During the summer of 1998, I worked a night shift for a research lab in which I shoveled and sifted dirt for eight hours at a time. I hung out in this little room in the basement of a greenhouse that had a chute in which dirt had been dumped. I’d set up a large tub on top of a pushcart, put a screen attachment on top of it, then scoop several shovelfuls of dirt on there. I would then sift that dirt, retaining a few specific items off of the top of the screen, and then do it again. And again. When the cart was full, I’d push it over to the elevator, take it up to the planting rooms, and then retrieve an empty cart and do the same thing again.
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