Graduated from One Course, but May Need to Retake Another

I survived.
I'm done with my JetBlue Training course!
I am really glad it was only temporary. Matt & I agree, we could not handle that kind of schedule long-term. It just doesn't fit with a family.
Nor is it good on my driving competence.

I read in the Reader's Digest (where I get all my nuggets of wisdom) that "The performance of someone who's been awake for 17 hours straight is about the same as if she has a blood alcohol level of 0.05 percent (about two drinks in an hour).

Before I tell you this story, let me just say, I DON'T DRINK. I've never tasted any alcohol - EVER! (I've washed my hair with it - to make it shiny & glorious - but never consumed it!)

You see...One Friday night, after 5 nights in a row of 3 hrs. of sleep due to my training schedule, I left the JB offices at 2:00 in the morning so glad to have the weekend in front of me --I just needed to get home and that blessed time off would start! Well, I discovered (too late) that when you're driving on I-215 North, if you are in the right-hand lane, it will take you off the Interstate automatically and put you on Foothill Dr. Which is where I found myself at approximately 2:10 AM. I did not know exactly how to get back, so I drove here & there on some dark, deserted roads. One [wrong] turn included following a sign with an arrow pointing me to I-80. I found out later that the arrow had been rotated around to be pointing the opposite direction...or maybe I hallucinated the arrows direction? So, around 2:30 AM, I got back on the right freeway. Whew! I was on my way. Only to then see some flashing red & blue lights in my rear view mirror 10 minutes later. As I waited for the cop to approach my car, I wondered what the offense was. I didn't think I was speeding, but that brain fog settles in on my drives home, so I wasn't able to come up with an answer. I was startled by a knock on the passenger door window. There was the cop standing over there! Is this common? Is this what they're doing now? Anyway, after he asked me for my license (good thing I renewed it even though it meant getting a new photo & weight) and registration, we had the following dialog (while shining his flashlight on me the entire time.)

Cop: "Did you know you're drifting around your lane pretty bad?"

I don't remember doing that!

Me: "No." (But, thinking to myself, "Isn't that what the guard rails are for? To bounce back & forth between when driving at insane hours of the morning?")

Cop: "Yeah, you were. In fact, one time I watched you travel half-way into the next lane before you put your blinker on."

I didn't recall that, either!

Me: "Hmmm." (Again, thinking to myself, "Isn't that pretty normal for Utah? No, I guess it's not...most people don't even bother to signal at any time during their lane change!")

Cop: Noticing my JetBlue crew member badge still hanging around my neck... "JetBlue...You coming home from work?"

Me: "Yep."

Cop: "You a pilot or something?"

I was kind of flattered that he'd think I was a pilot! But, then I found out later, from talking to someone else, that if a pilot gets pulled over or a ticket, he can get his Pilot's Licence taken away. I'd never heard that before (I still wonder if it's true? All you "Snopes people" find that out and let me know.)

Me: "No, I'm coming from our Call Center up on....(and then I couldn't come up with the address real quickly, so I just pointed in the SE direction.)

Cop: "Have you been drinking?"

I do know this for sure!

Me: "No."

Cop: (Shining his flashlight around my passenger seat & floor, then stopping on my water mug for a second) "Is there any reason that you're not able to stay in your lane?"

Again, I didn't even remember this happening!

Me: (Thinking, Besides the fact that we've got this construction going on which has narrowed & shifted all the lanes. And the lane lines have been painted, then painted over with black paint, then painted again in a new place and you can never tell which lane is which? AND the fact that only a cement barrier is dividing the north & southbound lanes, so when a big Semi comes the other direction and shines it's bright lights through my children's fingerprint-smudged windshield, it is BLINDING? Not to mention there are no street lights in this stretch of freeway? Or it may just be that it's now 2:50 in the morning and I'm sleep deprived!!!) But, instead I just shook my head, "No."

Cop: "OK - Your car's about 8 feet wide and the lane is about 12 feet" (although, I'd bet the "under construction" lanes are NOT that wide, but I did not say anything! Shocker!) "So, try to drive within the lane."

Me: "Alright." (while nodding my head)

And he was gone.

I got home 3:00AM (still not remembering anything the cop had accussed me of) and Matt was asleep.

The next morning he asked me, "What time did you get home? I tried waiting up for you, but I must've fallen asleep!"

Me: "Yeah...I got home a little bit later than normal last night." (End of conversation)

I did tell him about the "forced turn off," but I kept the suspected DUI incident to myself. You see, I have been with him TWICE recently while he was driving and has been pulled over for "Impaired Driving." (He hadn't been drinking, either.) He doesn't like it when I have "corrected" his driving, but he's the one who the cops think drive poorly enough to be an "Impaired Driver," so I've had some fun with that. My fun would end if he were to find out about Friday Night! :) And we wouldn't want that!

(We'll see just how BIG of a FAN he is of me & my, er...uh..."our" blog...if he comes here & reads, he'll get to be privy to the juicy info!) ;)