X is for Xeroderma

The park was understaffed, under-resourced, and every single vehicle knew why but there was nothing that they could do but try to work through it…Which is how Ranger Jammer got into this predicament in the first place. As the Chief Interpretive Ranger, Ol' Jammer had to work particularly hard to make sure that his staff didn't burn out. Getting formal time off under Cad was nearly impossible, so what usually Jammer ended up covering for his employees when a family emergency or when they had an event (like jury duty) that they couldn't miss.

While his department was managing to function despite the pressures put on them, this summer it was coming at the cost of Jammer's health. At the beginning of the season, he started to have an area of dry, flaky paint on his rear bumper that not even a proper coat of wax seemed to soothe. By June, the patch had gone from itchy to actually painful, and in July, the patch started to spread to his undercarriage.

Jammer knew that sooner or later he would need to see a proper mechanic about the issue, but the superintendent had made it incredibly clear that the mechanic's clinic at the lodge was for guests only so Jammer would have to go into town…And the soonest he could realistically get a full day off was mid-September when the visitor numbers started to drop off but before the seasonal staff left for the winter. Until then, Jammer would have to just power through. He hid his discomfort pretty well…or at least he thought he did until Maru, the Piston Peak Air Attack Base's mechanic, managed to corner him at the end of one of monthly department head meetings.

Maru eyed Jammer for a moment before the tug harrumphed. "So, when do you get off for the day?"

Jammer just looked at the mechanic with tired eyes. After all, he lived in the National Park, and when problems popped up in the middle of the night, he was the one who got to deal with them…so, yeah, he never really 'got off.' Sadly, the mechanic quickly put the puzzle together.

"When was the last time you had a day off?"

That question was significantly more challenging than it should have been. "March…no, April. I managed to get a half-day to run into town on that rainy Wednesday."

Maru stared at Jammer for a few long rotor beats, and then pressed his tine to his head. "I swear you are as bad as Blade…Who is your second in command?"

"…"

"Okay then," the mechanic bulldozed forward, "who is your most experienced Interpretative Ranger?"

"Roberta's been here the longest, but she is only…"

"Great." Maru held up a tine to stop Jammer from arguing. "I will get a hold of her and let her know that I am pulling you from duty for the rest of the day."

"It isn't that big of deal…" The ranger tried to argue halfheartedly.

"Jammer, if this was just some dry paint, I wouldn't be making this fuss, but you have a full-blown case of Xeroderma going on. A case that is bad enough that I suspect you have avoided getting it treated for at least three to four months, and one that will start causing significant damage to your physical structure if it isn't dealt with ASAP." Maru sighed, when it looked like Jammer was going to continue to argue the mechanic decided to address the elephant in the room. "And if Superintendent Spinner complains that you are gone for a day to take care of your basic medical needs, then I will arrange Cabbie to go sit on him for a couple of hours."

As much as Jammer liked to be right, he knew that he couldn't argue with that. So, Maru got his way and Jammer got to spend the rest of the afternoon napping while the issues with his paint job finally received the attention it so badly needed.

Term- Xeroderma- This medical term refers to abnormally dried skin. While it normally is used in relation to medical conditions such as ichthyosis, it can also be used to describe any conditions that damage the ability of the skin to produce sweat and oils to moisturize the skin. These conditions include several situations that wildfirefighters face on a regular basis such as burns, severe dehydration, high wind exposure, and chafing.

Author's Note- So, this chapter seems as good as any to announce that based on your votes, next year's advent story will be M is for Mechanic! While I have staked a claim on a few of the letters (because L has to be for Lightning Strike), I am still brainstorming the others. If there is a particular prompt, story, or situation that you would like to read next year, now is the time to let me know and I will see if I can get the plot bunnies to bite.