There’s no denying that Colorado is a place where people love things in the extreme. We love our extreme sports, our extremely high peaks and our green chile extremely hot. That affinity for the over-the-top sometimes leaks into the work world, so with a tip of the hat to Labor Day, we thought You Oughta Know a little bit about five jobs, each extreme in its
own way.
…
EXTREMELY FRAGRANT
Someone’s gotta
stick his nose in the
bins of chamomile
and spearmint leaves
to make sure Monday’s
batch of Sleepytime
Tea tastes exactly
the same as the
bags made last Friday.
Blendmaster
Charlie Baden
minds the mix at Celestial
Seasonings in
Boulder. – Dana
Coffield
Why I do it: “The
job is just really interesting.
Anything that
grows has a lot of variation
in quality. It’s a
challenge to come in and blend herbs with four, five or six different flavor
profiles and a lot of hibiscus to match what it’s supposed to taste like in Red
Zinger.”
Most extreme moment on the job: “Back in the 1970s, we used to have
all-company meetings in the warehouse where we stored all the herbs. Our
botanicals director sat on a pallet and screamed. I ran over and opened up
the bale and there was a machete, with its point right at the edge of the
wrap. I’ve found live ammunition in bales and building debris, sometimes.”
What the job is worth: “I’m not on the executive pay scale, but there
aren’t many people in the world who do a job like this, and that makes it really
unique. It’s about 80 percent art and 20 percent science.”
Breathe it in. Celestial Seasonings is open to the public every day but Sunday. 4600
Sleepytime Drive, Boulder, celestialseasonings.com
…
EXTREMELY DUSTY
Ranger John White is a National
Park Service version of Lawrence of
Arabia, riding herd on the 84,670
acres of finely ground pumice, ash,
quartz and lava that makes up the
Great Sand Dunes National Park &
Preserve outside of Mosca. The
winds are constantly changing the
shape of the dunes, some of which
are more than 750 feet high. – Andy
Vuong
Why I do it: “I like being in the outdoors,
I like the mission that the Park
Service has … and I like not be stuck to
a city 9-to-5 type situation.”
Most extreme moment on the job:
“When I had a law enforcement incident,
a search-andrescue
and a medical
call all in the
same day.”
What the
job is worth:
“I can’t complain
about
my pay. We
don’t have to be
in the top
echelon of the pay
range for the type of work that we do.”
True grit. Great Sand Dunes National Park
& Preserve is open year round. nps
.gov/grsa
…
EXTREMELY BRIGHT
Who makes sure the Greeley Rodarte Dancers who can make their
first appearances at age 5 have the right, bright twirling costumes, the
right music and the right attitude to perform dances from 18 different regions
in Mexico? That would be Ruby Jimenez. Hers is a labor of love
that keeps her in the swirl of things all year long. – Dana Coffield
Why I do it: I saw a lot of kids
who could not afford to be in extracurricular
activities, yet they
wanted to be. I had one girl in
our dance group, she was in junior
high and wanted to be in
band, but couldn’t cut the grades
so she was going to quit school.
Once she was in the dance
group, she did not want to quit
school. That girl went on
through high school and gave
the graduation speech about
how this dance group kept her
from leaving school.
Most extreme moment on
the job: When a little girl, she
was maybe in the sixth grade,
went through a whole day of performances
that we had traveled
to and then said at the end of the
day My grammita died this
morning.’ That touched me quite
bit. I said to myself, Sheesh,
we’re making an effect here.’ ”
What the job is worth: “We
charge $5 a year per family to participate,
(so) the satisfaction is
that we’re helping to build on
people’s self-esteem in this
world. We’re working toward a
good cause.”
Toe tapping. The Greeley Rodarte
Dancers perform during the Potato
Day Festival, 10:30 a.m. Saturday in
the gazebo at Centennial Village,
1475 A St. in north Greeley, near Island
Grove Regional Park.
…
EXTREMELY DULL
In the interest of public safety,
the Cultural Center Parking Garage
at 12th and Acoma streets in downtown
Denver is staffed 24/7, whether
or not events are scheduled.
This makes for some extraordinarily
quiet hours for attendants like
Yifterelu Teklu. Things might get
bit more interesting when the
high-style Museum Residences
open next spring. Tom McGhee
Why I do it: To support his wife
and two children. “I like it, it is easy.”
Most extreme moment on the
job: About one year ago a customer demanded
that Teklu open the gate and
let him out of the garage without having
to pay. “I said, If I open the gate
you have to pay your ticket or go to
the manager.’ He said, If you don’t
open the gate I will make you.’ ” The
customer then reached for something
on the seat beside him, a gun, a pipe, a
knife, Teklu doesn’t know. “I just stand
here.” The driver eventually left his
car and convinced a security guard to
raise the gate and let him out.
What the job is worth: “I should
be making more. But I can say I am
doing OK. Whatever I get, I am feeding
my children.”
Park there. Building Outside the Box: Creating
the New Denver Art Museum opens
Oct. 15. denverartmuseum.org.
…
EXTREMELY DANGEROUS
Safety workers prowl steep runs for avalanche
danger every day of the seemingly endless ski season
at Arapahoe Basin in Summit County. But on more
than 50 days a year, licensed explosives experts like
Leif Borgeson fire up the charges to blast away unstable
snow that might otherwise race downhill, capturing
unsuspecting skiers in its path. Julie Dunn
Why I do it: “I get to ski for free five or six days a
week. It’s also really cool to be able to observe nature
in one of its purest, rawest, more powerful
forms.”
Most extreme moment on the job: “When I
saw a partner of mine buried by a small slide. It
was much more intense when my partner was
buried than when I was caught but I wasn’t
fully buried like he was.”
What the job is worth: Between $17 and $30
per hour. “A snow safety worker has to go through
quite a bit of additional training and certification, above
and beyond what a normal ski patroller goes through. It’s
not just guys skiing around and trying to act cool.”
Next blast? A-Basin’s 2005-2006 ski season is expected to
open in late October. A-basin.net
