Nothing new to report

I have been at rehearsals from 9am to 6:30pm for the past six days straight. But I am back to the job that I love. No matter how busy and tired I feel. I love what I do. I wonder what we will do with my one day off!

Christmas Plans

So last year, I work A Christmas Carol with Theatre Calgary. They have a matinee on Christmas eve - so you work till supper. That does not leave alot of time to get home for the fun. So last year my family came to Calgary so we could all celebrate together. It is very difficult to expect your family to do this two years in a row. This year the situation is even tighter. Yes, I am doing Christmas Carol again, but this time I start the next show on Boxing day (if I'm lucky the next day). So we couldn't even drive to Regina Christmas Eve and then be there after. Nope. So I pitched the idea of the Kotlar's coming to Calgary. It will be a little different as we (and our one bedroom apartment) and the only family they have here. But with the help of a hotel room or two - I am hosting! Should be interesting. Work till 5 and then HOLIDAY. But I am excited to give it a go. See what happens.

First day of rehearsal

Today was the first day of rehearsal. It all went really well. I was overly nervous - as always. I get so worked up about crap like that. Oh well. I didn't embarrass myself and that is all that really matters in the long run.

In other news, I am about to add the DVD labels and created DVD cases for our Wedding Video. I have given up on it for a little while. As per usual, it has been pissing my off with all of the little details that always go wrong for me. But it will finally be done tonight!

The last week

Well, Monday it snowed. Piles of heavy snow. And it stuck around until late Tuesday. Which, was appropriate as that is the day the Christmas season started for me.Thursday Logan and I carved up our pumpkin. As you can see from the large bowl of candy along side our pumpkin - we are ready for all the little trick or treaters. Except that last year not one came to our place - or even down our little dead end street. Oh well, the candy wasn't really for them anyway!

Christmas Started Oct 17

Yesterday was my first day back to work in my chosen career! Prep for Christmas Carol started. I think that it will be great fun. And as a huge bonus - the people, kids and adults that I didn't like very much from last year - are not in it this year!
There will definitely be more on this later!

My Vegas Story Episode #6

Day Four Part II

At the end of the day we started to head back to the hotel to catch the airport shuttle. It was a busy day on the strip as we tried to catch the bus. But it was full and we were told to wait for the next. Which could be in any amount of time. So instead of waiting we decided to walk. How far can it be from the Wynn to our hotel. I'll tell you - it is very far! We made it 45 minutes - just in time for us to grab a seat on the sidewalk for a couple minutes and then off to the airport.

When we arrived at the airport we were greeted by one of the girls I work with, standing in line with her mom. (Keep in mind it was shortly after 5, they would open the flight for check in at 6, but the flight wasn't until 9). She told us that there had been a switch and they were sending a smaller plane and the flight was sold out. So we waited and waited. The other employee had purchased a ticket before she left and was not on standby. But the mom and the three of us were biting our finger nails. To our surprise and happiness - we were the only four standbys. But it didn't help. There were only 2 people that did not show up for the flight. The other mom did get there first so the seat is hers. But then, which one of us to go home. I had to work - and you are in trouble for missing work because you were traveling on your flight priviledges. However, Stef had an exam the next day - and I had already given my notice. So we sent Stef and mom and I stayed in Vegas.

Our first adventure was finding the Hotel shuttle. We went to purchase a ticket - and after much confusion were told "one of our driver's is missing with one of our limos. I, the supervisor, will give you a ride if you don't mind making a couple of stops to find him." At this point mom and I didn't care. So we hoped in and mom and I had a tour of Vegas from a limo!

And the guy was great, he entertained us. And at the end offered to take us out for dinner (cause we were stuck in Vegas), they ended up finding the guy so he couldn't take us out, but he gave us his per diem to buy our own! We ended up staying at The Sahara. Not a hotel I would recommend. It wasn't bad, just old and dingy. We were now at the other end of the strip and within walking distance of some different casinos.

