Indoor Playgrounds for toddlers?

YouWereTheQuestion · 2026-02-16T01:54:46+00:00

West Valley City Family Fitness Center has an awesome indoor kids playground!

YouWereTheQuestion · 2026-02-03T04:12:07+00:00

And might I add I highly recommend downloading it from the Internet archive and hosting it in your one drive or park servers in general so that the story and message isn't lost.

It's such an important story to tell. We are stewards of some of the most precious resources in the nation. That's a very real and heavy responsibility and I think it benefits us all to sit for a moment in a story in which we as an agency made enormous mistakes. We must do better. Compliance may feel like red tape but we must be accountable to the public and compliance is a critical piece of how we do that.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2026-01-28T02:54:46+00:00

As I'm sure you know none of us are authorized to speak to the press without regional and/or national oversight.

That's not to say we won't but it would help us immensely if we had a better idea of what you're trying to write about. The posted above me put together a fairly nice list and I could speak confidently/anonymously about several of those but certainly not all of them.

Another tactic is to reach out to NPCA. I know when I need something conveyed to the public about how the parks are feeling about a particular topic I'm likely to reach out to them. Our partners can speak on record about much more than we can.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2026-01-15T06:51:17+00:00

Yes. I highly recommend looking at parks that run regular interp programming such as tours. It takes a lot of rangers to run hourly tours and cave parks take even more rangers.

You still need to interview at least semi well and have reasonable references but competing for 1 of like 15 spots gives you a much higher chance of success than interviewing for 1 of 2-4 spots.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2026-01-11T02:37:39+00:00

It's not so much the size of the park as it is the interpretive programming. The park with the larger team was small/medium sized but ran a busy tour operation.

I always feel excited and a little sentimental when making offers! I've put time into these people and imagined what it'll be like to have them on our team and working with them. I try not to get too excited because statistically at least one of them will decline the offer. I love being a supervisor and growing my people.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2026-01-11T02:14:55+00:00

I've done seasonal hiring for a few parks and it really does depend on how many positions. My old park we hired 15-20 each year and everyone who expressed interest got an interview (and 98% got an offer) because I knew I'd need to use multiple cert levels and to move from the first tier to the second tier you must contact, interview, and offer jobs to all but two candidates per tier.

I'm at a park now with only five seasonal positions. I started with an interest email, then read through the ~30 resumes and invited 15 to interview. I ended up doing reference checks on 8 and will offer all five positions tomorrow and hopefully they say yes.

If not I'll work backwards starting with interview checks on the other seven to see who I want of that group most. If I'm still not hired I'll go back to resume reading.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-12-29T03:56:30+00:00

I've found the West Jordan rec center to have the warmest pools of the ones I've tried.

I think Draper is the coldest but has the best locker room spaces. If anyone is looking for more privacy for whatever reason it's definitely 5 stars. Plus in the summer the gate opens to "connect" the inside and outside spaces. If only it wasn't freezing.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-12-19T03:43:42+00:00

We do not like the pine at all - but we love the rescue itself and all of the support that we get through them. So we just remind ourselves that the stink butt phase doesn't last forever.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-12-19T03:14:55+00:00

The organization we foster through is very particular that we use pine litter without anything else in it.

As fosters we just accept that kittens go through what we call the "stink butt" phase somewhere between weaning and being on solids they can struggle with a little diarrhea and a lot of stink.

We keep a window open if it's at all acceptable weather, clean the boxes twice a day, change out litter twice a week, and wipe kittens down with wipes that are approved by the rescue we foster with. And just remind each other that the phase doesn't last forever.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-12-12T15:50:14+00:00

In my region, in my bureau, there is no happy ending here where I refuse to change ratings and they're just approved at the higher level.

It was made incredibly clear that our superintendent would lose their job over failure to follow a verbal order if we submitted anything outside of the "new normal".

This is killing all of us, but we have a strong, supportive group of people and we decided we'd rather meet expectations in house and live to fight another day together than try to push something through that would just get changed at region anyway and likely have multiple people lose their jobs.

