Meeting Mr. President

Sorry I've left you all hanging. Things have been pretty busy and all...you know: with seeing the president, leaving Montana, Amy and Matt's wedding, moving to my new apartment, preparing for my graduate assistantship, and finally starting grad classes. It's been a crazy and slightly stressful week.

Well, I'm going to primarily devote this post to the town hall meeting I attended in Belgrade, Montana where President Obama spoke on August 14th. In my previous blog I wrote about the great lengths I went to to get the tickets. Well, it all paid off on Friday.

Jacob and I arrived at the Gallatin Airfield in Belgrade around 10:30 am Friday morning. Doors to the event opened at 10:45, but there was quite a bit of traffic congestion getting to the hanger. While waiting in line we jammed out to some old rap music Jacob had in his car. The lyrics were ridiculous which made it even more awesome as we drove past protesters and camera crews with our windows down, music turned up, singing to "It Feels Good to be a Gangsta."

By the time we actually got in line we were pretty excited. There were police officers and secret service everywhere. We also watched as several helicopters with armed marines landed right by the building. After going through security we finally made it inside. There was a stage at the front of the building with seats situated in a semi-circle around it. Behind the stage was a huge American flag.

Our time waiting inside seemed to go by pretty fast and before you knew it the meeting was starting. First a pastor gave an invocation in which he asked for "God's protection over everyone in attendance...including the elderly." The way he said it made it sound like the elderly wouldn't normally be included in the collective term "everyone." Jacob nearly burst out laughing mid-prayer when he heard this...I almost did to. The Governor and Senators from Montana then got up and spoke for awhile.

Around 12:47 a member of the secret service came out and placed a plaque with the presidential seal on it on the front podium. This meant Obama was in the building. You could just feel the energy and excitement in the room when this happened.

Finally, around 1 pm a woman facing health care issues shared her personal story of suffering and then introduced President Obama. It was a pretty surreal experience. It's hard convincing yourself that what you're seeing is actually true. We were literally a few feet away from the most powerful man in the world. Our seats were pretty good too...we were in the 10th row, dead center.

President Obama then spoke for the next hour to hour and a half about health care. He was certainly a very motivated and passionate speaker that was fun to listen to. I know he's a politician and he knows how to put a good spin on things, but what he said actually made a lot of sense. He said he wanted to make it illegal for insurance companies to drop your coverage because of a health issue, he wanted to make it illegal for insurance companies to raise the cost of your insurance because of an illness, and he wanted affordable health insurance for all citizens. He made sure to specify that he does not want socialized health care.

Anyways, he then fielded questions from the audience. I had one prepared, but he actually already answered mine during his speech. Most of the questions were friendly, but there were a few people who had some differing views. For instance, Obama kept saying that insurance companies are making too much money while the consumers are going broke. A man who sells insurance then asked a question and said it didn't seem fair that Obama was villianizing health insurance companies.

After he got done answering questions he made a concluding remark and then came down from the stage and began shaking people's hands. There was a barrier dividing the crowd from him and I made my way up to that barrier and managed to shake his hand. As I did so I simply said, "Hello Mr. President." He responded "How's everyone doing?" So it wasn't exactly a personal response, but it was good enough. I couldn't believe I actually got to shake his hand (In the picture shown above it is my hand Obama is actually shaking).

Following the meeting we went outside and took pictures of Air Force One which was parked behind the hanger. It was a lot bigger than I imagined it would be.

We left the town hall meeting feeling much more knowledgeable on the issue of health care reform as well as feeling very privileged that we were able to see President Obama speak in person. Years from now I will tell my grandchildren about the day when I got to shake the president's hand. This experience was an unexpected one, but it proved to be a great way to end my summer in Montana.

Obama Mania

On Sunday I found out something that completely changed my plans for the week: Barack Obama, you know...the 44th President of the United States of America, was planning a visit to Montana and Yellowstone. I-was-psyched.

All I have been able to think about the last few days is getting to see him. Now, I admit, I'm not exactly an Obama fanatic, but I am a fan of America and it's presidents. I respect Obama as well as all the other men that have risen to that distinguished office.