The Stratosphere (which stunk like they had pulled up carpet). We walked around - thought about going up to the top - but it cost to much and by this point we really didn't care about much!

Then to Circus Circus. That was far better than I had expected - especially from the look of the outside. But there was a second level around the casino floor that had games of chance for kids (like at the exhibition). They also had a center "big top" performance area. We got to see a really cool performance by a very flexible and strong lady!

From here, we were just tired and ready to sit at the airport and make sure that we were getting onto the plane. (I had called the call centre a million times during the day to make sure the situation hadn't changed! The flight was looking wide open!) We arrived at the airport shortly after 4 - two hours before the flight even opened for check in! We used the rest of our American money on very large bottles of booze from the duty free, and mom gave a spin on the slot machines in the airport.

My Vegas Story Episode #5

Day Four

We had seen all of the major casinos that were on our list. So today was meant to be a little slower. Take our time and enjoy. First we made what we thought was going to be a quick walk to the Hard Rock Cafe and Casino. It really wasn't that far -especially compared to the walk we would make later that day, or to our walk to the Rio - but it was very hot. They had some great clothes in the gift shop, which we did a little partaking in.

Then we walked to the bus - to take us back to The Venetian to Madame Tussaude's Wax Museum. That was very neat. I quite enjoyed that experience. The pictures will speak louder than words here!

(Johnny Depp, Stef married George Clooney, Elvis sang to me and gave an autograph to mom, I posed with Judy Garland and Princess Diana).

Then we walked further up the strip to places that we hadn't planned but were neat. One of the newest places, The Wynn. It had the best interiors in my opinion. It did not have a obvious theme, like the Paris, Venetian or all of the others. It was just bright and tropical. Not in a tacky, gaudy way, but with water falls and flowers gardens and hanging flower baskets. It just seemed very light and new. Which was refreshing. I was certainly starting to feel as though my senses were overloaded and they were all blending together. The Wynn left an impression!

Then we saw a neat looking building - turns out it is The Fashion Show Mall. Walking there in the hopes of finding a fashion show - we found just a very large mall. And a listing of Fashions shows on Fri, Sat and Sun. So we went back to Treasure Island were Stef had walked out with a buck in credits that still needed to be played. We found a great machine. Wheel of Fortune with a great big wheel in the center. We played. We separated out all the money we needed to get back to the hotel and then the airport and plugged in the rest. It was a penny machine so this went for quite some time. I do believe it was my luck on this machine - but we ended up winning the top prize on the wheel 10,000 x win. Which if you bet 1 penny (which we were) you win $100! That is pretty impressive. So we walked out of there with money in mom's pocket.

My Vegas Story Episode #4

Day Three

We started the day with a trip out to Primm, NV. Why Primm you ask? Well, there certainly isn't much there, two casinos (both owned by MGM) and one VERY LARGE OUTLET MALL!

We did alot of shopping. Spent many hours and many dollars on things for ourselves, for others and for Christmas presents. It was great.

When we arrived back in Vegas we headed back onto the strip (after delivering our many bags back to to hotel room).

First, we headed to the Treasure Island across one of the walking bridges over the street. From here we had a great view of the exploding volcano in front of The Mirage.

Then onto Treasure Island (where I was ID'd every time I turned around. And one lady looked at mine then Stef's and said "Oh, your younger" to Stef). Anyway, Treasure Island has a show called "The Sirens of Treasure Island". The show was a pretty good spectacle with lights and explosions and sinking ships. But as for the performances - it was very Sask Express. The whole thing was pre-recorded. Oh well, it was free entertainment. And we certainly got what we paid for. And actually a bit more, cause we did get free drinks from this casino.

Then over to The Venetian for a walk around. It was very neat. We looked into gondola rides - they were sold out and $12 a person. Though I have to say it did have one of the best interiors as far as the atmosphere it was trying to create. Having been to Venice I thought they did a great job of recreating it. However, I think they were pumping a scent into the air they were circulating cause it smelt like laundry soap.

