So let's talk a bit about how the trip evolved. I think I've talked about the "two-week vacation" rule at JPMorgan - so I won't here - but they offered a chance for us to cross-train for a week to give us some of those vacation days back. Cross-training wouldn't amount to much because we're not allowed to log onto our own computers. We couldn't do any work...we'd just be watching.
So I asked for permission to train with one of our settlements areas. I've always kinda complained about their lack of responsiveness, and I wanted to see what the heck is making them so damned busy. They said it was okay, and that it would work out.
One week before, I get a call from their VP - my cross-training wasn't properly approved. And, thus, cancelled. Apparently they're short-staffed, and I tried to argue that I wasn't going to get in the way - I wasn't allowed to do anything but watch - they might not even know that I'm there. "Doesn't matter," she said.
So I had two choices - try to get proper approval for a different department or just screw it and take the full two weeks with my vacation days. I chose the latter - mostly because I don't really care about any other department. I barely care about mine.
With an extra week to work with, I decided to take a vacation. I thought about driving somewhere and just getting away from town to clear my head, but that didn't seem organized enough. The beach has soothed me for as long as I can remember, and I knew I wanted to go there. And so I thought about my aunt, who's been begging for me to visit for the entire year. I figured it would be cool to go there - I could see LA and stay with her for free.
So I did it. Within a couple of hours of being told that my cross-training was cancelled, I'd bought plane tickets. I'd traded the cross-training (Monday-Friday) for a trip to LA - it worked. I also planned a bunch...I was going to go to a Dodger game and I was gonna meet up with the cute girls that work at PIMCO - who I'd met through the job. I was pretty excited.
And for a few moments, I was a bit startled. I'd just spent a few hundred on a whim - I'd planned a trip without thinking about it. It was really out of character for me - I like to do a lot of thinking before I do anything too crazy - but it was also pretty freeing.
Flash-forward to Monday morning. I was a little nervous about it because it all seemed so patchwork, but I was also excited to get away. I got to the airport with my brand-new laptop bag and started to go through security.
Now, before I'd left the house, I realized that I'd forgotten to pack my earphones. I wanted to watch a movie on my laptop on the plane, and I grabbed a pair and stuffed them into my pocket before I left. And as I was emptying my pockets at security, the earphones fell out of my pocket. Since they weren't made of metal, I just put them back in my pocket. Security saw that and didn't like it.
I got pulled aside, and this security person asked to see my hands. She wiped them with this cloth, and then asked to see my "fingertips." I was already showing her my fingertips so I was confused. She repeated her request to see my fingertips, and I was confused. I had no idea what she was asking me to do, and as far as I knew, I was already showing her my fingertips.
Apparently, she meant my fingernails. She wiped them down too and then ordered me to wait until she said "clear." So I did as I was told, but I asked her what the heck the whole search was about. She ignored me until it was clear. And when I repeated my question, she told me that she was testing for "chemicals" on my hands.
I realize that she saw me as some kind of threat because of the earphone wire, but I don't think she needed to be an a-hole about it. I wasn't acting aggressively, and if I was nervous, it was only because I was put on the spot. I had nothing to hide, and I was very cooperative when I finally figured out that "fingertip" meant "fingernail."
But the cloth or whatever was on it kinda burned my fingertips so I went and washed them immediately.
So I flew to El Paso and then to Los Angeles. On the way, I found out that the El Paso airport doesn't have free wi-fi. Neither do the Austin or Los Angeles airports. If you wanted internet, you'd have to pay $10 for it at any place.
Can't we get free wi-fi at the airport considering how expensive everything is? I mean, I see their pattern - food is expensive, books are expensive, checking bags is expensive (not on Southwest!), and the flight is expensive. But can't we get a break for internet? Hopefully those fees are the first to go...although I doubt it.
So I arrived in LA, and the first night, I went to a restaurant called "home." I immediately found out that Los Angeles is more animal friendly than Texas, as there were several dogs at the restaurant. They apparently are okay with dogs at the restaurant, enough so that they bring little water bottles for the dogs to have while they patiently sit under the table. My aunt brought her dog, and it all seemed to work.
And that's how my trip began. I already explained about my trip to Universal Studios. Over the next few days, I'll cover the rest of my trip. And now that I'm back, you all can stop worrying about me - I didn't die in an earthquake.
But there was one. Stay tuned.
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