It’s that time of the year again! The most anticipated event in the dieso (diesel mechanic) calendar. Forget midwinters, end of season, going home to see loved ones, the event we all look forward to the most is the annual stocktake. About as much fun as a punch to the face or a kick, it’s the event that brings a tear to everyone’s eyes.
With what seem like gazillions of items to count and catalogue, the tortured souls of the mechanical underworld handle the stock counting and general repairs with great poise, a symphony of awesomeness. After only just having unpacked the last of the resupply stock, once again it’s back to the shelves to sort and organise. The green store was also in need of sorting, so with the station supply officer recruited it was tackled with great enthusiasm and ferocity, all of which lasted about 27 seconds. Countless cups of coffee powered those early days. After playing Tetris multiple times with cage pallets and store racking systems, the hopes that someone else would volunteer to step in and take one for the mechanical team began to fade and wither. As a great philosopher once said, ‘You can’t always get what you want'.
As the head grease monkey and his elusive teflon-coated minion tend to the parts stock, other jobs had to be prioritised or placed in the too hard basket, which sometimes seems to overfill. A power house service, a leaking hose or a flat tyre, provide a welcome respite from the day’s torment. With reorders pending on the annual count, it’s in all of our best interest to put the unpleasantness behind us. It is just another job.
There are times however, that we just have to close our eyes and go to our happy place.