I grew up cold in smalltown Gunnison at the Roaring Judy Fish Hatchery. Like many others, my childhood consisted of imaginary friends, playing pretend and evolving in my own creative, crazy way. Long after I stopped seeing my imaginary friends, and before I really “grew up,” I found myself nervously driving over Red Mountain Pass on my way to Fort Lewis College. To be clear, I was mostly nervous about meeting so many new people and making the perfect impression, not so much about the crumbling, winding road. Weird.
I started out a shy, 18-year-old accounting major. I didn’t really have an identity and thought that college would create one for me. Two years into my accounting degree and I still couldn’t find the person, or rather the identity, I had been searching for all over campus. It clearly wasn’t in the business department. In an effort to find my future, I took a semester of grab-bag classes and landed upon the treasure I had been seeking. After working on my business brain for two years, I decided to take a completely different direction and declared English Communications as my major.
Throughout my various college jobs, I completed an internship at The Durango Herald as a reporter. It was rough at first, but after clocking hours of computer time writing articles and obituaries, I had finally found something that I was interested in: Other people. Writing helped me find my imagination again and a little piece of my childhood self.
In addition to completing my internship at the Herald, I became involved with KDUR, the college radio station, 91.9 and 93.9 FM for those of you who haven’t listened. I started out hosting a midnight to 3 a.m. show once a week, gradually moved my way up to producing and editing content, and after graduating college, worked briefly as the office manager before dedicating my days to working as a massage therapist. Radio gave me the opportunity to outgrow my shyness, and I still host a show every Monday morning from 6 to 8 a.m. (Give a listen!)
So, if you’ve made it this far, you have basically taken in my glorified résumé. However, I have neglected to mention that in addition to being a KDUR DJ, massage therapist and writer, I am also a waitress at the Red Snapper! Which is what brought me here, to DGO.
This weekly column will be dedicated to exploring different perspectives and facets of the service industry and nightlife in Durango. Topics will be light hearted and good humored, but informative. At the very least you will get a glimpse of the ups and downs of the industry from a server’s perspective. You can also look forward to reading about how industry workers wind down after each shift, how many miles a server walks on the average night/week/month, why you should never write “cash” in the tip line of a credit card receipt and the tipping policy in general.
There will also be focus on how different industry workers define and provide exceptional service and hospitality, how customers expect to be treated when dining out, and I’m sure somewhere along the way you will hear about waiter/ waitress pet peeves. If there is a topic you would like to see in the magazine, email me at [email protected]. I am open to any and all ideas!
Taylor Ferraro provides five-star service and entertainment at the Red Snapper. She is also a massage therapist and KDUR DJ. Contact her at [email protected].
