5-30 (Sat)

This morning at breakfast Jenny said she might go into Bozeman to the Walmart and asked if I would like to ride along. I jumped at the chance. I have been dying to get in there and buy some supplies.

We left at 10:00 for our 86 mile one way ride to the Super Walmart. I was so excited I could hardly stand it. An hour and $135 later we were ready to head over to Subway in Bozeman for lunch. Then it was back to Yellowstone. We stopped just inside the park and watched some mountain goats. These were all females so they didn’t have the big curled horns like I was hoping to see.

We got back home at 4:30. The elk were all over our yard again. Some of the females are ready to drop their calves. We’re hoping they will do it somewhere around here but they will probably go to the back country. We’ll see.

I have training all day tomorrow.

5-29 (Friday)

We had one day of training and now two days off! I messed around here and didn’t go to breakfast until 7:00.

After breakfast I did my laundry. Then I walked down to look at the owl family and then I walked up to the terraces. When I was about half way up I ran into Gale coming down. She is roommates with Jenny. I think they get along just fine but Jenny is VERY independent. She constantly takes off and does her own thing. I think Gale would like someone to do things with. She’s going exploring in her car tomorrow and I would love to go with her but she has never once said I word to me about going along in her car.

It was very hot when I was walking today. I stopped in the general store and bought some sun screen. At 4:00 I met up with Jenny and Pat (from Deltona) and we did part of the Beaver Creek Hike behind our dorms. We didn’t go that far when Pat started making sounds about turning back. I didn’t pay any attention to her and kept walking. Maybe after a mile and a half she got us to turn back.

After dinner tonight I sat in our dorm lounge and visited with some of the residents.

5-28 (Thurs)
I was up at 5:30 trying to clean up before my roommate arrives. I got to breakfast around 6:30 and ate with Jenny from NC. She had already been to the gym and worked out.

After breakfast I walked around the old fort area down to the chapel. We didn’t have training until 10:00. I talked to some people from my dorm: sisters Loretta and Barbara from Arcadia, FL and Bruce who used to live in W. Palm Beach but now lives in northern GA.

One kid, Spencer, from AZ didn’t show up at training until 10:30 (it started at 10:00) and that was after they sent someone to wake him up. At lunch I saw Loretta and Barbara - one of them asked me to go to the Lamar Valley with them tonight. I was thrilled.

We had an hour for lunch (when we start working it will be 45 min.) Our afternoon training was from 1-5. In the morning we had to interview each other and then tell the group about the person we interviewed. I did Gale from AZ Afterwards she told me I made her feel so good with my introduction of her.

I met up with Barbara and Loretta at 6:45 and we took off for the Lamar Valley looking for wildlife. We saw antelope, buffalo, a beaver, deer and a baby buffalo who was separated from the herd. It was standing very still at water’s edge. A coyote was standing right above the calf waiting to attack. We didn’t stick around but there were an army of people there watching. We didn’t get home until after 9:00. It stays light a lot longer here than it does at home.

5-27 (Wed)
I was awake before the alarm went off this morning at 5:30. I went to breakfast at 6:30. I went over to Mammoth Hotel and met my group in the lobby. After clocking in we took a bus tour of the entire outer loop of Yellowstone. People who are going to be working the front desk were also on the tour.

Tamarack, the driver who brought me from Bozeman yesterday was our driver. We saw the Mammoth Terraces, Old Faithful Inn, the eruption of Old Faithful, Yellowstone Lake, the Lake Hotel, the Canyon, fabulous waterfalls, Roosevelt Lodge etc. I loved the tour but the thing that surprised me the most was that Tamarack, the driver, was a girl! I never would have guessed it in a million years.

We got back to Mammoth at 6:00 -we all ran to the EDR (Employee Dining Room) to eat dinner before they closed.
When I got back to my room I had a note on my door telling me to expect a roommate in the next couple days. Boo.
Tonight I met two sisters (living in my dorm) from Arcadia, FL which is about 2 hours from Orlando.

