There are Good People in the World

I trucked my ass out to California for a mere two days to attend a team retreat. The evil bitch who "facilitated" the sessions called me outside on our break this morning to chastise me about "dominating" the conversation "with issues that no one wants to hear about." My initial reaction was to leave for a bit and sit on a curb nearby while sobbing to Husband on my cell phone. My second response was, What the fuck is her problem? If you are supposed to facilitate a discussion, there are significantly better ways to deal with a overeager participator than to wait until after the session is over and rhetorically slap her hand. Perhaps saying something along the lines of "thanks for all our thoughts, but time is running short and we need to move on" or "Why don't we table these issues for the afternoon session?" Then again, this is the same cunt who emailed the team and explained in her email how to respond to it. (She suggested that we hit "reply to" and then after we fill in the information she requested, hit "send." See June 30 for a discussion on that little episode.) I should not have been surprised.

After all that, I was pretty damn tired. Yet I still faced a short flight to LA from San Francisco and then an overnight flight home. (Thankfully, Husband was able to use his frequent flyer benefits to upgrade me to business class.) On the flight to LA, I sat next to a very nice woman who chatted with me about a variety of issues facing the world. She knew that I had a red eye to NYC from LA, and when we arrived in LA two hours later, she invited me to join her at the Admirals' Club, where she thought I'd be more comfortable waiting. She herself had only a few minutes between flights, but once she got me in, I can stay as long as I like. I am very touched by her thoughtfulness. Not everyone is an incompetent shithead, which is a nice way to begin the weekend.

And speaking of beginning the weekend, I am off to the Jersey Shore for a week once I get back. Husband decided to model his 30th birthday celebration after Malcom Forbes. When Malcom turned 80, he rented an island off Morocco and flew about a thousand of his dearest friends out there on private jets for a week long fete. Not quite being of these means yet, Husband rented a house in Ocean City that can accommodate 16 people comfortable and invited all our pals. I am looking forward to a week of mini golf and frozen custard on the boardwalk. The only downside is a lack of internet access. The house has two kitchens and two barbecues, but is not wired. The only place officially offering wifi is, uh, McDonald's. I guess I'll be eating a lot of fruit and yogurt parfaits this week...