Every day this week I've been reading the papers and searching online for more details about his visit and every day a little more information was released. This is what it boils down to. President Obama will arive in Belgrade, Montana (right next to Bozeman) early Friday afternoon and will speak at a town-hall meeting about the proposed health care reform. He held a similar meeting in New Hampshire earlier this week. After speaking, Obama and the entire first family will travel down to Yellowstone to do some sightseeing. It is suspected that he will travel by helicopter from Belgrade to the park. His visit in the park is meant to boost interest in travel to the national parks. Following his time here, he will go to Colorado and then the Grand Canyon.

Tuesday night I found out details about how to actually get into the meeting. All available tickets were split between two distribution centers: the Belgrade City Hall and the Bozeman City Hall. Tickets were available for distribution beginning at 9 am this morning. When I first found this out I thought I would try to drive there in the middle of the night and get in line for tickets around 5 or 6 am.

Then yesterday afternoon I realized that if I really wanted these tickets I would really have to fight for them. After all, only 300-500 tickets were going to be available for the general public. So, I left West Yellowstone around 6 pm yesterday and arrived in Belgrade around 8 pm to sit in line. I decided to go to the Belgrade City Hall since it is a much smaller city than Bozeman and I figured I would have a better chance at getting tickets.

At 8:30, after stocking up on snacks and with McDonald's in hand, I got in line for tickets. I had a long wait in store, but I figured it was worth it. When I got there I was the 15th person in line which was a relief, because I knew I was definitely in the running for the tickets unless if a ton of people would cut in line.

While waiting I chatted with a man named Kevin who was in front of me and a man named LaVon who was in line behind me. There were other fun people there that made the time pass by fast. There were also some loudmouths who thought they knew everything...and nobody wanted to hear it.

The time did really go by fast...I took a ton of stuff to do and hardly got any of it done. Around 10:50 there was the first argument about people "cutting" in line. Around 11:30 a man told me I looked "cool" with my headlamp on...I couldn't tell if hew as serious or being sarcastic. Around 11:53 a lady freaked out when she thought her dog ran away...he ended up being under her chair. At midnight I laid down in my sleeping bag on the moist ground wrapped up in numerous sweatshirts and blankets. I fell asleep watching the stars...I actually saw 7 shooting stars! At 5:30 am I woke up to people whispering about people cutting in line while everyone was asleep. At 6:45 LaVon jokingly shouted at me "Hey Nebraska! Are you going to lay in that sleeping bag until 8:45...right before they hand out them tickets?" I said, "Yes, what of it!?" Around 7 am I was up and all packed. When I went to bed there had been about 50 people in line, when I woke up there were a couple hundred. I passed by the last hour by reading an issue of TIME magazine all about the health care reform so I could be more knowledgeable on the topic.

To our surprise, at 8:15 the line started moving....they decided to start passing out the tickets 45 minutes early. So by 8:20 I had two tickets to see Obama in hand. I was so excited! Then I was just worried that I would be jumped and robbed on my way back to my car! I kind of felt bad for all the people who didn't get tickets...they just didn't get there early enough I guess. One lady who had been near the front of the line went to the bathroom and ended up not getting tickets. I witnessed her breakdown...not a pretty sight.

Anyways, tomorrow is the big day. Since I got two tickets Jacob is going to go with me (Nate left early this morning to head back to Nebraska). The gates open at 10:45 so I want to get there by 10 am. Obama won't speak until 12:55 pm and I suspect he'll speak for about an hour. Afterward, I'm flooring-it to Colorado for Amy and Matt's wedding. Now, I just need to think of a legitimate question to ask Obama...something that won't make me look dumb. If I get to ask him a question I'm totally going to put that on my resume: "I have interviewed the President of the United States." Even if it's only one question it still counts.

Regardless, just being there is going to be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity...something I will share with my children and even grandchildren some day. I still can't believe that I'm getting the chance to see him. Go figure, I go out to the middle of nowhere for the summer and end of meeting the most powerful man in the world. I don't know about you, but I think that's pretty cool.

Those Crazy West Yellowstone Nights

West Yellowstone isn't exactly New York City in terms of nightlife, but we've been managing to keep ourselves amused out here. Over the last week we've had several late night excursions that have proven you can have fun once the sun goes down, despite being out in the middle of nowhere.

