Vacation Planning

I've never planned a vacation before. I've definitely helped in the process, put my two cents in, but mostly I was along the ride. This is fine with me. I don't feel the need to plan and the last couple of times that I've gone on vacation my mom has been the planner (she loves it) my brother is also someone who enjoys planning vacations. My Aunt Pat is a travel agent so whenever we book a true vacation we seek her advice as well.

Part of me wonders what all these vacation planners sound like when they call and ask about certain details of their vacation. Working at the mountain I'm the person potential guests call. I should change my title from Lodging and Reservations specialist to Vacation Consultant because sometimes that's what I feel like. People call, they ask about a billion questions, where's this, where's that, is it nice, is it near a pool? You'd be surprised how much people love their pools. I wonder where these people go to use a pool in the winter time, my hunch is they aren't going to the community pool down the road. You're coming here to ski right?! Apparently not, but whatever.

Lets go over what really happens behind the scenes at the lodging office. When people call the first time they want the 'range' of prices. So I start with the most expensive and then the least expensive, this being the 'range' I'm waiting for the day that someone asks me for the mean median and mode. The idea is that they will be pleasantly surprised when they hear about the less expensive option. But once I start to quote people on different dates for the same units, or different bed configurations, tickets, no tickets, I can just feel the guest getting flustered. I'm sure they've written it all down but I also feel sometimes that they don't write it down in a way that makes ANY sense. It's as if they have this uncanny ability to put the least expensive price, add in tickets for free, add in a night for free, during a holiday where they have a pool in their unit. Then once they're satisfied and feel they've made the best decision, after all they are going to be staying at Pretentious Bore, they call us back to book. Keep in mind these same people took about two weeks to figure out their plan. When they originally called there was only a few units left, but enough to have a nice variety of choices, but now, two weeks later, the unit they really want is gone. Keep in mind their dates are only two week away at this point. I can hear the panic welling up inside them.

'What do you mean that you don't have any rooms at Pretentious Bore?'
'They've been booked for days.'
'Well when I called two weeks ago you had rooms, why don't you have any now'
 'Because other people booked them.'
'What about the Newest-therefore-nicest house?'
'Pretentious Bore is a property, and the Newest house is a building within the property, I have nothing in any building at Pretentious Bore.'

Before because there were choices (two weeks ago), there was no sense of urgency. They said 'Oh ok, well we'll think about it, we're going to look around a little bit more, I'll talk it over with my significant other and we'll get back to you'. What REALLY happened is they didn't think about it, they didn't look around any more, in fact that piece of paper that they wrote everything down on resurfaced when they were cleaning their desk, and that same second they called their spouse who said 'sure honey whatever you want, sounds good, just book it' (voice of reason), They called back and can't read their notes very well, and the prices they have written down aren't correct to begin with. At the end of conversation they book something they really don't want, at a price they don't like, for dates they can't come. They do this just so that they feel better about themselves. They feel that they're giving their kids the best ski vacation ever and pat themselves on the back because they booked the last room. Keep in mind this is a family of 6 and they're staying in a hotel room with two queen beds, they know it'll be crammed but for right now they feel good about it.

Christmas Is Finally Here!!

Yes I know Christmas on the calendar has come and gone already. But MY Christmas with my parents is being a little spread out this year. I spent Christmas at my Aunts house and opened up presents under the tree with her and my cousin later on my other cousins and aunt and uncle came over and we celebrated with a small Yankee Swap. Which works much better in our family than a regular giving of gifts here and there.

Here is where the adventure of my Christmas began. My mom and dad had sent a Christmas package to me which contained some of my Christmas gifts from them. The package unfortunately didn't arrive in time and I had to leave the next day to go back to work. My mom was assured by the post office that it would arrive in plenty of time and not to worry. But things happen. The box went MIA for a little while. I prayed that it didn't get lost in the mail. The presents weren't the important piece but rather my stocking which I've had since I was born was what I was worried about. I received a message from my cousin the same day I left letting me know that my package had indeed arrived today. Of course, the day I leave is the day it gets there.

