Looks like I’m a-travelin’!

I’m writing this from my seat in 35A on the Delta Shuttle to Boston, where I am proud to say I turned down the bagel and cream cheese offered to me by the flight attendant. I had a bowl of cut fruit when I was at the airport, and I’m still a bit hungry but I think I’ll wait till I land so I can eat something other than the equivalent of five pieces of bread (yes, calorically that’s about what a regular-sized plain bagel is. Worse if you get a flavored bagel like Asiago Cheese or Cinnamon Crunch, my two Panera favorites).

…k, that post got cut off because the flight is really short. Only thirty minutes in flight! (And no, it did not take me thirty minutes to write that – I was being good and doing work before I settled into blogging).

My day has been really great so far. My new team is fantastic! Everyone chats a little bit as they work, which is great for me because I like working with some background noise, and I also love a social atmosphere. They seem like a lot of fun, and definitely liven up the closet-sized windowless conference room we call home. To give you a bit more insight into the trials and tribulations of being a real life traveling consultant (or a Desk Orphan, if you prefer), I’ll share a fun little story.

Basically, there is usually a bit of a lag between when you start at a client and when you can get a badge. (At my last client, I was staffed there for two months and that was too short a time period for me to get one!) Fortunately at this client, it just takes one day, so tomorrow I’ll be all set. For today, I had a temporary badge that didn’t scan, so when I went through doors I had to have someone with me to scan theirs. You can probably see where this is going… the manager had a meeting one floor up, and asked me to come with him just for introductions to the partner. We took the stairs up, and I noticed that he had to scan his badge in the stairwell to get onto the floor. I realized that I wouldn’t be able to get back down by myself, but then I saw the second set of elevators next to the stairs, and figured I would just take the elevator down (I know, down one flight is pathetic, but without a badge what else would I do?). I did the introductions, and then headed out, proud of myself for noticing so I wouldn’t get locked in the stairwell. I pushed the button for the elevator and it arrived, so I hopped on. The doors closed, and I pushed the button for 6… and nothing happened. I then saw a card swiper, and realized I wouldn’t be able to go anywhere on the elevator, so I pressed door open. Nothing happened. I pressed 7th floor. Still nothing. I pressed the “call operator” button, thinking I could explain my predicament to the person at the front desk and they would activate it. No dice. And guess who had left her cell phone and PDA back in the conference room? Basically, once you are in the elevator, there is no getting off until someone else gets on. On the bright side, it was only about 15 minutes that I was stuck in there. Ah, consulting…

Anyway, what this means for you is that I will not be posting healthy recipes during the week from now on. Instead, you’ll get healthy restaurant reviews and reviews of which hotels have the best gyms. Quick version of today: Fresh City is great for lunch, Hilton room service is great for dinner, and the Hilton Back Bay gym is really nice. And I am really great at having a ton of willpower, staying on plan, and coming in way under my calories for the day while traveling, so yay.

More to come soon, including an awesome race report from yesterday!