Becoming Routine

My life in Ocean Falls had a distinct duality. There was work and there was life after work. Both became a routine in short order. I enjoyed living with my sister and brother-in-law immensely. It was the time in my life when I got to know my sister as an adult and my brother-in-law in a way that went beyond visiting a few hours at a time. My sister was pregnant with her first child and it was exciting to know that I would be an Uncle soon. They treated me very well with good food, mentoring, and just good company during many a quiet rainy Ocean Falls night. Walt showed me around town and we went on many hikes together in the surrounding mountains and valleys.
Shift work was new for me and I took to it without any problems. My body adjusted well to the changes in sleep patterns, but I was young, and youth allows for such things. I attended their little church group meetings when I was not working and realised that their days were numbered there. There was almost no interest in that town for faith issues. There were maybe three or four families attending and a single middle aged man, a fellow paper tester. Being young and single, I missed my friends and did not feel really comfortable with young families although they were very friendly and accepting of me. The single TV channel was very unreliable so more often than not, watching TV was out of the question, especially in winter. There was no radio reception either and our only news was the newspaper which came into town when the planes were flying, which depended entirely on the weather.
I spent almost every evening, when working day shifts, reading, and writing letters to friends, family, but mostly to my girlfriend. We had been dating for less than a year when I left my home town. It had been difficult leaving her because she was starting school in my town a few weeks after I left and we had been looking forward to being closer together. Now she was further away than ever and we missed each other. I remember asking a friend to keep his eyes and ears open for a good paying job back home because I saw this job in Ocean Falls as being temporary at best. But there was a shake-up coming and I would have to make a decision.