Seriously. My recent adventures in traveling across the country have been dismal to say the very least. We left the Columbus, Ohio area on Sunday morning at 7. We got all the way to Indianapolis for the snow started that day. The roads were in great shape until then and we made great time. We had a few stressful miles on the home stretch, but made it to Susie's in one piece. Finally. Praise the Lord. Honestly. That was a rough trip. We were at Susie's long enough to unpack my car and get me settled into the upstairs guest suite. I then turned around and packed again for my trip to Pittsburgh.
We grabbed a quick lunch in Fishers (with right at 678 children. Seriously. There were just not kids in Boston so I had forgotten how annoying it is to be in a restaurant filled with tired, hopeless parents who allow their children to run and scream as they please. End of rant.) and headed for the airport. The snow had passed and we felt good about my chances at an on-time flight schedule. We were wrong. My first flight from Indianapolis to Chicago got delayed. When I finally got to Chicago we had to sit on the runway for an hour waiting for a gate. While we waited, to conserve fuel (aka $$), the plane was turned off so it was dark and freezing. Yep. American Airlines. They're a class act. We finally got a gate and the runway bit had cost me making my connection. They booked me on a new flight. It got canceled. I got sick of dealing with it and found a place to watch some of the Super Bowl. (Side note: In the future Super Bowl Sunday will be a personal holiday for me and I will no longer agree to travel on this special day. It was far too painful to miss the big game.)
They booked me on another flight and it was delayed. I finally got out of Chicago at 1:25 a.m. Eastern. I originally got to the airport at 2:45 p.m. Eastern the previous day. Yep. What a joke. I finally got to Pittsburgh after 2:30 a.m. local time, hailed a cab and made it to my hotel. In what I think must have been pity, the hotel put me on a
concierge floor with free food, drinks,
turndown service and a private elevator. I could get used to this. ;) I crawled into bed at 4 a.m. and had to be up again at 7 to make it to orientation. Whew. I am tired just thinking about it again.
I made it through the entire day without coffee even. (This was not by choice, but the Starbucks was too crowded for me to stop in this morning and still be somewhat on time.
Grr.) It was a real miracle. I don't have much to say about my first day. It was pretty standard. I do notice that
Deloitte seems way more relaxed than
PwC. It should be interesting to compare and contrast the two firms since they're such close competitors.
Orientation was over by 3:30 and I came back to the hotel for a hot shower and a nap. It was glorious. I wandered outside to get some dinner only to find that the restaurant I wanted to eat at was closed. I then got turned around and lost for a brief period. I actually did not
panic. I know. I'm such a city girl anymore. I quickly found my way back to the hotel and dined in the restaurant here. The food was incredibly fancy and expensive (Thanks for dinner,
Deloitte! ;)) which is not my style. I forced down enough food to hold me over and came back upstairs. Sigh. I'm going to have to up my game on the cuisine front if they're going to put me in such nice hotels when I'm traveling. HA!
Jackson took
MacKenzie to the vet this morning for her yearly check-up and she was perfectly
healthy.
Yay! She is such a good girl. Jackson has interviews downtown Indianapolis tomorrow starting at 1 and going until 4. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers. He then heads for the airport to return to Boston. We will pass in the air as I return from Pittsburgh tomorrow night and report for my first real day on Wednesday. I know. It is a really hectic time in our lives right now, but that's how we keep it interesting. ;):) I'm excited for Jackson to return to Indianapolis and settle in with
MacKenzie and me in the near future.
I'm pulling for both of our sets of flights to go as planned tomorrow. Fingers crossed!
I got up early today and started to work when it was still dark out. I was ready to have a busy and productive Monday. Then I unexpectedly hit a puddle (really a lake) in the neighborhood. I was able to regain control of my car and not hit any trees or mailboxes, but as I got through the puddle my car died. DEAD. It just turned off. I felt a touch of panic. I remained calm for the most part. I called Jackson in Pennsylvania. He was encouraging, but of no help being so far away. I called my parents. On the second try they answered at 7 a.m. (sorry about that, guys). I ended up having to get a tow truck because my car was just done with me. It took about 2 hours from beginning of ordeal to end of ordeal. It was a cold morning waiting in my car for help. I was thankful to be in a safe place, though. It could have been worse. At least that is what I keep telling myself. I had to call into work since I'm now stranded with no wheels. Ugh. I'm hoping for positive news from the dealership that I had it towed to- fingers crossed, please.
