A colleague returned to work today after a couple days' vacation, plus the 4th holiday, so we were catching up.
"I painted my porch trim," he said, "before the funeral."
I felt horrible - I didn't remember that he'd had a death in his family. "Funeral?" I asked, timidly. (Assuming he was having people over after a funeral, which is why the porch needed painting.)
He gave me one of Those Looks.
"Michael Jackson? On EVERY NETWORK?"
Um. Okay. The lengths to which I've gone to miss all that coverage are heroic. My late-shift rotation stations me in the big-screen media room, but I cower behind a cubicle wall, and refused to raise my head even when Debbie insisted I watch the little girl crying.
What I REALLY don't understand is the need to get the painting done before the memorial service started. But, there are people who don't understand the tragedy of missing the start of the Indy 500, too.
Speaking of auto racing, I'm going to Gateway for a NASCAR race next weekend! Did I mention this already? This time it's not quite free tickets, but a friend of Thelma's has a husband in the military and this is Military Appreciation Day, so very inexpensive tickets. So me and Thelma are goin' to the races! She's never been to a NASCAR race before. I have ... not at Gateway, but at the Illinois State Fair at DuQuoin.
Dale dragged me to this race, which I thought would be dull; I made him promise not to get mad if I fell asleep in the heat of the afternoon (alcohol was involved), but he just laughed. We were with another couple, and Karen and I chose the drivers we were going to root for, so we wouldn't be so bored.
... Within the first 20 laps, we had thrown away our programs and were on our feet, beating on one another and our escorts, screaming with excitement.
So Thelma is looking forward to my "advanced" knowledge of racing - whatever I've picked up from Dale over the years - and I'm looking forward to being with someone who's eager. We should have a blast. (I hope our seats are high enough that we can actually see the track, and not just noisy blurs in front of our faces.) (Must remember the Metallica earplugs.)
My racing experience is limited to the NHRA. Never been a big race fan but the two seasons I worked out at Gateway (for the NHRA, each gig lasting about 3 days)I HAD A BLAST!
Posted by: Nicole | July 10, 2009 at 01:59 PM