bunchofgrapes

So I got the position I wanted at work, which is basically the same position I had before with the same manager but now we're in a different division. It'll actually be really good--once we learn the new business. It's a huge organization (well over half a billion) but just about everyone is local. After having the majority of our people disbursed all over the world for the last seven years, this will be nice. My office will be moving from the Tyson's/McLean area to Herndon in a couple of weeks and that's also good because Tyson's traffic is already bad and it's about to get worse with the Beltway and metro expansion. Herndon is closer to home and while the traffic isn't great, it's better than going to Tyson's. So, that's all the good news. The bad news is that last week I was supposed to be on vacation. I got to enjoy two days of the week--except for the two hours I had to work Monday night. The rest was spent on conference calls. This new group is very well structured--much more so than my previous group--so they scheduled lots of training sessions. Oh, and I've come to realize that stress makes me sleepy. I mean, narcolepsy sleepy. It's not good.

On the two days I did actually get to take off, I did yard work. Hit two garden centers on Monday and bought a whole lot of plants. Then I spent the rest of the time getting them into the ground or planters. I have a large balcony off my master bedroom so I do a lot of containers around a small fountain. And now that the Willow tree has filled out, I can sit out there and enjoy the plants and the fountain and the solitude. It's really very lovely and yet another reason why I can't bring myself to sell this place.

Had hoped/planned to get the fic done but it just didn't happen. I did manage to get over a hump but I just haven't been able to focus on it.

Yesterday I went to Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Playoffs Semifinals. I had only one ticket option, section 113, Row B, Seat 1, and it wasn't cheap--double what I paid for Game 7. But Row A is on the ice and Row B might as well be on the ice. I sat in a folding chair in the VIP section. Pat Sajak (Wheel of Fortune guy) sat six seats down from me (he has nice hair). Between periods they handed out stat sheets and the little officials that sit in the penalty box walk right by us, nearly slipping on the ice. It was unfreakingbelievable! Man, the players are huge! And when they crash into the boards? Yeah. A couple of times we were freaked out by a puck flying right at us--and hitting the plexiglas. It was awesome! I was watching the highlights of the game tonight on NHL Live and on the news and I could see myself. Seeing yourself on TV is such a weird feeling. Cool, but weird.