First day off the dole.

Up this morning at 5:10am, after a disturbed nights sleep as two more unknown lodgers entered room 307 after I'd gone to bed, one staying up beyond 12 to read a magazine by the bedside light. But I got my own back at 5:00... (not really)

After a breakfast primarily consisting of melon and toast, I walked down the hill in the freezing cold to the Keg, where I signed my life (SIN number) away and was shown around where I would be working. The setup seemed in most ways superior to my previous washing up jobs, but inferior because I'd be staying there for 8 hours...

So the slog began, and I got a reprieve at 11:00 to help finish off what was left of the breakfast buffet, so I had waffles and pancakes with mapel syrup for starter and a main of scrambled egg, eggs benedict on a muffin with ham, some sausages and some ham. Tasty.

At 2:45 I was still going because the plates were still coming in, but then Nancy (my new boss) reminded me that as soon as it was coming up to 2:30 I should just clean the sinks and get going, which suited me very nicely. Especially because I'd left piles of washed and unwashed equipment for the next guy, and therefore my responsibilities did not include mopping floor, cleaning dishwasher, scouring the saucepan that someone (Nancy) had cremated some unidentifiable ingredient in, and generally cleaning up after myself. This suits me well.

Tomorrow, it's much the same, but I'l be bringing in my beloved MP3 player to play 106.5 Mountain FM, supplementing the kitchen radio which teases me with its barely recognisable tunes that I love so well. At 3:00 I'll be checking into my new home, the SameSun backpackers' hostel, which is very cheap but comes complete with kitchen, TV and DVD, laundry, pool table and free wireless AND a TV and fridge in the room. I'll be staying with another 3-11 employees of the company I work for, for about $10 a day which equates to 50 minutes work or a missed evening meal if I become skint again.

I'll try and see if any other company hotels can offer non-cleaning related jobs for me over the next few weeks, but I've got a starting block now I can fall back on as well as $274.80 in pocket (I got my refund for 11 days not spent in HI Banff Alpine Centre today). And a bed, and people to talk to, and some melon in the fridge.

This evening I will celebrate by getting full (something I have not experienced since about 11:30 this morning).