robglazebrook.com

It’s a sad but true fact that whenever my life gets busy, and this could really be any sort of busy, my website is the first to feel the effects. If work is busy, then I don’t have time to write articles at work, and I certainly don’t feel like sitting in front of a computer when I get home. If my social life is busy, then I have more things of interest (to some people) to write about, but less time in which to write. It’s a conundrum. And sometimes, I just get distracted by other things in my otherwise ample free time. This week has been a combination of all of these things.

Work has been keeping my nose firmly planted against the grindstone, with a monkey seated between my shoulder blades. Or whatever metaphor you prefer, so long as it makes me really busy and is vaguely surreal. I’ve had a ton of different projects going on at once the last couple of weeks, all of which managed to have a deadline of this Friday. Right before a major holiday. Go figure.

Luckily, there’s my social life to distract me. Tonight, Amanda and I are going to Ames for the ISU football season opener against Kent State, which should be a great time. Friday during the day, I’m a pall bearer in my Great-Uncle Willie’s funereal.* I’m not sure I’d normally consider that a social event, but I’m not sure what other category it should grace instead. Friday night, I’ve gotten a bunch of people to join me on a Clive-based pub crawl from 5pm – 12:30am. This weekend, Amanda and I are planning to paint the office, do a bit of yard work, and enjoy each others’ company (I’ve hardly seen her this week). On Monday, we’re getting up early and driving to Minnesota to visit her family. Tuesday, we’re going to the Damien Rice concert in Minneapolis (thanks for the tip, Monica!). Wednesday is all about the driving of home and the catching of breath before we head back to work on Thursday.

Of course, all of that is in the future. Amanda’s been busy socially this week (I haven’t seen her the last two evenings), but I’ve mostly been haunting the house by my lonesome. Or as lonesome as one gets with two inquisitive cats and a hyperactive dog. So what have I been doing with myself? Well, I’m halfway through book 5 of Harry Potter, if that’s any indication (hint: it’s any indication). I’ll probably get through #5 this weekend, and grab #6 for the Minnesota run. And then, I can finally get on to #7! Go me. For very nerdy values of me.

* My great-uncle Willie died in the night on Tuesday. He was very sick, so I’m going to go ahead and consider it for the best. Sorry to end the article on a downer, but I didn’t like how that information got buried in the middle of that paragraph. :)

So I was filling up my water bottle in the break room at work a few days ago, and as I was walking back to my cubicle I saw something odd: a brown paper grocery bag, sitting in an otherwise empty plastic garbage can, filled to the brim with fresh fruit. After a few moment’s contemplation, I figured that this must be the company’s leftover fruit for the week.

See, August Home has fruit bowls scattered throughout the offices that they keep filled with fresh fruit for their employees. They refill the bowls on Monday and Wednesday mornings. I’d made it a habit recently to grab any extra bananas on my way out of the office on Friday evenings, since I’m usually one of the last to leave on Fridays and the fruit was just going to be tossed anyway. I’d take the bananas home and freeze them so I could make banana bread, or muffins or something in the future. But recently, someone had been emptying the bowl before I could get to it. I assumed it was another enterprising fellow (or fellette) looking to score some quick fruit fixin’s. But as I had just discovered, someone was simply tossing them out earlier in the day than usual.

So here it was, Friday afternoon, and I was faced with a bag full of fruit. And right on top was a nice bunch of bananas, five in all, looking entirely untouched and slightly overripe (perfect for banana bread!). I resolved to check back at the end of the day, just to make sure someone else hadn’t just put them there for saving. If not, they were mine.

At 5 o’clock I headed back to the break room. Score! The bag was still sitting there. I grabbed the bunch of bananas off the top, collected my things at my desk, and walked happily out the door…

…and nearly walked straight into my boss (Brian) and the CEO of the company (Don) having a conversation in the entryway. They both glanced my way, Don told me to get a haircut (a running joke between us), and they went back to their conversation. A second later, they both did a double-take when they realized I was carrying an armful of fruit out of the building. Don was giving me a bit of a quizzical look.

I decided this might look a little bad. I mean, it wasn’t really stealing if someone had already disposed of them, was it? But they didn’t know that. For all they knew, I grabbed these out of the fruit bowl and hoarded them all week or something. I didn’t want them to think of me as a thief, fruit-based or otherwise. So I decided to set things right.

“I got these out of the garbage!” I exclaimed excitedly, holding the bananas high.

