On The Move Again

It has been a busy day. We’ve had several calls and I’m trying to clean up my paperwork and I glance at the clock. It’s 8:05 pm. I usually like to leave at 6:00 pm but for some reason I am never able to make that time.

Okay, I think, I will do another 15 minutes and then I will plough through my emails when I get home.

I shut down my computer, pack up my bag, take my uniform off. I get in my car and drive home. It’s dark, raining. I think, I should grab some dinner. Take out. Sushi again – my go-to food on late nights.

I have been eating it every other day.

I park in the underground, P3, get to the elevator, am lifted to my apartment. Oh, I forgot dinner. Oh well, I’m not that hungry anyway.

Open up my laptop, look at the screen, and say, “I’m too tired.” I quickly shower, get into bed. It is just after 9:30 pm. I lay there for a few minutes, do my breathing techniques, and before I know it, I’m asleep.

I wake up at 4:20 am, my shoes are right beside the bed where I left them, I throw on my shorts, a t-shirt and I do 25 flights of stairs. Back in the apartment, I shower off, dress, make some tea, boil 2 eggs and make my way back down to P3 to get my car. It’s now 5:30 am.

Pitch dark still and I am driving to work. At Tim Hortons I go through the drive-through and buy a coffee, a sandwich, and a muffin. The muffin is to give away if I see a homeless person throughout the day.

Back in my office and I sit down and glance up at the clock. It’s 6:00 am. I start working on the emails I didn’t finish from the night before. Today is like every other day.

Structure fire call. I turn on my radio and I monitor it. It goes to second alarm, working kitchen fire. I listen as the crews do their attack and search and I realize I am not needed so I go back to working on my tracker – make sure everyone is where they are supposed to be. A mundane day turns into something special when I get a text:

Hey. How would you like to go back to your old department? They just posted a Fire Chief’s job.

I stare at my phone. And I start to think about sleeping in my own bed, no more commuting every four days. I start to think about a number one fire chief. I didn’t think I ever wanted to be one of those. I start to think about my wife, my kids, my dog. I start to daydream about a whole new lifestyle.

And then I make a phone call.

That phone call translates into me accepting a fire chief position in my old fire department. I’m on the move again.

I’m sure there will be longer days and different sleeps and other types of fast food, but I am excited about the opportunity. I think this is the way life works – you plan for something and then you change course. You see opportunities and you take them. That’s where I’m at in my life right now. It’s all about change and making a difference. I’m very excited about the future.

Wish me luck.