The Night of the Bookcase

Although progress in the working world has been slow to say the least, life on the domestic front has been improving. I think Ty may have underestimated the number of books I intended to bring with me. Since I unpacked them a week and a half ago, they have managed to spread out and have virtually held the living room hostage. We were sequestered into inhabiting less than 400 square feet in what was already a small apartment. Clearly we needed to reclaim our living room. Here is a short list of the helpful suggestions Ty had for what we should do with the books.
-burn them
-throw them out
-put them in a trunk
-put them in a storage closet
-put them in a trunk then burn it and throw out the ashes
-sink them to the bottom of the ocean

My dear, dear Ty just doesn't understand the relationship a girl has with her books. They can't just be stored away in a trunk, I need to see my books. I never know when I will be overcome with a need to read the last chapter of Angela's Ashes. Having my books on display is perfect in such an emergency. So it was decided (mostly by me) that a good set of bookshelves were in order.

Obtaining something as common as bookshelves may seem like an insignificant task, but I assure you it wasn't. First, attempting for find one for sale in a small town is a task in itself. Secondly, attempting to build a bookcase in a teensy wee little apartment is a monumental problem. I've come to learn that basically doing anything in a small space becomes more difficult. Particularly folding sheets. It's difficult to fold them when you can't toss out the ends without hitting both the fridge and two walls. Anywho, this is my photojournalistic account of the night of the bookcase. Let me remind you that neither of us is particularly handy so the fact that we built anything at all is astounding.


The Problem


The Problem Solver


A more frustrating problem


Progress (He actually used on of those eyeball dilating lights that he has for work at one point)


Ty proud of his handy work


I hope you'll notice that I say "we" built a bookcase, but I am no where to be found in any of the 'work in progress' pictures. Odd..

Bitty's Back!

I'm back from my extended hiatus during which I quit my job, finished my degree, got engaged and moved. Now that I have neglected to chronicle all of those unimportant life events, I'm back to tell you all about my new life as a Medicine Hatter.

Yesterday I made the move from the big city to the land of the giant steel teepee. It actually went smoother than I thought. I had envisioned myself clinging to my Dad's leg as he left, begging him not to make me live with a boy. As it turns out, I'm quite fond of this boy and was very happy to see him.


Dad, Katie and I making a quick stop to get vital travel food including slurpees, pretzels, samosas and candies.



The Convoy


Ty assessing the damage. It turns out I have waaaay more stuff than I originally thought.


I have solved the mystery as to why Ty is so skinny.


After forcing him to purchasing unnecessary items such as a bathmat and groceries.


Tonight the goal is to fit three thousand items of clothing into a playhouse sized closet. Wish us luck!

Life As a Susan

As most of you already know, yesterday I hung up my flame-retardant polyester pants. I turned in my bio-identification eyeball-scanning airport pass. I tucked away my canister of bathroom spray for those "little olfactory emergencies". I rolled my rolly bag for the last time. Basically what I'm getting at is I quit my job. It's sad but at the same time kind of liberating. I will miss the job, but the benefit is that I won't miss my family so much anymore, which is kind of nice.

I started a new job a few days ago at a large company downtown. I have to admit it has been a bit of an adjustment.

1. I found out (the hard way) that my trademarked toothy airline smile is remarkably inappropriate in an office setting and actually seems to make people uncomfortable.

2. Walking back and forth through the cabin all day is MUCH different than having to walk blocks between buildings downtown. However, I feel safer dodging cars than I ever did dodging overhead bags.

3. I can eat fresh fruit and hot meals everyday. I realize now, this is one of the great benefits of working on land. I will never take a lunch hour for granted ever again.

4. At this job I not only see my boss everyday, but she actually leans over me to fix mistakes I've made. To this day I still do not know who my boss was at the airline. Whenever I imagined what my airline boss looked like I pictured Dr.Claw from Inspector Gadget.

5. I have a phone that I am expected to answer. This blows.

6. The airline job is to the Twilight Zone what the corporate job is to the Matrix.

7. Should there be a fire in the office, I feel like now I will be able to point out the exits and maybe even yell some commands. I'll probably leave out the part about taking your seat cushion with you though.

All in all I'm pretty happy with my decision. I will keep you posted as I adjust to life back on land.

Celebrity Smack Down

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I recently (accidentally) got another job. This new job is the antithesis to my airline job. Honestly, they could not be more different. I will attempt to explain the differences using celebrity metaphors. Celebriphors if you will.

