How do you fix a day that starts at 3am?

If anyone knows the answer to that question, I'd dearly love to know it.

Truthfully though, the started out well, and it wasn't until approximately 9:30am that things started to descend into disaster.

Let me begin:

I woke up at 3am today. Waited for my alarm to go off for 30 minutes. That's ok. I need that time to get the brain working too. I got up, got ready, went to work for 4:15am.

The people who closed the cafe last night clearly had other things on their mind. In their defense, two of the three don't close the cafe all too often, but they do often enough to know the basic things that ought to have been done. Not really a big deal, as there were three of us in the morning (which doesn't happen often) so we adjusted, tweaked some things and moved on. No hard feelings.

Working out the breaks schedule was less than enjoyable as well. I've never liked that particular aspect of being a supervisor (which is odd, as I do love puzzles, and that's basically what it is, a puzzle that involves people, coffee, predictions and blackout periods). Odd shifts, and odd tasks. That got done. So I moved on. And people I enjoy working with were working with me today. That was good.

Our district manager shows up. All is well. There are enough staff that I can deploy and plant one person to be cleaning. Always cleaning, and maintaining a tidy cafe. Things are good.

I started the deposit at an excellent time, got it all done in 23 minutes (woo! only 5 minutes more than the store record I set earlier this year!) and set the safe to put it away. Except that the safe suddenly lost power, and I couldn't access it. And so the descent steepened. Begin calling help desks, playing with power cords etc. Hear a sizzling sound when touching the power cord. Shriek. Note that there is now no power to the stereo, security moniter, and still to the safe. Help desk says that they will send a tech over within 24 hours.

Fine. Move along.

And I don't really know what happened after that. I was slow AND clumsy on bar. I couldn't pull it together and bust out the drinks, and serve customers in an efficient amount of time. Then I spilled the splash sticks all over the bar, into steamed milk, into prepared drinks, into the milk rag container, into a milk jug and onto the floor. I forgot about a 80-cup coffee service until 5 minutes before it was due, and it takes 15-20 to get it ready. Flames appeared as the descent reached maximum velocity.

I ask to go home early. I can't countdown the safe, so I just punch out. Then the safe gets fixed. Now I have to countdown. And it takes a long time. And I don't get paid for those 15 minutes.

I check my cell phone. Drama on the friend front. I make a call, say something I had no intention of saying in front of a co-worker, and spill the beans on a subject I didn't want to discuss.

I finally get to my car, I drive home, and there is TONS of traffic. And while waiting to turn right onto a street beside a truck that is waiting to turn left (and thus obstructing my view and the view of the car behind me) I inch up in order to be able to see. I get a clear view, see about 15 cars headed my way with a few of them clearly speeding, and the car behind me honks. Not once, not twice, and not three times. Four times, and each one louder and longer than the last. Poop to you. Poop and vomit and diarrhea. All to you sir. I finally turn right, the driver behind me turns as though attached to my trunk, and earns himself a honk from the car that would have hit him. He ZOOMS past me, in and out and between lanes, and finally out of my sight. Thank goodness. I was losing it.

I'm home now, starting a cleaning process, waiting for crepe batter to sit, and hoping, hoping, hoping that the rest of the afternoon is a breeze with nothing but smiles, laughter and colourful pictures. Please God, let it be so. I can't take any more like this on my strength, only Yours.