Yet another away message

on my voicemail and email at work...

This last week was nuts, a combination of trying to catch up from being out of the office 8 days out of 10, touching all my staff in some way, keeping developing projects going, and keeping a lid on PeBo's anxiety over the Great Fire Drill To Find The Missing Money.

I really have to stop calling it that, though. One of my staff said "I'm putting all this time in for a fire drill?" No no no no no - sorry, Carol. Didn't mean it like that. THIS IS NOT A DRILL! No one's effort has been wasted! Sometimes sarcasm from the mouth of a department head is inappropriate and this time it was my turn to goof.

It's just that I can see clearly that the problem is solved, but so many other people need proof, and it is taking up soooo much time... I wish sometimes that I could let people inside my head what I see. In this case they might relax. But the problem then would be... how do I get rid of them after they're done looking? ;)

Hmmm. That would make a good plot for a sci-fi movie. A guy has the ability to allow people to see things as he sees them. Selectively at first, and only when he wants them to. But then, as the psychic connection gets deeper, they can see through his eyes whenever THEY want to (of course seeing things that he doesn't WANT them to see, like how he views them and others), and even later... they begin to alter HIS perceptions to match theirs, and he loses his identity in the process. Sort of like a Vulcan mind-meld gone bad. =:O Creepy.

So... where was I? :) Oh yes. By the end of the week, everything at work was calm, cool, collected. No one's nervous, everyone's tended to. I did my job. :)

And now, off again! Next week on business to St. Paul, and then... yeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeahhhhhh! A stamp in my passport! Finally! It's only taken 50 years to get one. Jeepers Molly. That's a long time.

After the week of work, I leisurely enjoy poking around St. Paul for a couple of days, and then fly to Reykjavik (I'm finally learning how to spell it) for 3 nights. Then hop the North Sea to Glasgow for another 3 nights and then back to Mpls & Milwaukee for 2 (jet lag adjustment) before back to work on the 11th.

Right now I'm fretting over luggage. Do I have to pack my winter jacket? (Yes, dopey. It's 50 over there.) Do I need more than one pair of dress shoes? Can they be my cordovan penny loafers so that I can wear them with jeans? Do they even do that anymore? ;) Why can't I check 3 bags?!?!?!? Arghh. I may have to ship a box of dirty clothes back to New England to make room for all the souvenirs I need to bring home. Christmas gifts are from Europe this year, I guess!

The cab comes in the morning. Woo hoo!