Arizona continues to be, um, not the
best project I've been on. heh This trip back, I'm in Yuma. Up to now, I'd been getting straight flights from Indy to Phoenix and either driving down or catching another flight to Tucson. This time, I flew from Indy to the east coast (Charlotte) and then back west to Phoenix... then had a three-hour drive in the dark on a two-lane highway with tons of construction... to get to Yuma. 16 hours after leaving home, I finally made it to my hotel at 11:30pm. A couple days later, I leave the office I'm working in, start the car... and can't go anywhere.
The car won't go into gear. *sigh* So I mess with it awhile hoping it's a fluke and I can get it moving, no luck, finally call the roadside service number and get a nice guy who tries to help. He has to call the office in Phoenix and tells me I'll have to swap cars in Phoenix...
three hours away. Right, there's no Enterprise here in Yuma?!? Oh, sure, sure... but they all closed at 6pm...
5 minutes ago. *sigh* Through this I finally get the stupid car into gear and head to a gas station to fill up since I'll be swapping it out and have to return it with a full tank, right? Let's not talk about that the tank wasn't full when I got it. Grr. I stop at a gas station. Can't pay a tthe pump. Go inside... I have to know how much gas I'm putting in and prepay. How the heck am I supposed to know how much gas I need??? She shrugs and says I have to prepay. Fine. I leave and go down the block to a different station where I can pay at the pump. I fill up (after having to back up and pull in on the other side - why the heck do so many cars have the gas tanks on the passenger side now?! The
driver fills up the car, right?!). So, the machine prints my receipt... it's
blank. I have to go inside and have them print another one. Through all this, I'm
still on the phone with the roadside guy
and Enterprise and have gone through the whole story no less than four times and been told it's
user error multiple times and told repeated how to put the car into gear... a car I drove for two days with no problem. They
refuse to give me a different car! Seriously?! The woman at Enterprise finally just said they won't authorize a swap if there's
nothing wrong with the car and she hangs up on me! The roadside guy apologizes, but there's nothing more he can do and tells me this happens
A LOT. So much for customer service. =( Interesting that there are scratches all around this little plastic cover that says
gear shift unlock. Sure, this has
never happened before. Idiots. So I get my company's travel person involved. Funny, now that corporate is involved,
now Enterprise is willing to give me another car. So after work, I try to leave to head to Enterprise at the microscopic airport here in Yuma (which, BTW, was open until 8:30pm the night before - had I known...), the car won't go into gear
again.
Yes, I pushed down on the gear shift before I tried to move it over.
Yes, the stearing wheel was unlocked.
Yes, the car has a major issue! I finally get it into gear, get to the airport and go in search of the car rental counters. No signs anywhere, of course. Find the guy, get him to stop chatting with his buddy and actually wait on me... and he has no idea what the heck I'm talking about when I say who I am and that I'm here to switch cars. The manager didn't bother to tell him anything. Nice. So he calls Phoenix and sits on hold for 10 minutes before getting authorization to give me this other car, tells them yes, it has a full tank of gas. I finally get the keys and surprise! It has just over half a tank of gas. I go back inside... nope, they can't fill it. I just have to take it. I gotta tell ya, if I'd had
any choice in the matter, I would have handed him back the damn keys and gone to one of the other car rental companies. I'm
so sick of these people! So I went and filled it up and will try to figure out how much gas to put in so I return it with a half tank of gas. =( I know if I ever need a rental personally, I won't be going to Enterprise!
Anywhere else has to be better than these people! I get back to my hotel with the new car (this one moves, but it's the most basic thing they could find apparently) and stop at the front desk to fax my paperwork. No one is anywhere to be found. I stand there 10 minutes before some guy wanders through the lobby with a cup of coffee and asks if I'm checking in. Uh, no, you talked to me here
yesterday, remember? He takes my paper to fax... then asks this other lady who just walked up if he can help her. Excuse me, you were helping
me! Sheesh! After the great service at the hotel in Tucson (Residence Inn Williams Circle), this place is such a great disappointment. Every time I go tot he front desk, they ask if I'm checking in. Dude, I just walked out of the elevator... pretty good guess that I'm already staying here! The same people ask me over and over if I'm checking in. I ask to fax something, they do... and then ask if I'm checking in. hahaha No, I'm just using your free fax, moron. heh I'm stuck here until Monday, then head back to Tucson to finish out the week and head home... where I will hopefully either stay or fly soemwhere else. I'm just praying they don't send me back to AZ. Two months here is MORE than enough!
I do have this outside my window though:
Spotted the parents first. The male flying back and forth gathering twigs an fibers. Then, looking around more, I spotted the kids:
Next tree over. The kids have taken over the nest so I suppose the parents are building on a new wing for themselves. =)
with the intention of making a felted messenger bag. It was from a non-profit shop in Seattle and cost next to nothing (well under $2 for three cakes of super bulky wool). It's been stored in a suitcase under my bed the past few months, waiting for inspiration to strike and prompt me to do some math to figure out stitch counts for the simple pattern I had in mind. That day (technically, night) finally came around 1 this morning (still on AZ time even though I'm in IN for the weekend).
Perfect. =) No more backpack bruises. No more shuffling items from bag to bag in the trunk of a rental car in the parking lot of an office or at the car rental return. This bag has just enugh room for my computer and accessories, a knitting project and a book. =) It will take its maiden voyage in just a couple days...
for a couple days in order to finish up an office in Nogales (Mexican border town), then headed back on the road...
(the scenery down there is gorgeous at least!) over to Tombstone...
where I stayed another couple days to work an office in Douglas (another border town). Enjoyed a beautiful sunset from the hotel... 
before heading back to Tucson where a rainbow awaited my arrival... 
for the last few days to work an office there. Whew! Three hotels in less than a week! Tiring. When I go back this Sunday, it looks to be even worse... I'll be hopping back and forth among Tucson, Phoenix, Patagonia and possibly Rio Rico again, rarely in one place more than a day. I'm insisting on a better car this time! haha Of course, the Enterprise in Phoenix promised me a better car my return... so I get my travel and my company is flying my into TUCSON this time. *sigh* There is still hope! I got a really good car the one time I flew into Tucson. Beginning to think I should just leave my bags in the car and just take in a set of clothes for the following day at these hotels. haha Oh, the days of being in one hotel for a month or more...
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