Then a long walk down the strip to our last major casino of interest, the Paris. It also was neat. With the legs of the Eiffel Tower right into the casino. I also found this place fun as this is where Stef and I got our drinking trophy. A very large Eiffel Tower filled with Daquirie and Margarita. You will be surprised when you see the pictures. We did some gambling - no one really won anything. And then back to our hotel to bed. That was a very big day.

My Vegas Story Episode #3

Day Two

We spent most of the day wandering from Casino to Casino checking out the sights. First we wandered South to the MGM Grand. Very large. A lion habitat right in the middle of the casino floor. This guy was right over our heads and there were two little baby lions.

Then we walked over to the Tropicana. They had an exhibit on the Titanic. As some of you may or may not know I am a Titanic buff (not the movie, the ship. I have read many books on the subject and am very interested). They had all sorts of recovered items. And perhaps the best part was the recreations. They had a third class hallway and one room. Then a second class room. One of the coolest things was the ship deck. They had made is cold, there were stars and water and mirrors set up to imply the full length of the deck. And a recreation of what the ship looks like at the bottom of the ocean now. I have since read new literature that gives a new, controversial account of how the ship broke apart - and I know some newer information than was presented but it was really neat to see things that actually were on the ship! A dork like me really loves crap like that!
Then to the Excalibur. The theme of this casino was like a fairy tale. There were dragons and knights in shining armour. It was pretty cool. And we got to see some of the men from "The Thunder From Down Under" half dressed and promoting their show. Attractive, shirt less and aussie accents. I am really not sure why we didn't stay there longer.
Then to the Luxor. This had an Egyptian theme. The pyramid was the casino, with the Sphyx out front.
This photo of New York, New York was from arcoss the street at the Tropicana (you can see the sign for the Titanic Exibit)
New York New York was possibly my favorite place. They were the casino that gets top marks from me for carrying their theme through the entire place. Many of them had their theme in the hallways and shops, but in the casino part - they all seemed the same. This place was really cool! There was a live band, and buildings with restaurants and stores in them - as though you were walking down miniature streets. It really impressed me the most!


We had dinner here. Good food, huge portions and a good price. We did not go on the roller coaster, but it sure looked cool going in and out of the building.
After dinner, off to the Bellagio to watch the fountain show in front. It was very neat. We watched two shows. They go every 15 minutes for about 7-8 minutes. There was music and lights and in the second show fog. It was definitely worth the walk (and standing).

Then we walked way out of our way to go to the Rio. When I was in Edmonton working on Trying, the other show that was rehearsing was Peter Pan. They had hired a man that flies people for a living - that is his expertise. Well, he was telling us all about the flying parade above the casino floor of the Rio that he had worked on. So needless to say, I need to see it. They have four different shows and seven show times through out the day. We made it in time for their last show time of 9:30. Well, how were we supposed to know that the last show was less about flying and more about girls dancing to pop music and slowly taking their clothes off until just in bikinis?
There were huge floats that flew around the casino floor on what can only be called roller coaster track. And on each float were half dressed people pole dancing. Not what I had expected. I wanted to see people flying. Oh well, it was too far out of the way to go back. A little disappointed we decided to walk around before our long trek back to the strip.

Did I mention that Chippendale's was playing at the Rio. Tickets were a little out of our budget - but never fear. Two of the guys were out advertising. We walked by and they started throwing beads at us(it was a carnival type theme). They were funny, shirtless men and we had a good time with - and they did their jobs well - as we did buy the expensive pictures.

We ended our night at Caesar's Palace. We were unsuccessful in spotting Celine - but we sure checked out her own personal souvenir store. Stef and I were a little tipsy from our free poured (almost no mix) drinks from the Rio and were very vocal about how she was Canadian and the music playing in her store was "America the Beautiful".

We walked around, took a peek. Surprisingly enough the dress code for the workers was not togas. We sat down at the slot machines waiting for mom to win it big while we tried to rest our aching feet.


