it's fine
What to tell you today? Not a whole lot. I didn't even start the draft of today's DLU before my lunch break began -- I totally spaced it! I was actually doing legit work most of the morning. What an idea.
As for last night? Oh! Duh -- I went out for drinks with Claudia and Dylan. How could I almost forget about that? We went to a place called Navy Strength, to be kind of in keeping with the boating theme of my Birth Week. I didn't think it quite made it into that theme; it's much more of just a tiki bar.
It was happy hour, at least. Their cocktails were truly beautifully presented, but neither the "Punch of the Day" cocktail I ordered for Happy Hour ($9) nor the Mai Tai I ordered from the main menu ($13) were that great in terms of taste. I did order a rice bowl of the Happy Hour menu, which I was glad to see because $13 for that there was discounted -- regular menu price for it is $17. I probably won't ever go there again.
At least I didn't have to pay for it, which was nice. Claudia insisted on paying my check as a late birthday present. That was wholly unnecessary, and she was already signing the check when I got back from the bathroom. That was very generous of her. I almost never do shit like that for friends. You'd think word would get out!
Anyway we hung out for maybe an hour and a half, and I told Dylan all about everything I did during my Birth Week, at Claudia's request -- she had already read my emails all about it. Telling Dylan all about it took a pretty good while. I had to use the bathroom a fourth time when we parted ways. Apparently my M.O. now is to pee twice for each cocktail I drink.
I walked from there to Pike Street and hopped on a #49 bus, which took me to Broadway. The #11 did not come as expected so I walked the last six blocks home. Then Shobhit and I watched the second episode of the HBO miniseries Chernobyl, which is pretty absorbing -- and horrifying when you look at the details, and what they had to do to contain the spread of contamination. I never knew very much about the whole thing. We watched one episode of Modern Family after that and then I went to get ready for bed.
Well, shit. I just sat to eat lunch in the lunch room next to Ellen, who has worked in the office since last June, and she up and told me, "Eric says we have seven applicants." I was like, "For . . . ?" She said, "Oh, you don't know? I asked to be transferred back to a store." Apparently the extended time in front of a computer screen is hurting her eyes and her eye doctor said she needs to do less of it. "You get to train someone new." Damn it!
We had such stability among what used to be called "Merchandising Assistants" for so many years -- Shauna, Kibby and me from 2002 to 2008; Kibby, Jared and me from 2008 to maybe 2013; even Erica was around doing Deli and Beer/Wine stuff maybe 2013 until she moved to California last year. Anyway, in all cases at least five or six years -- Kibby, after being in the same position 16 years, moved to the newly formed Category Management department just last year. I'm the only holdout, basically. But since Erica left there seems to be high turnover, what with Steven filling Kibby's vacant position, and Patrick leaving his post vacated by Erica. For a while, when both Patrick and Ellen were here, Ellen found herself sort of asking around for things to do. That hasn't happened since Patrick left a few weeks ago -- but whatever, now she's leaving too! At least she's remaining at PCC, but she's still leaving the office, and now the fifth new person will be hired in Merchandising within just the past six or eight months.
But, you know. Whatever. It'll be fine. It always is.
[posted 12:37 pm]