6.4.2010

     Chelsi and I got geared up in our long pants and hats and hopped in the truck with Jesse to head to Cub Creek to do some e.coli testing in the water. We took a device that measures the conductivity of the water along with the dissolved oxygen level with us. We also took a pH monitor. We would take a pipe and crank it down into the water to bring a sample of creek water back up in a bag.

Here is a picture of our nifty creek water gatherer:

     You take the wooden board in your hand and place a clean bag in the pipe. Then you lower it down and try not to lose your bag while then bringing the pipe back up to gather the bag. It was quite interesting.
     We took the samples back and used pipettes to get the water onto the pads to test for e.coli. Then the pads were placed in an incubator to sit for at least 24 hours.

      This is what our work turned out looking like after the 24 hours had passed. We had to pick up the samples and count each blue dot that had a bubble next to it. Then we recorded the numbers and found out that the highest  e.coli count we had was 2,500. Did you know that the number permitted at a beach for e.coli is 250? Chelsi and I will NOT be kayaking at Cub Creek anytime soon!

     We also took samples from Graff Pond, the body of water within walking distance of the HC. This is where I saw my first Baltimore Oriole! He was orange and black, and he sang a pretty song for us. Too bad we had to walk through the tall grass and get all hot and sweaty to get our samples.

     When I told Doris about how I managed to save my pants (shown in the previous blog), she made a comment about how I would make a great housewife someday. I thought it was funny because she's not the first person to tell me that!
     For lunch, Chelsi, Allison and I all met up with our superiors at a barbecue place downtown called "Back Alley Eatery". I was extremely curious to see what Nebraska barbecue had to offer. Chelsi and Allison ordered pulled pork sandwiches on kaiser rolls and I ordered the brisket sandwich also on a kaiser. It was delicious! I also had a good laugh because on the menu it has a section called "Just what is BBQue?" It then goes on the explain what barbecue is, how it is done, and what different techniques are used. It then talks about the difference between barbecuing and grilling. I thought it was funny.
     When we got back from lunch, it was time to learn how to do maintenance on and drive the mule. We learned how to air up the tires, check the pressure, and all sorts of other things. Chelsi and I will be driving it back and forth when the conservation team from Iowa comes next week.

     Time for a GPS walk on the trail! Allison, Doris, Chelsi and I headed out with the GPS to see what we could find. The guy on the left is Jesse, my boss. He is so funny and cool, and he makes fun of my accent all the time! The other day he asked me if "confliction" was a word. According to Google, it's not. I said, "In Texas we can make up words and no one ever know the difference!" I got him back later though, because he was talking about having "bagels and jus"... and I said, "Bagels and what?!" He goes, "Bagels and COFFEE!" Just now Chelsi asked me if I wanted any "catch-up". I said, "ketchup?" Haha! Also, I don't know why people look at my name tag and say "Ennis" like "Ee-nus". I have to say "It's like tennis without the t." 
     When we got back to the house, Chelsi and I heard a loud "thwack!" and there was a baby robin fledgling on our porch. He was on his side, and Chelsi picked him up and put him upright so he could go be with the other fledglings. We felt so sorry for the poor guy! We stayed and made sure he was okay.

     We told Tina later about the bird and how we always have some strange creature or surprise on our porch, and she compared our house to a "vortex" and said that all the weird stuff always happens there. 
     We ran inside and Allison made us a quick dinner of "sloppy Susans" with canteloupe. We only had around 30 minutes to make dinner, eat it, and be in town. It was pretty good even though we were rushed!


Then we had to make it into town to meet Tina for a play. It was put on by the Community Players and was called "Perfect Wedding". It was hilarious! After the play, the girls went to a local bar called the VIP Lounge (there was a big group of us) and we sat and talked. I like the girls who work up here so much! They are so easy to talk to and SO funny. I love it here!

The play was hilarious! Even though they threw in some Nebraska jokes that the three of us didn't understand, we still had a lot of fun.




     The last picture is of a drink called "purple nurple" from the VIP Lounge. When I gave the man my ID, he looked at it and said, "Texas huh? I could tell you were from Texas the second you walked in the door." Me: "How did you guess?" Him: "The moment I heard you talk I knew. You can talk to me as long as you want, I think your accent is adorable." I blushed and rejoined my friends, slightly weirded out. At the end of the night, when I went to pay for my drink, an elderly man was sitting at the bar. I signed my receipt (or "ticket", as they call them here) and the man goes, "You have a beautiful signature." I laughed nervously and told him thanks and returned to my table. Needless to say, I am NEVER going anywhere alone here!