Tales from the trench

Another day at the internship today. It's going well, I am really liking it. I like going to the big shiny building and reading scripts and putting my two-cents into the well that is Hollywood. One thing I don't like? The parking situation. But alas, isn't that what internships are all about? Doing the grunt work for free, on a computer you bring from home, and moving your car every two hours and fifty-nine minutes to avoid the seven dollar fee that will follow if you're one minute late? Yes, that's what they're all about. That and hopefully getting a toe in the door.

Today's parking situation was especially fun. I felt a little like Jack Bauer this afternoon, there was a clock ticking down the minutes left on my free parking ticket. I had to get my ticket in the machine at the Century City Mall by 3:08pm or pay seven bucks. Seven bucks for fifteen minutes. Yeah, I didn't want to be thirty minutes late. I'm interning remember? Working for zero dollars a day.

So there I was, waiting for my boss to get off the phone so I could talk to him about my first coverage, watching the clock in the corner of the computer tick away. I knew I was pushing it but I hated to just leave. So I waited. Because I'm that girl. I'm polite. I was raised to not say a word even if my mouth is full of shit. Sometimes I open it, sometimes I don't. I know when to talk. Today was not a day or a place to talk. I'm the new girl.

So I waited. And waited. And then my boss asked if I had five minutes to talk about my first assignment. "Of course," I replied and we talked. He acknowledged he knew I had to leave and I did telling him I'd finish my work by morning and email him and then be in early. And away I went. To the elevators which are always speedy. There's a bank of six of them. But today, they were slow. I watched the clock on my phone trying to decide if nine minutes was enough time to get down six flights of stairs, turn in my badge, hustle out of the giant building, cross the street (there are five lanes of traffic and I have to cross twice to get to the mall), and get to the parking garage two blocks down. I felt it was, if I ran.

Can I just say thank you Leslie Sansone? Her walking tapes prepared me for this very day. I speed walked like there was no tomorrow praying the whole time, "Please God, don't let me be late. Let me make it." I think God hears all our prayers and knows when we need a little win. I needed this win. And I walked. And walked. And I might have broken into a jog there up the ramp to the mall where I didn't think anyone could see me. All I can say is I was glad I hadn't worn heels today though I was wishing for tennis shoes over my steel-toed Doc Martens.

I made it to the escalator at the mall (yes, I feel like going to work is a lot like playing the game Mouse Trap) and there was a guy in front of me. Of course. And he had a parking ticket to put in the machine. Of course. And at the second machine was a guy talking to the speaker, arguing that he didn't have money and why don't the stores validate for longer than three hours. I didn't even know you could talk to a live person inside that machine.

So I stood really close to the guy putting in his ticket and the minute his hand was out of the way, mine was there. He didn't really say anything but I got the feeling he knew I was in a hurry. I put in my ticket and waited. And waited. And when it spit out I saw that I'd gotten my win. Three hours free parking and I'd clocked in at 12:08 and clocked out at 3:08! Amazing. A minute more and I would've been out seven bucks! Woo hoo! One small win for me!

Did I mention this wasn't the first time I'd done the parking garage dance today? Yeah, you only get three hours free so I had already moved my car at noon. Fun times. But that's what it's all about right? Gotta have these fun stories to tell once you hit it big...