All I did Saturday night was wait for my cell to buzz, or my email to pop up with a message saying that I was needed at work. Let us just say I managed to get a lot of cross stitching done that night. In the morning, at the breakfast the hotel provides daily, I met one of the project managers and he mentioned that they might need me this morning or later today. I just needed to check my email and see if someone had reached out to me that way. So I took a four hour nap (waking up at the two hour mark to check my email) and came to the conclusion that I could probably find a better way to spend my time than sitting around waiting for the phone to ring.
Warning: Lots of pictures in this post. Lots lots lots.
Wednesday, December 18
Saturday, December 14
Night Two.
There are two less minutes of sunlight here. I thought that I missed the sunlight because I switched my days to nights, but it turns out that the daylight is two minutes shorter each day. In the wintertime every minute of sunlight is precious, and perhaps we do notice when it's not there.
I was every bit sound asleep today when a sudden shrill note began ringing in my ears. I stumbled around trying to find that cursed alarm clock that I swore I had turned off first thing upon arriving two days ago. I pressed all of the buttons two or three times, rotated the volume dial on the side thinking maybe that would silence it, even rotated the tuner back and forth. In an instant the noise stopped. Irritated, I rolled back over on my side, away from the malfunctioning electronic device. I was almost back asleep when it came again, that shriek of an alarm which I couldn't block out even with my hands across my ears. my next thought was that the thermostat was the culprit. Don't ask me why I had it in my mind the thermostat was causing the air conditioning to create the awful noise - I needed to believe that was the answer so that I could fix it.
As I moved towards the tiny box on the wall I realized that the noise wasn't coming from the thermostat, it was much louder outside my room. Only then did I reach the conclusion that anyone who had been awake and not in dreamworld when this happened would have come to. The fire alarm. That profanity provoking fire alarm. I could not believe the hotel would have a fire drill in the middle of the afternoon when most of their tenants would be out on business. The insanity of it. I entertained the idea of staying inside my room for two seconds before I figured I would be deaf if I stayed in this echo chamber for much longer, and if it was a real fire then I would very much like to survive it. I got my valuables together and was at the door when the ringing stopped. I stood in limbo for a minute, my hand reaching for the door handle in case it started up again, but nothing happened. Relieved I wouldn't have to leave the room, I set everything in its place and crawled back to bed.
I ended up restlessly attempting to sleep, but no position seemed to work. I resigned myself to getting ready for the day now and taking a nap at a later time. When I went downstairs for dinner some time later there was a distinct smell of smoke in the air, although probably not as powerful as when it originally happened, and a few of the lobby doors were propped open. I bet by the time I get back any trace of smoke will be gone, replaced with that absolutely welcoming scent of bacon, eggs, and sausage.
That's all for now. I'm sure tomorrow will have a whole new adventure for me.
I was every bit sound asleep today when a sudden shrill note began ringing in my ears. I stumbled around trying to find that cursed alarm clock that I swore I had turned off first thing upon arriving two days ago. I pressed all of the buttons two or three times, rotated the volume dial on the side thinking maybe that would silence it, even rotated the tuner back and forth. In an instant the noise stopped. Irritated, I rolled back over on my side, away from the malfunctioning electronic device. I was almost back asleep when it came again, that shriek of an alarm which I couldn't block out even with my hands across my ears. my next thought was that the thermostat was the culprit. Don't ask me why I had it in my mind the thermostat was causing the air conditioning to create the awful noise - I needed to believe that was the answer so that I could fix it.
As I moved towards the tiny box on the wall I realized that the noise wasn't coming from the thermostat, it was much louder outside my room. Only then did I reach the conclusion that anyone who had been awake and not in dreamworld when this happened would have come to. The fire alarm. That profanity provoking fire alarm. I could not believe the hotel would have a fire drill in the middle of the afternoon when most of their tenants would be out on business. The insanity of it. I entertained the idea of staying inside my room for two seconds before I figured I would be deaf if I stayed in this echo chamber for much longer, and if it was a real fire then I would very much like to survive it. I got my valuables together and was at the door when the ringing stopped. I stood in limbo for a minute, my hand reaching for the door handle in case it started up again, but nothing happened. Relieved I wouldn't have to leave the room, I set everything in its place and crawled back to bed.
