Well, That Was Special

Today was my first real experience going into the plant. It was... Special. With a capital S. Just to get into one section we had to badge through at least five different doors. We also had to ask Operations for permission to enter another room before badging through again. At least all of this was in a mostly air-conditioned space, and fairly quiet, at least for an industrial space. Then came the fun part.

First we had to talk to Radiation Protection and get our EDs, or Electronic Dosimeters. Then we entered the Radiation Controlled Area, RCA. In here it was hot and loud. Oh and the possibility for radiation, always fun. This is where it got really special. I had no idea what we were even looking for, I was just along for the ride. Apparently my cohorts hadn't thought to bring any drawings that showed where we were going. One of them had never been there, and the other had been there once. We went to the stair that the one guy used the last time, but it was locked. We then spent over an hour riding the elevator up and down, climbing stairs, wandering around, opening doors, and generally getting lost. Finally, when I was ready to give up, we stopped for directions. With directions in hand, we found whatever it was that we were looking for.

To get out of the RCA we had to get full body scans, it took me several tries to get in the stupid machine properly. Let me just say that the scanners were not made for women to begin with, and especially not the chunky girl I've become. All in all it was a very uncomfortable experience. Drenched in sweat and out of breath I returned to my desk and guzzled some water and made a resolution: I am GOING to lose weight. Diet is going to be tricky until I get my new kitchen functional, but I can at least boycott the vending machine. And there's a Y not far from my new place with an aquatics center. I'm hoping to check it out and that they'll have good lap swim hours. It's not going to be easy, but I think I've finally found my motivation that's not going to disappear: work is hard enough without being so uncomfortable!