Sore but Happy

I have been working my ass off for the past few weeks.. no choice, just stuff that had to be done. I finally got all of the work in the apartment done, so its pretty much ready to go.

I worked both jobs yesterday, up at 6AM and hit the sack at around 3AM. I woke up around eight in the morning with a near bladder crisis, could barely walk between the plantar fasciitis and my lower back, which was freaking out due to all of the heavy carrying that I've been doing. I took two advil, hit the sack again, and had bizarre dreams until I woke up at around one in the afternoon (!!)

I don't like to sleep my only day off away like that, but I think I really needed the rest.

I'm still in pain right now on both counts (feet and back), but I'm happy!! I had been planning an anniversary surprise for Elysia for quite some time.. saving every last penny of my 'pocket money' from each week's paycheck, so that I could take her to see 'Phantom of the Opera' on Broadway. (We actually celebrate two anniversaries, quite close together: Our wedding anniversary, in September, and what we call our 'Eclipse Anniversary' which celebrates the night that we transformed from friends, to a couple. That night was the last solar eclipse of the millenium, so that explains the name... at any rate, it is in August. This year is our 6th Eclipse anniversary.

We were at the video store, looking for movies to watch. I pointed at the 'Phantom of the Opera' DVDs and said, "Hey look! Phantom! ... but, you didn't want to see the movie until you saw the show, did you?"

She looked mildy sad at the prospect, and replied, "No.. but I don't think I'm going to be able to see it before it closes..."

I said, "Why not? Why don't we go next weekend?? I'll take you..."

She interjected, ".... but... how?.... wha-?... (sputter, sputter)"

I continued, "I've been saving money for just that purpose... we are going next weekend, okay?"

Her eyes filled up with tears, and she said, in a very small voice, "...yeah.. okay... Wow! That's really nice!"

When we got home, we went online and looked at showtimes and tickets and limos, and all sorts of stuff.

I'm looking forward to it, and she is hopping around like a flea on a griddle. I love to see her so excited about something like this... especially when it happens to be something that I am doing for her!!


It seems that a few of you seemed to think that I have a Scottish accent, and were disappointed that I didn't on my audio blog. Well, as it turns out, I *do* have a scottish burr, but I can turn it on and off. Who knows, maybe the next audio blog will be different... you never can tell!!

Since I asked those of you who read my blog to let me know who you are, or to contact me and tell me a bit about yourselves, a few of you have!! You guys and gals are awesome!! Thanx!!

I'm trying to foster a sense of team spirit and espirit at work. During most of my professional life, I have been called upon to build teams, and teach them to work together, depend on one another, and get along. Here we go again!! The difference this time, though, is that nobody has put me in a position of authority where it is clearly my function to do this. I have to lead by example without actually appearing to 'take over' or undermine anybody else's (read: The Nose and The Fly) leadership authority. I have a few ways of doing this, and I have already put a few into motion. I'm not sure how it will all pan out, but I'm hoping to get the guys all pulling together. Its better for the company, better for the guys, and better for the customers.

On Friday, I cooked up a Korean meal for lunch and Elysia heated it up and dropped by the shop with everything. Everybody ate and they loved it!! Now they can talk about the Korean food that they had... not a one of them had ever eaten Korean food before.

This accomplishes a couple of things, at least from my point of view; Families eat together, out of the same common serving bowl. When you share food, by definition you are members of a common group. Most folks don't think this on a conscious level, but it is in there anyway... secondly, it promotes a spirit of generosity, nurturing, and togetherness. Tribes, teams, crews, squads, and units eat together.

Another phase of my plan is that I am fostering an 'Us and Them' mindset. We are 'us', and everybody else is 'them'. I am doing this by looking out for everyone else on any level that I can. If an 'outsider' (one of 'them') makes a disparaging comment about one of 'us', I will address it immediately by sticking up for whichever one of 'us' is under attack. It may very well be that I think that that particular member of 'us' is a complete twit... but it doesn't matter. Twit or no twit - they are one of 'us'. Next, I will insist that others do the same by creating a social more that demands it.

Little by little, I will pull this motley group together so that we can work better, rather than having to work harder.

I know I can do it, and it has already been having an effect. As a group we are stronger than we are individually. (We have already demanded more computer terminals... as a group... as well as a new printer, new (nicer)uniform shirts, a brand new fax machine and an industrial sized coffee machine, rather than a tiny little coffe pot, and have gotten them. I quietly told each one of them that if we worked together and stood together, regardless of our personal differences, that we would have the power of unity behind us and would be able to affect changes that would benefit all of us as well as the company...NOW people are starting to pay attention!!)

I have been wanting to take my Mook-Jong down and reinstall it a litte bit higher than it is right now. I screwed up by putting it up at its current height. I just haven't had the time to get anywhere near the damned thing.

Since I killed Elysia's computer, I have been devoting a great deal of time sorting that out. Naturally, when we got it back, we had some major home-networking problems to figure out as well. Figures. The first time I set up the network, it worked like a charm from step one. This time it fought me every friggin step of the way! I think I've worked out the major kinks, but I just don't know enough about it to really dig into it (yet!!)

