End of the World Flash Animation

wtf mate?

Happy Anniversary to... us.

Everybody stand back! I've got a bottle of Rosa in my little office fridge and I'm NOT afraid to open it!!

What do people do on anniversaries? They reminisce... look fondly on the past... somewhat nostalgic I think. Nope, mine is met with complete chaos, lost luggage that isn't even mine, half our corporate office breathing down my neck for office space and a fucking pizza delivery order for 10 pizzas that I'm about to get mauled for by a bunch of fucking savages! *breathing... heavily*

After 6 years of this, you'd think I'd be used to it... not so much. Maybe if my boss even acknowledged it was my anniversary with the company AND to him, I might feel the tiniest bit compensated for my insanity... and alcoholism. My only saving grace is the man I'm attempting to retreive lost luggage for. It's his anniversary too, one year more than me. He likes to refer to it as the "7-year itch". You see... he's... leaving me.

Mr. Bond (as I'll refer to him) and I have had a wonderful email relationship for years now. Toiling away on his laptop trying to send me reports at 2 AM in the UK. Late night emails, wondering why the other hasn't gone absolutely nuts from this job. There was a mystery, a romanticism, a flirtatious... "je ne sais pas" to our communication. We shared a little more than we should have at times, but the risk made it even more exciting.

Since his arrival Sunday night, we've been discrete, flirtatious, caddy, but there's something else. It's that very hard to find... "there's no need for words, it's all wrapped up in a glance" look that you share with someone. There's an understanding. Almost a longing. In all this, here I am on the phone yet again trying to locate this man's luggage. Delta has completely screwed this up! Damn Mercury!! It's become my mission now, to get this man's luggage back to him before he leaves tomorrow.

I completely empathize with him. The same thing happened to me when I was coming back from India flying into Paris. Much to Delta's amazement, they paid for my $500 shopping spree in Paris. It's all in how you look at it, right? I believe we call that poetic justice. In all this retrograde chaos (I believe it ends tomorrow), this has been an incredible chapter in my novel of life. Not just Mr. Bond, but the entire month has been a learning experience on patience, relationships, understanding, and best of all compassion.

As the workday is coming to an end, my boss has ordered all execs to attend a special dinner at his place... including Mr. Bond. For some reason it saddens me that I might possibly never see him again. He waits til everyone is walking out the office to come give me a hug goodbye. It kills me that neither one of us can say anything, but goodbye. But such is my life. I've accepted this whirlwind of people who enter and leave, some stay for a long time, some are too brief.

I collect myself, sit back at my desk, and share one last long look of sincerity and apology with Mr Bond. I smile gently to cover up my watering eyes. Only to be left with the scent of his cologne lingering around my neck and his baggage claim ticket of lost luggage... and an unopened bottle of Rosa, saved for another time.

Cheers, Mr. Bond. Bon Voyage.

I'm happy we were able to enjoy a few hours, a few drinks, some conversation and a few intimate moments... in person.

High Maintenance

You know those people who when they order an item off a menu, have to completely redo the item they're ordering to suit their own personal needs? Well I can understand wanting condiments on the side or if you want a burger with or without cheese. I can also go as far to understand substituting a salad for a baked potato for dietary purposes. BUT when you initially sit down at a restaurant and the waitress comes to take your drink order and you order a glass of iced tea and then go into a 20 minute monologue on how exactly you want the tea to taste. I completely draw the line there.

For instance: I'm sitting in an Indian food restaurant, one of my faves! I'm waiting to get a table and I hear the lady sitting next to me ordering her iced tea. First of all, in an authentic indian restaurant "iced" tea should not even be an option, but we are in the south and iced tea IS "the house wine of the south". She then proceeds to tell this lady she wants half iced tea/half thai tea without the cream and half sweetened/half unsweetened. "Please, can I slap her???" is what I say to my friend who is joining me for lunch on this particular day. Am I nuts or is this just absolutely ridiculous of a request? Bring your own damn tea if you have that many requirements.

Next scenario: This morning I'm in my favorite coffee house in my little corner of the world and no it's not the corporate monstrosity, star$$$$s, and I go to order some hot tea for my throat because I'm recovering from a horrible case of bronchitis. I then ask her if I could just have a cup of hot water for my oatmeal that I brought because they don't serve oatmeal. Of course this was fine with her. But I KNEW to bring my own bowl of oatmeal because I make my own and like it a certain way. Funnily enough, the owner is standing at the end of the bar, a lady I know very well, and she tells the barista girl "watch out, this one is high maintenance" in her joking voice. See, I think there's a difference tho. If you're going to be high maintenance (which I totally can be) KNOW YOUR BOUNDARIES!! I mean you should be aware when it's obvious you're asking for way too much accommodation from others. Or maybe I just learned all this working in customer service myself for 5 years. *shrug*