Treeplanting: Another Urzeit

May, Let the Games Begin!:

Woke up to the first day of planting, and...it's snowing! Snow everywhere! No work until it all thaws later in the day. We are sittting in a large circle around a crackling fire in Tyler's crew's tent city, joint going round. There are few familiar faces.

Tyler picked me up from the airport in my rookie year. He's short but loud and has an intense gaze. I remember thinking he looked so hardcore when i first met him: a bag of trail mix on the dash, and the look of a wild animal in his eyes. Look at me now: bag of trail mix in my hand, and a ridiculous florecent green hat covering my head that's been in storage all year---until today. Year three. Wow. I am hardened now too. Weathered.

Mary and I are telling a story about last year's post-planting adventures, interuping each other to add details. "We hitchhiked from Calgary to the Coast..." Move in closer to the fire. "...We almost lost our lives in the mountains when we were picked up by a crazy ex-con." Eyes darting around to faces. "He was driving a stolen car at 200kph through the Cokahalla Pass..." Smile. "We were holding hands secretly in the back seat...he kept asking if we were scared!" More smiles. "God, we planters BE CRAZY!" We're not the only ones, a few others have similar tales to tell. Travels to dangerous countries. Camping out on the highways. Sky-diving adventures. And nudity-tales.

We are trying to figure out how we are connected. Tyler's boys planted with Joel ( a new planter on our crew) for a couple of weeks last season on a shit summer contract in Fort St. James. Kerry, one of Tyler's boys, dated a friend of mine from my rookie year. Tyler was fucking a girl from our camp last year in the "real world". Etc Etc. Planting is a small world...and the degree of seperation is less than six.

Another joint goes round. I turn down a hit. It's been a long time (probably since last season)since I smoked...I'm not going to start on the first day back. Alliances are made early on by accepting a puff, and I want to check out the scene before I get thrown on to the partier train.

We're all laughing --- cheeks rosy from the cold. I feel I'm glowing with the happiness of being back. "Sure am pumped to put a few into the ground today!" I toss the thought to Mary.

"Come back to talk to me after we get back to work." I wish she wasn't right. She's already finished a contract this season and has no idealistic "first-day-back" glasses like I do. I know tomorrow I'll be aching, tired and missing a real bed. (Also cursing the 2 o clock wall---when all you want to do is see your truck rolling down the dirt road bringing you music, conversation and warmth.)

I leave everyone to take a nap until we leave for pre-work and "the block"! ahh! As I curl up in my sleeping bag, I feel almost pre-race jitters in the pit of my gut. I used to run track for Uni. and before each race, I'd feel my throat and stomach tighten. It's the same thing I feel everytime I think about flagging my first line of the season. I guess my expectations are high for this summer.


Later in the Day:

Once we're packed into the truck headed to the block it feels like I've never left: the tunes (that will be so so overplayed in the weeks ahead), the laughter, stories and more stories about the previous seasons (but there's no stinky feet smell). I feel so close with everyone...even the rookies, stiff faced, huddled in the back.