Sometimes you miss out..

Missed my youngest son's 12th Birthday.. Bummer but he was cool about it. The family knows that I am here for a reason.
Then, he scored Bloody School Captain....! After his brother got the gig 3 years earlier, this came out of the blue. Again, these are the sacrifices you make. There are going to be a lot more of these.
Technology is the big winner. Luckily reception is good in Karratha. Skype/Facetime as often as possible. Apparently, the camp is shocking for reception as everyone comes in from working. 1800 personnel trying to get in contact with family slows down both the camp wi-fi and overloads Telstra's transmitter. Not good....
However, this company has a history of doing the right thing when needed. These are anecdotes from other workers that have had family health crisises.. The phone call is made to their direct supervisor, and they are on the first flight out. Bookings are made even at 5am, and vehicles pick them up immediately so they can get back to there room to pack. The vehicle will wait and in both of these cases, they were on the plane straight away. All the connecting flights are sorted. These are blokes that are happy to give negative opinions about the company, but give credit here.

Food is paid for by the company, including on your RDO's. You do your own washing in classic laundromat washing machines and dryers in a donga full of machines. Complimentary powder. If you don't get your washing out of the dryer quickly others will remove it and leave it on the bench. 4 long shirts and 4 long pants...