At long last...

I've dug my way out of middle-management hell to post on my blog. I'm less than 24 hours away from my 43rd birthday (woo-freakin'-hoo).

I'm preparing for the band's first gig... unfortunately, it's not OUR music - we're playing back-up for an Elvis impersonator... but, hey, a gig is a gig, right?

I just bought three vintage dresses for the occasion

Unfortunately, I had to order them in size XL as all of the travel and endless meetings have increased my girth nearly exponentially over the past three months.

Things with "A" are about the same... we live completely separate lives under the same roof. We recently attended his 25th high school reunion, which was fun and interesting, as he went to one of the more prestigious boarding schools on the East Coast. His former class mates and their spouses were interesting folks and I enjoyed their company. The trip itself, on the other hand, was the usual exercise in anger management - or the lack thereof.

We are scheduled to go to Turkey to visit his folks at the end of this month... yes, all of my vacation time this year will be spent doing what HE wants to do... yes, I know that I'm the one who said 'yes' to the proposal and I really would like to see his dad again -- I really do like him and enjoy his company.... besides, how often does one get a chance to spend time on the southern coast of Turkey overlooking the Mediterranean? (boy, if that's not a run-on sentence, I don't know what is... sorry)

The new job is fraught with INSANE political undercurrents and I often find myself wishing I'd just stayed put. Still, the regular pay check, benefits and company car are making things more comfortable financially. I'm rarely home -- travelling at least 3 out of 5 days each week or, like this past week, leaving on Monday and returning home late Friday afternoon. All of the travel is by car and I've found myself more than once standing in front of a hotel room door trying to gain access, only to realize that it's the room number from LAST night's stay. I've reached the point already where I know the staff of the hotels by name -- especially the bartenders! LOL

Just this week, I learned that I will not be eligible for any company trips next year because my colleague who is responsible for recruiting hasn't recruited enough people in the first half of the year. When I went to my boss with that issue, he suggested that I start recruiting myself. How's that for a solution? Do his job for him and make him look good when his bonus potential is more than TWICE what mine is AND I wouldn't get any additional bonus for doing his job for him... yeah... I'll get right on that!

Well, it's time for another muscle relaxer... see, my back isn't liking all of the car travel either and I haven't been able to straighten up for three days now.

Happy Birthday to Me!