started work today... well technically i did. i just had orientation today with the a lot of other new hires. aileen was telling me to befriend as many stewardesses as possible, but none were there today. today, there were only ramp staff (people who do all the luggage handling) and customer service staff (people who you check in with). so i tried to "befriend" as many of clerks, but i don't think it really is going to make a difference. in any case, they have a two-week very intensive orientation (they have a quiz everyday on some really hard stuff and have to take a final exam) while i only had to show up today. crazy.

but the perks you get in this industry is really cool. i get to travel anywhere a1rtran flies for an unlimited amount of times. so technically, if i had the days off, i could fly back and forth from san francisco, la, vegas, new york, florida, bahamas, etc. all in one week if i really wanted to. i'm really hoping i get those benefits, but i'm not quite sure since i am only an intern. also, you get 6 "buddy passes" for friends per year, where you pay $60 and they can fly anywhere a1rtran flies roundtrip (but it's a standby flight). too bad that you have to work for at least 3 months to get those benefits. now all you guys are going to stop being nice to me. anyways, aileen is my "companion" (as opposed to spouse) so she will get unlimited free flights too after i work for 30 days. we're gonna go visit everywhere this summer (again, fingers crossed since i'm only an intern... i filled out all the paperwork and really hope that they just let it slide...)

but while most of orientation was quite boring (sexual harassment, privacy, etc.), the end was awesome when they were talking about priveleges that airline employees get at the airport. if i fill out the paperwork, i no longer have to pay for parking or even go through security checks at the airport! i can't really talk much about it, but man... awesome. if i don't want to fill out all the paperwork necessary for that clearance, i still get "vip" priveleges in all the security lines, which still isn't bad. you know all those pilots and stewardesses you see just cutting through the line sometimes? that' s me now :) nice.

tomorrow, i start my first day with a business meeting in orlando, florida. i think the meeting is 830am so me and my manager (and maybe the chief marketing officer) have to take the 715am flight and we get back on the 6pm flight... going to be a very long day.