I ended up restlessly attempting to sleep, but no position seemed to work. I resigned myself to getting ready for the day now and taking a nap at a later time. When I went downstairs for dinner some time later there was a distinct smell of smoke in the air, although probably not as powerful as when it originally happened, and a few of the lobby doors were propped open. I bet by the time I get back any trace of smoke will be gone, replaced with that absolutely welcoming scent of bacon, eggs, and sausage.
That's all for now. I'm sure tomorrow will have a whole new adventure for me.
Friday, December 13
Night One.
Yesterday I had the distinguished honor of staying up all night. The task would have been easy, save for waking up at eight in the morning and indulging in a day of airway travel. I made it to the airport at noon, and ended up at the hotel at eight thirty in the evening (nine thirty Lone Star time). If someone can give me a reason as to why we still have the Wright Amendment I would be grateful. I decided to visit Michaels before they closed - did I mention I forgot to bring something to do while I'm staying up the whole night - and had to choose between paint by number with paints that looked dry as the desert or a small cross-stitch pattern. I feel I chose wisely.
I also hit up tar-jey to pick up some dinner. While the hotel does offer complimentary breakfast and dinner, the latter ended at seven in the evening and therefore did me no good. And, this is the answer to the question why I did not go to a fast food place, I was craving vegetables. It must have been something about all that travel, but I wanted to eat a whole entertaining tray of veggies and dip. I ended up eating a deli sandwich that looked to have spinach, lettuce, tomato, cucumbers, and turkey on it. In addition, I picked up some steam-in-the-bag vegetable mix (my fancy hotel has a microwave in the room), and hummus and apples. I can't remember why I'm telling everything I bought. Oh, and I snuck some free utensils from the in-house Pizza Hut, because ain't no way I'm buying a whole box for a few meals.
The rest of the night was spent in cycles of stitching while watching television, nearly falling asleep with a pointy object in my hand, getting up to walk around the room and do silly walks to get my blood moving, and checking the time. As the hours wore on it became increasingly difficult to stay awake and stitch. I knew if I could just make it to six o'clock there would be a hot breakfast waiting for me downstairs. Somewhere around five, when I got really desperate, I took a shower and took a light walk around my floor. That bought me enough time and energy to stay awake until six. I can only imagine how haggard I looked compared to the business professionals loitering around in the lobby. Scrambled eggs and sausage gave me enough chutzpah to keep my lids open til seven thirty. I took the extra blanket and pillows and propped them up against the thankfully heavy curtains, blocking out any chance of sunlight peeking into my room. I laid my sleepy head down on a surprisingly comfortable hotel pillow and dreamt of pretty white lab coats.
I was woken to the sound of my phone ringing. My husband was calling to tell me there was an issue with my rental car. I debated whether to go back to sleep or retrieve the rental document from my car and give the company a ring. After choosing the first option and having no luck drifting back to dreamworld, I ventured under very sunny skies and obtained the paper I needed. A call to the rental company uncovered the issue - the sales girl had written part of the license plate in a black box on the carbon copied paper, and now the desk jockeys couldn't make out the plate numbers. Lucky for me, this call gave me just enough of a customer service headache to instigate instant sleep once I got back to bed.
My alarm rang at five in the evening; it felt much too early, even though I had slept all day. The free dinner had a salad bar and hot dogs, but that was fine with me. There were also free (and to some degree alcoholic) drinks, but I had left my drink punch card upstairs and I reasoned it would probably not be wise to imbibe then go to work. After some more stitching, I arrived at the facility at ten. I love working with someone new, and especially in a new place, because it gives me a chance to see how they do things differently, and if I can glean a more efficient way to do a task then all the better.
