A Weird, Weird, Hazardous Day

Published by Yamiookami in the blog Bloggy-ookami. Views: 237

So I've been working long days (8-9 hours shifts) the past 5 days in a row, and today was to be my last before two straight days off. These 5 days have been particularly grueling in nature, with temperatures around 95 degrees F (35 C for those of you with measurement systems that make any sense), sun sun sun, and relative humidity around 50% or so, with little to no wind. I've been dripping sweat so bad that after a couple hours, it's soaked through my shorts and permeated my shirt and I have to wipe my face off once every couple of minutes, if not more frequently. I'm no stranger to this, though, and though it's quite debilitating, I can handle it alright.

Today started out no different. Still humid and lots of sun, and I was scheduled to be the only cart collector all day for the second day running. I knew this going into it, though, and for the past month or two, this has been nothing out of the ordinary (though still bullcrap if you ask me. I need to get onto them more about hiring a new guy). I found it hotter today than the last several days, but still did okay. Until around 6:20 PM, with an hour and 40 minutes left in my shift. I sat down because I was feeling tired and slightly woozy. When the dizziness and slight headache persisted, however, I asked a few of my friends on Skype if this could be the symptoms of sunstroke, and upon confirmation, I relayed it to my supervisor and she quickly instructed me to sit down with a cold drink, so I did just that. 30 minutes later, the sky was completely overcast and I was feeling better, so I went back out and started to wrap things up before leaving. This was made simple thanks to the strong breeze and clouds, but thunder and lightning were ever threatening to come my way.

At about 7:20, the bottom suddenly let out out of nowhere and it started pouring rain. I took care of one last group of carts and came inside because of all the lightning, and got soaked to the bone in the process. I was then set to work on preparing returns in customer service to be taken back to their respective departments until I left at 8:00. Needless to say, being drenched and working in the air conditioning was quite cold indeed.

So in short, in the span of 1 hour, 10 minutes, I went from suffering mild heat stroke to being frozen to the bone. I am so glad I'm off the next couple of days.

[video=youtube;GozwzaGsz4U]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GozwzaGsz4U[/video]
Jul 11, 2012
  • Rarit E
    Rarit E Jul 11, 2012
    Ever considered a carreer change? :derpe:

    Then again, i'm sure a lot of jobs in your area require you to deal with the heat anyway.
  • LyonKS555
    LyonKS555 Jul 11, 2012
    Oh Yami. Thats some harsh work. Hope you soon get some well deserved R&R
  • Yamiookami
    Yamiookami Jul 11, 2012
    Funny you should mention that. I consider a change all the time whenever my fury is being driven by the heat. However, I'm not sure what other job I could get that would get me this much exercise without extensive exposure to the same heat. I'm a very overweight person, and this job is helping me shed pounds at a good rate. I walk somewhere around 25 miles per day, and burn around 5000 calories doing so, not including base metabolic rate. Last year I was in the neighborhood of 370 pounds, but now I'm around 315-320. I'd really rather not get a less active job when I'm doing so well with the weight loss. I know I could and should exercise on my own time, but I also know I hate forcing myself to exercise and would much rather spend my time playing games and hanging out here. :derpe:

    I stay with this job for a few reasons:

    1. Managers don't breathe down my neck, so as long as I get the job done, they don't much mind how I do it
    2. All the time I spend walking gives me a ton of time to think about various things. it's fun to let my consciousness wander as it will. Not so fun when it's a hot day, though, and all my thoughts are consumed by irritation.
    3. Summer aside, it's a really pleasant job. I absolutely love doing it in the winter.

    I do grow weary of being constantly understaffed though. Our third guy quit near two months ago, and they STILL haven't hired a replacement. This causes me to have to work completely alone two days per week, and same with the other guy. It's unacceptable, really. But I digress. The main point is aside from 3 or 4 months of the year, I do rather enjoy this job. But those 3 or 4 months are hellish. x_x
  • Rarit E
    Rarit E Jul 11, 2012
    That's weird... i never lose any weight from working O_O

    Then again, i weigh around 180 pounds so that's considerably less. Maybe too little to lose from just working.
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