The airline job is Angelina Jolie. It's exciting and unhealthy. It's filled with high highs and lower lows. It's jet fuel and coffee and vomit. It's sore feet and aching legs. It's up all night and never sleeping in the same place. It's being hungry all day, then binge eating at Harvey's at 2am. It's meeting new people and hating most of them, but learning something valuable from a rare few. It doesn't pay well in monetary terms, but is six figures in terms of experiences. Its missing Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years and birthdays but it is also learning to appreciate these special times even more. It's being thrown into stressful situations and coming out on the other side a bit shaken, but a bit more confident in myself. It's incredibly frustrating and then miraculous. Its being poked (mostly in the bum) and learning to poke back.

The office job is Susan Sarandon. It is predictable, reliable and a wee bit monotonous. It is nine to five with an hour lunch. It is paperwork, calculators and phone calls. It's a sore back and strained eyes. It's being home every night and sleeping in the same bed. It's eating three square meals a day but then never eating a Montreal smoked meat sandwich in Montreal or fish and chips in St. Johns. It's being at home but never seeing what 'Home' looks like to someone else. It's weekends off spending time with cousins at brunch. It's Christmas at home. It's two weeks vacation a year. It's more money. It's less fun. It's middle-aged women.

Between school, sleeping and just generally being alive I have found out (the hard way) that I need to make some cuts. I just don't think I'm built for this having two jobs business. Okay, so I need to quit a job, but which one? Am I an Angelina or am I a Susan? I feel like I could be a bit of both, but not fully one or the other. While I realize that this isn't the most earth shattering of problems to have I really am very tired and my sanity is at stake here. I need to come up with a celebrisolution for my celebrissues and soon.

What A Difference the Flight Deck Door Makes

A funny crew van conversation:

"Usually when a plane goes off the runway its because lots of things are going wrong. It can be a combination of a change in wind sheer, a slippery runway, malfunction of the flaps or inaccuracies in calculations. All of which the pilots need to address in a very short amount of time in order to keep the plane on the runway." Captain Karen explained.

"Meanwhile" quipped Grant, a flight attendant. "It takes four flight attendants an hour to figure why the float is short $2"

Bumming Around

Bum Poking... Sure, I understand it, but I don't like it.

One thing I noticed within the first few days at my job was the number of times my bum was touched in a day. Flight attendanting (oh that's a word by the way) is by nature not a job for anyone overly concerned with personal space (such as myself until I lowered my standards). For the most part I'm okay with bum touching, however what I am not okay with is bum poking.

Now, I need to qualify what the difference is between bum touching and bum poking.

Bum touching is an inevitable part of the job. During boarding, service, turbulence, securing etc. your bum brushes up against people or people brush up against your bum. It happens. You move on.

Bum poking is something entirely different. Bum poking is a technique used by people sitting in aisle seats who wish to get your attention but feel that using their vocal cords is not effective enough. So, they poke you in the bum. Hard. Right in the cheek. Surprise, surprise, it has the desired effect and the flight attendant turns around.

The bum poke occurs in different ways and for different reasons. It might happen as you walk through the cabin utilizing the Fast Jabby Poke. It might happen as you are doing service utilizing the Soft but Repeated Poke. Alternatively, it might happen as you are helping another guest utilizing the Reach and Poke. Whichever poke it may be, all are highly uncomfortable for the pokee (ie: me).

I suppose I can understand why people engage in the bum poke, I mean the call button is aaaalll the way up on the console, whereas my bum is right at eye level. If I sit back and watch I can almost see the chain of events.

"Hmm my drink is empty...Hey! There is a bum, that bum brought me a drink the first time...Poke...

As logical and convenient as it may be I will continue to hold my position as Advocate for Bum Rights. I can justify having bruises on my thighs from elbows, but I will never be okay with bruises on my bum from fingers.

Rough Skies

A few weeks ago there was a story in the media about a Canadian airline that experienced moderate turbulence. The plane dropped several hundred feet (or according to the guy on the news, thousands and thousands of feet) and nine people were hurt. When I first heard about it I was wee bit shaken up, then worried about the passengers and crew and then angry. I was angry because I spend a good portion of everyday at work making announcements about the seatbelt sign, checking to see that everyone is where their seatbelt, explaining to people why it's important that they do wear it and so on. Almost without exception someone gives me a hard time about wearing their seatbelt or about having to put their child in a seatbelt.

When the plane experienced the unforeseen turbulence, passengers were upset that we gave them no warning whatsoever and seemed to feel that it was the airlines fault for the turbulence in the first place. Week after week I fight with people to wear their seatbelts for this very reason and then it happens and they are angry because felt they had no warning. This made me wonder if maybe most people don't know about clear air turbulence, or if they do, they don't understand the frequency in which aircraft's experience it. I figured I would ask the only pool of sane people I know, you guys...

So, here are my questions;

When you are out there traveling the skies do you wear your seatbelts even if the sign is off? Do feel like turbulence is a real threat? Do you think that there is enough information out there (ie: are they announcements enough?)