So now we go to plan B. My next day off was two days after Christmas. I was going to drive up, stay the night maybe and drive back in the morning. But on that day it snowed. A lot. 15 inches of snow to be exact. No driving anywhere took place. I was in desperate need of food but I made due. Plan C was then put into effect. My Aunts were going to put on their knight in shining armor suits and drive my box from Barre to Ludlow where I work on a busy holiday day in Ludlow. And then that day it snowed, albeit less, 6 inches. But enough that they didn't want to drive for 2 hours. So then Plan D was put into place. My aunt was going to drive the packages to an office she works at in West Lebanon and I could pick them up there, an hour of driving instead of 2. My best friend/ future sister in law heard about the drama of the package and said 'Hey my parents are going to be in that area on Thursday do you want me to ask if they could pick it up for you?' true story, I almost cried. After being under a lot of stress, stated in the previous post, once it was suggested I realized that yes I did indeed need someone to go and get the package. Sometimes you need others to do things for you, to help you out and I needed it. I usually do not accept these offers of help but I really wasn't in any shape to refuse it.

So Bob and Laura put in their knight and shining armor suits (every parent has one hidden somewhere, I'm sure of it) and with swords held high got my package and brought it back to Ludlow for me. My family had lovingly stuffed my stocking for me, and had added a few extra items that I didn't expect such as cookies, candy canes and a special calender. When I picked up the package I was also invited to dinner next Thursday! So while my package took the long road to me it was touched by many people I love. Thank you everyone for helping get Christmas to me!

Love

So normally I don't write about my person life here as it is a place where everyone and anyone can read it, but I feel that I need to let you all in on a set of events that recently come about.

I was dating someone for a couple of months who I thought was pretty much amazing. The sun shone out this guys ass, he could do no wrong. I trusted him and opened up in ways that I normally do not. I felt deeply happy with this person and comfortable around them. Yes, I fell in love. I'm not someone who gives my heart to another freely without hesitation and I held back for a little while and realized that I was just lying to myself. And so I felt whatever I was going to feel. I was excited to see where it was going to go.

And then he broke my heart.

Usually when someone says that another person 'broke their heart' I take it with a grain of salt, and generally come to the conclusion that they're over exaggerating the situation. But frankly, there is no other way to describe how I feel. I'm not someone who normally is governed by emotions and is pretty laid back and relaxed. I don't like drama and I seek to fix emotional conflict rather than brush it off. But I felt broken. It's unfortunate those who you let closest to you are those who can hurt you the most. He gave me reasons, and I still feel angry, and hurt. The worst part is that this person who I trusted I feel I can't trust anymore.

The point of this post isn't to wallow in misery and gain attention but rather to say that I learned something from this. Some points of clarity that I have found are that when people talk about love and hearts they aren't always being melodramatic. Another thing I learned is that maybe I needed to get my heart broken. It was good to feel intensely about someone and remember what that was like. I haven't had a boyfriend in a long time and I'd lost touch with romance and my emotions. To know that I could still open up to someone and that I wasn't strange and cold was good for me.

And so I start the New Year, a little raw, but more in touch with myself.

Karma

So just the last couple of weeks I've been getting shit on by the universe. Things seemed to have conspired against me to make me hate my job, not be able to see those who I want, and the less important things such as stress around the holidays (mostly focused around work), car trouble, laundry (its' a huge hassle to drive 30 minutes away just to wash your clothes and when you work 7 days in a row I frankly don't have 7 complete outfits, I barely have 10 pairs of underwear so you all can imagine what that's like), having enough time to cook for myself... and of course I'm missing a Belmont Christmas with my family which isn't going to happen again for awhile.

I needless to say haven't been a happy camper. But things this week seemed to be going a little easier. I was able to cook myself a big dish which I'm eating for lunch everyday, my laundry still isn't done but I have enough key pieces (clean underwear) to make it to where I can do laundry, and some people in my office have become less annoying. My schedule will also fall into place after the holidays. Which is nice.

