Friday: I’m writing this Dispatches post from a little laundromat in Bozeman. It’s the first time in two weeks I’ve been able to sit still for a moment and not work on the new Fire Girl website, which premiered today.
Somehow along the way, I’ve gone three weeks without grocery shopping or washing clothing.
Sometimes the fly shop uniform of cargo pants and button-down shirts is a good thing.
Today I worked the morning in the shop and then drove down to Bozeman for the weekend. Saturday and Sunday I’m working as the the official photographer for the Blue Water Task Force’s Fly Fishing Festival in Big Sky. It’s work, but should be interesting. Always good to network!
Then back to the Missouri Monday.
Back on the ‘Mo, It’s been a week of balancing. Half of the team is playing at the Outdoor Retailer show in Salt Lake, which means long hours for the remaining few in the shop. Everyone is a little touchy and ready for a break… little things seems hilarious and I’m still expecting to see a fist fight break out in Craig.
One has to stay sane somehow.
We are coping by take a few extra minutes a day to cast in the Craig Casting Club, scrubbing the rental boats extra well and just trying to stay busy. Shuttle sheets reflect where we wish we were, and maybe a bit of frustration and exhaustion on the side.
The weather has been unseasonably cool, and yesterday brought an evening of rain, which translated into a cosy night at the shop and a flooded apartment when I got back to Cascade.
When you’ve had an average of four hours of sleep a night for over a week, a flooded apartment is just lovely.
I am beginning to anticipate the return to the “real world,” perhaps driven by two newspaper position offers that have appeared, unsolicited, in the past two weeks. It’s flattering, to say the least, and I’m excited to see what the fall will bring.
On that note, I’m excited to announce that I am one of ten journalists chosen from across the country to work with the military during a week of military-media relationship building session at Fort Leavenworth at the end of September. I am thrilled and honored with the opportunity and am looking forward to some morning PT and learning new skills.
Just goes to show you never know what may pop up around the corner.