It was a long day of walking - and we certainly saw alot! I am actually tired just thinking about it. I do have to say that one of my favorite parts of each casino was the store fronts/shopping. That is where they really put their effort into their theme (besides the entrances). Above you see the (no idea how to spell the French word so here is it phonetically) trump loy. They have sidewalks and sky and fountains. It really is impressive.

My Vegas Story Episode #2

We arrived in the Las Vegas at 20:16, we gathered up our luggage and hurried off to our hotel - The Carriage House.

This great little hotel is all suites - so we had a fridge, range and microwave. A great little money saver. And was in a great location. It was off the strip by a couple minute walk - between the MGM Grand and the Aladdin. It was close to all of the big casinos and we could walk everywhere. Sure we were tired from doing so - but it saved us big bucks in transportation.

We quickly changed and went off to the Bellagio to see Cirque de Soleil "O".

The show was amazing! It was better than I could have ever imagined! We were sitting very close - fourth row from the front on the house left side. The pool had moving stage pieces to go from pool to stage and different depths of water. It was so good. I can't say enough about the show. The show was great and the tech theatre side was even cooler. We could see the fly system and into the wings. It was incredible.

My Vegas Story Episode #1

As an employee of Westjet I can fly for cheap - but it is standby. So this story begins with three women at an airport for many hours trying to get on a plane. In Westjet's world the bottom line is always that we are a low cost, low fare airline. To keep prices down we do everything to keep costs down. One of these methods is to never have a last minute seat sale - or standby for the general public. This allows for the company to always know how many staff it will need for each flight. We decided to fly to Vegas on Sat night because Friday was sold out and Sat was looking wide open. On Friday when I left work there were 30 some seats available on the flight. Lots of space for the 10 people that were trying to fly standby.

We arrived at the airport over four hours early for the flight. We had some lunch and then prepared to wait in line. A flight does not open for check in until 3 hours prior. After choosing the wrong line and the wrong wing of the airport - we were finally ready to check in. The Agent tells us that they have put a lid on the flight. That means that the 136 seats available will not be full. If the flight has less than 120 people on it they can send 3 flight attendants instead of the usual 4. This saved money in wages because those seats weren't going to be sold - no revenue coming in. So now there are 9 seats and 10 standby people. To make matters worse there is a priority for standby - employees, companions, parents then buddy passes. So for this flight that puts Stef right at the bottom of the list. Once through customs we sit and wait, and stress out for 2 hours. Just 30 minutes before the flight the Agent who checked us in sits down beside us and say that it looks like Stef won't make the flight- we may want to consider buying her a ticket. So mom shelled out the money and Stef had a confimed seat on the flight. All of us made the flight and were finally able to relax.

These are the faces of three very relieved and excited people!

My Vegas Story

We had a wonderful time in Vegas. The weather was great and the scenery amazing. And we got plenty of pictures. I will be posting some, but I have also created a web gallery (mostly for mom to get all of our pictures while we are in Calgary and she is in Regina.)

The link is: http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLandingSignin.jsp?Uc=17fjru6a.169jitmq&Uy=x9nw0o&Upost_signin=Slideshow.jsp%3Fmode%3Dfromshare&Ux=1

You can use my email address and password to take a peak
stacey.kotlar@hotmail.com
password : vegas06

There are alot of pictures - but there are lots of really good ones!

So much to talk about

First - Vegas is awesome! But much, much more on that later.

Second, today was my last day at Westjet. Yeah! No more call center, no more dumb general public, no more faceless hours of talking about boring things to strangers - for now. I start with Theatre Calgary on Tuesday. First Christmas Carol and then Retreat from Moscow. I am very happy to be returning to my career path.

I will certainly miss the flight privledges!

No more count down...Vegas is here!

We leave in a couple of hours for Vegas! Yay!
Cirque de Soleil tonight. And lots of fun!

