1992 Three Shutdowns

We can skip over the rest of 1991 and the first 8 months of 1992 because my BA wouldn’t put me to work. I had told the vet I was working for that I would probably be going to work in construction in May or June. So he hired my replacement. Unfortunately, he couldn’t afford to keep us both. I was back on unemployment struggling to make ends meet. Finally in September I got a call to go to a one day shutdown at Cargill Salt in Watkins Glen. Talk about a rude awakening! Once again my boots were stiff and my clothes didn’t feel right. I was awkward and nervous and very unsure of myself. The plant itself is fascinating, but all the piping is ancient and dirty and so corroded that taking anything apart is almost impossible with just tools. You have to use a cutting torch. Well, I had only used a cutting torch a few times and was not very good with it, but I managed. They also had a very unique elevator. It was basically 2 parallel circular ropes with ladder rungs spreading them about 18” apart on a huge pulley. You stepped on tools in one hand, not in your back pocket, and rode it up or down to the next floor. Absolutely terrifying! Somehow I managed to get through the day without killing myself or anyone else. Next I was called for a 3 week shutdown at a cheese factory in Campbell, NY about an hour from the house. We were working 60-70 hours a week and I missed my baby. Luckily I was working as a fitter for a great guy, Jimmy W. We were socket welding stainless steel lines for an ammonia system. The fumes are noxious and both of us had headaches daily. Everyday he would greet me with a big grin and say, “Candy, little Girl?” He would play Ray Stevens tapes all day, especially “Hello Margaret” which is a very funny song about an obscene phone caller. He developed a brain tumor and died a few years later. We lost a good one there. After three weeks, I was feeling much more comfortable with the tools. I was ready to keep working. After a short layoff, I was sent to yet another shutdown at the Cornell Heating Plant. This job was to greatly influence my career. The general foreman was Mark R. We had worked on the same job at Biotech, but not really together, so he didn’t know what to expect from me. After a short time though, he decided I was going to make it. He liked my work ethics and encouraged me to learn as much from each experience as I could. Even though I was laid off when the shut down was over, he told me he would hire me in an instant any time he could. It felt so good to have someone compliment me that way. Construction people tend to be pretty straight forward about pointing out your mistakes and weaknesses and not so good at supporting each other. You have to develop a pretty thick skin and have strong self-esteem to keep going some days.