First dispatch from Birmingham
I’ve been here for 8 days. In some ways it seems much longer, but then a tornado can have the effect.
I arrived last Friday. The flights were uneventful but the planes were too small for me to bring on board all the carry-on luggage I had brought. However, it worked out. Hertz gave me a big car and have GPS will travel. Plus the porter at Birmingham airport loaded all my luggage in the trunk. I just had to drag them up 3 flights of stairs. I keep telling myself that all the stair climbing is making up for the fact that I don’t have a trainer or even a gym yet. I go up and down the damn things, with bundles, heavy bundles, far too frequently.
I’m living in corporate housing off of SR 280. It’s an apartment complex that has a few furnished apartments. Mine is a one bedroom, decorated nicely, and for 30 days, it’s just fine. For those of you in the Boston area, SR-280 is a lot like Rte 9. Lots of shopping, lots of lights, too much traffic all the time. For those in SLC, the closest I can come is State Street.
Friday night I had dinner with a lovely woman who is a member of Temple Emanu-El, that I will be joining. She took me to a lovely café, Chez Lulu. I was exhausted but I stopped at Whole Foods on my way home. I wanted to check out the seafood offerings. It’s a lovely market. Not as nice as the one in Dedham or Boca Raton but it’s still a Whole Foods and I’m only 10 minutes away.
Saturday I went and picked up my actual car, a 2011 silver Toyota Rav4. I love it. It is fun to drive and very comfortable. Unfortunately, I left the gate-door opener to my temporary housing in the rental car. Hertz found it yesterday and I picked that up this morning. Thankfully, it is not a necessity to get into the gate. However, I would have had to replace it and I am deeply grateful they found it.
I did more marketing. It’s amazing how much you need to outfit a kitchen with nothing. Many things will be coming from SLC so I only bought things I needed (or thought I needed) right away. I don’t remember much about Sunday except that I slept through most of it and only went out to drive to Regions’ Operation Center so I would know where to go Monday morning.
Monday started at 8am with orientation. At 11 I left for the downtown Tower. I really like the company so far. It has a nice vibe about it. Serious work life balance. I think I’ve ended up being in the office longer days than most other people. My manager is terrific and I like the entire risk management team. I was in the downtown tower for the week. That’s not my permanent location but while I’m new, it makes sense to work with my team. Not that I don’t have plenty to learn about the Indirect Auto business but it’s really nice to feel as though I am part of a team. I already have a bunch of special projects on my plate.
Wednesday was the scary day. I woke to my alarm and the violent electrical storm that took out power. I watched lightning strike the power substation. Two flashes that looked like flames and poof, I turned around and thought to myself, “didn’t I have a light on?” Followed by,” hmm, I don’t have any electricity”. I decided to go back to sleep for a while. A long while. At 8 I called my boss to tell her that I was on my way. At 10:30 I called her to tell her that I hadn’t gotten any closer to the office and I wasn’t going to make it in. She told me not to worry about it because they wouldn’t be working a full day. Regions closed at 2. I had spent about 2.5 hours trying to get to work but with all the street lights out and trees down across every road, there was no way around it.
Although I was watching the tornado watches and warnings, I was too happily clueless to realize how scared I should probably have been. During a tornado you are supposed to take shelter in a basement. I’m on the top floor of my apartment complex. There is no basement. In my new place, I will have a half bath located under the staircase. I’ll be setting up an emergency station in there with a weather radio that I need to go get. My boss called me Wednesday night to make sure I was okay. They were checking in with all the employees to make sure they were safe. Not having the sense to be terrified was a real benefit this week.
When I went into work on Thursday I was amazed at how many trees were down and how much other damage buildings had sustained. I had gotten my electricity back Wednesday afternoon but no phone, cable or internet. I lost the electricity again in the evening but only for a few hours. Many of my colleagues didn’t have any electricity on Thursday. I think they all got it back Thursday night. I had phone etc on Thursday night. Thankfully, none of my colleagues were impacted but they all knew people who were. I don’t think I am going to like tornadoes.
Friday was the Arts Festival in Linn Park. We went at lunch. It was so cool to be someplace that had an Arts Festival that was comprised mostly of artists with only a few crafters. I bought a switchplate, a pin and piece of art for my new hallway. It’s small. There are art shows all the time here.
For dinner I went to Mr. Chen’s. It was supposed to be authentic Chinese food and it is. It was mobbed when I went in there. I didn’t love everything I got but that was about my choices rather than the quality of the food. I will certainly be back there.
I was supposed to go the Farmer’s Market but it will still be there next Saturday. Today I want to rest, relax and maybe even read. I have barely read a page in a week. But I might have made it past that point. I can’t wait until I’m settled. But I have to say, it’s all been an adventure.
