Saturday, November 29, 2008

food coma...

... yes, still.

Good food, good company, good wine. Turducken was delish, the extra turkey Dad made was fantastic, and even if the family pumpkin pies didn't turn out as expected (even though I told Mom that if she'd let me help her, I KNOW they would have been fine...!) a good time was had by all. And at least two guests left on Thursday night feeling stuffed to their gills.

A success!

And a great time with my parents. Really and truly. Slept like a baby in my (narrow) childhood bed, ran around in my PJs, and did some fun online shopping with Mom when not helping Dad baste the turducken. Above all else, I am thankful for my wonderful time with them.

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Quote of the Day

You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop and look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.' ... You must do the thing you think you cannot do.

~ Eleanor Roosevelt

Monday, November 24, 2008

Thanksgiving Countdown

I'm excited that it's almost Thanksgiving -- it's one of my favorite holidays. Even though my younger sister will not be joining me and our parents in our annual overindulgence, I have invited several coworkers and friends to join us, and it should be a lot of fun. There is likely to be some difficulty as my parents and I determine who is responsible for which dish, but things will be fine once we have staked out our respective territories in the kitchen, and I've opened the first bottle of wine.

DC seems to be emptying out already. There were very few people on the streets on my way in to work this morning, and at least half of my office has already left. And whomever will be coming back to DC for their family Thanksgiving will probably do so at the very last minute... but then stay through the weekend.

It's been an unusually quiet day for me. I've had a lot of time to think about what happened in our office last week, and the bigger financial picture in which these changes took place... and honestly, I'm trying not to be scared.

I've also been thinking about my life as a single girl. I've been dating, spending time "at the buffet", and generally having fun for over a year at this point. I had told myself (and a number of boys, as well) that I would continue to do so until I provided with a convincing argument to do otherwise. Maybe it's because the holidays are starting, or maybe it's the cold weather wreaking havoc on me, I don't know, but I'm starting to think it may be time for a change.

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

"downsizing", "departmental rearranging"...

... in other words, watching coworkers lose their jobs.

Let me note that I have not lost my job (knock wood) and I am incredibly grateful for that, as well as the fact that my department was not touched by this recent turn of events. But as of noon today, a dozen people were let go from our organization -- four were from my office, the rest from our New York branch. And as this is a very close-knit operation, I am saddened by these changes, and I know I am not the only one.

I looked up from my computer a moment ago to see our impeccably made-up CEO stride by my cubicle, a waft of her signature (heavy, floral) scent following in her wake. I greeted her by name and with a smile; she nodded and gave me a little wave. I wonder if she feels anything about what has happened, or if she simply accepts that these things must happen in an organization, particularly at a time when there is an economic downturn, and moves on...

It's been a long week already.

Saturday, November 15, 2008

home again, home again...

Fortunately, my luggage finally appeared in Tampa, about 12 hours after my arrival. I promptly found my bathing suit and went swimming in the hotel's outdoor pool - a treat one can only dream of in mid November in most other parts of this country.

The conference went very well, I think. And it was absolutely exhausting.

Of course, my flight back to DC was through St. Louis. I mean, it's not like I was going to fly through Atlanta or some other more northern city to get home, right? In fact, I think I should have flown further South before attempting to get home. In any case... upon arrival in St. Louis, I found that my flight to DC was delayed by two hours. And then three hours. Some young, skittish-looking girl told a friend on her iPhone about how she didn't think we were even going to get to DC that evening, an idea that nearly ground my teeth to nubs. (The bars in the airport had last call at 7.30 - I was able to snag one drink before having to vamoose.)

But the plane finally arrived.... they took us to DC... and I got home at quarter of two this morning. It took me another two hours to unwind and fall asleep. Which begs the question as to why I am now awake. But considering that it's rainy, dismal Saturday, I'm sure I'll be unconscious again soon enough.

Wednesday, November 12, 2008

My trip down to Tampa

- Left the office at 11.30 for my 1-something flight to NYC.
- Flight from DC to NYC waited on the runway for almost an hour after we left the gate.
- After we got into the air, we circled over Atlantic City for another 40 min or so in a holding pattern, before the flight crew said we had to land at LaGuardia because we were running out of fuel.
- Landed, refueled.... waited and waited and waited to go to JFK. Five hours after our original take off, we landed at JFK. (Please don't ask me why I flew to JFK in order to go to Tampa...)
- American Airlines wouldn't take any sort of responsibility for getting me on another flight to Tampa (since my connection was long gone) but told me that my luggage would be directed there. They swore up and down it would be in Tampa, but gave me merry hell for trying to get on another flight out of JFK.
- Called the travel agency that my office works with; my new Best Friend got me on a Jet Blue flight to Tampa, got a refund from American for my missed flight, and called the hotel in Tampa to make sure they didn't give away my room.
- Got to Tampa around midnight and was told that my luggage wouldn't be here until 7-something the next evening.


Upside: Even though I had to iron my unmentionables this AM and steam my jeans, I slept well, the display booth is already here and I don't have to set it up until 2pm. And, I'm going shopping right after I finish breakfast, because it's going to be over 80 today, and the sweater I'm wearing is not going to work with this environment.

P.S. Why does the hotel's "Forget-Me-Not (Female) Kit" include bath salts? I understand the ridiculous amounts of sanitary supplies, and appreciate the scented deodorant. But bath salts??

Monday, November 10, 2008

Quote of the Day

Out of intense complexities intense simplicities emerge.

~ Winston Churchill

Friday, November 7, 2008

this made me smile

From The American Prospect:

CHANGE WE CAN BELIEVE IN.

On Monday night, at the Obama rally in Manassas, Virginia, I stood by the press railing watching the most poignant scene I'd witnessed during the whole campaign. There were two small children, both on their father's backs. At the beginning, they were about 10 feet from each other, staring anxiously at the stage. One was black, the other white. The little white kid had an Obama sign, the little black kid didn't. They took stock of each other. Soon, the little white kid leaned all the way over to try and give his sign to his new friend. The fathers, noticing, moved closer to each other. And the kids held the sign together. I had forgotten my camera, and was begging others to take pictures. April Winchell, however, succeeded:

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

WE DID IT!


and one more, because I'm SO EXCITED...!

Monday, November 3, 2008

GET OUT THE VOTE!!!

Tomorrow, we vote for president, in case you've been living under a rock.

I'm anxious about how this turns out. My office is near the White House, and I've had several coworkers wonder if we're going to be dealing with mobs, riots or angry hordes come Wednesday morning; to which I've said "Lets just be positive and hope they're HAPPY mobs!"

I'm also coming to terms with being a registered DC voter, which many have told me means that my vote is absolutely worthless. This does not, however, mean that I will not be voting. I know many people -- women more than men, interestingly -- who have no intention of voting tomorrow. I can understand disliking the candidates, but why not get educated about these two men and their running mates? Women have had the right to vote for less than 100 years in this great country of ours. There are women all around the world who have never voted, and who will never have any kind of say over who controls their country.

Even if my vote "doesn't count", I'm still getting my ass up at 6am (okay, maybe I'll hit snooze once... or twice...) so I can figure out where the hell my polling center is from my apartment, get there as early as I can, and vote!

I've been fascinated by this election, and at the same time, I'm really damn sick of it. I want it to be over, I want to know what's in store for us, I want to know if this country is getting the change that it so badly needs...