I know, it looks like we're knocking over the outhouse. That's just the way I've drawn it. We wouldn't have done that anyways, since it would be our job to fix it up again! At the beginning of the season we did do the chemical cleaning of the outhouses though, and some of those were less than sterile to say the least! Yuk.

I'd like to bring your attention to the statement that we had a 'brand new' Chevy pickup truck...for reasons that will be revealed on a later post. That's all. We were left to our own devices nearly all the time while the Boss did his paperwork or had business to take care of in town...or any of a dozen or so reasons he might dream up! Didn't bother us a bit! We liked being left on our own with a truck (brand new don't forget) to drive around in while we worked.

I'm pretty sure that this guy liked to tip a few...judging from his aroma in the mornings when he showed up to work. Either that or his aftershave was marketed by the NL Liquor Corporation! It didn't matter to me at all. All in all he turned out to be a pretty good fellow just trying to make a living like the rest of us.
He probably drew the short straw back at the office (which incidentally was located in Corner Brook in those days) and got shipped off to the gawd forsaken hinterland that the Lord is reported to have given to Cain after he killed his brother! Living eight miles from town in a little camper for the summer in Western Labrador would probably drive anyone to drink.

One thing to remember about living in Labrador was that everyone knew how to get a fire going, and you did that right away because well, it can get really freaking cold, really freaking fast!
The Checkpoint Shack of course was the place where campers stop and register, ask questions, vent regarding how the provincial government should be doing this or that better, and so on. It was also, as it turned out, a great hangout for the summer!

Yep, this was a great job! I'm going to spend a bit of time talking about various jobs that I've had partly because I would like to illustrate to any young readers that I may have (not my kids of course! Not cool to read Dad lol) that it doesn't matter what you work at as long as you make a few bucks and pull your own weight...there is no independence until you can go your own way financially!
...and partly because there are so many stories coming back to me as I'm doing this. I'm grinning ear to ear sometimes (that might just be lunacy though).

True. And there were some pretty raunchy ones playing at times...interesting to a young fella like me for a while, but I worked some evenings and on weekends so there's some I saw several times...gets boring! The movies that is...the plots were a little light to say the least. Nothing wrong with the view though!! I saw quite a few really good movies too of course. I believe I may have seen 'It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World' about twenty times...that's a lot of popcorn!

Yeh, the Royal was the real deal! We'd come out of the bottom doors full tilt up over the hill into the playground and look out Stage Coach and Spring Horses! We pounded the bottoms of those nags off the ground that hard there's probably still stones dug into them! (Wherever they are, 'cause they're not there now)!The Swing Sets were always good for a thrill too, getting going as high as you could then leaping off! Very quickly learned that stuntmen earn their pay! Ouch! 

The Urinal Trough in the men's toilets was the most disgusting thing I have encountered before or since...and that's all I have to say on that matter!

It's at this point that all the travellers part ways heading off to where ever their vacation plans will lead them...that is, after a harrowing nighttime drive down the Quebec North Shore! there are river crossings at Godbout, Baie Comeau and of course the bridge at Quebec City, But all are hours more of driving on an already tired driver!
I'm not going into much detail on the rest of the vacationing at this time, perhaps later, but I did want to mention one thing...remember the 'October Crisis'? The FLQ kidnapping and murders? Well, while the manhunt was on, we were driving the road, late at night (early, early morning actually) and had stopped to have some sandwiches and a break from driving for Dad. The QPP pulled up and questioned Mom and Dad...it was the first time I had ever seen an M-16 in real life! These guys meant business!! They realized we were simply folk, and asked us to move on and not to stop for any strangers. Heady days indeed!

That's right, the train keeps rolling on and on towards Sept Isles and the shores near where the St. Lawrence River and the Gulf of St. Lawrence kind of blend together. There's a few hours of travel then when the kids can snooze, the parents can snooze, the train personell can clean up the cars and clear away the dining areas, dump the garbage and so on...All leading to the moment of awakening as the train yard looms nearer.