Yep. Keys, Chicago ID, and Driver’s license, all down at the bottom of the dorm elevator shaft. Of course, the maintenance guy isn’t home. Of course, I was five minutes away from interrupting his family at dinner.
::deep breath::
You’re all wondering: how did this technical genius manage to pull such an astounding feat? I was taking my freshly laundered skivvies back to my room. I go to close the sliding metal mesh door, and my key ring/ID holder caught on one of the joints, fell out of my hand, and as I watched, frozen in horror, fell down the shaft with a merry “jingle.”
Thank GaWd my roommate was home, otherwise I would have been stuck in the lounge with the guy who’s stalking me and a laundry basket full of Mountain Fresh [sup]TM[/sup] bras.
Tig, talk to your buildings super or the building engineer on duty.He can “usually” access the sump or pit at the bottom of the shaft and retrieve your stuff.I once went into the “pit” at my place of work to retrieve an engagement ring for an employee.You might have to be really nice to him though,it’s icky,stinky and dirty down there.
Scottimom- I think the music’s coming from the party down the hall (on a Monday… during midterms. hmmm.)
Rich- Our maintenance guy wasn’t home, so I left a message with his wife. I was really, really, nice, but he should get the keys for me anyway. This being university housing, and all. Still… maybe I could tongue-wash his car for him or something.
Well, it’s been five hours since my keys went AWOL… no word from Mr. Nick the Maintenance Guy. Luckily, my roommate will be home when I get home tomorrow, so I don’t have to wait around. Unluckily, all my ID is still down in the shaft.
[slight hijack]When I used to work a little closer to downtown Atlanta in a 30+ story building. A FOAF (read “probably really didn’t happen”) leaned over to attempt to spit out a Jolly Rancher right as he entered the elevator. His keycard/id badge fell off and dropped right in the crack.[/slight hijack]
Once when I was staying in a small hotel in NYC, I managed to drop down the elevator shaft the very credit card I needed to pay for my stay there. I had it out because it was also your room key in that place. Fortunately, I had been credited by using the card to check in, so it was paid for already. Sheesh. At least I brightened the day of the concierge, the maintenance staff, and the credit card people and gave them all a good laugh.
I also dropped a duplicate set of my parent’s housekeys down a sewer in Queens, which was annoying because I had really liked that keychain.
And this was after I’d spent my entire Little Girlhood in an apartment building with an elevator and never dropped anything down the shaft, although I was tempted occasionally to try it with my brothers.
Sometimes there’s only one word of wisdom for times like these, and I think I speak for us all when I quote it: “D’oh!”
A friend of mine was fresh out of college and working in ‘training’ program. (i.e. company pays really cheap wages to contracting company, who pays REALLY cheap wages to my friend) Because he didn’t actually earn enough to live on, he maxed out his dad’s credit card everymonth. On one particular afternoon we maxed it out mid-drunk at the American Pie (a reference for all you Atlanta folks). As we where complaining about how sad it was that I was going to have to start paying, he was flipping his dad’s credit card in the air. He didn’t catch it, and it fell right through the cracks of the wooden deck we were on. Gone forever. The manager said there was no way to get under there. Did he tell his dad? Hell no, his dad would have had a fit. Fast forward a couple of months… he calls his dad for fathers day. His dad says “Son, is that you? I thought maybe you were dead, since my credit card stopped getting maxed out every month!” Being the player that he was, my friend said “I just decided it was time to grow up, and start living on my own, and paying my own way.”