I arrived last Friday. The flights were uneventful but the planes were too small for me to bring on board all the carry-on luggage I had brought. However, it worked out. Hertz gave me a big car and have GPS will travel. Plus the porter at Birmingham airport loaded all my luggage in the trunk. I just had to drag them up 3 flights of stairs. I keep telling myself that all the stair climbing is making up for the fact that I don’t have a trainer or even a gym yet. I go up and down the damn things, with bundles, heavy bundles, far too frequently.
I’m living in corporate housing off of SR 280. It’s an apartment complex that has a few furnished apartments. Mine is a one bedroom, decorated nicely, and for 30 days, it’s just fine. For those of you in the Boston area, SR-280 is a lot like Rte 9. Lots of shopping, lots of lights, too much traffic all the time. For those in SLC, the closest I can come is State Street.
Friday night I had dinner with a lovely woman who is a member of Temple Emanu-El, that I will be joining. She took me to a lovely café, Chez Lulu. I was exhausted but I stopped at Whole Foods on my way home. I wanted to check out the seafood offerings. It’s a lovely market. Not as nice as the one in Dedham or Boca Raton but it’s still a Whole Foods and I’m only 10 minutes away.
Saturday I went and picked up my actual car, a 2011 silver Toyota Rav4. I love it. It is fun to drive and very comfortable. Unfortunately, I left the gate-door opener to my temporary housing in the rental car. Hertz found it yesterday and I picked that up this morning. Thankfully, it is not a necessity to get into the gate. However, I would have had to replace it and I am deeply grateful they found it.
I did more marketing. It’s amazing how much you need to outfit a kitchen with nothing. Many things will be coming from SLC so I only bought things I needed (or thought I needed) right away. I don’t remember much about Sunday except that I slept through most of it and only went out to drive to Regions’ Operation Center so I would know where to go Monday morning.
Monday started at 8am with orientation. At 11 I left for the downtown Tower. I really like the company so far. It has a nice vibe about it. Serious work life balance. I think I’ve ended up being in the office longer days than most other people. My manager is terrific and I like the entire risk management team. I was in the downtown tower for the week. That’s not my permanent location but while I’m new, it makes sense to work with my team. Not that I don’t have plenty to learn about the Indirect Auto business but it’s really nice to feel as though I am part of a team. I already have a bunch of special projects on my plate.
Wednesday was the scary day. I woke to my alarm and the violent electrical storm that took out power. I watched lightning strike the power substation. Two flashes that looked like flames and poof, I turned around and thought to myself, “didn’t I have a light on?” Followed by,” hmm, I don’t have any electricity”. I decided to go back to sleep for a while. A long while. At 8 I called my boss to tell her that I was on my way. At 10:30 I called her to tell her that I hadn’t gotten any closer to the office and I wasn’t going to make it in. She told me not to worry about it because they wouldn’t be working a full day. Regions closed at 2. I had spent about 2.5 hours trying to get to work but with all the street lights out and trees down across every road, there was no way around it.
Although I was watching the tornado watches and warnings, I was too happily clueless to realize how scared I should probably have been. During a tornado you are supposed to take shelter in a basement. I’m on the top floor of my apartment complex. There is no basement. In my new place, I will have a half bath located under the staircase. I’ll be setting up an emergency station in there with a weather radio that I need to go get. My boss called me Wednesday night to make sure I was okay. They were checking in with all the employees to make sure they were safe. Not having the sense to be terrified was a real benefit this week.
When I went into work on Thursday I was amazed at how many trees were down and how much other damage buildings had sustained. I had gotten my electricity back Wednesday afternoon but no phone, cable or internet. I lost the electricity again in the evening but only for a few hours. Many of my colleagues didn’t have any electricity on Thursday. I think they all got it back Thursday night. I had phone etc on Thursday night. Thankfully, none of my colleagues were impacted but they all knew people who were. I don’t think I am going to like tornadoes.
Friday was the Arts Festival in Linn Park. We went at lunch. It was so cool to be someplace that had an Arts Festival that was comprised mostly of artists with only a few crafters. I bought a switchplate, a pin and piece of art for my new hallway. It’s small. There are art shows all the time here.
For dinner I went to Mr. Chen’s. It was supposed to be authentic Chinese food and it is. It was mobbed when I went in there. I didn’t love everything I got but that was about my choices rather than the quality of the food. I will certainly be back there.
I was supposed to go the Farmer’s Market but it will still be there next Saturday. Today I want to rest, relax and maybe even read. I have barely read a page in a week. But I might have made it past that point. I can’t wait until I’m settled. But I have to say, it’s all been an adventure.