So the Saturday before last, my family came in town! Unfortunately for them, their car's AC went out and it's sorta a hot drive between LA and TX. Anywho, they came to SeaWorld on Monday and Tuesday. I got to do opening lines for the show and of course my parents were beaming and telling everyone around them that that was their son. Haha. And surprisingly, my mom cried the whole time. After the show I got to take them backstage and show them around where I work and they got to touch Tuar!
Later that day, we visited Beluga Whale and Dolphin Stadium and they got to be kissed by a Beluga Whale which they loved. Then we went around the park and checked out the other shows etc. At Shamu Rocks Texas that night, the pre-show contains a dance contest to win a Shamu stuffed animal. Well usually they go down to two finalists, an older person and a kid, and the kid always wins. Well that night, Jonah made it in the final two, and beat a little girl. How proud he was. Haha.
The rest of the week we kinda just explored San Antonio. We went downtown to shop and eat at the River Walk which is really nice. For the 4th we went shopping again and then went to SeaWorld that night to see Shamu a couple more times and see the fireworks.
Unfortunately they had to leave on Sunday and drive home in the blazing heat without an AC again. It was really, really great to have them here and show them what I do. It's weird that I'll only see them once this summer. Kind of sad!
I also had Kale and his family randomly visit me! It was really cool to see him! I complained to him about not being able to do STRIPES this year and he was like seriously? you play with whales everyday. That definitely helped me put things into perspective. Ha.
Work itself has been going really great. I'm glad to feel like I am contributing member of the team and not just "the new guy" who can't do much. I feel like I'm doing a good job. I've been getting good compliments from my supervisors and Chuck, the head of the Viva show, who originally hired me. He says he hears that I'm doing a great job and to keep it up. So that's really promising!
Me and the other apprentices have gotten to feed out the last of their buckets after our last show of the day a couple times which was really awesome. You think something like that would be very simply but I am horrible at getting the small fish in the whales' mouths. I'm sure they are like great, I have the new guy. Haha.
I'm realizing how quickly this summer, and with it this great experience, is coming to a close. It's weird. I tell people I'm 50/50 with how I feel right now. I miss Baton Rouge and people a lot but then I think about not going to work to play with whales everyday. And I think of the great friends I've met here. And I think about going to class. Haha. But I'm definitely ready to get back. Hopefully, I've done a good enough job that they will ask me back and I can move here permanently. Although the thought of that is horrifying right now.
I do hope that my new SeaWorld friends will be visiting me in Baton Rouge! It'd be fun to have them there for a football weekend. It's very weird how split I am. At first, before I moved here, I was doubtful that I'd ever be back to Baton Rouge, then I moved here and realized how much I missed BR and the people there and couldn't wait to get back. Now I'm sort of, in a small way, starting a life here and enjoying it more and more here. It's definitely a good learning experience. A good experience because hell, I'm playing with whales. But also a good experience to show me how great I have it in BR, how amazing my friends are in BR, and how much I need to appreciate that every day during my last year. My last year, man that's weird. Definitely going to have to enjoy this to the fullest.
Will try to post another blog soon! Until then, miss you guys :D
The pictures are from our July 4th at SeaWorld and the Shamu Rocks Texas show!