However, I am a firm believer in karma. Basic principle you do good things, good things happen to you and then there's the opposite you do bad things, bad things happen to you. Of course I also believe there is a balance to the universe as well. sometimes a string of really awesome things will happen to you, and then followed by a string of really shitty things. Other times it feels like you 'save up' for something good. A string of crappy stuff will happen and it balance with a string of good things. I have the feeling my recent string of bad things has been saving up for last night.

Last night (9:15pm) I was coming home from work and I was on the dirt road that takes me up to where I live. It's a bit narrow and with the extra snow it's also a little slick. Sometimes when two cars meet if both go very slow and just barely make it. This ONLY works if both cars go over as much as they possibly can. The car I met on the road last night didn't move over, at all, in fact they continued driving in the middle of the road. My choices were to hit the car or put mine in the ditch. I figured for the safety of everyone it was best just to ditch my car. Lots of soft snow to cushion Otis's fall (Otis is the name of my car). The person in the car didn't even slow down and continued driving. I tried to back my car up, sometimes you can just get out like that. I didn't try too hard, If you do you will just end up burying your car even more. I knew at that very moment that it was going to take another vehicle to get my car out of the ditch. I also knew that my road was full of rednecks with trucks who LOVE to tow things and pull helpless people out of ditches... no seriously, they really live for this kind of thing. I did the only thing I could do at that point, I put the flashers on my car and got out and started walking up the road. Another car blew right by me, I kind of wanted to tell them to slow down, and then another car came by. This one stopped and I explained that my car was off the road, and they asked if I needed a ride to get where I needed to go. I hopped in and found out that it was my old 3rd grade teacher and her husband. I told them about what happened and my old teacher (who still works at the school) said, well that's too bad, in my 3rd grade class one rule is that everyone has to be nice. And it's not nice that someone drove by you and your car without slowing down or stopping on a winter night when there was clearly a problem. We drove to my place and I asked my neighbors if they could tow me, I have a tow strap in my car (thanks dad) which we used. My neighbors didn't have even the slightest problem going to get my car. And 10 minutes later it was out and by 9:40 I was back at my place, with my car.

Goodwill towards your fellow man isn't something that only exists from December until the New Year. It's a choice that we all can make to help our neighbors. We are all of one world and making it a better place by giving someone a hug, helping them carry their groceries out of their car, and helping pull their car out of a ditch at night, makes it a better world for you too. Thank you to those who helped me last night, and once again Happy Holidays everyone!

Gaining Perspective

So this ski season hasn't started off very well for me. I actually have a life and am trying very hard to live it this year. I have friends who I like to make plans with on the weekends, I have family who live in other parts of the country and I'm trying to set up my next adventure (this will be a new post). This year will be the 3rd year I will have worked in the office I work at. Overall it's been a cushy job, getting two days off a week, making reservations, having full time work, my hours being slightly flexible. The past years I've been rather flexible in my schedule without a whole lot of other priorities other than working. This year however I do have other things going on in my life. Due to a training schedule I have only had one week thus far where I have two days off in a row. Often times this means that I'm working 3 days and then 7 days. Needless to say this is very frustrating.

On my first two days off in a row my plans went down the drain for a number of reasons, all valid. So I decided that I was going to get some stuff done like get my car inspected, grocery shop, do my laundry, get my dress fitted for an upcoming wedding I'm a bridesmaid in, finish Christmas shopping... So I got my car inspected and went grocery shopping. I even went for a hike. This is where my weekend goes down hill. I saved Christmas shopping, dress fitting and laundry for Sunday. On Sunday I woke up to a flat tire. I pumped it back up full of air but was advised to not actually drive on it any more than I absolutely had to, which was to get it fixed. The killer part was the I was actually at a tire warehouse the day before getting my car inspected. Awesome. Nowhere in the state of Vermont actually repairs tires on Sunday. So I was stuck at home, at least I had gone food shopping the day before. On Monday morning I went back and got my tire fixed having just barely enough time to get to work. They were thankfully able to patch it, a total of $30. If I had gone to some other places they may have told me I needed a new set of tires. I then proceeded to have a very terrible day filled with obnoxious people on the phone and in my office.