And Logan had his polygraph exam on Thursday. And passed. Not that we didn't expect him to, but you have to be nervous about every step. And then on Wed is the psych exam. And then, really we are done. He has to have a physical but that won't be a problem. And the last little scary thing is the suprise home visit. But they give you warning and they come to talk to you, not investigate your house. Actually, the visit is for my sake. Which is really nice I think. They want to make sure that I am on board with this decision as it will greatly affect me too.

So that is my quick little update. Mom and Stef are on their way over here right now. I can hardly wait. Everyone cross your fingers that we get on the flight - we are flying standby.

Pulling an all nighter

Well, I am home alone tonight. The alarm at the Bay won't activate tonight so someone has to stay there all night and "protect" the place. I imagine there will be some big screen watching and bed jumping.

The car was fixed yesterday. It was a quick 4 hour fix of the speed censor and $411 donation to the Volkswagen dealership. Oh well. It could have been much worse - the car did stop in the middle of the road. That doesn't usually mean good things. So it is fixed. (But we still need tires, egh)

Big News from Calgary

As you may or may not know Logan has been applying for the Calgary Police. He has not allowed me to record his success on this blog as he/we didn't want to be counting our chickens before they hatched. However, today was a very big success. The application process is huge! I pulled this straight from the web site:

The nine stages of selection are:
Application Package
Written Testing
Screening Interview
Panel Interview
Pre-employment Polygraph Examination
Psychological Testing and Assessment
Security Background Investigation
Selection Committee
Occupational Medical


First it took us, (I do say us because I have certainly been trying to weasel my way into helping with as much as I can) it took us 6 months to finish the written application. Then there were the two written exams (written Aug 19) that test everything you have learned in school and a test to check out your ability to learn, remember and write. We waited three weeks for those results - and he passed with flying colours. Then an interview with a File Manager who will work for you in later stages. All of this has been moving faster than we expected - faster than most who are in the know expected.

Today, Logan had his panel interview. Logan sat across from his file manager and two other cops that put him through an hour long "behavioural descriptive interview" (all the rage these days with many employers). After they complete the interview they discuss and tell you right away if you pass, fail or if they want to defer you for a period of time. Logan was told that only 40% pass on their first try. He was successful!!!!

To add the excitement - they have given him dates in the very near future for his polygraph (Thursday the 5th) and his psych evaluation (the 11th)!

I have been allowed to post this information because this step is the largest hurdle in the process. Well, the hurdles that we have control over. The steps that follow will depend on things that are the way they are - like the background check, the physical etc.

Let this be a warning to all of you that know us - you may get a call. But don't panic - we may get an unexpected visitation!

German cars are weird

We drive a Volkswagan Jetta. Yesterday it started acting weird. While Logan was driving the car just turned off. It did not stall, it just stopped. And then the dash light "EPC" came on. What the hell does EPC mean. I was blaming Logan for this - he was a little weird yesterday. First he got all revved up on coffee without breakfast and he thought that problem was that he didn't turn the key long enough when it started - which cause the problem. Later he did the same thing with the key and it happened again. I just naturally blamed the weird guy for the weird problems. But today, I was stopped at a light and the car stopped.

I called VW and they told me that the "EPC" light warms of electrical problems that don't have their own warning lights and are usually not connected to the engine. We can only take our car to the VW dealership because no one else wants to touch them - to electrical. The dealership told me they are booking appointments to Oct 23rd. But on the up side - he said that a number of people canceled today and that if we got there before 1pm he could fit us in.

I hope that it is an easy problem, the extra money we have is set aside for Christmas shopping (which we have already started to spread the cost).

7 days straight and 2 weeks notice

Yesterday was the first day of a seven day stretch of working. I need to make these trades in order to get the weekend off for Vegas. 6 days and counting.

Yesterday I also talked to my team leader at Westjet and it seems that the longest leave of absence they would give me is one month - no long enough. So it appears as though I have to give my two weeks notice and then when I want to come back re-apply and they will fast track me through a 3 day training and then back to work. So I submitted my letter of resignation yesterday. My last day at Westjet is Oct 15th.