It was Day 3 of "the week" today. I am awaiting news from the UK as to whether we need to change all the plans for a visit of UK folks to the US. This was a cross-USA tour which we thought was all sorted bar booking the travel and I was told as an aside today, by a rather "vague" PA, that we might have to slip it a week. Oh, if only it was that simple!!! We've turned somersaults to get some of these meetings set up!!
I was also trying to book a 3 day trip to Canada for POQI. This has been something of a movable target for the past week and I totally lost the ability to be professional this afternoon when the latest flight change was eased into the conversation. Actually, it was when I checked Expedia and discovered that there were no direct flights and it would take 6 hours to make a journey that you could drive in 4 1/2 hours, that I lost it. I was hysterical with laughter. I totally lost focus and the will to work.... Thank goodness my fantastic travel guy managed to find a flight (which shows that expedia don't give you all the options). Everything is booked now, so here's hoping it doesn't change again!
A new lunch option opened at the beginning of the week. It sells pita pockets, hummus etc. Three of us went down yesterday, and two of us were stricken down will tummy troubles today. Thankfully (for me) I was the one who was fine! My pita pocket was absolutely delicious - really fresh tasting and very scrummy so I hope that it was coincidence that the others were ill today... A few of us were talking about trying it again on Friday when Stephen pointed out that that was a dumb idea...we should really try it on a Monday as there was no point being sick on our own time!!
Wednesday, 10 September 2008
POQI is entering the building. Stand by. Stand By.
It's the end of the second day of what is turning into the week from hell! Actually, its not so much hellish bad as hellish busy. I've spent the past 2 days madly running about, when I've not got my phone glued to ear and my fingers glued to the keyboard! We've got a VIP visit to the UK going on and there is a lot of "stuff" to sort out to make sure it goes smoothly. Paul asked me earlier today if my to-do list ever got smaller. Never! I write it at the start of the day and then, like today, only manage to score off a few things before events and fire-fighting overtake me and I have to add more to it!!
There are some road closures going on around the office on Thursday due to the dedication of the 9/11 memorial at the Pentagon. The police and local authorities very kindly posted maps on their website so we know which areas to avoid. I was very surprised to see that on the map were marked the routes that POTUS may be taking. They did use the code, but we've all seen the West Wing and read Tom Clancy...we know what they're talking about!! Anyway, it gave me an idea. I'm going to refer to Paul as POQI from now on...
There are some road closures going on around the office on Thursday due to the dedication of the 9/11 memorial at the Pentagon. The police and local authorities very kindly posted maps on their website so we know which areas to avoid. I was very surprised to see that on the map were marked the routes that POTUS may be taking. They did use the code, but we've all seen the West Wing and read Tom Clancy...we know what they're talking about!! Anyway, it gave me an idea. I'm going to refer to Paul as POQI from now on...
Tuesday, 9 September 2008
Lady in Red, er Black
I was doing laundry the other day and realised that I wear a lot of black! I mean, a huge amount! I don't know why this would come as a surprise to me, but it did. I think it was probably to do with the fact that Stephen hadn't added much to the laundry pile as he'd been ill and lived in shorts and t-shirts, which meant that I had to acknowledge that the huge pile of dark washing was ALL mine. All black, with maybe a few items of red.... I needed to open up my colour palette a little. Move away from my funereal clothes choices. Embrace a little colour!
My old fall-back was always to wear a black jacket and trousers with a t-shirt underneath, so I stopped by the shops to re-stock on self coloured t-shirts. I have branched out into lilac and plum...okay, so I also picked up black and white too, but that's just between you and me!! At least my shoes have more colour than my wardrobe. The office is still reeling from the canary yellow pair I wore a few weeks ago!!
