And he’s tradin’ in his chevvy for a Cadallac
And if he can’t drive with a broken back, at least he can polish the fender
And it seems such a waste of time
If that’s what you’re all about
Good luck movin’ up
‘cause I’m MOVING OUT
Sometimes things happen that disrupt even the best laid, most difficult, most conscientiously made plans. This…this is definitely one of those times.
I’ve been holding back on talking about the fact that I had applied for what could only be considered a promotion a few weeks ago. It was done at the request of my contract handler who, given the upcoming changes in the department and my positive evaluations that reflected a high level of patience with and knowledge of technology (don’t laugh!), thought I would be a good fit for the computer teaching position on board. It was such a drastic shift upwards (nearly a 40% payraise, shorter contracts and a single cabin, plus the position itself is more stable) that I daren’t pin my hopes on it until it actually came through. So I did the interview back near the beginning of January and I’ve been waiting for an answer ever since.
Then, about half an hour after arriving to my shift after a fantastic day out in Rio (more on that!) the following arrived in my inbox at work:
Shaughnessy,
We would like to offer you the position on the Icelandic itinerary as computer host from 3/14-7/2.
3/14-3/29 will be training. You will take over as computer host from 3/29-7/2.
You would disembark your current ship 3/12 in Puerto Vallarta.
Once you accept, you will be added into CMS to generate your flights and letters of assignment.
I stared blankly at the screen for a few seconds, not completely understanding what had just arrived in my lap. Then my head started to spin. Really really fast. To be honest, I had convinced myself I hadn’t gotten this promotion. You learn to teach yourself that silence from Head Office usually means a regretful rejection, I was subtly trying to come to terms with that, and then there it was, right in front of me: I got it? I GOT IT?
Automatically I reached for the telephone.
Hey this is Amras.
And I found my voice was very small as I responded, because I was still staring at the message on my screen and trying to remove my heart from my where it seemed to be stuck in my throat.
I got the computer tech job.
WHAT???!!?!?! OH MY GOD when!?
Like five minutes ago.
The rest of this evening passed in pretty much a flurry, I had to tell my boss, I had to tell my family, who will have to change their cruise, …oh my goddess…to follow me to ICELAND!? Iceland via INDIA?
I’m going to have a commute from Mexico to Bombay! And from there eventually to the Baltics.
This, of course, potentially changes my game plan to leave the fleet later this year; I had planned to leave because my current position is no longer a good fit. The emotional strain and the length of the contracts have taken their toll on me and it was time to look for something new. This is definitely something new. With the shorter contracts and the hopefully more manageable hours it may turn out that this is a much better semi-long term fit, and if that is the case then I will just have to see where this particular adventure takes me.
At the moment…it seems that it’s taking me to Iceland…
Next month..
Excuse me, I have to go and pass out now…