It did not get difficult to stay awake until around two in the morning. My partner then showed me the incredible coffe machine they have. I've never seen anything like it. It's a cross between a vending machine and a coffee pot. You select your coffee (free brew, not free lattes and mochas) then choose the strength, the amount of cream, and the amount of sugar. It even shoots a cup into place for you, then mixes everything together. I burnt my tongue just a little bit because it was just that delicious. I had two cups of glorious coffee and went back to work. Lunch for me consisted of water, a banana, and a granola bar. The rumors of not being particularly hungry on third shift were pretty much spot on. But believe you me, I was definitely ready for breakfast once I got back to the hotel at six thirty.
Right now, I'm waiting until the sun comes up a little more so I can get some vitamin D. It gets pretty cold at night 43 degrees) compared to the daytime (72 degrees). Until next time.
I also hit up tar-jey to pick up some dinner. While the hotel does offer complimentary breakfast and dinner, the latter ended at seven in the evening and therefore did me no good. And, this is the answer to the question why I did not go to a fast food place, I was craving vegetables. It must have been something about all that travel, but I wanted to eat a whole entertaining tray of veggies and dip. I ended up eating a deli sandwich that looked to have spinach, lettuce, tomato, cucumbers, and turkey on it. In addition, I picked up some steam-in-the-bag vegetable mix (my fancy hotel has a microwave in the room), and hummus and apples. I can't remember why I'm telling everything I bought. Oh, and I snuck some free utensils from the in-house Pizza Hut, because ain't no way I'm buying a whole box for a few meals.
The rest of the night was spent in cycles of stitching while watching television, nearly falling asleep with a pointy object in my hand, getting up to walk around the room and do silly walks to get my blood moving, and checking the time. As the hours wore on it became increasingly difficult to stay awake and stitch. I knew if I could just make it to six o'clock there would be a hot breakfast waiting for me downstairs. Somewhere around five, when I got really desperate, I took a shower and took a light walk around my floor. That bought me enough time and energy to stay awake until six. I can only imagine how haggard I looked compared to the business professionals loitering around in the lobby. Scrambled eggs and sausage gave me enough chutzpah to keep my lids open til seven thirty. I took the extra blanket and pillows and propped them up against the thankfully heavy curtains, blocking out any chance of sunlight peeking into my room. I laid my sleepy head down on a surprisingly comfortable hotel pillow and dreamt of pretty white lab coats.
I was woken to the sound of my phone ringing. My husband was calling to tell me there was an issue with my rental car. I debated whether to go back to sleep or retrieve the rental document from my car and give the company a ring. After choosing the first option and having no luck drifting back to dreamworld, I ventured under very sunny skies and obtained the paper I needed. A call to the rental company uncovered the issue - the sales girl had written part of the license plate in a black box on the carbon copied paper, and now the desk jockeys couldn't make out the plate numbers. Lucky for me, this call gave me just enough of a customer service headache to instigate instant sleep once I got back to bed.
My alarm rang at five in the evening; it felt much too early, even though I had slept all day. The free dinner had a salad bar and hot dogs, but that was fine with me. There were also free (and to some degree alcoholic) drinks, but I had left my drink punch card upstairs and I reasoned it would probably not be wise to imbibe then go to work. After some more stitching, I arrived at the facility at ten. I love working with someone new, and especially in a new place, because it gives me a chance to see how they do things differently, and if I can glean a more efficient way to do a task then all the better.
It did not get difficult to stay awake until around two in the morning. My partner then showed me the incredible coffe machine they have. I've never seen anything like it. It's a cross between a vending machine and a coffee pot. You select your coffee (free brew, not free lattes and mochas) then choose the strength, the amount of cream, and the amount of sugar. It even shoots a cup into place for you, then mixes everything together. I burnt my tongue just a little bit because it was just that delicious. I had two cups of glorious coffee and went back to work. Lunch for me consisted of water, a banana, and a granola bar. The rumors of not being particularly hungry on third shift were pretty much spot on. But believe you me, I was definitely ready for breakfast once I got back to the hotel at six thirty.
