15 Jun “Nigún trabajo es malo… lo malo es tener que trabajar”

As I look over the horizon in daily guided tours, I am always amazed at how beautifully painted the rural plains of Idaho are. It has officially been almost a month that I moved here and was greeted by one of the many hundreds of critters that inhabit Craters of the Moon National Monument & Preserve.  In my first week  that I started to work as an Interpretive Park Ranger & Outreach Intern I have literally met and talked to people all around the United States and the world. I have had the pleasure of meeting professional geologists, biologists, researchers, and truly hard working people who hold a wide range of knowledge and expertise whom I am able to my co-workers. It is truly an amazing experience to be surrounded by people with so much dedication to their work and performance.

Last week was the last bit of evidence that I needed to fully know that Craters of the Moon is indeed one of the major gems of Idaho. CRMO holds an annual event called the Star Party  where I had the pleasure of meeting and speaking to some retired engineers who were fascinated by the night sky  in an organization called the Idaho Falls Astronomical Society(IFAS).  I was so use to seeing the Los Angeles night sky with a couple of  stars here and there and that during the time I was here, in Idaho,  I did not bother to look up at the sky at night. When I went to the event I was in complete awe and amazement of the the number of vibrant shimmering dots of light that beamed! There were SO many! One of the members told great stories about the constellations. I must admit that since there was so many of the stars it was hard to keep track of what constellations he was talking about with his laser pointer. I spoke with other members of the IDFAS and they were more than happy to show me some galaxies, planets, and stars through their each uniquely different high powered telescopes. For the first time, I saw the rings of Saturn, the Big Red Planet, Galaxies, and even the Sun that were trillions of miles away!

After the event was over I still did not have enough I wanted to soak the beauty for awhile longer so my amazing housemate Cash, my neighbor Kristabel and  I climbed the top of Inferno Cone (which is essentially a volcano) laid down some blankets on the softest lava soil , laid down, and just looked up. I have never had such a serene moment, there is no other sound that surrounds us other than the gentle wind blowing on top of Inferno Cone. It is interesting to think that above the L.A city lights there is an even more beautiful sky and never would I have ever experienced if it were not having the privilege of working for Craters of the Moon.