ericcris10sen
First Fill-Up (of many)
- Location
- Zion National Park, Utah
Trying to figure out if this job is for me. Lately I've been either depressed or just kinda pissed at the National Park Service, which is where I work. A lot of parks don't allow dogs on trails or really anywhere in the park, which pretty much won't allow the rangers who live and work there, to have pets, i.e. hamsters, dogs, cats, birds, fish (well, maybe fish but if you're moving around every 6 months, it won't be good for the fish). I've always wanted to adopt a dog into my life. I'm 25 and I'm always on my own and I feel like a dog would seriously lift my spirits as well as just helping the dog out by getting them out of the shelter and into a home.
A lot of the NPS sites have houses for permanent employees and then either cottages, dorms, or shared housing for seasonal's. If you're permanent you would typically be allowed to have a furry friend with you, but if you're seasonal, it's practically a no-go. Well, why not live out of the park in an apartment? That WOULD be nice but for a couple reasons. 1.) You're there for 4-6 months, meaning depending on the apartment manager, you'll have to pay an extra fee to leave early. Some won't allow you to move in at all if you're staying for that long. 2.) Sometimes we're 1-2 hours from the nearest city that has any apartments.
I don't have any REAL technical skills when it comes to looking for a new job. I was military, an armored truck driver, wildland fire, and then I went into the Park Service. I love this job and I love the idea of going all over the U.S. working in beautiful areas and helping people enjoy their vacation. I'm damn good at this job and I really can't imagine doing anything else.
It's so easy to say "Just look for a permanent position". But the problem is, there aren't a lot out there. I'm pretty new to the NPS so I don't have a TON of experience in being a supervisor here yet, which is what the permanents usually are. Or they're sitting behind a desk doing paperwork which is what I WILL NOT DO.
I don't know. Where I work, we have sled dogs and I just feel so DAMN HAPPY when I'm around them. I know when I have a bad day at work (which is frequently. We deal with over a thousand visitors a day. Some nice, some well, some not so nice) I can just go to them and they'll make my worries go away. I know having a dog to go to will be non existent when I leave in September, and I'm dreading that. I'm just so pissed right now at the NPS for not allowing dogs in housing. I think dogs in general (and all other animals) make people happy and it's GREAT for moral. Depending on the park, it can be very hectic, such as this one. I honestly think if parks allowed people to have dogs in the park, it'd make the NPS lifestyle a little bit better.
Just right now, I don't know what to do.
A lot of the NPS sites have houses for permanent employees and then either cottages, dorms, or shared housing for seasonal's. If you're permanent you would typically be allowed to have a furry friend with you, but if you're seasonal, it's practically a no-go. Well, why not live out of the park in an apartment? That WOULD be nice but for a couple reasons. 1.) You're there for 4-6 months, meaning depending on the apartment manager, you'll have to pay an extra fee to leave early. Some won't allow you to move in at all if you're staying for that long. 2.) Sometimes we're 1-2 hours from the nearest city that has any apartments.
I don't have any REAL technical skills when it comes to looking for a new job. I was military, an armored truck driver, wildland fire, and then I went into the Park Service. I love this job and I love the idea of going all over the U.S. working in beautiful areas and helping people enjoy their vacation. I'm damn good at this job and I really can't imagine doing anything else.
It's so easy to say "Just look for a permanent position". But the problem is, there aren't a lot out there. I'm pretty new to the NPS so I don't have a TON of experience in being a supervisor here yet, which is what the permanents usually are. Or they're sitting behind a desk doing paperwork which is what I WILL NOT DO.
I don't know. Where I work, we have sled dogs and I just feel so DAMN HAPPY when I'm around them. I know when I have a bad day at work (which is frequently. We deal with over a thousand visitors a day. Some nice, some well, some not so nice) I can just go to them and they'll make my worries go away. I know having a dog to go to will be non existent when I leave in September, and I'm dreading that. I'm just so pissed right now at the NPS for not allowing dogs in housing. I think dogs in general (and all other animals) make people happy and it's GREAT for moral. Depending on the park, it can be very hectic, such as this one. I honestly think if parks allowed people to have dogs in the park, it'd make the NPS lifestyle a little bit better.
Just right now, I don't know what to do.