Month: September 2006
Breathe
This weekend promises lots more free time than last, which is a good thing. Though I already miss last weekend’s festivities. Reflecting on a good wedding always makes me smile.
Autumn started this week. Maybe Wednesday morning, I think. Fall is my favorite season; it means cross country. Not coincidentally, it’s also the time of year I enjoy running the most. As much fun as cross country is, I want to try fell racing.
Fell racing is a British sport–as I understand it, anyway–where competitors run down slopes fast as they can manage. Their task: remain vertical and reach the line in one piece. Basically, the more a racer fights gravity, the harder and more dangerous the descent, the more likely an injury. So the trick appears deceptively simple. Racers stay in control by ceding control. And the only way to do that is to stay in motion and let their steps fall where they may. Which is rather like rock climbing or writing. Fight the wall or the page, and it hurts. But try your best, keep moving and somehow the next hold, the next sentence, appears.
What happened
Feel like I woke up, found the local rag on the front lawn after sunset and discovered it’s Wednesday. Page count this week is on the low side, though it started well enough, and there are a few days left yet. Work–or my inability to leave before 7pm the last few days–is to blame. Fall term beats up the staff at most schools, especially the one person departments. Time passes easily at least.
While I avoid discussing work too frequently, as of late there’s an odd vibe in the halls worth noting. Not exactly a rumor, but more of a shared exchange between myself and coworkers, and one that’s recurred with so many different people, it can’t be a coincidence. As people pass me in the hallway they stop, pat my shoulder, and say, “Don’t quit. We like you.”
Why they do this I have no idea, though the culprit might be legacy. I’ve lasted longer than most of my predecessors. In another three months, only one beats me on tenure. Perhaps they envision some sort of tech guy expiration date. Usually by now, the tech guy either gets canned or bolts.
The funny thing is, I know why they leave, yet for all the oddities about the position, this is the best job I’ve ever had. So I’m staying.
Aftermath
A big weekend wedding passed. I’m very happy for my buddy, Matt. I didn’t lose a friend. I gained a partner in evil.
Seems everyone is getting married lately.
Being a best man reminded me that I like public speaking. My day job rarely calls for it, but I can stand and deliver. Must have struck a chord; the mom in law gave me a kiss immediately after and said, “Come over anytime. Don’t call. Just come over.”
Needless to say, it was a hell of a nice thing to hear after not sleeping for two nights leading up to the ceremony. The gin helped, too.
And now it’s back to work. Covered 5 more pages Sunday afternoon. Rust never stops.