Right now, I'm waiting until the sun comes up a little more so I can get some vitamin D. It gets pretty cold at night 43 degrees) compared to the daytime (72 degrees). Until next time.
Wednesday, December 11
Faux-nix
It's the first time I'm flying Southwest. Usually I go with the larger and much more crowded international airport, but my tickets this time were courtesy of the big orange and red plane. There aren't as many people here, but that could be because it's the middle of the week and the middle of the day. Without the thousands of people wandering about, I find that my trip is much less stressful. Thats not including the part where I'm preparing for third shift work in the short period of two days. The only other time I've been totally awake between the hours of midnight and eight in the morning was that one summer in college where I gradually pushed back my bedtime until I started waking up when the sun was going down. Unintentional though it was, at least I can recollect a time when I was entirely a night owl, and perhaps I can draw on that experience in the coming days. There are some people at my work that transition from third shift to first shift on Saturday, then make the reverse trip back to their routine on Monday. So it is possible.
Christmas caught me off guard this year. Actually, backing up two weeks, Thanksgiving snuck up on me rather stealthily as well. While I really love what I do, I hate that it makes the months go by so quickly. I feel like last week everyone was buzzing with pumpkin spice latte fever, but in a week and a half I'll be sitting in my parents' living room set upon pouring out my stocking and unwrapping gifts from under the tree. I wish I asked for paid leave the whole week of Christmas; now I'll be part of the skeleton crew that's covering for the several people who had the sense to take the week off. When did it happen that I had to plan to be with both sides of my family for the holidays? Sometimes I desperately wish to go back to the young days of wondering when school was back in session. When I had days of baking Christmas cookies with my Mom, all of us children helping to decorate the tree and hiding the chocolate ornaments in a place we were sure no one else could find, playing with our new games or reading our new books or fighting over the stereo player to listen to our new CD's. Nostalgia is always twenty-twenty.
This Christmas, even if I only have the one day off to celebrate it, I will try not to cram all of my favorite things into one day as I have in the past few years. I used to be stressed out that I wasn't making all of the types of cookies, or that we didn't watch all of the ten or so Christmas films we used to watch, or that the tree is decorated just perfectly with every family heirloom ornament. What will be will be, and all that truly matters is I get to share Christmas with the ones I love. Because it really does only happen once a year.
I suppose that's enough wandering for now. Only another hour until I get to take my four hour nap. I mean, flight.
Christmas caught me off guard this year. Actually, backing up two weeks, Thanksgiving snuck up on me rather stealthily as well. While I really love what I do, I hate that it makes the months go by so quickly. I feel like last week everyone was buzzing with pumpkin spice latte fever, but in a week and a half I'll be sitting in my parents' living room set upon pouring out my stocking and unwrapping gifts from under the tree. I wish I asked for paid leave the whole week of Christmas; now I'll be part of the skeleton crew that's covering for the several people who had the sense to take the week off. When did it happen that I had to plan to be with both sides of my family for the holidays? Sometimes I desperately wish to go back to the young days of wondering when school was back in session. When I had days of baking Christmas cookies with my Mom, all of us children helping to decorate the tree and hiding the chocolate ornaments in a place we were sure no one else could find, playing with our new games or reading our new books or fighting over the stereo player to listen to our new CD's. Nostalgia is always twenty-twenty.
This Christmas, even if I only have the one day off to celebrate it, I will try not to cram all of my favorite things into one day as I have in the past few years. I used to be stressed out that I wasn't making all of the types of cookies, or that we didn't watch all of the ten or so Christmas films we used to watch, or that the tree is decorated just perfectly with every family heirloom ornament. What will be will be, and all that truly matters is I get to share Christmas with the ones I love. Because it really does only happen once a year.
I suppose that's enough wandering for now. Only another hour until I get to take my four hour nap. I mean, flight.
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