Have you ever been completely physically exhausted, but your brain wouldn't shut off? That was me on my second day in Charleston. I lay in bed, trying desperately to go back to sleep, but since I couldn't, I just got up and showered. Again. I think I forgot I showered the night before.
Let me just stop here and say that you are never quite as naked as when you are naked in the full glare of florescent lights and in front of a huge mirror. That was what the hotel bathroom was like. The tub was right across from the sink and mirror, and I looked up after moving the shower curtain aside. I looked up and saw this:
*Shudder* It was...concerning.
(That was not an invitation to think about me naked. Stop it.)
Anyway, after getting ready it was time to start the day. I decided that I was going to be administrating the hell out of the Charleston office, and all of that started with a trip to Wal-Mart and Sam's for supplies because they do not have an admin assistant in that branch, and stuff that we all take for granted in Huntsville simply isn't dealt with over there. I crammed the rental Malibu as full as I could with snacks and supplies and somehow managed to man handle them all into the building. That sounds easy, but it wasn't because the parking is weird and the office is on the second floor, and I didn't have a cart or anything to assist carrying all of that stuff. It was multiple trips carrying heavy, unwieldy stuff and it sucked, but I managed to get it all up and inside!
I was all alone in this strange office and you'll be happy to know that I didn't snoop or break anything. In fact, I was useful! I cleaned and straightened and replenished all kinds of things. I organized! I made lists! I...got my groove interrupted in the middle of the day to go to Chick-Fil-A to buy lunch for the people at the conference! You know, I like Chick-Fil-A as much as the next person, I guess, but there is absolutely nothing so special about them that I should have to sit in a car line for 45 feckin' minutes to buy food!! It wasn't even that they weren't fast, it's just that there were that many people in line. Unbelievable.
Anyways, I got them all fed and watered and headed back to the office where I got back into what I was doing. The main thing I had to do that day was organize a storage room filled with all kinds of stuff and computer equipment. I set bout inventorying everything, down to the last lapel pin. I actually had to make myself stop take a lunch break, and had one of the best hamburgers of my whole life from a place called The Tattooed Moose. It was called a Brunch Burger and you should try it immediately. I also met an awesome dog and I bought a t-shirt from a local shop on my break before getting back to it. It was all very confusing and busy, but I finally got things organized.
At some point through all of that I had to leave and pick up a box of flyers, and the print shop was out in the middle of nowhere, but I found them and hauled my carcass back to the office to keep going.
By the end of the day I was dirty, tired, and my brain was fried. I went back to the hotel (where Steve was by that point) and I changed so that I could go out to an after party thing and dinner with our coworkers. Apparently, I didn't have to go, but unless I wanted to sit alone in the hotel room and eat trail mix for dinner again, that is what I had to do. I also learned that going to these after-party things is political and everyone feels obligated to do them. Not me so much, because all I am is a glorified secretary, but everyone else did. We went to a very loud, very crowded bar and hung out being seen until finally we got away to go have dinner. The marketing director (who is younger than me and I love her to bits) wanted to go to this particular restaurant to eat something she'd seen on Instagram, and because she'd been working her ass off and was more tired than I was, I made sure we made it happen. The restaurant was called Chubby Fish, and it was sublime. I don't use that word lightly. You order everything tapas style and share with everyone at your table, and everything we ordered (that I tasted, anyway) was excellent. The wait staff brings it out, explains it all, and lets you enjoy. I want to go back!
By that point we were all punchy and tired to the point of feeling drunk, so we walked through downtown for a while and then got a ride back to the hotel and went to bed.
BTW, the Charleston staff was thrilled with everything I did. They were so kind and excited to have had help. It made all the hard work worth it!
The next day was much less extreme, but still exhausting. I was on call all day, lived almost solely on that same damn bag of trail mix because I didn’t know our hotel had a restaurant, and had to run errands and buy more supplies. I did manage to sneak a quick nap that afternoon, which was nice. I had to take a break and go to a local mall, because I realized didn’t pack enough clothes! I mean, I had clothes, but because I didn’t realize what I’d be doing on the trip I brought things like leggings and long shirts/sweaters which weren’t appropriate for what I was doing and where I was going. It had been so hot that I needed short sleeved shirts, too. I didn’t expect Charleston to be hot in December!
That night we did a bit more socializing, and then afterwards three of us went out to a quiet dinner to get away from the noise. Again, we were so punchy and exhausted that when our Uber picked us up, we started laughing and couldn’t stop. I’m sure our driver thought we were all high, but really, we were just so tired that we lost all sense of composure.
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