Last Thursday the Jamaican workers invited us to a Jamaican Independence Day party. We went to Kim's apartment for awhile and then to Wild West Pizza and Bar. We played some pool and the girls took lots of pictures. They also convinced me that as a skinny white boy from Nebraska with no rhythm, I was never destined to be a dancer.

On Saturday, Nate and I went over to Island Park to meet Hailey Jo who was there camping with her family. We spent a few hours there in the afternoon which included skipping stones on the lake (which I'm horrible at) and then Hailey making us bagel sandwiches (thanks Hailey). Well, we decided those few hours weren't enough so after I got off work at 9 I drove back to Island Park, picked up Hailey, and then brought her back to KOA. She got to meet a lot of my co-workers and got to see how quaint little cabin.

THEN we drove into the park in the middle of the night to see Old Faithful erupt in the dark. It's something I've wanted to do all summer and haven't made time to do yet. Well I can check that off my to-do list. We got out to the boardwalks that wrap around the geyser just after midnight. It was pretty much perfect timing because Old Faithful began erupting at 12:15 and surprisingly we could see it pretty well thanks to the stars and moon. We also had flashlights and I wore my headlight...so I looked extra cool. It was a good time and fortunately we didn't hit a bison in the dark.

Sunday night the KOA employees got together for ED-fest...named after Ed, the head of maintenance here. We pretty much just sat around a fire out in the woods, ate some food, and I played with a Siberian Husky that was there. Sweet life, I know.

Monday night involved Jacob and I having dinner at the patio BBQ here and then going to town to see Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen. I had already seen it, but the tickets were free so I couldn't pass that up. Afterward, we went and chilled with Kim for awhile.

Tonight is my last night in West Yellowstone so I better make it a good one...so far I've cleaned my cabin and played an online game with Tim. I definitely know how to have a good time. But heck, the night is still young, who knows what kind of mischief I'll get into...

Natalia's Day Out

About a week ago Natalia (AKA the pregnant Moldovan girl) asked if she could go into Yellowstone with me some time. She's worked here all summer and had yet to experience the park. I agreed and promised that I would take her with me some time when I go.

I feel really bad for her because she is 1 1/2 weeks shy of being six months pregnant and she's stranded in the U.S. She no longer has the energy to clean daily here at the KOA and her husband back in Moldova wants her to come home. She was originally scheduled to leave here in September, but wants to get her tickets changed to some time here in August. Unfortunately, she has been unable to do so. She's been trying for weeks to get them moved up, but no luck.

Natalia is no longer working because as a rapidly expanding pregnant woman, she is in no condition to be doing so. She actually passed out the other night while at the patio BBQ...she kept insisting that she was fine, but I don't think she's eating right or drinking enough fluids. Whatever the case, it's bad news. So she just sits in her cabin all day doing practically nothing. Fortunately, Luda has a laptop with internet so that helps her pass the time.

The second reason I feel bad for her is that this past Tuesday Nate and I went into the park and I didn't invite her. It wasn't that we didn't want her to go with it's just that we were going to be gone ALL day and wanted to do some hiking and we figured it would be too strenuous for her. We actually spent the entire day in the park and did both loops...so it would have been too much for her. Well, she found out that we went into the park (thanks to Jacob) so I felt really bad. I explained that we knew it was going to be a full day and that's why we didn't ask her to go with. She gave me a hard time, but said she understood.

Anyways, yesterday I finally took Natalia into the park for the afternoon. It turned out being a really fun afternoon. She was so excited to see everything. It was like I was a dad going into the park with his kid, she was so excited to see all the sites. Before we left I stopped and bought snacks and drinks and then I took her photo in front of the entrance sign to commemorate her first trip. I felt like a dad taking his kids to a ball game for the first time, it was a special day for her.

This summer I have found out that if there is one thing foreign girls know how to do, it's how to strike a pose for a picture. Natalia was a picture-taking maniac. She didn't necessarily take a lot of photos of the landscape, but rather had me take a ton of pictures of her posing in front of the landscapes. I felt like a photographer taking senior portraits. One awesome side note for all you movie fans: Natalia wore a shirt that is almost identical to one Juno wears in the movie "Juno" (the movie about the pregnant teen). So I felt like I was traveling with Juno all afternoon!

