What you can learn in 99 days.

Yes, it has been 99 days that I will have resided in West Yellowstone this summer and it boggles my mind. Things have changed so much. Relationships with people have become different, my opinions on different cultures have changed, and I have this new appreciation for a bitty part of the universe.

What I learned in West Yellowstone this summer:

-Living in a trailer is just like living in an apartment. For some reason the word almost has a negative/humorous connotation, but all my room mates and I loved the double wide.
-Summer FLIES when you're working.
- The Mountain Man Rendezvous is not the most authentic..... but still has good stuff
-Hebgen lake is beautifulllllllll.
- Everything here is colder....
- Running a family owned business is hard work.
-I guess it is pretty cool to be able to look out at the nations 2nd largest bronze elk statue every morning. ha.
-Police are BORED. Not only did I get pulled over twice, but all of my room mates did as well. And each cop tried to convince us that because we were working in Montana, we would need state plates. psh.
-Groceries are expensive. Just one gallon of milk is almost $5.
- People will murder if their coffee isn't done on time.
- Housekeeping is... fun. Would never do it again but glad that I did it for a third of the summer.
- Once you meet a local, remember their name, because you WILL bump into them again.
- Hope Blooms Eternal
- Bozeman is fun! Just a smaller town like Logan, but considered the big city.
- 9 o clock p.m. sacrament meeting does exist... and I liked it!
- It may just take you 9 times in the park before you see a bear! That's how it worked for me :)
-Separate checks...... urgh.
-Pet friendly cabins... bleh.
-Working a lot is a ton of motivation for visits home. And makes that 5 hour drive seem like 2.
-European boys are much more sly and refined than American boys.
-Firehole is great.
-I will never let my kids eat the saltine crackers while they're waiting to get their food is a restaurant
- Beer makes people act foolishly and drives people to give up more important things.
- Good places to eat in town: Sydney's Bistro, Tubby's Bakery, Geyser Grill, Wild West Pizzeria, Canyon Street Grill, and Mooseberry's.
-Bad places to eat in town: The Gusher, KFC, Arby's... ha
-Appearance is not everything. Some of the roughest and strangest people here have become my best friends.
- Be yourself. If you're going to do something, then be ok with the fact that that is who you are.
- Yellowstone will supposedly explode a few years down the road from volcanic activity.
- Swinging after work is the best.
- The Playmill kids are nice and very entertaining.
- Huckleberry
-"Is there anything else I can get for you?"
- Making a shake takes longer than you think.
- People serving your food CAN do whatever they want with their food.
- Even after 99 days of being frustrated with your job, upset about your circumstances, and ready to leave, you still WILL be sad to go home.... because the people are what make this place what it is... and i will miss them. Much.

6 hours of sleep
12 months a year it snows here
3 slash 4 room mates
139 squeals from the fridge each day
1 flooded bathroom
57 different tables
9 separate checks
83 bags of ice to fill
3 visits to the post office
1 national park
99 days in West Yellowstone
3 jobs
1 too many police officers
4 trips home
10 minutes into town
46 buffalo
1 bear- finally!
5 trips to Bozeman
183 cabin reservations
3 times at the Playmill
56 naps
4 times to night church
8 spiders killed
10 times into the park
283,983,114 of the brightest stars in the world
4 times boating
7 lectures from Sherry
174 hours on facebook (yay front desk)
1 LDS ward
12 salad dressings
0 attractive guys
5 restaurants that deliver
75 costco bottles of water
6 times in the hot tub
33 complaints
86 calls home
1 police report
13 chocolate-peanut butter shakes
1 taste of every restaurant
6,666 feet in elevation
2 times being pulled over
19 different languages
481 credit card swipes
1 horseback ride
59 extra sides of ranch
1 time at the gym
71 pitchers of "bad" coffee
1 showtime each night at the cinema
4 bags of sunflower seeds
9 visits from hometown friends
1 camera
41 nights of pure exhaustion
3 encounters with Sharon
4 "5-hour" energy shots
10 thunder slash lightening storms
2 alarm clocks
3,104 text messages
5 people to tip out
161 photographs

1 interesting summer... woot.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is one of the best movies I have ever seen in my life.

Bilbo Roars On Obese Kilts Everywhere.

