Thursday night I was assigned airport alert at 2045. I had no problem going and figured I wouldn't be sent out due to the latest of it all. I brought my computer to occupy the four hours and dinked around. It is amazing how much a time such facebook is! I popped over to the crew site to look at what may be around the corner for me and found out I already had an assignment for the next day. My anger of still having to sit for another two hours when both they and I know that I am assigned something tomorrow made me acknowledge and delete the 1300 assignment quickly. I was furious, airport alert again! It would be 12 hours and 15 minutes in between them. I walked to the phone at 0040 to ask to be released five minutes early so I would ensure I could catch the bus home, the last bus home at 0100. When the scheduler hymned and ha'ed about it, I almost lost it, "I have to be back here in 12 hours you dumb bitch!" is what is running through my head.
With it was how long will it take to get home, if I take a cab how much time can I save before I am in bed?
What time do I need to get up tomorrow because there is a snow storm coming?
Should I take the train versus the bus?
But I wanted to take pictures of the snow fall in CP and bake cookies, now it is all ruined.
I hate my job.
This is absolute bullshit!
I set my alarm and drug myself out of bed. I was also upset because my holiday postcards where not here yet and they needed to be sent out. Turiya ventured up to have a quick coffee with me and allow me to vent my frustration with the unpredictability of my life. Off to the airport I go. I get there around 1230 and grab some bad Chinese food because I knew I would be hungry at some point of my incarceration. I had not brought my computer in case I was sent to Central or South America both of which were an option at that point during the day. I also discovered on the way in that I forgot my mobile. Stupid rush to get out of the apartment and to work on time. So I went to the crew computers to see if they had an early assignment already on my line. I looked at my schedule wondering where the airport alert had went.
It all clicked together much to my dismay at that moment...I had mistaken my call out line (which goes from 1330-2100) for airport alert. Shit, shit, shit!!! So I went to call scheduling as the snow began to build outside to explain my dilemma and beg them for an assignment. I only did it because I could not be without my mobile for more than 20 minutes because now I was on call and it took 1.5 hours to get back home. And more than likely with the weather, I would have been called back out any way.
So I was assigned airport alert (for real this time) at 1530. I sat until 1800 listening to the phone ringing off the hook as flights were cancelled and moved about. The airport was a clusterfuck to say the least. Finally it was for me and in good time too as my old roommate (old backstabber) had just came in for her airport alert. Off to GLA. Okay I can do that. So I grab a salad and head towards the gate.
Here is the next 44 hours in short:
an hour delay in getting the plane
quick boarding
did I mention I had to work the back/economy galley?
an hour to de-ice the engines before we could move from the gate to the de-icer for the wings
long line for the de-icer told by atc to wait at the gate
completed two water services, snack service, beverage and dinners service, picked up, and another beverage service
still on the ground, still at the gate
four hours later, get de-iced
de-iced for an hour
finally take off six hours after scheduled departure
spend the next 6 hours trying to stay awake
nodded off a few times
Get to the hotel
four hour nap
meet crew for dinner and a well deserved beer
go to bed
wake up at 0430 (wake is at 0615)
get into shower at 0600
get phone call that wake up is now 0815
get two hours of sleep
flight time ended up being 8.5 hours
we are supposed to get crew rest but family refused to move out of our assigned seats
bad service given to family with a lot of dirty looks
land
make it home three hours later than expected to walk through the slush
now sitting here in a fog as I do laundry and as my roommate runs his mouth despite how many blank stares I give him
This ladies and gentlemen was all self imposed torture for reading my schedule incorrectly.
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