It’s been a long and stressful week.   I think, of my regular readers, only Carol will truly understand.  She has successfully retired from my industry and people outside it don’t grasp the level of stress during our busy season.  Especially the busy season in conjunction with the end of a month.

I’m behind on things I wanted to show you from my visit to my favorite park almost two weeks ago.   So how about I just intersperse park photos among the random musings that have been rolling around in my head trying to avoid the stress headache lurking there.  Click on any photo to make it bigger and see more details.

“Reaching out.”   I suppose this blog is my way of reaching out to you.  But I’d like to think it’s not because I really detest that saying.  I don’t know when people started using it, but it’s everywhere now.  Do people use it because it’s more hip  than saying calling…or emailing?   “I’m reaching out to you in the hopes that you will…”    When I read that in an email, or hear it on the phone I immediately put my defenses up.  Because no one ever reaches out to me unless they want something.   Can’t they just say what they’re really doing…they’re emailing me.  They’re calling me.  They want something.  It doesn’t sound any more friendly or less threatening because they were reaching out.  Makes.  Me.  Nuts.

 

And while we’re on the topic of phrases what’s with “drilling down?”   What exactly does that mean?  That we’re going to get more detailed, maybe explore something further.  I think.  Why can’t we just say that?  It doesn’t make me as nuts as “reaching out” but still who is fooling who?  Does anyone really know what we’re “drilling down’ to?  And how will we know when we get there?  Exactly.

 

A running friend, a year younger then me, is retiring in two weeks.  She’s doing it for all the right reasons, her job is stressful, too much travel, and her parents who live near are getting older and need more assistance.  I’m happy for her.   She says she might have to reenter the work force sometime in the future but I sincerely hope she doesn’t have to do that, I hope she gets to enjoy a long happy time with her folks and that they thrive under her attention.

Katie and I are going camping at a real campground far to the north of us in a couple of weeks.  It’s been cold here…really cold for this time of year.  I’m starting to worry about sleeping in a tent for two nights further north.  How many blankets can I pack, how many layers of clothes can I sleep in.   And last time I tried to camp when it was this cold Katie wouldn’t settle down.  I’ve seen doggie sleeping bags but I’m pretty sure she’s not going to sleep in one.   I think I need a backup plan.   I should have booked a weekend in August!

So that has pretty much emptied my mind.  I hope you could follow.  Or not.  Totally up to you.  Me?  I’m going to try to get through another day in the business at the end of the month.

 

The weekend can’t come soon enough.