Night Of The Living Elevators!

Have you ever been stuck in an elevator? Because I just was. It is one of those things most people hear about but always think "that will never happen to me." Until it does. Like it did to me. Granted it was only for about two minutes, but it was still a unique experience. And because this a blog on the interwebs, I need to tell you all about it. Every. Last. Detail.

But first, let me tell you about this specific elevator. In the dorm I live in, this elevator seems to break down at least once a week. Seems safe, right? I have ridden up and down that elevator hundreds of times and never once have I gotten stuck in it. Until tonight. Yup, I beat the odds. Oh how lucky I am.

I should also tell you that I am the second person in my family to get stuck in an elevator in the past three months alone. Evidently, elevators are taking their revenge. At my family reunion in August, my uncle got stuck in a elevator for almost half an hour before he was finally rescued. Compared to that, my ordeal does not seem so bad.

It all started out innocently enough. I left my room to get something to eat from the little cafe in the dorm. I called the elevator and got in when it arrived. It started heading down. Everything good so far. Then it got to the first floor (the floor I was going to get off at) and that is when the trouble started. While the elevator halted once it reached the first floor, the doors did not open and it felt like the motor did not stop.

Great. Just great. Fantastic. Absolutely wonderful.

I pressed the open-doors button. Nothing. I hit the first floor button. Nothing. I hit the basement floor button. Nothing. I hit the alarm button. It made a ringing noise but again, nothing.

OK. Don't panic. Try to pry the doors open. Nothing. Hit the alarm button again. Nothing. Try to pry the doors again. Nothing.

Great. Fan-bleeping-tastic.

So I paused for a second, pulled out my phone and updated my Facebook status. "Stuck in the read curry elevator. not joking. please help." Now this may seem silly, but consider this: I'm friends with someone who is an RA for another floor in my dorm's wing (and uses the same elevator). So if he saw that post, he would know who to alert. See? There was logic behind that decision.

Anyway, I hit the same buttons again hopelessly and decided to try and pry the doors open again. And guess what? The doors opened.

Hallelujah! Halle-freaking-lujah!

I got the hell out of the elevator which, surprisingly, had reached the first floor perfectly (the elevator floor was level with the lobby floor). It seems like all that happened was that the doors failed to open. Why did they not open the first two times I tried to pry them open? I do not know. I'm a doctor, not an elevator technician. (Note: I am not actually a doctor).

But I escaped. But that is not all . After I told someone at the center desk what happened, I checked my mailbox. I had received a package from my parents. And when I receive a package from my parents, there are only two possibilities: cookies or brownies. And it was brownies.You could not script a better moment to receive home-made brownies than that.

And how did I get back up to my floor? I used a different elevator. Yup, I skipped the stairs. And did I get stuck again? Nope. I really do not care about learning my lesson. And so what if I would have gotten stuck? Well, I had brownies.

Until next time, Orange Hat Guy