I actually managed to ruin a non-black T-shirt last night. I was being slutty and having dinner from a tray as Stephen was away and I wanted to watch the end of the Murray v Federer tennis match... I managed to drop a forkful of sweet and sour chicken down my t-shirt. Actually I managed (and this is some trick!) to drop it down the inside of my t-shirt!! It was burny! I had to rush upstairs and try and get it all off the shirt and out of my twins containment unit before I did myself serious damage!
My old fall-back was always to wear a black jacket and trousers with a t-shirt underneath, so I stopped by the shops to re-stock on self coloured t-shirts. I have branched out into lilac and plum...okay, so I also picked up black and white too, but that's just between you and me!! At least my shoes have more colour than my wardrobe. The office is still reeling from the canary yellow pair I wore a few weeks ago!!
I actually managed to ruin a non-black T-shirt last night. I was being slutty and having dinner from a tray as Stephen was away and I wanted to watch the end of the Murray v Federer tennis match... I managed to drop a forkful of sweet and sour chicken down my t-shirt. Actually I managed (and this is some trick!) to drop it down the inside of my t-shirt!! It was burny! I had to rush upstairs and try and get it all off the shirt and out of my twins containment unit before I did myself serious damage!
Sunday, 7 September 2008
Hanna the Horrible? Well, not so much!!
We survived!!
We survived the howling breeze and the torrential drizzle... Hanna was not as bad (here anyway) as they were expecting. It rained pretty non-stop from when we woke through to about 6pm - at times it was absolutely lashing down, but I don't think we had the volume we were expecting. The flooding on King St didn't happen. I think Cameron Run (which is where Pat & Jude used to live) overran its banks as there was a report that the Beltway may have to close in that area, but that was it...
We spent the day lounging. I baked Brownies and read a book, Stephen watched the sport: Murray v Nadal, Football, Baseball, Soccer, Formula 1.... (you can see why I went to read a book!). About halfway through the brownie baking, and at the most torrential part of the storm, Alison and Morag came round for a visit, so I had someone to try out my brownies on! They weren't fantastic (a bit dry), and I forgot to grease the tray before I poured the mix in, so we had Turtle Brownie crumble when I tried to take it out and put one on a plate. I am truly the Undomestic Goddess!
Stephen felt slightly recovered this afternoon, so he went out for a walk to see what the aftermath was like. I had been struck down by a "my head is going to explode, why is it so bright" headache, so I popped a painkiller, pulled on the wraparound shades and tried to sleep. It seemed to do the trick anyway. We both felt okay enough to walk out to get a pizza and enjoy the clear air and the very clear sky.
We survived the howling breeze and the torrential drizzle... Hanna was not as bad (here anyway) as they were expecting. It rained pretty non-stop from when we woke through to about 6pm - at times it was absolutely lashing down, but I don't think we had the volume we were expecting. The flooding on King St didn't happen. I think Cameron Run (which is where Pat & Jude used to live) overran its banks as there was a report that the Beltway may have to close in that area, but that was it...
We spent the day lounging. I baked Brownies and read a book, Stephen watched the sport: Murray v Nadal, Football, Baseball, Soccer, Formula 1.... (you can see why I went to read a book!). About halfway through the brownie baking, and at the most torrential part of the storm, Alison and Morag came round for a visit, so I had someone to try out my brownies on! They weren't fantastic (a bit dry), and I forgot to grease the tray before I poured the mix in, so we had Turtle Brownie crumble when I tried to take it out and put one on a plate. I am truly the Undomestic Goddess!
Stephen felt slightly recovered this afternoon, so he went out for a walk to see what the aftermath was like. I had been struck down by a "my head is going to explode, why is it so bright" headache, so I popped a painkiller, pulled on the wraparound shades and tried to sleep. It seemed to do the trick anyway. We both felt okay enough to walk out to get a pizza and enjoy the clear air and the very clear sky.
Saturday, 6 September 2008
Hanna - the build up
Cold update: Stephen is still not feeling well...He's milking the sympathy thing for all he's worth. I had a mild snapping of my temper tonight, but only because I was tired and hungry and he was whining!