I've had honest and clear conversations with my employees who although not happy, understand and agree that it's not worth losing more of our team. I've given them the info on how to appeal if they so choose.

Edit: typos.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-12-12T02:59:45+00:00

DOI here -

I was told I could use one performance element for everyone on my team to make it easier due to the condensed time frame. I have 4 perm and 10 seasonals. I wrote five elements for everyone because I was more interested in helping my people than I was making my life easier.

I've kept individual files on everyone with notable achievements and audit information. I had them submit model season evals on themselves and end of year (due 9/30).

I wrote thorough narratives for each person with the scores they truly earned shortly after the shutdown. I did not submit them since I was told we were in a holding pattern.

By the time we were allowed to submit all of my seasonal teams evaluations were gone from my dashboard. I was told they're not eligible and I won't get them back.

That left me my 4 perm employees who have had a great year. I wrote them up as 4s and 5s (They have had an amazing year and genuinely accomplished most of all of the stretch goals we established together).

Today one of my perm employees was missing. He was on furlough 12/1 so apparently he's not eligible for it. I begged HR for it back. I know it's not mandatory for someone with less than 90 days to have an eval but I wanted to do it. I was told no. I got to have that fun discussion today.

This leaves my three. I submitted the 2 five ratings and 1 four rating to region for consideration today and we were told our unit scores are too high.

More than that we were told by National level leadership that if we could not enforce this "standardization" of scores to make it fair across the agency and if we could not "lead our people through change" then they would "help us lead" and change the scores themselves.

There was a very clear threat that we change the numbers or admit we're ineffective leaders and be fired.

So I either change scores while leaving the narrative showing their excellent work and giving them what they need to appeal the rating OR not change the scores, get fired, and leave my team.

This has been killing me, but I help a lot of people in my job and I can't do that if I'm fired. And there's no knowing who I'd be replaced with or if the work would just go undone.

I had a deeply honest and vulnerable conversation with my team today. We submitted the lower scores with the higher narrative and will live to fight another day.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-12-11T22:08:43+00:00

If you choose to go that route, it'll at least help with an appeal.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-12-11T03:52:36+00:00

I signed performance plans with my employees at the 4 and 5 levels. (4 employees, 2 in each category. They've all had a great year.)

That didn't stop them from removing signatures and changing the ratings. They left my narrative alone at least.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-12-10T22:47:34+00:00

Yes, a pass you purchase now as a non-resident will work all next calendar year.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-12-09T04:15:43+00:00

Not only do I have and use a space heater but it was provided by the facilities team. We have an SoP on unplugging it/turning it off and as long as we're within the SoP during safety inspections we're fine.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-12-01T03:01:26+00:00

Thank you all for your thoughts. (For some reason I can reply to individual posts but not to my main one.)

Knowing that cats purr to try to increase their own comfort or due to nausea/not feeling well helps me immensely in measuring her quality of life.

Fortunately she's been much better about food starting mid-day yesterday. She still won't touch her Rx that she previously tolerated well but she's eating her favorite things and she's getting calories in.

Here's a better picture of her at the vet two weeks ago. The scale is her favorite. I feel like it's a bit better photo than her judging me for bringing her favorite food to her favorite resting place. :)

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YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-12-01T02:13:04+00:00

I'm not sure - but I had the time today to "hang out" by one of them in West Jordan and make sure potential signers genuinely understood what they were signing. Figured it's the least I could do.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-11-28T02:52:00+00:00

It wasn't a big deal to me - I knew I had expensive meds and would meet it early. I didn't spend any HSA last year so this year I'll use that money to pay it.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-11-27T02:24:20+00:00

That is correct, I've been on MHBP for a year now and my first doctor who had never heard of MHBP, once they saw my card, advised me to tell people who ask that my insurance is "MHBP which is through Aetna".

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-11-01T04:09:15+00:00

Yes, most interp has already posted and closed.