Last night, I bartended at a wedding. Towards the end of the night, the groom's father came to my bar (there were two bars) and said something like, "asdhjleklmrmmppltrmzzzz!" (uh, yeah... he was a little wrecked...)

I said, "Excuse me?"

"asdhjleklmrmmppltrmzzzz!"

Me: "My apologies, I can't hear you very clearly.. what did you say??"

"QWPMRZNG TZAKLSTSSTSS FRMPLMAKKN FRKN 'SSHOLE!"

Me: (Hmmm... I think that last part may have been ' fuckin asshole! ') "What would you like to drink sir??"

"Jmbrbn nafkn gls onna rox..."

Me: (... some friggin' thing on the rocks...??) I got a rocks glass, iced it up, and began picking up bottles, with a 'This one??' expression on my face...

He shook his head violently, obviously annoyed with me, took a deep breath, leaned closer, and yelled, "BOURBON!" in my face...

I raised my eyebrows at this, picked up a bottle of Jack Daniels, and poured the glass...

"What th' fuckiziss?"

Me: "Jack Daniels, sir..."

"Don wan thz fukk'n shit... JIM BEAM!"

Me: I'm sorry.. I don't have Jim Beam at this bar. I believe the bartender at the main bar has a bottle of Jim Beam expressly for you, sir... (He did, and the jackass had been obviously getting it from him all night... but what're ya gonna do??"

"Don wan thiz...." he put the glass down on the bar, and I dumped it and put the rocks glass in the bus tub.

"GIMME A FUCKIN' BEER... marxqszz sdklj peeesaSHIT!"

Me: "Right away, sir!" (Big smile!)
(I poured him a beer, and handed it to him.

Now, as an aside, of sorts. I had acquired two ticks during the evening, one was the videographer, who kept coming over and standing about six inches away from me, and talking to me. He was a nice guy, and I didn't want to be rude to him, but I didn't really want him there, and no matter how I tried to phrase things, he wasn't getting the hint..

"Hey! It's been nice talking to ya!! Maybe I'll see sometime when neither of us are working, and will actually have some time to talk!" or "I apologize for not being able to listen to you with all of my attention, but its a very busy night, and we're hopping." -- basically, anything short of "Piss off, Clown!" was falling on deaf ears. (I harbor suspicions that even that would have flopped... [sigh]).

The other tick was a guest at the wedding, who had huge boobs stuffed into a dress cut down to about her solar plexus, and who, for some reason, decided that her night's mission was to stand eight feet in front of my bar, facing me, and dance suggestively. This dance was in no way connected to or in time to any music that happened to be playing. In some cases, as a matter of fact, it didn't seem to much matter that NO music was playing at all! This one kept asking me perodically "What do you think about when you watch me dance??"

I kept giving noncomittal answers until I finally tired of the game and said, "I keep thinking that I wish the DJ would play the couples wedding song again..."

Fun Bags: "Really?? .... .... Why??"

Me: "Because their wedding song is also My wedding song, and I miss my wife and can't wait to get home to her."

Fun Bags: ".......oh..." (That was pretty much the last I saw of her near my bar)

Back to the current situation with the Groom's Dad:

I have Vidographer Dude (Henceforth 'V-Guy') glued to my left elbow, and Groom's Dad takes a sip of the beer, apparently decides that he doesn't care for it much, and and gives me a sly out-of-the-corner-of-the-eye look, and says, (strangely, he was much more coherent now, for some reason.. the power of beer, I guess...)

"I oughtta throw this beer in your fuckin' face!"

Me: "You look like a fairly smart guy... I think you are pretty much able to figure out how that would likely go..."

V-Guy: (Shitting his pants, but holding fast!)

Grooms Dad: "What're ya, gonna hit me??"

Me: "When you start throwing things at folks, who knows what might happen?? I don't expect much of it could be good though.... Maybe its time to go sit down and not ruin your son's wedding by making a scene though, don't you think??"

He stared at me for a few seconds, turned his back and swayed for a moment, and then turned back and began methodically pouring beer all over the top of my bar, in the fruit garnishes, on my bar gear, all over the bottles of liquor, and over the napkins...

V-Guy: "Wha- ?!" (Horrified look in my direction, and then he broke and fled. Last seen heading in a generally westerly direction at a high rate of speed.)

Groom's Dad: "Whattya think a that?"

Me: "I think I'm going to have to charge you a $20.00 clean-up fee."

Groom's Dad: (Uncertain) "Clean-up fee?"

Me: "Naturally... It'll have to be cleaned up, won't it?? Somebody has to be paid to do that. It doesn't matter to me, you can pay the fee now, or they can bill you for it with interest. Your choice."

(For the record, no such charge exists. I just sort of made this new rule up on the fly because he miffed me by pouring beer all over my shit for no good reason other than to act like a dick....)

He wandered off and came back with two of his daughters a few minutes later.

Daughter #1 (Two Tons of Fun!): "What's going on??"

Me: "I just explained to your dad about the clean-up fee. I guess he wanted your opinion on it. You should probably ask him about it."

Two Tons of Fun: "What has to be cleaned up??"

Me: "You should really talk to your dad..."

They walked off, huddled for a while, then dad came over and dropped a crisp new twenty dollar bill on my bar, and walked off. Pop, you can dump beer on my bar any time you like!!