Random updates

It's been a while since I've posted and I have a lot to talk about. First and foremost, my trip to L.A....on my previous posting my title is "L.A., we LOVE it". Well, after my experience there, I will be changing it to "L.A., we HATE it"! It was a crazy weekend with my friend SW. First, I get to the airport in KC and I'm in the "A" group on Southwest. I hate Southwest, but they are cheap. There are these two incredibly creepy women in line in front of me in the cattle call. They are clearly twins. They are also in their mid 40's. However, I really knew they were twins because they were dressed exactly alike!!!! EW! Who does that besides 5 year olds?!!! They had on the same outfit, the same hair and the same so-called accessories. They proceeded to take turns screaming into what appeared to be a shared cell phone...and I couldn't seem to get away from the creepy twins the entire ride out there. They somehow ended up next to me every time I turned around - especially in baggage claim. Again, EW!

I finally get there, no issues. End up having to rent a car as the resort SW was staying at turned out to be in Laguna Beach which is a fair distance from L.A. So I drive down there and made pretty good time for L.A. traffic. We are staying at the amazing resort - see picture in posting below. However the service was AWFUL. It was absolutely unreal.

Then, there were just some crazy experiences - for example: we go to dinner at this restaurant that is also a beach club for Laguna Beach residents only - however hotel guests can eat there. You have to take a little shuttle from the hotel down to the restaurant as it's right on the beach. Dinner was great, we had a table outside - lovely. Our shuttle was a multi-passenger golf cart. On our way back to the hotel, we had to go through the golf course path to get to the hotel. The sprinklers were on and one of them was turned so it was pointed directly at the path. Our cart passes right through it! We all get SOAKED! Which was funny, except not. Our poor little driver guy managed to turn his head right as we were going past the sprinkler and got shot right in the eye! Poor kid!

We finally get back to the hotel and there are a ton of people there for two very bizarre reasons: 1. the president of Vietnam was there for a big event and there were tons of protesters across the street with bullhorns, screaming and yelling. There were also Secret Service guys, snipers on the roof and helicopters swarming around...I kept thinking, am I really in Laguna or in Compton? 2. Chris Isaak was there performing on the main lawn for a benefit concert. As it was right outside our room, free concert for us!

The next day we leave the resort and drive back to L.A. via the Pacific Coast Highway, which is beautiful, provided you are not stuck in traffic, which we were. We finally get back up to L.A. and we are staying at the Biltmore. When I think of the Biltmore, I think of very fancy hotels, old money and a lot of history. This place was a dump. It was awful. Might have been a step up from a Motel 6. Not what I was expecting from a Biltmore. Now my friend SW works in the travel industry and she was NOT having it. So we ended up getting upgraded - I took serious notes while she was working the front desk manager! We are now on the "club floor" yet we really can't tell a difference. Whatever, for me it's only for a night - for her, it was 5 nights. Ugh.

That night we go to Santa Monica to walk around and we have a lovely time. The next day I have to leave. I leave for the airport a little over 2 hours early. Note to anyone flying in/out of L.A.X. - first of all, DON'T DO IT! Avoid it like the plague! If you can't, my advice is to get there EARLY - and I mean EARLY. I am taking the rental car back and there are not any gas stations near the airport or return area...so by the time I get to the terminal it's an hour and a 1/2 prior to my flight. I'm on the dreaded Southwest airlines and I've already checked in to the "A" group (thanks Mom) for a straight shot home...or so I think.

The terminal is backed up with lines snaking down and outside of the terminal. I don't have my boarding pass and had planned on checking my bag, so I try to find the right line - I end up deciding to use one of the kiosks and consolidate my bags down to carry-on, which means I have to throw out my toiletries (not happy). Then I have to get in the security line...the end of which is OUTSIDE AND HALFWAY TO THE OTHER TERMINAL! I kid you not. Then, all of the sudden, 8 fire trucks and other emergencies vehicles show up, bomb dogs and police everywhere. The terminal gets shut down because supposedly some lovely person decided to jump security and then the sprinkler system went off and no one could figure out of the two incidences were related. So, needless to say it was BEDLAM! I'm on the phone with Southwest telling them the terminal is closed and what is going to happen with me trying to make my flight. They claim they have no information that says the terminal is closed and my flight is still on time. Well, needless to say, by the time I could fight my way through the crowds, I missed my flight. Everyone missed flights so now we are all back in more lines fighting to get on rerouted flights. I call Southwest again and finally get on another flight but because they don't have kiosks in the terminal, I have to wait in yet another huge line to get my new "C" group boarding passes. Have I mentioned I hate Southwest. THEN, my new flight has a connection in Phoenix. By the time we get to Phoenix, we line up again and it turns out they have two flights arriving at the same time at the same gate and those going to KC will get the new gate. Then they won't tell us the new gate and our incoming plane gets delayed! Then finally tell us the new gate and it's the 500 yard dash to get back in a line again!!! By this point, I'm dead. I've been standing outside in the heat and the sun of L.A. for 3 hours - I'm sunburned, I'm exhausted, I've had nothing to eat since breakfast and I'm sweating my ass off. We finally leave for KC and I don't get home until 1am on a Sunday!!! Completely and totally shattered. I HATE L.A.

So I get to work on Monday late and I return to my desk after some meetings to see that I have a voice message on my cell phone...from my mom's cell phone. My mom doesn't use her cell phone, ever. I'm not really sure why she has one, until Monday. Turns out my Pawpaw has had a stroke and my poor mom found him. She called me from her cell phone on the way to the hospital. It's been a difficult week as he's still in ICU and we really don't know what is going to happen. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

The icing on the cake for me was Friday I had my accounting final. Yes, I know, you are all probably glad the 6 week accounting course is over too, just so I will stop complaining about it. Well, the final was HARD. I really hope that I scored well enough to keep my "A". I started my human resources class today, which I'm actually excited about.

My grad school team, if you remember, was sort of forced in to taking an additional member, one we definitely didn't want. Well, basically he did nothing for our accounting class. What he produced for our team case study and presentation was not only late, but was not quality MBA level. I ended up having to write his entire part over the night before and THEN he proceeded to READ my entire paper in the presentation instead of taking a few bullets and extrapolating. All I ever heard from him throughout the entire course was that he didn't have time, didn't have our phone numbers or emails, excuses, excuses. So, the entire team, including him, had agreed to stay late after our class on Saturday afternoon to determine the assignments, etc. The professor let the class go 20 minutes prior to the end and new team member comes up and says he's got a family thing and he's leaving. What the hell am I supposed to say? So the rest of the team and I basically decide we are cutting him off and out. If he wants to contribute then we will let him in, but we aren't giving him any help what-so-ever. I'm just so frustrated. It's clear this guy is not engaged and seemed content to ride our coattails. He turned in crappy late work! And we are all just waiting for a class that has more teamwork - the HR class is 90% individual - to tell him that we don't want him in our group anymore. We are all hoping that he will simply quit. This was the guy that the very first class I got paired up with him and he couldn't figure out how to use the search function in acrobat. I was annoyed with him from the get-go. Now I'm just pissed off. If he feels a "B" is acceptable for him great - but don't be screwing my "A". So there!

I am happy to be home and back in the swing of things at work. No plans for the 4th...especially as it falls on a Wednesday this year. I will more than likely spend it studying. You know you're jealous.