On how Thanksgiving was

Unlike many other students at VCU, my Thanksgiving holiday was not one of relaxation and holiday cheer – I ended up being scheduled for a shift at my hotel to do a round of room service. In tandem with an already hectic work schedule and a full course load, I am also studying for my LSAT that takes place on Dec. 2. Needless to say I was exhausted, and the scheduling was done at the last minute, so having to call my family the day before Thanksgiving and telling them I wouldn’t be home for the holiday was probably the hardest thing I’ve had to do this semester. Being told that you have singlehandedly “ruined Thanksgiving” is quite riveting.

The day started off rough. I had two papers due by next month, and I woke up to discover my car wouldn’t even start due to moisture accumulating in my engine. I had no choice. I was the only person in my department scheduled for that day, and it would be quite noticeable if I didn’t make it in. Pretty much everyone I knew was out of town for the day, so no luck in getting a ride to the airport where my job is located either. Dropping 23 bucks on a cab to go to work was certainly no treat. I later found out, after calling most cab services I could find in the Yellow Pages, that most weren’t available either due to the holiday or the mass influx of passengers coming into the Richmond airport, with some cars wanting to charge grossly inflated fares just to make it home. “Great,” I thought. I realized that I wouldn’t have enough money to make it home since I just paid off all of my bills earlier this week.

I started my shift not being sure if I was even going home that night. I went about finishing up my usual opening duties and dutifully sat by the room service phone wondering if any guests in the hotel would even want anything that night. For the first four hours of that shift, nothing happened. I ended up sitting in the bar watching bad movies on HBO waiting for something to actually validate my not seeing my family for the holiday, and for missing the traditional Thanksgiving fare of turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes. The building was silent, save for the other few unfortunate employees that got stiffed into working that day, as well as a few unfortunate families that had a late or cancelled flight on account of the nasty weather we had this week.

Eventually I started receiving a few phone calls for food. Thanksgiving quesadillas and nachos, anyone? Not the most appropriate food for the holiday, but it’s money in the pocket for me. I was delightfully treated, after being invited into the room, to a man wearing nothing but briefs, while my eye caught the sight of what was hopefully his wife’s lingerie strewn about the room. People, please answer your door with pants and the expectation that no one wants to see you in your underwear. I was tempted to go and bleach out my eyes afterwards.

As the night dragged on, and whether I would be sleeping in a corner becoming more of a possibility, I was able to get in contact with a friend who told me she might be back in the city within a few hours. For the first time the entire day, I had a sliver of a possibility of something good happening that day. Later that night, my hopes were met when she called back, because I found out I was actually going to see my apartment that night! No sleeping on the floor for me! I closed up and began to walk out. I ended up giving my friend some bad directions, which was a lot of fun trying to correct, but I still was thrilled that I was going home. I had yet another surprise awaiting: she took the time to save a plate of food from her family to give to me! I was going to have Thanksgiving after all! The food was great, too. Even though it was about 11 p.m. by the time I ate, it was still good for someone who had eaten chicken tenders all afternoon and tried to rationalize it as comparable to turkey.

All in all, what should’ve finished up a very lousy day ended up very good, with a last minute change. If there’s anything I’ve learned, it’s that you should stay optimistic when it comes to bad days – you never know when they are going to change. The holiday season is definitely a time when you can see who your friends are and what they mean to you. To my friend, who shall remain nameless, you definitely saved the day and it meant a lot to me. As many times as I have thanked you already, I still can’t emphasize that enough. I hope everyone else ended up having as good a day as I did. This one ended up being one of my most memorable.