Not a drill this time....but all is well.

So, about three weeks ago, I wrote about an emergency drill that took place in my office, necessitating a long walk down NINTEEN flights of stairs and resulting in several days of extreme pain from muscles which are morally opposed to getting that much exercise in one day, haha.

Today, the alarm went off again. For several minutes, we could hear it on another floor - either the floor directly below or directly above us. I figured that perhaps someone had inadvertently set off the alarm on that particular floor. No way was I going to go down those stairs AGAIN so soon after the last drill, if the alarm was only set off by accident! After a little while, however, I heard sirens outside, but wasn't really worried much - this is, after all, midtown Atlanta where sirens abound periodcially at all hours of day and night. Then, the alarms started going off on ALL the floors, including 19. So, I reluctantly drug myself over to the stairwell, opened the door, and....smelled smoke.

YIKES!!!!

Not really super-strong, just noticeable. Didn't *see* any smoke, just smelled it. I was a little bit more motivated to get down the stairs at that point, haha! A few floors later, we could no longer smell the smoke... by the time we got all the way back down to the lobby (and my legs were quivering like over-stretched rubber bands, though not as bad as the last time!), the all-clear was given and we were allowed to take elevators back up.

Several theories are bouncing around the office; have no idea which one is true, if any.

First theory - someone pulled the alarm either by mistake or for a stupid prank. Not buying that one, given that I and others smelled actual smoke.

Secong theory - someone microwaved something too long and it caught fire.

Third theory - the ventilation system in the restaraunt on the top floor somehow got backed up, causing smoke to filter thru the building somehow.

As to what REALLY happened, I have NO clue at all. Whatever it was (and WHEREVER it was!) wasn't serious and/or was contained & extinguished almost immediately.

So, here I am, back at my desk, getting back to work. My legs are gonna hurt like heck tomorrow and the next day, for sure. Since this wasn't a planned drill, the building management didn't even give us free ice cream, like last time. Drat.