Junior Assigning

Today I received three phone calls from Crew Scheduling, all trying to get me to throw on my uniform and drive like a maniac to get to DIA within 2 hours, with the promise of more $ than usual. It's called 'junior assigning.'

What the deal is, if I answer my phone, I HAVE to accept the assignment. So I have learned to let my phone go to voicemail when I am on duty if I don't recognize the caller. However, if I do answer, I can get out of it if I've been drinking. But, that would've been hard to believe when they they called me today at 8AM.

If I wasn't starting five days on duty tomorrow, I would have jumped at the opportunity to make some extra $, but we are short-staffed (contrary to what management believes), and I already know that they are going to use us up and spit us out until the end of the summer. SO...I have to look out for myself.

Accordingly, I bid on a 4-day trip that starts tomorrow. I'll do a turn to St. Louis and then have a 15 hour overnight in San Francisco. We'll return to Denver on Sunday and I'll have a 3-hour sit before I head back to San Francisco - but this time I won't stay. We'll fly a "red-eye" to Milwaukee, arriving at 6AM on Monday morning. Then I'll get to stay at the hotel until Tuesday morning.

Rumor has it, that I'll probably get another trip tacked on to the end, since I'm on duty on Wednesday, too. Stay tuned - I am going to take notes and share the weird things that happen during the trip that starts tomorrow...