hanging with mr. al

so i've mentioned mr. al before.  he's the 55 year old ex-marine who cleans the equipment but jumps in on a lot of other stuff as well.  he's also hilarious.

al's kind of my go-to guy.  he's helped me alot with my truck (which is still needing work but we've been really busy lately) and generally anything else i need a hand with.  he's got some serious old man wisdom.

this is mr. al

i started addressing him as mr. al when we got sent to an awful equipment extraction job a few months ago when fred was out of town and couldn't do it himself.  he asked why i called him mr. al.  i told him that even during the most awful times in life it's important to observe the pleasantries.  after that i became mr. ballard.  always observe the pleasantries- it helps you maintain dignity and composure.

so there was one monday when al didn't come in and we had forgotten that he had said he had to go in for a colonoscopy.  there was a series of pretty hysterical text messages, which ended with: 'these doctors trying to turn me gay'

mr. al calls me 'slim' sometimes.  one day i asked him why, because although i appreciate it, i'm not quite as slim as i once was.  'because it makes you feel good,' he says.  'there's a lady at church i call slim and it tickles her pink.  she's big as hell.'

i think mr. al might be my spirit animal- at least at work.