#58 Lunch eaten

...and steps taken toward #27. I had the turkey sandwich with coleslaw and Russian dressing on rye. He had the portabello burger. We talked shop, home dec, and weird uncomfortable things just to, you know, show how cool we were with weird uncomfortable things...

#58 Eating More Lunch

So today, Mr Graphics showed me a photo of his kitchen--and it looked exactly like mine. Well okay, we painted the same color, and I have black and white floor tile and he has black and white counter tile. It's like we were separated at birth. Anyway, we're going to lunch on Friday. I'll be 2/3 of the way there. I have to say the two lunches I have had with people outside my department have been the easy ones--people I work with regularly and get along with and can see myself being friends with. I have no idea how I am getting a third...the president will invite me to lunch? Or...does the time I went with my boss to Marathon with an assistant dean to talk about the publication we do for his college count? I totally forgot about that.

Here's a question about the intraoffice lunches (#57), do I have to go out with them? Can we sit around the lunchroom together? I mean, so long as we're eating and talking, does that count? You never know what little nuances there are to these list items until you start doing them. At any rate, if it's the latter--the lunchroom conversation counts--then I have to add NS, JH, and HB (they're thick as thieves and move as a unit) and KB. That KB lunch was funny. JH (a different one) said that KB wanted to raise goats and marry a farmer, and I turned her on to Farmer's Only. She thinks I may be responsible for her future happiness. Well, good, she deserves it.

(And that means I am down to 14 with one person leaving at the end of next month...I should try to do more to have lunch with her before she goes.)

#57 Eating Lunch

I forgot that when I went to Newport I actually fulfilled a second goal--I had lunch with two of my coworkers with whom I had not eaten before. One--the senior vp--I wasn't sure how I was going to get lunch with him. Much easier than I thought it was going to be...The other one, well, I wasn't sure how I was going to get through a lunch with her. But I did.

Just what does a billionaire serve for lunch? They eat just like the hoi polloi: wings, cheeseburgers, hot dogs (she had a hot dog), potato chips, a pickle dish, salads, cottage cheese (?). Dove bars and store bought cookies for dessert. Went all out, she did.

The countdown continues, 18 left: BC, BE, CM, DM, HB, JH, JR, KW, KB, LM, MG, MK, NS, PH, PM, SS, SS, TM.

21, 20, 19, 18...

The countdown begins! I have booked my flight on the balloon. I know, you've been wondering when I was going to do this for almost two years! (The dude did get this trip for me for my 39th birthday.) D-day is September 1, weather permitting. I'll be taking my flight with my cousin's husband--the dude is not so keen on the heights. Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

#40 Take a sewing class AND #53 Learn CPR

The Haverford Adult School catalog came a few days ago. I signed up for beading boot camp and an applique class. I am going to work on my sewing skills, people. Whoot!

They are also offering Red Cross Certification in CPR.

Two birds, one catalogue.

#15 Read 16 works of non-fiction

For a person who studied contemporary American women's fiction, I know a lot about the Victorian period, especially the New Poor Laws--that's what the dude wrote his dissertation on, and good spouses make good editors. Or something like that. Actually, we would offer polite criticism like "these two sentences should be two paragraphs." And the critiqued would yell, "It's perfectly fine the way it is; you don't know anything." Following a generous period of sulking, the critiqued would take the editor's advice. It was like clockwork. But I digress. I just meant to say, I know a little about the historical and cultural period in which our tale is set.

This book offers a fairly interesting sketch of a subject that is near and dear to my heart, the functioning of medical colleges. I know that the orphaned dead would end up in the medical schools of Philadelphia (from Skeleton Stories); I'd really love to do more research on how the place where I work dealt with the procurement of subjects.

Ultimately, I thought this book lacked organization. Sometimes it felt like the author had no clear direction. Lots of backtracking. Lots of interruptions for whole chapters that were meant to provide context, but it wasn't woven together terribly well...or maybe non-fiction isn't meant to be read in half hour spurts on the bus.

It was fine but I never felt like I opened up the book to find out what happened next...and it was a tale of a lurid court case. I really should have wanted to find out, but the court sections were dense and had the Newgate stink about them.

Non-fiction: 2

#66 Visit Newport, RI

I left my house at 6:00 am to fly up to Providence to interview the donor, and boy, what a trip.

Our hostess showed us her private home, offering us a picnic, and brought us to visit "The Farm".

By the time we got to town, we only had an hour or so before we were scheduled to head to the airport. We did walk a bit down Thames and Bellevue, but we didn't have enough time to tour any homes. But then again, I mentioned the tour of the private home, right?

As usual, Philadelphia airport SUCKS, and ATC had to delay our flight two and a half hours. Apparently they can schedule flights, they just can't stick to the schedule. Even our pilots were perplexed because there was no weather in Phillie. It's just the crappiest major city in America.

#90 Rip up carpet in craft room

I thought we weren't going to finish today. I was still packing up the room (and sorting, lots of sorting) at lunchtime. I suppose the experience of taking up the carpet in the bedroom--and figuring out how to deal with the disintegrated rubber mat--paid dividends today. Armed with our dustpans (yes, the secret to taking up rubber mat that has stuck to the hardwood), we made quick work of the carpeting.

This floor is in the best condition of all the hardwood we've revealed so far. It's very exciting.