Would everyone please stop using “Bringing Sexy Back” as their name, description, party promo, first born child’s name!!! This expression is ringing high on the list of 2006’s Most Overly Used Expression. Care to add to the list?
It was unavoidable, so when I was informed that I’d have to fly to NY for work, I didn’t really trip out. Traveling is something I knew was a part of the business when I moved over to consulting. Up to this point, I’ve have it pretty comfortable so what can I complain about?
Explaining to the boy that I had to go away for a week however was an experience in itself. I’d never left him for as long as he can remember. The last time I left him was for my honeymoon and he was only 10 months old. He didn’t like the idea of me being gone at all. I have to admit I was little heartbroken at the thought myself. But I gave him advance notice to not catch him completely off guard and he was cool until about an hour before I was supposed to leave for the airport. We were at the park with my mom, who’d come down for his birthday that weekend, and UnkT and the kids. He came up to me out of nowhere and burst into tears. It took everything in me to keep myself together. It wasn’t that I didn’t expect it, but not right then. I thought that would have come as I was leaving to go to the airport. And of course his waterworks set off my moms. I swear the two of them crying together is never a good sight. He settled down after a few minutes and thankfully was distracted by McDonalds with UnkT’s crew.
I’m blessed to have friends who are family. They stepped in and made Mama got back to the airport safely and the boy was taken care of for the week while I was gone. It made being away a lot easier. My trip itself was extremely productive and a learning experience to say the least. In another lifetime without kids, I’d probably make myself more accessible as far as traveling to client sites just to be more in front of what’s really going on. In the meantime though…lol…I expect I’ll have to go back to that particular site for three weeks in December to assist with post production support. Before that, I may have to take another trip or two. The good thing is now that I have gotten the first one of of the way, it won’t be as hard and I know what to do differently. The boy got over on a few things and is suffering tremendously because of it, so I don’t think I’ll have to worry much about that again. As long as I don’t have to travel with four other co-workers again the next go round, I’ll be good to go too…lol
I’ve always said being my friend is a challenge. I’m one of those people that always has something going on. If I thought I was a bad person, I’d think I had bad karma. Then again, do bad people realize they are bad people? Anyway, just to add one more thing to the list of things that ‘only happen to me’, my car got hit last night. I know, I know, plenty of people’s cars get hit but with me, it’s always the story behind the story. My car was hit while parked in front of my house. It was parked in front of the house because a pipe right in front of my house burst last week, causing my driveway to collapse. Unable to park in my driveway, I’ve been parking on the street. A small part of me was worried that someone might hit it, but at the same time, a car can get hit anywhere, right? So I heard the accident last night, but when I looked outside, the bright orange cone that was behind my car was still in the position it had been so I figured I was mistaken. My neighbor knocking on my door a few minutes later confirmed that I was wrong. As soon as I heard the knock, I knew what why they were knocking. Whoever hit me had to have been driving on the wrong side of the street because they hit the front driver’s side; crushing my headlights, battery and tearing off that side of the bumper. A beautiful sight it was not. I couldn’t even get upset. What would have been the point? I’d be mad and upset and the car would still be messed up and I still wouldn’t know who hit me. The officer that came to take the report was yery friendly; so friendly that he spent a half hour chit chatting with me. Ya’ll know I don’t do chit chat. I wanted to have a drink to calm my nerves, but instead I went to bed after parking my car in my neighbor’s year. I called my insurance company this morning. The experience was much better this time than the last accident I was involved in a few months ago. And I made sure to tell each person I spoke with. I don’t believe in only telling people about bad customer service experiences, but the very good ones as well. They got me set up in a rental car and with an auto body shop. I picked up the car and came home to meet the tow truck to give them the keys to my car. I stepped in the house for a few minutes to take care of a few things and headed right back out to head to the auto body shop to sigh then necessary paperwork. I had just enough time to run out and get back in time for an 11:00 call I should’ve been on. Instead, I fell in my driveway. Not stumbled, fell; as in torn jeans (my favorite jeans!), badly scraped left knee and rolled right ankle. Nope, couldn’t mess up one leg to have one good and one bad leg, I get to have two half legs. It never crossed my mind to wonder if anyone had seen me; I was too annoyed that I fell. Even taking care of my wounds wasn’t easy. I couldn’t find the tape to bandage my knee, I half way wrapped my ankle. And making my way up and down the stairs to get everything I needed together was extremely uncomfortable. I finally pull myself together and get out the house (by this point, there was no way I was going to make this 11:0 call), driving to the auto body shop was just damn painful. I pride myself in being able to deal with pain; hell I just got a new tattoo and I’d rather sit through an hour of that than how driving felt. By the time I got a text from a close friend, I just fell apart out of frustration. Finally I’m home, propped up on my couch with laptop in lap and ice pack on my ankle. It hurts, my knee hurts, and now my shoulder is starting to hurt. I didn’t realize that when I fell, I broke the fall on my hand as well. I didn’t injure it because I had my cd wallet in it. The boy, poor thing with his sensitive self, is not going to be happy when he finds that his mommy is hurt. So I’ll be internalizing a lot until I get him settled into bed. Like I said, things happen to me in ways that don’t happen to most other people. I thank God everyday for the friends I have that support me; even when I don’t want them to, I allow them look out for me because they love me. I love them for laughing with me at my crazy life because all we can do it laugh at it. No point in crying.
I’ve always loved that expression “I don’t have to do anything except stay black and die!” It’s a real, grimy, I don’t give a fuk statement. And it’s true. You don’t have to do anything except be whoever you are and eventually die. What else is really guaranteed in life right?
True as it is, it’s not the way you go through life. Yes, there are plenty of things that you don’t have to do. There are always options. However, there are some things that you do have to do. At least if you care about anyone you do. You have obligations to the people you care about. You have an obligation to be honest and straightforward. Why? Simple…because you care about them and their feelings, which sometime requires a sacrifice on your own part. That is, if you do actually care. Because lets be honest: I’m not obligated to tell some random chick in the club that her outfit went out of style fifteen years ago. I don’t know that chick and honestly, I’m getting a hell of a laugh out of her. Her friends, they were obligated to tell her that outfit she has on is dead wrong. But I am obligated to tell the man that I care about that he no longer makes me happy. Why? Because I care about that person as much as I care about myself and their happiness is as important as my own. And so I owe him the respect of fulfilling my obligation to him.
I’ll never understand why more people don’t see life that way. Everyone has their selfish moments; I am the first to admit that I have my own. But having selfish moments and being a selfish person is by far not the same thing. Obligations are an unavoidable part of life. Parents, siblings, friends, lovers, you are obligated to do right by them as they are to you. Sure you don’t have to do anything except stay black and die, but in the long run, how far is that going to get you in life?