week 1

I have been in NoDak for a week.

I am sooo happy that my mom made the drive with me, because there were stretches of road that were killer. BORING! We stopped the first night in Miles City, Montana because my boss didn't save me a room in Williston. Thank god I decided to call and check, otherwise we would have been driving back.

We got into Williston last Sunday and it seems like a semi-decent place. It really reminds me of a jacked up on steriods version of Burley, except people in Burley know what customer service is. Mom and I went to dinner one night at Applebees, and I will never go back to this one ever again in my entire life. The service was awful and the people in charge have no business running a business. It was awful.

This oil boom has brought thousands of people to the area with no where to live, made price gouging the norm, and pissed the locals off. I have yet to meet a true 'local.' I have been told there aren't many true locals in the area, so if you find you it's like find a four leaf clover.

Work has been ok, other than the hotel I am 'training' at is still a disorganized mess. The desk staff is poorly trained, the accounts are soo messed up it could take me weeks to get them to a better spot, and it's hard to find people to work. This is going to be sooo different for me. Thank god I will be sent on business trips in a few months to get all my IHG stuff out of the way, it will be a very welcome break from this NoDak craziness.

I won't have a place to move into until spring, so I will hotel living for a while. It could be worse, so I am thankful I have a comfortable bed and my own bathroom which is more than some people have in this area.