I remember cutting out and taking a good fall and just got a look and the only thing said was "Not bad enough for workman's comp so get back up the pole." Then I was the old man and the "kids" came to me for advice, that's the way the world turns.

If folks today could have watched us work 30+ years ago they wouldn't believe it. I watched a guy cut out and take splinters in his chest the size of pencils. The head lineman pulled them out with lineman's pliers. They were better men than I am Gunga Din. I lost a healthy bet with a guy that had served in Burma in WWII. He bet me he could drop his hard hat at the top of the pole and catch it at the bottom. It was worth the price just to watch the show. I won't tell you how my attempt ended but it wasn't pretty at all.

One of the guys threw his climbing gear in the trash on his way out the door..it was the same belt he started with in 69! I have it in my locker now and I'll have to climb a pole on Monday with it. LOl!

Too bad he threw it away but that's pretty cool of you to get it. I've still got my gear from back in the day. I'll hand it down to my grandkids so they can throw it away.

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Originally Posted by Rick

Too bad he threw it away but that's pretty cool of you to get it. I've still got my gear from back in the day. I'll hand it down to my grandkids so they can throw it away.

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Well, in fairness it isnt much better than trash. That belt has worked thousands of poles in its 41 years of service.

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Originally Posted by Camp10

One of the guys threw his climbing gear in the trash on his way out the door..it was the same belt he started with in 69! I have it in my locker now and I'll have to climb a pole on Monday with it. LOl!

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If you were at all close to him or his family it might be kind of cool to clean it up, mount it in a shadow box and present it to the family at some point.

I don't think there was a head lineman in the state when I started that didn't have a bottle in the water cooler. My first truck didn't even have a heater it in. Fortunately, it went to the auction before my first winter. It was a '69 Dodge. They bought the cheapest stuff they could put on the road back then.

Crash, that's an excellent idea.

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Originally Posted by crashdive123

If you were at all close to him or his family it might be kind of cool to clean it up, mount it in a shadow box and present it to the family at some point.

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We were pretty close. He was the joker of the place (probably the shoes I'm best suited to fill)so we got along just fine. I'll wait to see if he regrets throwing it out. He has no idea that I grabbed it but I think it means more to me then to him. His only family is a college aged daughter and he's never let me meet her...

Probably good reason he hasn't. There were 4 or 5 of us in the office one day and one of the guys opened the front door, gave out a low whistle and said, "Look at the XXXX on that one." Of course, everyone gathered round. Kenny said, "Yeah, that's my daughter." And it was.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Rick

I don't think there was a head lineman in the state when I started that didn't have a bottle in the water cooler.

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That was universal..not just your state. They use to start every cutover with a bottle. If you werent drunk, the other guys didnt trust you. That all stopped back in the 80's when a troubleshooter crashed a truck into a playground! Noone was hurt but the rules changed overnight!

I had some great times working outside and with the company but I sure don't miss any of it. I wouldn't trade any of the experience, but outside of a few guys that I have lunch with I didn't look back when I left. They probably won't either. They'll have too many guns to shoot and to many poles to put in the water and they'll wonder how on earth they ever found the time to work because they'll be so busy.

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