This whole weekend and Monday were pretty terrible. But today something happened which helped me gain perspective. An elderly woman I know had a flat tire and took her car in, unlike myself, her tire was unable to have a quick patch put in place and all the tires on her car needed to be changed. $400 later this woman had new tires on her car. This is not someone who can afford a $400 car payment. She then was having to reconsider some plans that she had made based her finances. Here is an adult woman who is struggling financially. Even if this woman were to receive $1000 for a Christmas gift, this money would be spent right away on bills, mortgage, prescription medicine, and groceries. Living from paycheck to paycheck is never where I want to find myself. It makes me very sad to hear that someone who is elderly is having to do this. This woman has value in our society yet she is struggling to maintain a simple lifestyle. The financial struggles in life should come at the beginning rather than at the end. Hearing about these troubles especially around the holidays make me thankful for what I do have.

Right now If I were slapped with a $400 car bill, I would be able to pay it. I would gripe, and probably complain, but I would be fine. I would still be able to have a cell phone, pay my student loans, eat and buy the things I needed. My troubles at work not having two days off in a row and then having the annoyance of a flat tire, pale in comparison a grandmother who is trying to make the holidays the best they can for their children and grandchildren. Many people in the United States live paycheck to paycheck. I'm thankful that I am not one of them. However, these people have put my own problems into perspective. While annoying and frustrating as my current situation is I still am able to do the things I want within reason. My heart goes out to those who have to sacrifice over the holidays. I hope everyone has a safe place to celebrate among family and friends. I know that this time of year can be stressful and frustrating but please in those times where maybe things aren't going the way you planned please remember those who are less fortunate. Happy Holidays everyone.

'Lodging and Reservations, Melissa Speaking'

So my current desk job is a far cry from living on a glacier, hiking in Yellowstone or outdoor education but it is a job. It works perfectly in my schedule. Just because it's not the ideal job for me doesn't mean I can't go work everyday, make a few dollars and go home.

Here is my rant about jobs:
There are people in this world who do try day after day to find work and can't. This rant is not for these people. This rant is for the college grads who can't find work because they think it's somehow below them to clean a toilet, flip a burger, or run a cash register. I have heard many of my friends from high school say 'oh I can't find work.... It's impossible....' when they live in areas of world that I KNOW contain a Starbucks on every street, a McDonalds on every corner and about 4 hotels in the span on 5 miles. Suck it up, and apply. I realize that college is a lot of money, and when you just paid $80,000 for your education cleaning up vomit may not be exactly what you were envisioning. However, it does not mean that the bills stop coming. Maybe you were lucky enough to have mom and dad pay for college, and don't have student loans, that's great. I always have my jobs lined up. I've never been in a situation where I was jobless. I have to work at it, but I do find work, and I move to it when I find it. If that means mopping a floor, asking someone if they want a refill on their coffee or taking condo reservations over the phone, then so be it. I don't have to go into default on my student loans because of it.

Switching Gears

The winter begins... my slow season. The time of the year where I don't actually have to work more than 12 hours a day and live where I work. The best thing: I go to work. I work. Then I leave after 8 hours. It's great. I realize this is what the vast majority of the people who live in the United States do, but it is not what I do most of the year. In the fall I wake up and I'm at breakfast by 8am and then I'm done with my day by 9:30, sometimes 10. I love what I do, teaching children about the woods is one thing that I am passionate about. After working hard all spring, summer (in Alaska) and fall I'm ready for the 9-5 office job. Best perk it comes with a seasons pass.

However, I'm coming to realize that working at the ski mountain is not something that I can continue to do every single winter for the rest of my life. You may laugh but when I was 15 I had a nightmare that I never wanted to be realized. My nightmare takes place when I'm 30, I wake up I'm in a grungy apartment living in Ludlow I work at the mountain and the most expensive thing I own is my ski gear. I'm dangerously close to making that nightmare a reality. I've decided that this has to be my last season working at the mountain. I would even feel better working at another ski mountain, I just can't continue to live and work in the same town I attended high school. So while unfortunately this is my last season, I'm going to make it a good one.