Don’s quizzical look intensified. Brian started to look a little concerned, too.

“Err… they’re left over. Someone threw them out. I’m not stealing them or anything.”

Don nodded slowly.

“I’m taking them home. To freeze them.”

“Oh, for banana bread!” Brian said. Bless his heart.

I quickly agreed with Brian, we exchanged brief banana bread-based pleasantries, and I scurried off to my car. I later heard that after I left, Don turned to back Brian and said, “Yeah, he works in IT, all right.”

I’m simply thankful I work in a small enough company that this was neither my first nor my last interaction with the CEO. A good first impression this would not have made.

Other Rob: I’m going to be out at the Woodsmith Store all afternoon.
Me: Doing what?
Other Rob: Setting up the garden center.
Me: Ooh! Would you pick me up some grass seed while you’re out there?
Other Rob: Sure. Do you want me to get you some fertilizer too?
Me: I don’t need any shit from you right now.

Today is a bit of a slow day here in the ol’ office. Justin and Brian both took half days, Other Rob is going to be out at the store, and Carol and Cheryl are displaced across the street due to the flood, leaving just Jeremy and I here in this corner of the building. So went to lunch together, which was nice, though I totally forgot to be a rebel and order a beer. I did have my second burger of the week, though. It is also my second burger of the week to feature onion rings on top of the burger (how much of a glutton am I?!), so that probably says something about my week in general.

Amanda is planning on taking a her-day (she calls them “me-days,” but that would be confusing) this evening, meaning I’m on my own in terms of entertainment. I’m trying to consider whether I want to find a couple of people to go out with here in Des Moines, find people to hang out with in Ames (it is, after all VEISHEA weekend, and we all know how fun those can be), or just stay home and clean. I fear that the latter is the least fun but most likely of these scenarios unless someone suggests something better soon. :p

Alrighty, back to work. I do have a few things to accomplish before the end of the day. Which might end a bit early for me, if nobody else is around regardless.

Le sigh. Work has been really busy these last couple of weeks, which has really cut down on the time in which I might update here. I’ve even worked through lunch every day this week to make sure my stuff gets done well and on time. Also, I’ve noticed that my workload is usually heavier at the beginning of the week, meaning it’s Thursday or Friday before I ever even get a chance to write. I’ll figure something out.

Big News of Last Week (in no particular order):

First, as some of you have already heard, I might well be buying my parents’ house and moving to Des Moines in the really near future. They’ve decided to downsize a bit, and since they have a house, and I need a house, it seemed pretty logical that I just take theirs. I’m still working on mortgage stuff and so forth, so I suppose it isn’t 100% for sure, but it’s pretty far up there as far as percentages go. I’ll be looking for a roommate, too, so Kara, if you were serious, email me and we’ll talk. ;) Otherwise, I have one or two other prospects I could try to persuade.

I had workFriend Amanda up last Friday and Saturday for a weekend of singin, dancin, drunken fun (singing and dancing came after the drinking, obviously). I had a blast. :) She, Dana, and I (along with Scott on Friday night and Kate on Saturday) pretty well toured Welch Ave, hitting five different bars in the two nights. We also spent Saturday afternoon taking jello shots and watching the CU vs. CSU football game at Dana’s place. I don’t remember who won, but that really isn’t the point.

I went jogging after work twice last week, and I’m going jogging for the second time this week tonight after work. Well, jogging on a treadmill. Milling? I have no idea what it’s called. Regardless, it is hard and I sweat all over the place and usually wish I were somewhere (anywhere) else by about 15 - 20 minutes in. So I must be doing something right. Basically, I decided I was going to need more cardio in my life in order to lose weight, and there’s only so much racquetball can do. And now, if I’m going to be moving to Des Moines, that’s probably going to put a hold on my racquetball playing for a while, so it’s good to have an alternative in the works.

Time to wrap things up here. Keep your stick on the ice.

Work is the reason I wake up at 6am and stumble into my kitchen (and usually, my cat) all bleary-eyed and muttery to eat breakfast five days a week. Work is the reason I bought a new car, several polo shirts, and a travel mug. Work is the reason I spend more on ethanol products than methanol products in the average week.

Work is that which interferes with my social life. Work is that which expands my social life. Work is that which supports my social life.

Work is the place I go for nine hours a day to sit in front of a computer and get paid to do things very similar to that which I probably would have been doing in my leisure time at home regardless.

Work is also very busy right now, so I should probably get back to it. :)