'18/#23 We Can't Hide, And That's A Good Thing

We just got back from our two days off and are exhausted. The daily routine of work will let us catch our breath. Now I am not complaining because we had a great time the past two days. On our days off we normally make the trek to Bozeman to do the bulk of our shopping. We love where we are but there is no place to grocery shop in West Yellowstone. We make the 1 1/2 hour drive to Bozeman and make a day of it. We take our time, go out to eat, and just make it a relaxing day. This time was a little different.

On Monday friends that we worked with in Zephyrhills had made it to Teton National Park which is a little over an hour away from us. Well, when you travel thousands of miles to get someplace and then 50 or 100 or even 150 miles separate you from friends......well that is what we consider in the neighborhood. Wendy and Charlie agreed to meet us at Old Faithful for lunch so we could catch up. Little did we know that most of the caravan they were traveling with had decided to tag along. It was great to see Wendy and Charlie and it was fun to meet some of their travel friends.

After a good time with everyone and promises to keep in touch we did a little sight seeing before we went home. It took us over an hour to travel the 30 or so miles each way with the "animal jams" stopping traffic. This is when a buffalo or elk or bear or eagle is spotted and everyone stops in the middle of the road to see and take pictures. The thought of pulling off the road never seems to cross their minds but that is what we have to deal with during the height of tourist season.

The next day we got up way to early, for a day off, to go to Bozeman but with good reason. More friends just happened to be passing through our area and we couldn't pass up the opportunity to see them. It had been a number of years since we were neighbors in Florida. With us hitting the road and them moving to Georgia social media was our main connection so an in person meeting just had to happen. Scott and Peggy met us in Yellowstone with their 5 kids ( 3 of whom we have never met) and spent almost 2 hours just reminiscing and catching up on what was new in everyone's life. They were in the middle of an adventure of their own, moving from Georgia to Alaska to start a new life. They were all excited and doing well and we couldn't wish any more for them but to be happy with everything the future holds for them. Of course they want us to come see them in Alaska and who knows?

Back home after another "critter jam" it was dinner time. We were too tired to cook so we snacked and wound down and called it a day. Tomorrow we would go to work and slow things down and maybe get around to putting the rest of our groceries away in our home in West Yellowstone because......

Home is where we park it,
Frank and Mary