Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Seven steps to a bad day

1. Stay in bed too long and rush to get ready.
2. Be unable to get out of apartment building due to jammed door.
3. Wait 7 minutes -- for second day in a row -- for a red line train because of delays.
4. Wait 25 minutes for a yellow line train because of delays.
5. Arrive to work 45 minutes late.
6. Discover approximately 5 cuts on hands after applying hand sanitizer. (Cuts due to this week's arctic weather?)
7. Develop a headache around 11 a.m. that doesn't go away until about 6 p.m. and leave work early as a result.

Let's look at step 2 a bit closer as that's really the only out-of-the-ordinary portion of this terrible day.

The door to get out of my apartment building has a push lever like in the picture below that locks it. I pushed it, heard it click, looked closely and saw it unlock, but as hard as I pushed, the door wouldn't open. I kept pushing for several minutes, but still, nothing happened.


As I was already running late, I decided to go to the basement and exit through the garage. So I took the elevator down a floor but, as I walked through the garage to the door, realized that I don't actually know how to open it. Or, even, if it's possible for me to open it without having a car. I waved my hand around the door looking for a sensor, and even jumped on the cable that cars drive over to trigger it, but alas, I don't weigh as much as a Buick, and nothing happened.

Defeated, I got back in the elevator headed to the lobby, forgot this though and went back to my floor, then walked back down to the lobby and tried again. Still nothing. At this point I began to wonder if my two weeks away had made me forget how to operate the door. (Like how I've been having trouble working my shower.)


But no, it wasn't me, it was definitely the door. Panic started rising from my stomach to my throat as I continued my fruitless pushing. And, also, why in the hell weren't there any people leaving for work? Then, just as I heard the elevator whir, signalling someone was finally on their way down, the door swung open and out. Finally, freedom! Sweet, sweet, cold freedom. 

However, given the way the rest of the day went, I probably should have just gone back to bed the first time the door wouldn't open.

Photos: here and here

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