Bears Bingo Babies Birthdays Bandits Bountiful Big Bouncers Backpacking Boys Baloo Bang Bloopers Birth-control Bleaching Blunt Bowling Boston Bolivia Boredom Being Brag Barf Banana Bread Beanie-Babies Breathe Bitter Butter Batter Blot Blue Beef Boiling Brisk Barbies Barbara Blow-pops Bionic Bunny Blog Blondies Bullwinkles Burger Betty Boop Brinkerhoff Branches Blushes Brothers Bloom Bishop Bingham Build Bite Bitter Beer Brandy Balogne
Round Rookie Rawr Real Read Ream Relish Rivers Rawlings Reminsce Renee Rolling Ratatat Reading Rainbow Resentful Repair Repent Remind Recoil Rewind Release Refurvish Renowned Rancid Richard Rinse Ripe Ricoche Rent Revive Ringer Referee Rain Rapido Renny's Round-up Ronald Reagan Roy Riverdale Richmond Renesmee Reports Really Raptor Raging Retard Religion Radical Raspberries Radiology Racing Rascist Return Russia Rwanda

Omnious Opthamologist Optomotrist Orthopedics Oral Oprah Oh Oregon Oreos Obama Oklahoma Ohio Old Omaha Ocho Oshkosh Orchards Olympics Over Only Of Open Orange Oval Ovaries Osteridge Oak Oafs Oatmeal Orphan Oarsmanships Obediance Obese Obituary
Oven Osterige Opal Olivia Ocean Ogre Orchids Omletes Olivander's Organ OJ Oprah Olives Oats Oak Open Operation Orientation Oriental Octapus Octave Octuplets Octagon October
Oblately Oblong Obsessions Oedipal Offensive Oiliness Onions Omen Opaque Ora Oriental

Kleenex K-mart Kittens Kraft Kill Kite Kime Kaka Kristine Krista Krisindalandayana Krishna Kate Karen Karena Kalindy Kaylinda Klu Klux Klan Kaden Krispy-creme Kind Kiev Kendall Kisses Kick Korn Kilometers Kinetic Kid Killers Kentucky Keep Keeper Kilomanjaro Know Knowledge Kiwi Kiki Kotton-mouth-Kings Kum&go Ksl Knight Kuala Kwanza Ketzakwatal

Evenly Ever Evergreen Excited Extreme Evangelical Extra ET Extravagent Emotional Exceptional Except Exempt Exception Emancipated Earth Egor Egotisical Eguana Equidor Economical Eccentric Economart Eyes Ethonol Excedrin Ecstatic Ernies Erin Errands Equipped Earrings Errie Ear Everyone Eel Ear-full Earnings Example Earthquake Emergency Ecstasy

Fears.

I was just reading my friend Erin's blog. She is getting ready to have her baby Kate in one week. Even though she has 4 kids already, I'm sure that the emotions haven't changed: apprehension, anxiety, nervousness, and fear. So it is my confession: I am incredibly afraid to give birth to children one day. Yes there are important things to consider such as the baby's health, the medical care, etc. But the reason I'm most afraid is because of the PAIN. Just think- For every birth there is a human body exiting a woman's womb. OUCH. Twins? Triplets? Quintuplets??? YIKES. Which brings me to another one of my little bulleted lists..... (Things I'm afraid of).

Pregnancy and Giving Birth (read above for explanation).

Spiders: Ever since I was little I would scream and freeze if I ever saw the littlest thing with 6 legs that crawled. I owe my Dad a thank you for endlessly responding to my yells from the basement. Thanks, Dad.

Cheating Husband: No, I haven't dated for about a year now, and I'm not planning on dating or getting married soon. Yet, the thought of a cheating husband gets me every time. Gah. He better not.

Being Alone: Ever since I was little little (ha I know... possible?) I have freaked myself out from being alone. I remember nights when my parents left me at home alone (my mom is going to feel bad if she reads this but i was at least 12) I would turn on all the lights in the house and watch movies to calm myself down. Even during my senior year in High School when I was home alone for a week, I had to leave the lights on and make a playlist of calm songs that would help me. The experience a couple weeks before had probably played a large part in my fear still at 17 years old..... Long story short: I was in my friend Ben's house while he and his family were out of town to borrow a math book. I heard things and immediately freaked out, but assured myself it was nothing, when it turned out to be another person in the house. Yeah, I'm scared of being alone.

Needles: Yes, I pretty much am listing all of the generic fears but this one has a valid reason as well. While practicing sewing button holes in 9th grade home ec., I asked my sewing teacher (who will not be named for the sake of her privacy) to help me raise the needle because my finger was under it (note: the machine was completely off). Well, we must have had a misunderstanding because the next thing I knew she had cranked the side and the needle had gone completely through my thumb and back out, leaving a thread about 9 inches long trailing out from either sides of my thumb. Trauma.


