Do Your Damn Research

So I seem to rant about jobs on this wondrous blog of mine.... This time I am amazed how people over the Thanksgiving Weekend can come to Vail, Colorado with no clue of what to do. I guess as a traveler, I am a little bit more prepared when I go on vacation, I get excited about where I am going and do a little homework. Is it that visitors to Vail come from such amazingly dynamic places with so much to do that Vail is outright boring for them so they must come to the info booth for me to plan their trip? When I travel, I don't expect someone to figure out my vacation for me; I have interests that hopefully correspond with the destination I have chosen, and from there perhaps I might inquire about specific options - hiking trails, camping spots, local pubs. But for someone who doesn't have any interests and for that matter has no idea of their destination, I have little patience and struggle helping them.

Case in point, I just had a man come into the info center wondering what there is to do in Vail . Hmmmm, let me see.... there's skiing & snowboarding of course, a scenic free gondola ride up the mountain, world-reknown shopping, eating, apres-skiing, snowshoeing, snowmobiling... None of these activities seemed to be striking a chord with him so I interject, sir, it's basically a winter resort town, hoping this will shed some light on where he is. In a continued effort to figure out how to help him better as my lengthy speech before didn't get us anywhere, I inquire, how long will you be here? A mere one or two hours he tells me. Are you expletive kidding me? Get out of here, go downtown, grab a drink and be done with it already. Walk the heated cobblestone streets of Vail and let me alone!

And then his cousin (figuratively speaking) comes in, Indian I believe.... same questions and I now realize that in their language there must be a large amount of literature printed out for them to help them get around in this world of ours. They could barely get their heads around Vail..... This time I give them exactly what they should do.... take the gondola up the mountain out of Lionshead, then hop on the bus to Vail Village, look around, again, have a drink and chill out, you are on vacation.

I must know though, how on earth does someone like this go to a big city or even a smallish city? We are talking about Vail, Colorado, downtown Vail Village maybe 4 blocks by 4 blocks, very safe I may add, no need to worry about getting jumped so go explore! I guess the note that strikes hardest is that travelers somewhere along the way have lost their desire to get lost in back streets and instead want everything figured out for them. Lazy travelers I say. I for one enjoy figuring it out on my own, you should have seen me in Panama City. I guess this lazy traveler notion isn't new... Edward Abbey so sadly spoke of it as "wheelchair tourism", referring to how national parks were radically accommodating those who wanted to snap a shot barely getting out of their car, like fast food scenery. I say, Go back to your cities and stay there.....

Modern Age Competitors

So my nature of being a substitute teacher, I have extra time to play on my computer. I have found the joys of playing online backgammon though I have found people's game ethics to suck! If a competitor is losing, they just click, End Game, and that's that. Loser and quitter! You wouldn't let your friend sitting opposite you quit a game just because he or she were losing but because of the nameless faceless quality of some gaming sites, there's no accountability. I sit through games of backgammon, getting creamed and not liking it but what's the good of quitting. If you think that backgammon, is just luck (and to a large degree it is), then play something with more skill involved. Don't bag out if you are getting beat, have more integrity than that or don't play. And more importantly, let me enjoy a win every now and again instead of quitting.....

Job Relativity

When one job is so irrating, suddenly other jobs become walks in the parks! After subbing a bit in the school district, returning to my night job of waitressing, becomes effortless, almost a welcoming change.

For someone who enjoys her quiet time, perhaps I should reconsider my job choices - working with students as a substitute teacher, serving food at a restaurant, and working at an information center, where YES, people ask the dumbest questions. Is it a pre-requesite to leave all your smart brain cells at home before coming on vacation? Well, pre-req or not, many people do, sorry to report.

It's easy to mumble under your breath now, wow, she needs a vacation perhaps. But 1 out of 3 visitors manage to show their love for asking ridiculous questions. Example, nice lady comes in and asks if our ice skating arena is Olympic size... just curious. I am unable to find any sizing statistics for her, not even on the ice rink's official web site, but I offer to call. No that's ok.... whatever! Next joe that comes in, remember it's November now, and he and his family are here to mountain bike. Innocently enough, may I ask, before leaving home, did you think about where you are going and what you can do on November 3rd in Vail? Hotel guests, these are great questions for your concierge, keep it in house please. Or better yet think about where you are going.

Alright, I'm tired of bitching about these people and perhaps I was just as annoying when I was a tour guide. I hope I wasn't though, I tried not to be. I will admit I brought people to information booths and let them ask their dumb questions. So in a round about way, I suppose I angered the information booth gods, and now it is my time to deal should I say with the silly questions. Stupid question karma has returned to me.....