so. yeah.

Lest I forget why I'm happily skipping away from this job... I work as safety under a guy who drops his lit fire props on the stage during a show, then after fire is cut *still* manages to cause safety issues by shattering the plastic glo-poi leaving bits of plastic for the barefoot dancers to step on. And does all this without really showing much concern or remorse. We *knew* it was just a matter of time before he would hit the casket with the poi. I am SO grateful that it was after the fire was already cut, and it was just glo-poi. And I really think he's clueless as to why folks are upset with him. The dropping of fire and the shattering of plastic are really just the bigger issues, when we still had fire breathing he would get slippery wax all over the stage, he uses a match to light the torches, and apparently just throws the match down onto the stage when he's done with it. I could go on and on, but the point here is that he does this to himself. If he was more careful and more aware of what to do and what *not* to do, he wouldn't be having the problems that he's currently having.

Notice was given at the perfect time, had we waited it would have seemed as though it was only because of his screw-ups...now it comes across as more of, "I told you so." Heh.

The new girl

The girl I recommended as our replacement came in to "shadow" tonight. I explained the basics of the job as we went, and I started realizing just how much I really do in there. I had never noticed how much of my job consisted of "mind reading", but whatever they need, I'm always right there with it. Usually stepping way outside of the role of "safety" and more into the role of a general assistant. No wonder they don't want us to go!
I laid out all the baggage of the job to her, just so there are no surprises or false pretenses. If she takes the gig, she needs to be aware of all the crap that comes with it. We have a girl that sets up her dressing area right next to ours who's been coughing like crazy. Tonight she was coughing so hard that she kept gagging into the trash. She's a really great girl, and she's not fussing about it at all, even claims it's no big deal. But the fumes will get to everyone eventually, I have no doubts about that.
Oh, and one of the girls just found out she's pregnant, which is really awesome. She's going to make a most excellent mother. But this means they are losing yet another girl. I'll miss these guys, and I think it more every night I work . I won't miss the job, the fumes, that *damn can* or the stress, but I think when it's all over I will look back fondly. Heck, when enough time goes by I'll probably even wonder why I left. Ha!

...I can do better.

This guy needs to add some snazz to the fire spinning. If it was my gig, I'd spend less time trying to come up with crazy stunts and more time coming up with kick-ass choreography. In fact, I *do* spend more time coming up with choreography. And even with the time I spend fine-tuning my style, and finding new ways to link moves, I'm still constantly feeling like there's more out there. At least I'll have my act together by Faire, then the spotlight will be mine all mine. Huzzah.

I got a new gig.

I just quit my new gig.
I started this job Feb.7; as of April 1st, I'm outta there. The first week was filled with gruelling rehearsals, staying there until wee hours, waking at wee hours to get back there, then heading home for a quick nap before trudging back down there for more rehearsals. It was exhausting, though invigorating. And it was really amazing to be a part of the process, to have so much say in what could and couldn't happen; what was and wasn't "safe". After all, we're their "Fireflys", the fire safety techs, and ultimately what we said, went. Well, for the most part. I must say, it's been an awesome learning experience, and will remain as such until the end of the month, but there are far too many setbacks caused by this job that outweigh the perks. One of which is the "brilliant" idea of dropping the fire props into an airtight can to put them out quickly. This may sound like a fabulous way to get the fire off stage quickly and efficiently, and technically it is. Unless of course *you* are the one who has to retrieve said fire prop(s) from this now toxic fume filled can in a small, enclosed, non-ventilated backstage area. Yeah, that's some fun right there.

Then of course, we mustn't forget our "male diva" of fire who is constantly trying to push the limits in this dinky little venue with very little stage space. Quick thought: when you get approval from the fire marshal to do things a certain way, you should probably be happy and enjoy your new gig. It's really not the best idea to start coming up with new ways to blow up the stage and as much of the set as you can along the way, especially when he's said that he will only give a probationary permit and will be checking in from time to time. And of course it's always, "No worries, I'll handle it, it's all on me", until something actually goes wrong. Then where does his finger start pointing? At the ones who said it was a bad idea in the first place. Fortunately it hasn't been a problem yet, *yet*. We really care about these guys, every person that goes out there is someone that we consider a friend, so of course we're constantly stressing about safety. Even on our days off. Even when we're trying to sleep.

It's not all stress and toxic fumes, I really love my job. There's not a one person in there that I don't adore, these are really great people. Tonight I even had a twinge of wanting to stick around, to stick it out. But then I opened the can and took my lovely breath of toxic air, and then they started talking about the new, improved explosions they are planning, and my resolve to leave remained in tact. It's too bad, but such is life.

Off to work

Here I start a new blog and I have to go to work... Now to go put out fires, when I'd rather be dancing with them...