So. That's it. Would love to hear what yours is... i.e.: My dear friend Madison from Arkansas is terrified of birds.

To be a server.

Since I started waitressing a little over two months ago, I have served in three different locations: Wolfpack Brewing Company, Canyon Street Grill, and Geyser Grill. All have their pros and cons, different food, and different environments. Yet one thing stays consistent through these three different locations: The customers. All different shapes, nationalities, and taste buds. But most importantly they all have different personalities.

The Complainer: "Excuse me, ma'am, my tea is too sweet, there is a sticky spot on the table, we waited too long for our food, I can't believe you would charge me for a side of ranch, this silverware is tainted, and our food isn't warm enough. " Complain, complain, complain. One thing I have learned from this personality is that you can NEVER please them. The coffee isn't strong enough, their seat is too much in the sunlight, there aren't enough vegetarian meals, the baby on the next table is too loud, blah blah blah blah. Basically, it is their mission to find things that are wrong, even when you are giving the best service. Favorite complaints thus far: Not knowing the exact price on chips and salsa and not having milk at a micro-brewery. ha.

The Mute: Customer walks in with a blank face, sits down and says no more than two words to the person they're dining with. Orders the most simple item on the menu and has a difficult time looking the server in the eye. Eats very slowly, no complaints or compliments, pays the bill with a standard 10-15% tip and leaves. Quick, painless, and boring.

The Mother: After serving this personality, I should feel like a baby Chihuahua. The customer speaks very slowly and looks at you with raised eyebrows as if you couldn't understand more than "hello" and "goodbye". Then after the extremely detailed order (substitutions for everything, extra sauces, each burger cooked differently) the customer looks at you and says, "Would you like me to repeat that for you, or do you understand?".... Yes I understand, there's a reason why I was hired and work here everyday for 5 plus hours ya bimbo. Basically, the assumption of this guest is that, the person serving is nothing more than a teenager who doesn't know a whole lot, and is using all of their tip money on weed or something of that nature. Gotta love em.

The PERFECT Customer: Patience with the server. PATIENCE PATIENCE PATIENCE is the key to getting good service. No matter what you say, usually your food will come out just as fast and the service will be just the same. As a server, it's expected that you will have to know the menu, answer questions, and be friendly. The perfect customer knows that it is ok to ask questions, yet doesn't want to know "Exactly how many onion rings are in a basket, what temperature is the beer served at, and how many minutes will this wait be?" (Also, some customers believe that it is your job to tell them the whole menu rather than just reading it themselves). My perfect customer asks what my favorite dishes are (it's easier to convince someone to order a dish when you actually do love it), orders desserts, and always leaves a good tip. This doesn't necessarily need to be the above and beyond 40% tip or whatever. Just a good 15% tip is often appreciated. You'd be surprised if you knew what people thought was a good tip for good service (pocket change?- I might just chase you down and give it back for that house you always wanted). The perfect customer is pleasant to speak with and on a couple occasions will make you laugh. Thank you- to all of you who are out there.. ha

All Time Favorites.

As most people everywhere, I looooOOOoooove music. I've played the piano for 12 years, taught lessons for about 3, and even gave a shot at playing the violin and guitar. ha. But really, music does a lot for me. It changes my mood and has big time effects on my day (is it effect or affect?.... no matter how many times I try spelling this word correctly, I never know if I'm right). Techno, alternative, rock and roll, classical, jazz, oldies.... love them. There are, however, a couple of types of music that I'm not too big on: Screamo, Country, and the really really hard core Rap. But- for the most part I'm open to new things and "respect all forms of music" (Ryleigh Allred). I might also add that it's a good thing for personal bedrooms and cars. Yes, I'm the type of person that picks a favorite song and listens to it over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over and over. Don't know why, but when I find something I love, I just can't get enough of it.

All Time Favorites:
(These are the ones that have a 50 count play or higher ha)

You Don't Know Me- Ben Folds and Regina Spektor (radio edit of course. gah.)

Always on Your Side- Sherly Crow and Sting

Falling- Ben Kweller

Spread Your Wings- Queen

Strip my Mind- Red Hot Chili Peppers

Seventeen- Ratatat

My Guru- Kalyanji Anandji

The Long and Winding Road- The Beatles

Fired- Ben Folds

Levater- Yael Naim

Just a Little Bit Mo- Shake Your Peace

Reasons to Love You- Meiko

Sideways- Citizen Cope

Senorita- Justin Timberlake

Gravity- John Mayer

Overboard- Ingrid Michaelson

So, there's a pretty good list of the one's I've put on repeat a time or two. Check them out next time it rains. :)