Tropical Storm Hanna update: She's still coming! They have had TV crews down on King Street tonight as the city have handed out sandbags to the businesses on King Street and the streets which may flood down near the river. They're expecting the water level to be 2-3 feet higher than normal during high tides, and there is the chance of flash flooding too.... I've been out back and moved all the lightweight items into the bin store and moved the garden furniture into the corner of the yard. I'm standing by to bring it inside if its looking nasty in the morning. We're due to get the worst of the storm in the afternoon, so there is time to do some last minute battening down if needed!
I've also been to Safeway and stocked up with the essentials: water, loo roll and beer....
I was speaking to Dave from Malvern today and he was commenting that the US news reporters always seem to compete to see who can put themselves in most danger to report from the worst of the storm. I was telling him that I had to laugh at this ridiculousness when watching the news of Gustav last weekend. One news reporter had lashed himself to a pole on top of a building in New Orleans. You couldn't hear a word he was saying, you could barely see him, but he was there trying to tell the world what the weather was like!! I have promised not to lash myself to a tree during the storm tomorrow....
"Where's Kerry?"
"Well she lashed herself to that tree with her webcam in order to report on the storm for her blog. It took off in the storm. We're tracking her, and she's expected to make landfall in Cape Cod on Monday"
Well it had us in stitches anyway!!
Tropical Storm Hanna update: She's still coming! They have had TV crews down on King Street tonight as the city have handed out sandbags to the businesses on King Street and the streets which may flood down near the river. They're expecting the water level to be 2-3 feet higher than normal during high tides, and there is the chance of flash flooding too.... I've been out back and moved all the lightweight items into the bin store and moved the garden furniture into the corner of the yard. I'm standing by to bring it inside if its looking nasty in the morning. We're due to get the worst of the storm in the afternoon, so there is time to do some last minute battening down if needed!
I've also been to Safeway and stocked up with the essentials: water, loo roll and beer....
I was speaking to Dave from Malvern today and he was commenting that the US news reporters always seem to compete to see who can put themselves in most danger to report from the worst of the storm. I was telling him that I had to laugh at this ridiculousness when watching the news of Gustav last weekend. One news reporter had lashed himself to a pole on top of a building in New Orleans. You couldn't hear a word he was saying, you could barely see him, but he was there trying to tell the world what the weather was like!! I have promised not to lash myself to a tree during the storm tomorrow....
"Where's Kerry?"
"Well she lashed herself to that tree with her webcam in order to report on the storm for her blog. It took off in the storm. We're tracking her, and she's expected to make landfall in Cape Cod on Monday"
Well it had us in stitches anyway!!
Friday, 5 September 2008
Coughs and sniffles
Stephen is still feeling pants. He's been at home for the past couple of days shivering, sniffing and generally feeling none too special. Getting a cold is bad enough, but getting a summer cold is particularly horrible. For both of us!! We'll be having a quiet weekend I think - as well as his cold, we also have to deal with a tropical storm Hanna bearing down on us. Its due to hit on Saturday and we're expecting a lot of rain and high winds. I went out for a quick "batten down the hatches" pre-storm back yard tidy up just now and ended up wet. I picked up the tarp which usually covers our wood pile, but which we folded neatly a few weeks ago, and loads of water poured down my leg. It was nasty!
Wednesday, 3 September 2008
Sorry? I can't hear you! Can you speak up??
It seems I was harsh in my rush to judgement with regards Stephen's sore throat. He sounded like a dalek yesterday (and spent all day going round saying "Exterminate" in a truly hilarious impersonation...), and woke up with a cold this morning. By lunchtime full blown man-flu had set in, so he came home to wallow in self pity. He's normally quite resilient so he isn't good at being ill...which means that I'll be driven insane in a couple of days!!
I had a nice surprise in work today. A British contractor dropped into the office with a couple of bars of cadburys. He was over on vacation and we weren't expecting him, so it really was a surprise, but a welcome one!!
