Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Where the beer flows like wine....

ASPEN!!!

I just returned from our staff training trip in Aspen Colorado. We took three flights into the Aspen airport on Wednesday the 19th and returned on Sunday the 23rd. The trip was all-expenses paid, and we were treated very well A full entry would be overwhelming so I've compiled a highlight reel.

Wednesday we woke at 3:30 am after two hours of sleep, traveled 18 hours on three flights, and arrived in Aspen at 8pm. I called Amanda, and Luke, Paul, Amanda and I dove straight into the hot tub, then went to the Double Dog Pub for Guinness, followed by beer and pizza at 1am.

Thursday I walked around the village for several hours, saw Kelsey, and went to the training in the afternoon. I learned more about boots than I ever thought was possible to know, and then we headed to dinner at "Gusto," a nice restaurant off of Main street. The meal was paid for by Surefoot so we all ordered Filet Mignon, wine, beer, shots--whatever we wanted, basically. It was the best meal I've had in months, and the steak was Argentine-esque (ie unbelievable).

Friday was full on training. We had to find our own dinner so we went to Annies, a sweet bar with cheap food and cheaper alchohol. (You may be noticing a trend here.)

Saturday was full on traning as well, followed by dinner at the Cantina, a Mexican restaurant. Again, the bar was open. All Surefoot employees were entrusted to eat and drink as much as possible, and we did not take this duty lightly. After the restaurant we went to several clubs and stayed out till 2am. I saw a crack dealer get busted, and found some rocks on the floor of the bar afterwards. (Yes, I threw them away.)

Sunday is worth mention. Here's a timeline of the day.

8:40 am - 10 employees meet at the front desk to catch a shuttle to the airport
9:30 am - 10 employees board a prop plane to denver, ginger ale in hand, heads down.
9:40 am - Cabin pressurization makes one employee vomit in a bag.
9:45 am - Severe Turbulence makes two more employees vomit in a bag.
9:46 am - flight attendant refuses to let anyone out of his/her seat to use the bathroom
10:00 am - Even more severe turbulence makes several more employees vomit
10:05 am - We arrive at DIA and part ways

Basically, the flight was painful and hysterical all at once. People looked like death, and I mean absolute unfiltered pain and agony. It was really pitiful. After the flight I went and apologized to a couple with an infant who had been sitting in front of one guy (R) who puked the whole time and looked as pathetic and hurting as any human can look. The couple laughed and said "no, it was nice. It reminded us of when we used to have a good time." Ugh. I'm not so sure R would have shared that sentiment. Anyway, it was the most eventful flight I've been on in a while. And for the record, my vomit bag remained dry.

"Aspen, where the beer flows like wine and the women flock like the salmon of Capustrano." --Dumb and Dumber

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