co-worker potpourri

The dishwasher in our house died on Saturday. When I mentioned this at work Monday, my "colleague" pointed out to me that most people in Haiti have never seen a dishwasher. Probably true that my attitude was bad, but I also had PMS. I wonder if they have that in Haiti. Work is annoying enough on its own without co-workers adding to it with their comments.

I think back over my years of employment and some of the strange co-workers. There was the rabid vegetarian who cried "fowl" everytime I had chicken for lunch. "You're eating dead bird!" she would squawk. At the same place, the departmental supervisor was continuously inquiring as to my future child-bearing plans. There were none; and it was none of her business anyway.

Another job, another strange boss. This one was nick-named the "recycling Nazi". A sheet of paper in the trash would set her off-recyclable paper had to be sorted from other trash. All coffee grounds had to be composted. All cardboard boxes had to be carefully broken down, folded up, and put on a special recycling pile. We barely had time to do any actual work.

Of course, I am the perfect co-worker. It is a joy to work with me. Just don't complain about my choices in lunch, recycling, family plans, religion, household appliances, ect. or I will throw a bottle of Midol at you.

13 mile leisurely walk

This past Saturday was the annual Indianapolis mini-marathon, which draws 35,000 participants. This was my 9th time to do this event, not my fastest finish but not my slowest either. Everyone is assigned a starting place in a series of corrals which are labeled in alphabetical order. The fastest people are in Corral A. I was assigned to Corral X. By the time I inched my way up to the start line 28 minutes after the first runners started, they were already near the half-way point at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. But not to worry, one only has to maintain an 18:00 minute/mile pace to avoid being pulled off the course and forced to return to the start/finish area in a bus. This pace was not difficult to maintain, given the cacophony of noise from all the bands playing along the way. These bands could most kindly be described as "local talent" and inspired me to move along more quickly. Perhaps this is why I saw so many people wearing iPods.