The rest of the day went downhill! Mr Wrongkindofbeer committed the cardinal office sin of having a conference call on speaker phone with his office door open. He's loud and I could clearly hear every word of both sides of the conversation. I can sometimes tune it out, but I was doing monthly reporting today (giant spreadsheet - lots of analysis) and it requires a lot of concentration. I couldn't do it. I had to decant into Paul's office and shut the door (firmly!), then pop my way through a load of bubble wrap. It was the giant bubble kind for superior stress relief!
As I was working through, trying to get the report finished I asked Joni if one of my colleagues could cover the phones at lunchtime. She called him. He agreed. It was about 20 minutes later Dawn stuck her head in the door asking if I'd seen him...it turned out that he had "popped downstairs to get something to eat" and left the phones unanswered. Surely not the point of agreeing to take the phones. As he wasn't around I took them, but of course wasn't at my own desk so had to keep running back and forward to get numbers etc. I was annoyed as I take the phones every day, and the one day I didn't (as I wanted to work!) he got bored and wandered off!! See, I told you...I was grumpy!! Everything was getting on my nerves!!!
I joked that I needed a sign for the front of my cube...and as I had just been to the zoo (and it was definitely like a zoo in the office today!) it should read something like this...
Kerry
Latin name: Grumpyus Bitchius
Habitat: Bars, restaurants, tropical islands and the little cube outside President’s office
Diet: Is especially fond of chocolate bars and liquidised Mango and rum drinks.
Kerry is generally kind, warm and fuzzy but at certain times can display ogreish behaviour and become irritable and short tempered. These periods of irritability generally coincide with the preparation of the month end reports and are exacerbated by loud noise and inefficiency. During these periods we advise that the public APPROACH WITH CAUTION as she has been known to bite. Extreme caution should also be exercised early each morning as she has been known to savage people before she has been fed her latte.
I had a nice surprise in work today. A British contractor dropped into the office with a couple of bars of cadburys. He was over on vacation and we weren't expecting him, so it really was a surprise, but a welcome one!!
The rest of the day went downhill! Mr Wrongkindofbeer committed the cardinal office sin of having a conference call on speaker phone with his office door open. He's loud and I could clearly hear every word of both sides of the conversation. I can sometimes tune it out, but I was doing monthly reporting today (giant spreadsheet - lots of analysis) and it requires a lot of concentration. I couldn't do it. I had to decant into Paul's office and shut the door (firmly!), then pop my way through a load of bubble wrap. It was the giant bubble kind for superior stress relief!
As I was working through, trying to get the report finished I asked Joni if one of my colleagues could cover the phones at lunchtime. She called him. He agreed. It was about 20 minutes later Dawn stuck her head in the door asking if I'd seen him...it turned out that he had "popped downstairs to get something to eat" and left the phones unanswered. Surely not the point of agreeing to take the phones. As he wasn't around I took them, but of course wasn't at my own desk so had to keep running back and forward to get numbers etc. I was annoyed as I take the phones every day, and the one day I didn't (as I wanted to work!) he got bored and wandered off!! See, I told you...I was grumpy!! Everything was getting on my nerves!!!
I joked that I needed a sign for the front of my cube...and as I had just been to the zoo (and it was definitely like a zoo in the office today!) it should read something like this...
Kerry
Latin name: Grumpyus Bitchius
Habitat: Bars, restaurants, tropical islands and the little cube outside President’s office
Diet: Is especially fond of chocolate bars and liquidised Mango and rum drinks.
Kerry is generally kind, warm and fuzzy but at certain times can display ogreish behaviour and become irritable and short tempered. These periods of irritability generally coincide with the preparation of the month end reports and are exacerbated by loud noise and inefficiency. During these periods we advise that the public APPROACH WITH CAUTION as she has been known to bite. Extreme caution should also be exercised early each morning as she has been known to savage people before she has been fed her latte.
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