Saturday, June 30th

It’s really difficult to fathom that we have been here two months already! We are settled in to a work routine, enjoy the folks we’re around, and taking advantage of all that the Black Hills has to offer. Nancy is proving to be one of the best pets we have ever owned - or does she own us?

We are experiencing the every day afternoon showers, the warm days with VERY low humidity, and the hills around us are beginning to turn to the summer brown we’ll have to endure for the next few months. The month of June was beautiful with a little more rain than usual and it caused us to be constantly running the lawn mowers to keep up with the rapidly growing grass.

As the month progressed, we saw less measurable rain in spite of the afternoon showers. Our daytime temps are expected to be near the century mark in the coming week, but that also means 10-15% relative humidity. Most of the workers have to be extremely careful due to their ages - I enjoy the hot, dry temperatures and keep myself heavily hydrated with water and Gatorade.

We received the news that the manager of the Hart Ranch, Tracy Heitsch, has accepted a job with the Rapid City Convention Center. After over 12 years here she will go to a job that offers retirement, medical coverage, much better pay and benefits. We’re all happy for her, but sorry she’ll be leaving. She’s only 36 years old and came to each of the staff members to tell us herself what was coming. She’s been a great fixture here and will be missed. Her replacement, Shirley Petro, the Sales and Front Desk Manager, will take over as of June 29th. There is a lot of consternation over Shirley becoming the Interim Manager. There was a “ceremony” followed by a ham dinner on Wednesday night. We attended but were shocked by the lack of organization of the program and a few comments that were made by some of the staff. So, we decided to do something special for Tracy on Friday.

Gary Smoot, the Grounds Supervisor, and I got to talking and started planning a little “skit” for Tracy. We invited all the working staff to join us for our normal coffee break at 10AM on Friday. Gary laid the groundwork and explained to Tracy and all the attendees that we were disappointed with our drab, gray uniform t-shirts. Housekeeping has beautiful floral smocks and shirts so we used them as an example of what we’d like. About that time Gary got on the radio and called “Car 54, where are you?” I was parked in my cart about 100 yds. Away out of sight and answered “Car 54, 10-8”. Gary said they had a minor weed emergency at the Maintenance Shop and would I respond. I answered and was escorted by our Security van with lights and siren to the Maintenance building. I stopped about 10 yards in front of Gary and Tracy, stepped out of my cart, straightened my holster (a PVC pipe with a collapsible trash grabber slipped inside), went to the other side of my cart and got a spray bottle of weed killer. I was wearing a special-ordered t-shirt that said Lawn Enforcement Officer - Weed Patrol Division. Gary started calling military cadence and I marched forward to Tracy. Gary issued “Present Arms” and I slowly reached across my front to the holster, pulled out the “gitter”, poised it in front of me, flipped it open, and pulled the trigger making the ends come together. Tracy and most of the crowd was laughing hysterically as I recovered the “gitter”. Gary then commanded “Present Shirt” and our new Maintenance Mgr. pulled a matching shirt from behind his back. This shirt had been meticulously folded and I placed my open hands under the shirt. I turned the shirt so she could read it, went down on one knee with my head bowed, and presented her the shirt. The crowd was laughing out of control and Tracy was completely impressed by our little presentation. When Gary gave the command to recover, I stood up and went to an at ease position with a big grin and puffed-up chest to show off our shirts. We also presented her with an old, used suitcase that had been in the trash, and a roll of promotional toilet tissue that we will be giving out at the Lodge. She was in tears with laughter over the whole thing. We all dismissed after that to enjoy some ice cream cake. Our Maintenance Mgr. told me to continue wearing the shirt for the rest of the day as we proceeded to the Center Court to mow the grass. Tracy also wore her shirt for the remainder of her last working day with us.

After the earlier presentation, we are positive she will remember our little gifts to her a lot longer than the previous one. We have had so many people comment to us about the frivolity and humor that we added to that day. It’s amazing what creative ideas can come from a pitcher or two of beer and couple of close friends!

We are expecting to see several friends arrive in the next few days at Hart Ranch. One couple that we met in Tennessee are here now for a few days and we are looking forward to seeing Rick and Joanne Stone next week. As busy as we are, it’s always fun to see old friends and associates that come through this area.

Dottie is busy six days a week at Shipwreck Lee’s doing the mid-day meals. She enjoys the work and makes a little spending cash at the same time. It’s the regular customers that give her the most pleasure - and tips!

We’re both looking forward to a trip to Lincoln, NE the weekend of August 4th. One of my cousins is having his 90th birthday party, given by his kids, and we’ll have the opportunity to meet and see so many of my distant cousins. It will be a fast trip, but a great break from Hart Ranch for a few days.

July 4th is just around the corner - we have no day off for the Holiday! However, the boss is allowing me to cook some burgers for lunch on Wednesday. We’re going to use some of the money we get for collecting aluminum cans and purchase some burger patties, chips, and Klondike bars. The guys in Maintenance really appreciate the little extra effort it takes and makes the day special. It’s a labor of love and lots of fun to cook the burgers, brats, or chicken breasts for those special days and share with the guys I work with. Y’all have a Happy Fourth!!!!