Becoming a Resident

Hello!

This has been my second week here in the Rocky Mountains. I am currently sitting on a bench getting free wireless from someone who has graced me with the privilege of not having to log into a library computer which gives me 15 minutes of Internet. I am a bit worried currently because it looks like there might be a thunderstorm that is blowing in and I am indeed on foot and have to walk a mile back home. Good thing I have prepared for this and brought my rain parka.

This week was more training and prepping. On Thursday I shadowed working at the Beaver Meadows Visitors Center and answered some visitors questions. I also went up to Trail Ridge Road and stopped at the various locations where our Alpine Tour will be stopping. This coming week I will be riding the Bear Lake's shuttle which takes people from the Moraine visitors center to the Bear Lake Park and Ride where they can go on various trails. I am a bit nervous about my program for the Alpine Tour. I have to be prepared to keep an audience of 50 people entertained for 5 hours, eeks. I have already prepared a bingo game of sorts to keep them and me on my toes. I can't wait to actually begin working and letting visitors know how pumped I am about alternative transportation and this park in general.

Also my mom might be visiting me sometime this summer as well as some friends that have expressed interest. I hope I get as many visitors as possible. I am missing everyone from back home and around the globe so much. I have become quite the traveling gnome.

I have decided to include in this blog an entry from my journal that I thought was rather noteworthy and funny. As an aside, this journal entry was written on May 26, the day I was leaving to go to Michigan for orientation. I will select snip bits of the entry since it is pretty darn long. O and I still write in European date format.

26/5/09

Hello! My life never seemed to be dull or boring. Already there are problems. but to be honest I thrive on personal drama in that problems always have a way of following me around. I forgot to get cash from my mom which means that I have 42 dollars with me and my AMEX card which hopefully people take. Anyway I tried to get money wired to a Travelex in Newark Airport and the woman was a total bitch. So now I am on the plane going to Chicago and then to Traverse City, Michigan where I will be attending a three day orientation. Because I am bored on this plane I am going to document unnecessary problems that have occurred in my life in the last 6 months because either I was an idiot or for some other unforeseeable circumstances.

Unnecessary Drama

1) wallet stolen at the anchor near London Bridge
2) being uncomfortable with Turkish guy while trying to comfort me about my wallet being stolen
3) report missing credit cards which went amazingly smoothly minus bank of America because they are royal idiots and have deduced from their pea size brains that the fraudulent charges made on my card were in fact made by me or someone I know.
4) Traveling to Paris with my sister whose flight got in 7 hours after mine and having 5 euro in my pocket for lunch, dinner and travel in Paris. Luckily her plane was delayed.
5) My wireless internet didn't work at my flat in London so I had to use a 40 foot Ethernet cable around the flat which not only looked ugly but caused subsequent tripping of all members who were brave enough to pass the cord
6) Shaniqua, may she rest in peace, is officially busted. Her screen broke which means I can't get my music off and I don't have a monitor to see the information.
7) Getting my luggage lost in Athens which took 2 weeks to get back and caused more headaches than you can imagine, but not as many as B of A, the devil bank.
8) There was a fire in my flat which emulated from my radiator which I reported to the landlords previous to its ignition, and subsequently led to the charring of my wall and floor. The fire was contained and had to call 999 (fire department).
9) There were always issues with my flat and I mean always. The washer machine had a vendetta against me. My clothes were once left in there for a week because of malfunctions and let me tell you, they did not smell pretty when they came out. At one point I had to take my clothes to elegance, the classiest laundromat in town. The drier ruined a lot of my underwear, which was festive. Did I mention we had a mouse in our flat? I am sure he enjoyed the array of crumbs left on our counter.
10) I embarked on a journey one night that lead to the rippage of my favorite jeans. I am assuming if you are reading this blog you are aware of the circumstances, but if not just ask, it's a hell of a story.
11) Going to the wrong terminal in Heathrow which meant I had to lug two huge suitcases on the Air Tram. In addition I had to get my backpack scrutinized by the security for forgetting to put my scissors in my checked bags. These series of events almost led to the departure of VS009 on May 16 without one Ms. Wolfson. I was running down the electric walkway when an employee was shouting at me and berating me for being late. I was the idiot who they called over the loudspeaker. "Miss Emilie Wolfson please report to gate 16 immediately"
12) Stubbing my pinky toe on my dad's outside steps. I don't have a pinky toe nail and it is currently wrapped in gauze waiting but not looking forward to be stuffed in a sweaty sneaker for the remainder of the summer. If it could talk it probably would muster up some fresh dialogue about being neglected and then brutally assaulted. Also it probably is bitter about being gradually nonexistant with the onset of human evolution. Some argue that humans will no longer have a pinky toe in the next thousands of years. So maybe I am ahead of the curve.
13) Almost getting swept out to sea by the Mediterranean when we were in a town called Aciacastello near Catania, Sicily. Stood on some rocks near the waves and the waves were not playing. I cut my ankle and had to go into a cafe and ask for peroxide and bandages. Cleaned my wounds in a sketchy bathroom in addition to leaving my sopping wet underwear in the trash can. I can't even image what people thought when they saw wet underwear, bandages, and peroxide.

In conclusion I didn't sign up for any of this, but whether it is just my luck or my stupidity, shit just happens.