Well, last night a fire broke out over on Elschire Ridge which we can see from our bedroom... It was a line of fire about 1000 fett long and I could see trees burning... It was about 10:00 and the P-Vine was heading for bed so soon as she was asleep this ol' dambass hillbilly put on the boots, grabbed a shovel and drove as close as I could get to the fire before walkin' up the hill another quarter mile to the fire line...

I was met by someone of authority who assigned me to a section a couple hundred feet long and over the next two hours I used that shovel to keep my part of the fire line under control... At one point I allowed myself the thought of being able to do a little cyber-boasting but, frankly, was too buzy to dwell on those thoughts too long...

Well, 'bout 2:30 this mornin' the fire was purdy much under control and the same guy who had assigned me to that area came by and said that I could go home... Great, right???

Well, I started back toward where I thought I had mad my way up the mountain but without the fire to head for got more than a little off course and ended up lost in the danged woods and walked toward the moon and down, thru creeks and briar patches and dense woods and to make a long story short, two hours later I finally got back to my truck and didn't get to bed 'til 4:30...

I woke up this morning around 11:00 to the sound of male voices talking with the P-Vine... It wasa a couple boyes from the holler who had heard that I had been up there last night... One of 'um said that I could but in to get paid fir working the fire line but, to be honest, after last night, Iz retired... and sore... everything hurts...

No boast, just fact... everything hurts and fire fightin' is fer younger guys...

Ouch, even hurts to type...

Bobert (retired fire fighter...)