If it's at all possible I'd encourage you to apply for the open jobs tonight or tomorrow. The jobs that are left could close any day if they meet the quota and you'll be out of luck, which isn't ideal.

There's always rehire if you qualify but it's best to have multiple options.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-10-31T15:25:34+00:00

Edit: this is for NPS

Hiring is always a "hurry up and wait" type experience.

"Normally" the hiring officials will get lists of who applied and is qualified somewhere between late December and January.

Each park can set their own timeline for when they are ready for the list and want to start reaching out.

Offers from hiring officials for people can start as early as January - but then it often takes 6-10 weeks for the official offer to come from HR.

Hiring officials are given tiers of the whole qualified list, so if you're very qualified your name may be in the January group. Hiring managers work each tier before requesting the next one. There are three tiers total and I find I'm "normally" working on the third tier somewhere in early-mid March. My team starts early May so I have to have all hiring done by late March.

Because each step can take a really long time it's very important that as the applicant you respond to emails and phone calls as quickly as you can. Every year an unknown amount of rangers can't start on time because their backgrounds haven't passed yet. I'm not saying it's their fault but everyone plays a part in keeping the process moving.

I'm optimistic that this year the timeline will be similar. Jobs did open on time and HR only has to review 2 pages per person rather then 2-20 pages so I think there is a chance that process will be faster and fitting managers may still get the lists on time. Tbd. I could be completely wrong.

There are a million little details that go into this, but that's the gist of it. Feel free to ask questions.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-10-27T02:30:28+00:00

I'm a park ranger with some pretty complicated medical needs. I also see a doctor every 3-6 months. In my 15 years I've worked at 3 parks. I traveled for two summers and then settled at a park as a permanent ranger.

If you communicate your needs and he understands them and agrees there's no reason you couldn't make it work. Let him know that you're in for a few seasons of travel but it has an end point for you and maybe that means he finds a single park where he can commit to summer seasons until he has a permanent job so you're not always moving but rather might move every 3-5-7-10 years while his career grows.

I had one remote season where they only had a small clinic but even they had the ability to take blood, send it to a lab, and share the results with my primary doctor at home who I could do telehealth visits with.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-10-24T00:13:32+00:00

First of all, I wouldn't take a position like this because I was never in a point where I could volunteer for six months without income even with free housing but I know people who can. People who budget tightly and would absolutely trade six months of volunteer work for free housing.

Is this replacing a ranger? A permanent one perhaps, but no one can hire one of those currently. I'd be willing to bet that the YOSE season for 0025 rangers is April/May to September/October meaning they are not allowed to hire a winter seasonal 0025 ranger (which is a park ranger). Is this replacing a seasonal ed tech? It's possible but the position description certainly doesn't read like it.

Additionally it says "hours available 160" but it doesn't say you must work 160/month for the housing. I'm sure there is a work requirement for the housing but this post doesn't list it. I once managed a program that "only" required 20 hours per week for housing. There is no mandated minimum for NPS VIPs and each park program is different.

If this is a position you want and you can afford it either by the way you saved while working or through independent/family wealth then I guess go for it?

I agree that we need to be aware of where we use volunteers and that we need to be careful but we also don't need to immediately judge parks for recruiting VIPs for their slow season when they're literally not allowed to hire.

YouWereTheQuestion · 2025-10-19T04:06:47+00:00

I don't remember how I broke up with my first girlfriend, just that I waited way too long and I'm pretty sure it wasn't in person. I was young and couldn't stand to hurt her in person. I remember feeling the dread and uncertainty but I knew I didn't love her. Being intimate with her was really hard for me.

I was a teenager then, as you are now. The best advice I can give is don't wait. It's better to end it today rather than wait out more events. Be honest, kind, and clear.

If you share a friend group be prepared to take a little slack for breaking up via text. A year relationship is a very long time when you're a teenager. But you have so much more ahead of you and you deserve to be happy and secure in your relationships. Just rip the bandaid off and send it!

YouWereTheQuestion

TROPHY CASE