For the last 19 years, I have worked in the Outdoor Amusement Business for the same great group of people. Today, that came to an end. On May 26, we had a severe windstorm in Seward, PA blow down the tent. We were 30 minutes into the 1st show when the wind suddenly started. We immediately gave an evacuation order but within 10 seconds of the order, the tent blew over. This was only the third time I saw this happen in 19 years. We always regrouped, repaired, & reopened. Today, I was told that the show was closed permanently.
I have so many fond memories of my time that I spent with them. From the first time I left Seneca, SC in 1992, it was an experience that I will never forget.
I got involved with this business because I felt a need to watch over my younger brother. He decided to leave Seneca because someone told him that he could make a thousand dollars in 2 weeks in Hiawassee at the Georgia Mountain Fair. We have always had a close bond & I wanted to make sure he was going to be able to survive on his own. I was only going to go & play the spot & then return to Seneca. Needless to say, I never returned to Seneca. I grew to love this new life. I finished the season in Laurens, SC in October at the Laurens Co. Fair. As the Winter of 1992 drew to a close, I found myself eagerly awaiting the start of a new season. We opened in Fountain Inn & on the last day we were there, an ice storm hit. I spent the next 5 days huddled in an aluminum van, using a hair dryer for warmth. As soon as the ice melted, we headed down the road to Columbia. I can go on with my travels year by year, but I'm just going to highlight those that really stick out.
In 1997, a rockslide closed I-40 between Tennessee & North Carolina. We left Wytheville, VA & had to go down Hwy. 19/23 to get to Bryson City, NC. The highway was pretty backed up as this was the way all traffic was being diverted. We had some steep grades & all of our brakes got hot with the stop & go traffic. One truck in particular couldn't get stopped near the bottom on one of the grades. I lost a good friend that day & shortly after he passed, I had a dream about him. We were all sitting around, talking, when all of a sudden he stood up & said "It's time for me to leave." I said, "Please don't go" He said "I have to. My time is up." Looking back now, I think this was God's way of letting me know that he took an Angel home.
The following year, our concession manger, went to the hospital early in the morning because he couldn't keep anything down. Turns out, he had an aneurysm in his stomach. They operated on him & he went back to Easley to recuperate. He hadn't been back 2 weeks when he had a heart attack & passed away.
Life for the next 4 years was pretty good. I learned so much about the business, including how to program computers, lay out lots, & wire electric. Then, just as I was hitting my stride, I was sent into a tailspin. In July of 2002, I started hurting in my stomach. I was spitting up green. My mother took me to Kings Daughter Medical Center in Ashland, KY, where they did blood tests, xrays, & a CAT scan. The blood tests showed an elevated white blood count so the Doctor thought maybe I had appendicitis. After he did the CAT scan though, the truth came out. I had a large mass in my abdomen. They admitted me to the hospital that Saturday night & I was scheduled for exploratory surgery on Monday. They removed a 10 lb tumor from my abdomen along with one of my ovaries. The tumor had been growing from my ovary. I have always been somewhat heavy my whole life so I never even felt the tumor. After they did pathology on the tumor, it turned out to be a very agressive cancer. I had to leave the road for the first time in 10 years to undergo more surgery & chemotherapy. At the age of 30, I discovered that I had a 15 percent chance of a 5 year survival. They enrolled me in a clinical trial to give me the best chance. After a complete hysterectomy, I underwent 3 rounds of chemotherapy, each round lasting a week. I was sick & weak for the duration of treatment, to the point where I wanted to curl up in a corner and die. The Doctor prescribed Zoloft for depression. Gradually, with love & support from family & friends, my life returned to normal. I sought out & reconnected with my friends & to break from depression, I would go & visit them on the road, & volunteer my services. It was a great way to reclaim my sanity.
Then 3 years later,in 2005, near the end of the year, I lost another friend. She had pneumonia. We had just had a Christmas party & she was laughing with everyone. To look at her at the party, she was a picture of health. Little did I know in less than a week, I would be saying good-bye. After we buried her, I came home & got wrapped up in my Mother's dog's leash & ended up falling down the back steps in high heels. I broke a couple of bones in my foot.
Then, not even 3 months later, my stepfather passed away from lung cancer. I'm ashamed to say that I wasn't at home when he passed to give my Mother the support she needed. I was out in California with my brother & sister-in-law. My brother was in intensive care, suffering with acute pancreatitis. He was also bleeding internally. I think my stepfather finally gave his soul up so my Mother could make the trip out to California to be by her son's side.
Since 2006, I have lost three more good friends, two within a 3 month period. They were husband & wife. She had a heart condition & he was diagnosed with cancer shortly after she passed. The last time I saw him, we were in Powdersville. I knew then that when I returned at the end of the season, he wouldn't be there. He passed away 2 weeks later.
I have seen many of my friends pass during the last 15 years and each one holds a special place in my heart. It seems that I remember the loss of them keenly. As long as I remember them in my memory, they will always live on.
The last 19 years haven't always been about loss though. We always had parties to celebrate birthdays, holidays, and more. There were more good times than bad. I remember on one such occasion, at a birthday party, I overdid it just a little. They had to put me to bed. At the time, I was staying in a small Chevy Stepvan that had a single bunkroom.You should have seen them trying to put me on that top bunk. It was the stuff that a comedian's dream is made of, LOL! At the show's opening, the Boss opened my door & was video taping me. I told him to go away & buried my head under the covers. I never left my room until the sun went down that day.
I have learned so much about myself over the years. I have found that I am capable of doing tasks that 19 years ago, when I was called Greenhelp, that would have baffled me or seemed impossible. I can straight wire electric from a live electric panel, change the oil in my generator, replace breakers in my home, get water from a fire hydrant, know the sound of grinding brakes, and pull trailers up to 45 feet long all over this country, down 11% grades & back up. I have even pulled double trailers up to that length. I can do marathon hours, sometimes not going to bed for 48 hours because we had a 300 mile jump & then had to set up everything to show that day. The longest I have ever stayed up was 64 hours. We drove from Wytheville, VA to Hiawassee, GA. We opened at 10 am Saturday in Wytheville, ran rides until 10 pm, then tore down. We finished tearing down at 6 am, then got in our trucks to drive 300 miles to Hiawassee. I arrived in Hiawassee around 4 pm Sunday & then we went to work setting up. We worked all thru the night because it was August & it was just to hot to do it during the day. We finally finished setting up everything Monday evening around 10 pm. I remember sitting in my truck trying to give out draws to the workers with my head drooping. That was a long weekend.
It has been a fantastic experience with people that I will never forget. Over the years, they showed me the steps that I needed to be successful out here. I want to thank all of those who were there for me, guiding me along the way. You have shown me that I am a strong person & there isn't any such phrase as I can't do it. For all of you, I salute you & wish you well wherever the tides may take you. I consider you all great friends & I enjoyed every moment I spent with you.
I suppose I could find another show to go to if I wanted to continue in the Outdoor Amusement Business. But after working for 19 years for the same company, I don't think it would be the same. For now, I am going to take a week vacation & plot a course for my new beginning. After all, I still have plenty of working years left in me.
As always, thanks to all who have followed my ramblings & I will most likely only post one more time to let you know what course I decide to take.
Until later, God Bless, see you down the road...
