Iron Firemen Wooden Ladders & Iron Firemen
Beautiful weather here in Va. today. I’d say the best day of the year thus far other than having to work. That said, it hasn’t been too bad. A few runs but nothing out of the ordinary. I guess the biggest news for us today is the fact that our Lieutenant is finally here and is scheduled for a full shift! Back in all the big moves, Scott “Eugene” Bradford was assigned as our Lt. Because of his military obligations, he only worked a 12 hrs shift with us before being deployed to Haiti. Eugene is a long time and good friend of mine. We actually went to high school together, lived close enough together as kids to ride dirt bikes together and then have worked together here in the department before now. Back when I made 1st Lt. I was assigned to L13 on C-shift where he was working at the time. I think I may have taught him a little too well because he came in the door fretting today. I’ll explain that a little more here in just a minute. Anyway, here’s a pic of Eugene..
He had some pretty horrifying stories from Haiti but feels lucky he wasn’t deployed somewhere that they would have been shooting at him. So, we spent a little time getting Eugene settled and then threw him into the kitchen on sausage gravy duty. Turned out GREAT too. Beat the crap out of those MRE’s he’s been eating. Wouldn’t know it too, just as we were washing up the breakfast dishes, in came our ol pal Big Roy with a box of “hot now” doughnuts. You just CAN’T not get one. Needless to say, I think we all had a little too much to eat this morning. Here’s a shot of Big Roy for those of you who didn’t follow us over from the Station #9 blog.
Like I mentioned, a few runs here and there and a little piddling around the station before time to get dinner started. I was excited. A summer like day so we planned on cooking on the grill. I have to tell ya.. the Department did us right on the grill. The biggest, fanciest one I’ve ever seen. It has 3 main burners, side burners, a searing burner and it even has a light inside! NICE. All the prep. Washing, marinading … you know the routine. Scallop potato’s, green beans going, the chicken on low … smelling terrific then the screams….CAPT!!! CAPT!!!! All that work up in flames! Opie was going to stretch a line. I’m not sure how he did it without his mask but Coon was able to get in there and attempt to save the bird. How did it work out you may ask….
BAD! Those pics are well after the fire. I don’t think my little ol camera could have taken the heat had I have been able to attempt an action shot. Well, no way were we going to be able to eat this bird but some of us sure would get a laugh or two from it. You see, back when Eugene and I worked together at #13 it was his day to cook. Back then, we had a schedule…more like a routine. We ate at noon and 6pm (unless we were on a call). Not 12:05 or 6:15. Well, that day it was like 6:40 and he was nowhere close to getting the meal on the table. So, just to check …you know, to make sure I had my facts right; I began making calls. I phoned just about every North side station to check the time (my watch always unexpectedly quit back then) and to ask what time they usually ate. Six o’clock? And how long have you been in the Fire Department? Really? And you say yall have always eaten at 6? WOW! Well it took more than 10 years for it to happen but he got his revenge today. As soon as the flames were knocked down, Eugene began dialing. “What color is chicken supposed to be when cooked on a grill?” “How can you tell if chicken on the grill is over cooked?” “Is chicken ash good for the digestive system?”. LMAO I gotta give him credit … 10 plus years and POW! right in the chops. Well done Eugene. All I can say is that goodness we are here at Station #3. Any restaurant you want within minutes. Yep, even a KFC.
Finger licking good! So, we’ve had our big fire for the night so maybe we’ll get some rest tonight. That reminds me. There was a pretty big fire in the City last day after my post. One of those where both sides of the tracks are on it. Obviously we didn’t go but I hear the brothers and sisters of C-shift did a heck of a job. here’s some links to local coverage here and here. That’s it for tonight, it’s 4 day break tomorrow and then back on Thursday. Until then, stay safe and in the house.. thanks for reading.
Capt. Wines