Checking into Yellowstone

5-26 (Tues)
I was awake most of the night - I was hot and then cold plus I was anxious about today. I finally got up at 5:30. I was in the lobby by 6:15 but no one else was there. The Yellowstone people showed up at 6:45. Besides me there were two boy cousins from
Ecuador (with US citizenship) and a boy from Bulgaria. We went in one van there were two) to the Greyhound Bus Station where eleven more young people were waiting. I don’t mean this to be ugly but one girl was so fat her rolls were everywhere, Her butt looked like two basketballs in her pants. Thankfully she rode in the single seat next to the driver.
We drove 84 miles to Gardiner where we checked in. the scenery along the way was breathtaking. Check-in consisted of signing many papers and writing your name, address, date of birth and social over and over. When that was completed everyone but me went over to get their uniform. I don’t have to wear a uniform because I’m in reservations.
We hung around Gardiner until about 11:00 then we loaded all the luggage into a big us and the driver took us into the park (Mammoth.) Everyone got off to go eat lunch except me. They are all going to work in other areas of the park. The driver took me to get my room assignment. I am in Aspen dorm. I have a shower, sink, and toilet in my room instead of down the hall. The room is very small with a double and twin bed. It has two minute closets. There is a tiny bar, maybe 12 inches long to hang your clothes on, unfortunately there are NO hangers and I didn’t bring any. There are two small drawers at the bottom. I just measured the width of the “closet” and it is 26”. My roommate isn’t here yet so I moved into the bed closest to the window which is also the bigger bed. They do provide sheets and a blanket but no towels - thank goodness I brought mine. There is no maid service - you have to clean your own room and wash your own sheets! What kind of joint is this anyway?
After lunch (a grilled sandwich and some sort of Greek dish for me) we had orientation for an hour. After that the people who are working reservations went upstairs in the Mammoth Hotel (where we will be working) and saw where we will clock in and had orientation on safety. When we finished there we were free for the rest of the day. I went back to my room and tried to put away some things. There is REALLY no where to put anything - a lot of my stuff is still in my suitcase.
There are many international young people working here - kids from Europe, Asia and SA. I heard someone say that next year they aren’t going to hire internationals because od the US economy they want to give the jobs to US students.

5 -25 (Monday) Orlando to Bozeman

I talked to Betty and she said I MUST take sweat pants and a sweat shirt to sleep in or 4else I would freeze my tail off. I stuck those two items n my suitcase plus a couple other things - I weighed it and according to my calculations I was over 50 lbs. I decided to leave the4e sweat stuff at home. Then I had the4e brilliant idea to wear the pants over my jeans and the sweat shirt over my t-shirt.

When I got up at 5:30 I got dressed, unplugged everything and ate breakfast. P.
Patty picked me up at 7:00. She couldn't tell that I had my jeans on. We weighed my suitcase again and decided it was okay

Because it was Memorial Day we had the highway to ourselves. Before I got out of the car I put on my sweatshirt. Besides my suitcase I had my backpack with my camera, computer and a million other things. Attache4d to my pack I had another duffel shaped pack with my travel pillow and all my meds. Those two it4ms weighed 20 lbs! Oh my aching back! In addition to all that crap I had my coats. I was originally going to take my fleece and a fake fur lined vest but Robin called the night before last and said it was 26 degrees in Yellowstone. I dug out my down filled jacket that I took to the arctic circle. I had to figure out how to take all that stuff so I put the vest inside the fleece and the fleece inside the arctic jacket and zipped it up Then I tied plastic around the middle. I was probably carrying as much weight as I had in my suitcase. I was worried about getting through check in so I did curbside. United charges $15 fdor one checked bag. Bummer. I had the guy weigh it right there andit was 46.6 lbs. PERFECT! He didn't say aword abut my coat or my pack. Patty waited to see if it made it thought okay. Just as I was giving her the"thumbs up" a service van backed into the front of her cr! She tried to run up to his van and stop him but it was too late. Thankfully he didn't do any damage.
I got through security just fine. I forgot to take my laptop- out but they didn't stop me. When I went to a bench to put on my shoes I took off my Mickey Mouse sweatshirt.

I stopped and bought a sweet roll (not on my diet) but I was worried I wouldn't have time to eat in Denver. When I got to the gate I panicked again when they announced that you could only take one bag on board. Then I looked around and saw people with everything but the kitchen sink. The girl didn't bat an eye when I went past the last check point with my boarding pass.

I was in the very last row on an aisle seat. I always request an aisle seat when I'm flying in daylight. A family got on after I did. The father asked if he could sit on the aisle to be near his family. I HATE the middle seat but I gave him the one he wanted.

When I arrived in Denver I must have walked a mile from a gate in the 20's to a gate 86. We landed 40 minutes ahead of schedule which was a good thing because I didn't have any time to fool around before they were calling the Bozeman flight. We went out on a relative small plane. I was afraid a teenager would be flying it but he looked at least 23.

As we approached Baseman I saw beautiful mountains and they were covered with snow. I was so excited. I was less excited when we landed and it was raining. I rode to the hotel with a crew from Compass Air. I have never heard of them. By the time we got to the Holiday Inn it had stopped raining. Doesn't that sound like Florida?

My room was $116 but when the girl heard I was going to work in Yellowstone she said I could get a discount - $69. That was a wonderful surprise. After I checked in I went across the street to Walmart where I bought some grapes and water. Then I went to a BBQ place because I was starving. I got something to go and brought it back to the room to eat. I was feeling better after food so I walked probably a mile down the road and then back stopping at Kmart and a grocery store. I went to the gym at the hotel and worked out for a short time.

The girl at the desk said there were several people at the hotel that would also be picked up by the Yellowstone bus in the morning. We are supposed to leave the hotel around 6:30 and go to the Greyhound Bus Station to meet the Yellowstone bus.