Sunday
Sunday was a travel day. And since my apartment was all packed up by Saturday night, that means I slept on the couch. (I do NOT recommend this.) Did not sleep well. Maybe it was the excitement. Maybe it was being uncomfortable. My best friend picked me up to take me to breakfast and then to Groome. (btw, if you live in Macon & have not tried Metro Diner yet, I would recommend it.) I was a bit nervous about the flight only because I had never flown solo before. I had always flown with someone I could follow. Honestly, other than wrestling with my bags, it was a lot easier than I expected. I got there early. I was not in a rush. Everything was well labeled. Got to my gate almost 2 hours early. I killed time by people watching and playing on my phone. The flight ended up being delayed about 45 minutes due to weather. My flight was with Southwest so boarding is open. You don't have assigned seats. I was pretty late in boarding order so I got a middle seat. And the "free wifi" on the flight was making me pay $8. I'm cheap. So I didn't pay it & I was pretty bored on my flight. Got to San Diego with no problems. San Diego is gorgeous! The airport is right by the harbor and I could see ships in Harbor as we were approaching for landing. Since I had used my phone for entertainment most of the day, I had very little battery left and did not take many pictures. (But I'll be coming back to San Diego for leg 3 of training and will get some then.) Below is the one picture I took on my way from the airport to the hotel. Sunday included a lot of firsts for me: first time flying alone, first time setting foot on California soil, first time using Uber, first time using DoorDash.
Monday
Monday was the orientation day. Took an Uber the first day because I was not sure how far away the office was or how to navigate to it. (Found out coming back to the hotel that the parking lots are literally connected. And the hotel parking lot connects to the work parking lot just outside of where my training class is. Felt pretty dumb taking an Uber.) Mostly HR folks that come in and tell you the history and expectations of the company. (The first presenter of the day is originally from Macon, GA -- what are the chances?!) Not terribly interesting. Especially since 98% of it is the same as five years ago when I started with the company. I was impressed that the security guards were playing a boombox when we came in. Definitely had a lot of people smiling on a Monday morning. And the view from the lobby was pretty great.
Tuesday through Saturday
Tuesday was my first day of actual training. We jumped right into expectations of class and the training program and then the jumped into the first 3 chapters. Daily quizzes started Wednesday. And we covered 3 chapters a day every day. But work is fair and pays us for study time in the evenings so we can maintain the required 85% (cumulative) score to continue to the next leg of training in Virginia. (After 3 quizzes, I am averaging a mid-90s score. So I'm happy with my quiz results.) We received our work laptops on Wednesday. (It is a ToughBook so it is HUGE.) And we don't have internet capabilities without being plugged into the work ethernet (for now). And it took some time to catch up on emails I had missed since my last day in Macon. Most evenings I would order in from DoorDash. I'm trying to mostly stay with local places. We are reimbursed for meals up to $25/day and I'm taking full advantage of this allowance while I have it. I am also being reimbursed for Groome & Uber and for laundry services. Pretty much anything out of pocket that is not alcohol. The hotel offers complimentary breakfast so I'm only having to purchase lunch and dinner. Most evenings are spent studying, eating and taking a shower and then off to bed fairly early. (We report for class at 7 a.m. but I try to trick myself into thinking it is 10 a.m. and similar to what I was working in Macon.) By Friday, the long week of studying and 11 hour days caught up to me. After an early dinner, I called it a night. Saturday I woke up pretty early - about 5 a.m. (which is when I have been getting up all week for class). It was only me and a few old folks at breakfast this morning. I've even had time to get my receipts caught up for meals this week. Not sure what this weekend has in store. I kind of want to get out and explore but I also want to stay in and relax. Below is a pic of the view walking from the hotel parking lot to the work parking lot.
Leave me some comments and questions. Let me know what I'm missing back in Georgia.
EDIT:
I want to find a way to get this tv from my hotel room to my place in LA. It is HUGE!
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