IROP = irregular operation. For those of us working at PDX, an IROP is usually along the lines of a delayed flight. We have had quite a few delayed flights coming from New York JFK to Portland - probably something to do with the start of summer. When we have an IROP we have to wait until the flight comes in so we can deplane the passengers and be there available at the baggage claim. But this waiting business can be anywhere from 30 minutes to three hours! What do you do during that time?
Well, sometimes you sit around and read magazines or books. This usually happens during those shorter waiting periods. Sometimes you get take away and a Red Box movie for the wait. To date, I've seen "The Hangover" and part of "Good Hair" while waiting. Sometimes when coming back from picking up food you run into a friend at the airport waiting to pick someone up, and you have a nice chat to catch up on each others' lives. And sometimes you get to go to IHOP for dinner. Last night we got to go to IHOP, and we had the most entertaining server in the world. Jim became our new BFF, following along perfectly with our jests, even bringing us root beer floats! We decided that future scheduling should be determined by those nights Jim works at IHOP in case we have another IROP.
The problem with IROPs, though, is your brain isn't quite on it's A-game. So you take a little longer to do those tasks that usually would be done in a jiff. You forget to clock out at the end of the night because you're excited to finally leave for home. You eat whatever is laying around which makes you a little sleepy. Motor skills are also a little impaired, because who should be awake and working at that hour? And very infrequently you get to head home just as the morning crew is walking into the office. Plus, your brain can't register what day of the week it really is, because you started work on Sunday and you're getting off work on Monday, going to bed on Monday in the early morning and waking up on Monday but it feels like it should be Tuesday - it makes one week feel like two weeks, and no one really likes their work week to take twice as long as it should.
But I enjoy the camaraderie that comes from spending time with my fellow Crewmembers. We have fun, and there is always something interesting that comes out of our conversations (see: Conversations on the Employee Shuttle). It is the people that make the IROPs bearable.
Well, sometimes you sit around and read magazines or books. This usually happens during those shorter waiting periods. Sometimes you get take away and a Red Box movie for the wait. To date, I've seen "The Hangover" and part of "Good Hair" while waiting. Sometimes when coming back from picking up food you run into a friend at the airport waiting to pick someone up, and you have a nice chat to catch up on each others' lives. And sometimes you get to go to IHOP for dinner. Last night we got to go to IHOP, and we had the most entertaining server in the world. Jim became our new BFF, following along perfectly with our jests, even bringing us root beer floats! We decided that future scheduling should be determined by those nights Jim works at IHOP in case we have another IROP.
The problem with IROPs, though, is your brain isn't quite on it's A-game. So you take a little longer to do those tasks that usually would be done in a jiff. You forget to clock out at the end of the night because you're excited to finally leave for home. You eat whatever is laying around which makes you a little sleepy. Motor skills are also a little impaired, because who should be awake and working at that hour? And very infrequently you get to head home just as the morning crew is walking into the office. Plus, your brain can't register what day of the week it really is, because you started work on Sunday and you're getting off work on Monday, going to bed on Monday in the early morning and waking up on Monday but it feels like it should be Tuesday - it makes one week feel like two weeks, and no one really likes their work week to take twice as long as it should.
But I enjoy the camaraderie that comes from spending time with my fellow Crewmembers. We have fun, and there is always something interesting that comes out of our conversations (see: Conversations on the Employee Shuttle). It is the people that make the IROPs bearable.
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