We ended up mostly driving through the geyser basins. We went down Firehole Drive, saw Old Faithful, the paint pots, and several other hot springs. She seemed to have a great time, but I could tell by the end that she was getting tired so it was a good thing she didn't got with us on Tuesday.

We also had to head back because a storm was moving in. I was personally a little nervous because the night before I had a dream that I was struck by lightning. In my dream I was walking across a parking lot when I saw a bright flash, a ripping noise, and then the next thing I knew I was laying on the pavement, unable to move. It was like a movie camera that had been dropped...that's how I remember it. So you can understand why I was a little skittish when Natalia and I made a dash for my car when the storm came in. It was like deja vu: I was walking across a parking lot, just like in my dream and I saw lightning flash out of the corner of my eye just like in my dream. I thought, "Oh crap, I'm going to die here in a parking lot with a pregnant girl who can barely speak English....great."

Fortunately, I made it back to the car safely, Natalia didn't pass out AND she didn't go into labor under my watch....whew.

A "Local's" Perspective on Tourists

I know I've only been here a couple of months myself, and I still do plenty of sight-seeing on my days off, but I consider myself a temporary local of West Yellowstone...NOT a tourist.

However, I actually feel that I've come to know the tourist scene pretty well. Afterall, I work at a campground full of tourists and frequently visit the park where I am surrounded by hundreds of tourists.

I've come to notice several patterns and behaviors exhibited by nearly every family that vacations here. Some of these are obvious, I know, but I still don't understand why almost all tourists share these same traits.

First of all, the appearances of all tourists are nearly the same. The "dad" type where flat-billed hats, sunglasses, khaki shorts, black socks half-way up their calves, and some variation of a striped polo shirt. Mom's are decked out in some sort of visor/wide-brimmed hat, "mom jeans", a satchel slung across her body, and occasionally the infamous fanny pack (actually, a fanny pack can be worn by sexes, either way they're totally awesome). And, of course, every tourist must always have a camera hanging from their neck or firmly held in hand. The hard-core tourists walk around with tripods...I always stare at them and think, "really?" I don't understand why tourists always look so out-of-the-ordinary. I'm sure these people typically look perfectly fashionable back home, but the second they go on vacation everybody turns into a giant nerd. Nobody ever looks "cool" while traveling.

When traveling, people always try to dress comfortably...I've come to this one conclusion: YOU ARE NEVER COMFORTABLE WHILE TRAVELING. A combination of heat, crowds, continuous walking, repeatedly getting in and out of the car, and grouchy travel companions can quickly make one VERY uncomfortable. One thing that personally always makes me uncomfortable is when my pockets become full of "essential" stuff such as: my wallet, sunglasses, keys, camera, coins, pamphlets, and anything else I might pick up along the way. It makes walking very uncomfortable when the camera in my side pocket keeps banging against my kneecap. I'd rather just leave everything back in the car.

It's also interesting to eves-drop on family's conversations. Outwardly, the family may look perfectly happy, but it seems like there is always tension while traveling. Someone's always complaining about something: someone's always hungry, someone always has to pee, someone's always pouting, and someone's always tired of walking. I always think, "Well, what did you expect to do? Of course you have to walk on vacation!" It seems like the "happy family vacation" is usually anything but. I've witnessed so many stressed out family's I can't imagine any of them are having a good time.

I believe that when people go on vacation they're always looking for something...and I don't mean the next bathroom or a place to get lunch. Especially here in Yellowstone, people are looking to be inspired. People expect to "become one with nature" here. It seems like people get their hopes up so high that they are just setting themselves up for disappointment when the perfect get-away turns into a family cat-fight. They have an idealized image of what Yellowstone should be like, but for many that image never really comes true. I think that to truly enjoy what Yellowstone and every tourist destination has to offer people need to talk less and just take it all in. They should sit down silently and observe the beauty all around them without worrying about the trivial things of life.

When on vacation: we need to quit complaining, stop worrying, look around, and thank God for all the wonderful things we have been surrounded with. I believe these are the ingredients for a great vacation and a more fulfilling life in general. Oh yeah, and one more important ingredient: please don't dress like a nerd, unfortunately this means leaving the fanny pack at home.