Back in SC

This is kind of a long one...

Finally made it back to Charleston, SC. I have been in Baxley, GA for the past week learning about wildfires and prescription forest burns. Prescribed burning is when a certain forest is set on fire in order to help maintain it the way it was originally intended. Forest fire is a natural thing and many forests depend on it in order to thrive in the way they always have before Smokey came and told us to keep forests from burning. Anyway, besides learning how to set these fires, we also learned how to control them to a certain degree and what to do with them when they were done burning (they call it mop-up). We got free camelbacks from one of the parks people as well (thanks Shan)! Now, I am a 2nd level wildfire fighter, which is the lowest level, but still means that I might be able to get a position on a crew out west should the desire strike me (it definitely is an exciting and lucrative new option).

Besides the many hours spent in a classroom, we also got to do a burn of about an acre of land. We learned how to lay hose from a small fire engine unit, how to dig trench to contain the fire, and where to carry your drip can (gasoline-diesel mixture) in order for stuff to burn. A physical fitness test was required to, where we carried 45 lb vests 3 miles in less than 45 minutes without running.

Funny story involving my pack test. My shoulders were getting tired from where the vest rested, so I decided to put my arms over my head. Then I noticed my shadow from the night lights. Whenever I flexed my biceps, the shadow got noticeably larger to, so that kept me entertained for a while. Then, one of the instructors jogged up behind me and complimented me on my biceps as well. Yeah, so I walked for about another mile with a huge grin on my face.
Also, while we were down there we found out what our Disaster Relief (DR) project would be. We will be sent to Little Rock, AR, where we will stage and assembling packages for people to assist them in restarting their lives. It won’t be as emotionally draining as going to the center of the disaster, but the days should still be long and we will still be making a difference. Apparently, everything in the hit areas is very jumbled and they have more volunteer support than they can handle. Of course, with all DR assignments, things could change between now and Thursday, especially with Wilma about to destroy things.

I got a bunch of pictures. I am not sure if they will be posted here, or at myspace. check http://www.myspace.com/12313535 if u cant find them here.

That’s pretty much it for now. Mom, thanks for the gift. Jamie and Amberle, thanks for the picture, you’re now sleeping at my bedside. Much love to everyone,
--DAlen