2020 Adventure will be Wall Drug

    Well today I had my interview with HR for Wall Drug and I am pleased to announce that I have been accepted to work there next summer. Here is my offer letter in case anyone in the future wants some information about working there:

Dear Bret,

I am pleased to have the opportunity to offer you summer employment at Wall Drug
Store, Inc. Your first day of work will June 1, 2020 and the last day of work will be August 16, 2020.

Working at Wall Drug will give you a huge insight into the business world and customer service as it relates to the traveling public. We see between 15,000 and 20,000 customers a day during the season; Wall Drug has a staff of 200 during the summer and 100 of those employees are students from across the United States and Abroad.

You will be paid $11.00 an hour for the first 40 hours of regular time and $16.50 for any hours worked over 40. The rate for housing is $50.00 per week and there is a $100 deposit due upon arrival. If you leave your room in the same clean condition it was when you arrived, you will receive your $100 upon your departure.

Wall Drug offers a free swimming pool and exercise room for employees. We have fun playing volleyball and basketball, and Wall Drug Store hosts 8 Get-Acquainted Parties during the summer. Wall is just 45 minutes from Rapid City where there is good entertainment and shopping. The beautiful Black Hills, Mt. Rushmore and other Black Hills Attractions are 70 miles away and all provide great opportunities on days off. You will be given a VIP Card that allows you to enter other attractions at discounted prices and in some cases, admission is FREE. The Badlands National Park is 10 minutes from Wall and is very popular in South Dakota. Wall has a beautiful new golf course and there are tennis courts in the City Park. The Wall Clinic is located one block from Wall Drug.

I look forward to hearing from you and hope that you decide to join the Wall Drug Team in 2020!

Sincerely,
Anne Jo Spotted Bear
Human Resources Director
Wall Drug Store, Inc.

Yellowstone Adventure 2019 Ends a Little Quicker Than Planned

  The 2019 Yellowstone Adventure is over.  I was supposed to work from August 12th to November 3rd 2019, but ended up leaving on October 13th 2019.  This was due to the fact we had 5 people working in grocery and in reality only needed 3.  The store hours were reduced to 9AM to 6PM and the weather closed the park a few times and the store had limited hours during those times. The last week I worked there I managed to only make $49. So I talked to Ron, the head of grocery, and he said there was no problem leaving early as they had the work covered OK.  I wanted to make sure he was OK and that I was not leaving anyone in a bind. One thing that I always worry about during limited hours is taking the hours away from someone that needs the money. Since I am retired I don't need the money as much as a temporary worker that this is the only job that they have.  I then talked to the store supervisor and he had no issues with me leaving early and understood why I was leaving. Little did I know that he had issues and that HR policy should have been discussed concerning ramifications about my continued employment.  As I found out after I got home that I was now black balled by Delaware North because I left my contract early. They indicated that I would have to take a year off before reapplying for a job.  Which means next year I will have to find other employment.  A little on this later.  I emailed HR back and forth several times on this issue and made no headway. I explained to them that I saved Delaware North money by leaving as I would have just been taking their money and doing very little work. I also felt that if I stayed much longer I would have been paying them to stay there, as the dorm fees, EDR fees and clinic fees would have added up to more than I was making. This made no difference. My final plea was for them to look at my evaluations over the past 4 years and decide if my record as an employee overcame their inability to communicate the consequences of leaving early.  That made no difference either. So God must want me somewhere else next summer.  That brings me to Wall Drug.  I have applied to work there next summer and will be interviewing shortly. I will keep the blog posted on how the process goes.

Yellowstone highlights for 2019 included:

1. Getting bear sprayed accidentally by a Taiwanese kid who was attempting to demonstrate how to use bear spray to his girlfriend.  Not a pleasant experience.
2. Hiking trails I never hiked before. Hell Roaring Creek, Natural Bridge and Storm Point
3. Hiking when 6 inches of snow was on the ground.
4. Visiting the ghost town of Banneck.

He is my message of goodbye I posted on Facebook:

Well all good things must come to an end. Today was my last day of my Yellowstone 2019 adventure. I am leaving a couple of weeks early mostly because business is too slow to employ 5 people in the grocery section.

As always I wish to first thank God for blessing me with the opportunity to be in such a beautiful and interesting area. 

I wish to thank my wife Cathy, whom I missed dearly, for letting me fulfill my bucket list. Now Cathy you will have to move your car over in the garage so I have a place to park. :)

I want to thank Ron once again for allowing me to work in grocery. As always you are great to work with, even though you are a St. Louis Cardinal fan. I will continue to pray for your Mom, you and your brother.

Thanks to Kathy, Jim, Janine and the whole EDR crew. The meals were fantastic, as always. Your caring for the health and well-being of the crew really shows. Of course making me eat broccoli was not a highlight. :)

To my friend Jack I wish you good health and may God grant you a well deserved rest this winter in Colorado. Abide.

To my co-workers Mark and Ryan. Thanks for the laughs. It's great working with people that make the job fun. I am still pushing for the establishment of the 5 foot 10 and under grocery union. You tall guys are a menace. :)

To Mary thanks for introducing me to Farkle and take care of Mark. Be a good navigator on the way home. I am sure you will spot a lot of wildlife.

To Bob and Patrick, it is good to see you both again and I wish you both well in your winter endeavors. So sorry for my Colts beating your Chiefs Patrick. Well maybe not too sorry. :) Bob I will continue to pray for your health.

To Judy, John, and Grace. Thanks for keeping the place clean. I know it is a hard job and you and your whole team did well. Thanks Judy for the Godly example you were to those around you. John I pray you finally get over your cold. 

To Hazel, Mary, and Lisa (aka Perky). Thanks for all the great work you did and it was fun working around you all.

To Dan and Bill, thanks for your leadership in herding the cats this year. I know there are times when things were tough, but you both came through with flying colors.

To Pam, Kay, Sam, Mariah, Nick, Denis, Shannon, Christine and any other I have failed to remember. It was great working with you all. Take care and stay safe and well.

To the 448,525 steps I have taken since I have been here, and yes I kept track. I thank you for the 20 pounds of weight loss. Let's hope I can maintain the weight and the steps when I get home.

To all my Facebook friends that put up with my posts and pictures and videos. Thanks for coming on this adventure with me.

To all those tourist that have crossed my path, one last time. 

1. Old Faithful goes off every 90 minutes. 
2. It's just a short walk to get to it. 
3. The bathrooms are just to the right. 
4. No I don't know which wine tastes the best.
5. Yes, I know the store prices are too high.