What She Shovels

- you start thinking that color green isn’t so bad after all.
- you know what a Yale key is and how to use it.
- your office consists of Jeffrey Pine, Red Fir, White Fir and Ceanothus.
- starting at 7am doesn’t seem so bad.
- you know where to find the 3 page cheat sheet of TLAs the USFS uses.
- the first two weeks of a new job consist mainly of meetings and training.
- 15mph seems really fast.
- 15N75 means anything.
- one lane semi-paved roads are called “highways.”
- everything, including your paycheck, has the USDA-FS logo on it.
The rumors are true. I’ve found myself a job, and I’m now working as a soil scientist for the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service. It’s a pretty kick ass job, and 3 weeks into it, I’m loving it. I’m working with a student from PA doing permeability studies in the Lake Tahoe Basin for use in the updated soil survey for the NRCS (Natural Resource Conservation Service) and the FS. Eventually, I’d like to be in an NRCS or FS office closer to home, but at this point, I’m happy to have a foot in the door. I’ve wanted to work for the Forest Service for longer than I can remember and this kind of fell into my lap. I’m working a 4-10 schedule, 10.5 hour days Tuesday – Friday. I get to spend my days driving around the lake, hiking through the woods and hanging out in some pretty spectacular places. I’m happy.