Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Shaken, Not Stirred

Shaken. Not Stired.




My business trips to my client site are generally busy, often exciting and sometimes just plain exhilarating. I love being in the thick of things. When I’m travelling for business, I usually post my status as “being in the Lion’s den.” It is always a challenge and a thrill to be in front of my clients because, lets face it, I’m a computer geek at heart. I love being in front of my computer and listening to music....as much as everyone likes to put me on the front lines with clients, its not my comfort zone, so when I have to do it, it is a challenge.

I joke with my teammates that every trip has “the story….” And this one is a doozy!



Me, 26th floor of the Financial Plaza in Jersey City, on a conference call with a SC teammate……..

“Hold on, the building is shaking…”

“What?”

“The building is shaking. What the hell? I can’t work like this!”

“The building is shaking?”

“Yeah……..wait, no really, it is……people are running… I think I have to go”

That is, verbatim, the call I had with my teammate. Being from small town CT, high rise buildings aren’t exactly everyday life, so a shaking building seems slightly plausible to me and an irritating disruption to my work… it wasn’t until I saw people bookin’ out the doors until I realized it was not “Big City Norm.”

Of course everyone was allright and survived the earthquake. I admit I was a bit confused by it all and briefly considered cannabalism if necessary for survival.  :)

I have a greater understanding of what it feels like to sway like the top of the tallest oak tree and thank God that your kids are far away and safe.

Cell phones didn’t work. Calls went out to nothing…… only TXT messaging had any results. By the time I reached the ground I had txt messages from some of the people I loved the most, checking in that I was okay. All was well. Shaken, not stirred.

Okay, stirred. A little bit.

Now I’m back at my hotel, happily in my jammies and blogging for the memory of the 5.9 quake that covered the East Coast.

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