I was busy clearing off the front entrance walkway when Carole walked up. "Hey, Carole, what are you doing here on this terrible day?"
"Oh, hi, Chris. I live within walking distance, on Madison, near Altomonte's Market, and I figured that somebody had to show up today. Besides, I've got some work that just has to get done."
"Well, the front door's unlocked, but I think I'm the only one here. With all of this snow, I doubt anyone else will show up."
It was just a miserable day in Hatboro, Pennsylvania, and I really doubted that we'd be doing any work or sending out any concrete today. There was at least six inches of new snow on the ground, and while PennDOT was out plowing County Line Road, it seemed that it was accumulating just as fast as they pushed it away. I came in early, earlier than usual, because I have a four-wheel drive F-250 with a snow blade on the front, and I figured that I was the best one to come in, and I could plow the yard at the same time.
Just then a SEPTA regional rail train went past, and I was happy that none of the few vehicles on the road had been unable to stop at the crossing.
I had done what I could with the snow blower and went back inside, stamping the snow off of my work boots. I headed into the Dispatch Office, and *72ed the office phones to my cell; I knew that I couldn't just sit inside all day. Still, that didn't mean I couldn't talk to Carole for a few minutes.
Still, she was a bit hard to talk to. Carole was hardly a beauty, dark haired and on the plain side, but at least she was reasonably slender. Unlike the other two women who worked in the office, she was just not a talker, not a joiner-in type. I knew that she was married, because she wore a wedding set, but guys never really flirted with her type: she just gave off the freeze-you-out vibe.
"So, what do you have to get done that couldn't wait until tomorrow? You aren't going to bending out invoices today I would guess."
"Oh, there's a huge blow-up over some concrete we sent to that new development off Jacksonville Road. The builder is claiming that we shorted him a few hundred yards, and that there was delamination on the sidewalks and driveways throughout the place. QC needs all of the delivery tickets pulled, to see how much water was added to the loads, and then I'll have to pull all of the batching records to make sure there was enough air-entraining agent in the mix."
"Carole, that project was what, four years ago? And they're just now complaining? After what, three or four winters, they were probably throwing deicing salt on everything, so surface scaling is pretty much a given."
"I know, that's what QC said, but we've still got to get the records."
"Well, the batch records are saved in the computers, so that's easy enough, once QC gets the ticket numbers. Those ought to be in the billing records."
"I know, but the delivery tickets are in the back storeroom somewhere, and I hate that room. It's dark and cold, and there are probably mice and bugs in there."
"That's OK, I'll go in with you, whenever you go. You heading now?"
"I've got some other stuff to do as well, and I'll admit it; I've been kind of putting it off."
"OK, just call my cell when you're ready, 'cause I've got to try and plow the yard. If it gets much deeper, I'll need to use the loader rather than my truck."
With that, I headed outside, to start plowing. First up were our driveway entrances, where the PennDOT plows had pushed up a huge pile; for that, I back-dragged the piles away with the loader.
Of course, plowing snow all by yourself leaves way too much free thinking time; plowing snow doesn't take all than much mental effort, other than figuring out where to put all of the snow! Anyplace else, I could just push it off to the side, but I sure can't push it too close to the SEPTA railway!
And too much free thinking time makes a young man's thoughts turn to pussy. I was just 31, and Carole must've been five or so years older, not that I could really tell, her dressing so plainly and looking like, well, looking like she wouldn't be much of a lay.
Still, who doesn't mind a little bit of sex at work? 😊
I'd been plowing for I guess two hours, and gotten most of the yard cleared once, but the snow was still falling, and there was at least another inch where I had started plowing. It was just then that my cell rang, and it was Carole; she was ready to head into the old records room.
She was right about one thing: the old records room was dark and cold and everything seemed to be covered with a later of fine dust. She'd pulled up the billing records, which had all of the delivery ticket numbers on them, but what we were facing were stacks and stacks of old, white boxes, with ticket numbers written on them with a magic marker. Since the newer stuff was in the front, we'd have to move that stuff out of the way to get to records from not four years back, but five.