Park Ranger, part 1
To anyone who's ever envied the position of Park Ranger: don't. It's not all it's cracked up to be. It involves dealing with angry people, stupid people, a few nice people if you're lucky, and if the stars are aligned, you get some intelligent life! It also involves being outside in ANY kind of weather -- hot, warm, cool, cold, humid, dry, raining, snowing, windy, whatever. You're expected to just deal with it. Plus you're unappreciated most of the time, since people don't realize how tough your job is. Underpaid, since government doesn't want to fully fund parks, and the public doesn't want high entrance charges. Expected to work all hours from just-after-sunrise to about ninety minutes after sunset, which means you never know when you'll get your meals and your sleep. Your biological clock is turned upside down. You're expected to do a lot of physical labor, a lot of monetary transactions (accurately, despite the pressure from angry/stupid people), and your demeanor is to be pleasant at all times. Then there are the plants which may irritate your skin, puncture your skin, poison you, fall down in a storm and block the road.... and the animals which people try to interact with. Don't interact with a goose, a deer herd, a fox, red ants, a copperhead, black widows, mosquitoes, or a groundhog. This list is not complete. Every day, you have indoor duties, but don't let yourself get "stuck" there, cause your boss will demean you, even if you're working on something vital to the park. Finally, you're expected to operate many types of machines which may or may not be broken (not always obvious on first glance), and to drive around on official business -- responsibly! Don't fall asleep! You could be driving for 10 minutes, or 3 hours. Hopefully your truck won't experience technical difficulties.
The beauty of a park is best experienced by those who never work there.
The beauty of a park is best experienced by those who never work there.