16 February 2007

Groups be damned!

This group is increasingly getting more annoying. There are 1200 people traveling and each of them thinks they're special and can bend the rules. Turn in your registration after the deadline. Why can't I? Change your travel dates once you've been issued airline tickets. I'm not paying for that! Change your guest. Again, I'm not paying for that! Sales people are aggressive, rude, condescending and demanding. Not at all what I'd be if I were getting a free, all-expense paid trip from my company. I guess I have more of a conscience, which is probably one of the reasons why I don't make a good salesman.

Nick and I are heading up to NH to visit his son this weekend, and I'm looking forward to seeing him. I had been tossing around staying home and taking advantage of the alone time, but I can do with a bit of Zac time as well. I love that boy as if he were my own, and Nick said he'd do the driving, so I can kick back in the car and rest. They had planned on going skiing this weekend but the boy went and got frostbite on his fingers, so that nixed that plan! Anyone have any ideas of things to do in Plymouth, NH? There's only so many times we can walk around Wal-Mart, which is literally one of the only things in town.

I really can't wait for spring to come. I've been enjoying the fact that it's been staying lighter outside longer, but this cold snap we've been in all month is really starting to work my nerves. Plus, with the snow this week my car is a salt covered mess, and we all know how anal I am about my car! I may stop on the way home from work and get the car rinsed off as I don't want it sitting around in that filth for too long. Anal? Probably. But it's my first new car. What more can you expect?

01 February 2007

Long Overdue Update.....AGAIN

I know, I know, I said I'd be more frequent with entries, and I apologize. I've got to get myself in the habit again and make the time to put down my thoughts. It's cathartic in a way, and some of the comments I've received from people I don't know have been very nice. That's not to say I'm doing this for the recognition, but it does give you an extra incentive to write more often.

With that said, I must start with my trip with Nick to the UK last month. It was so much fun! It was our first time to Europe together, and the both of us had been to London several times before, but neither of us had ever ventured outside London. We took 10 days and visited London, Newcastle, Edinburgh and Manchester, all of which were fantastic. I loved seeing all of the new places with Nick, exploring ancient castles, riding through the countryside on trains, experiencing life in Britain outside London.

We also got to meet up with a dear friend and my "little brother" Conor. It was awesome to finally meet in person after developing our friendship online and on the phone. What a great time we had together! He and Nick hit it off as well, which pleased me very much. I was nervous about meeting him because sometimes online friends are very different in person, but that wasn't the case with Conor. He's coming to the US in June for the first time so it will be great to show him around Long Island and New York City. He's very excited about coming over, as am I!

New Year's came and went with little fanfare. Nick and I decided to go low-key this year, so we chilled a bottle of Moet and at 10 to midnight went into the outdoor hot tub in the back yard, popped open the bottle, and toasted in the New Year under the stars. It was divine! And of course, it was romantic and beautiful spending it with my handsome man.

Speaking of, he gave me quite a scare last Saturday. We were watching TV, and he got up to go to the bathroom. Everything was fine, and a few minutes later I heard a loud *thud*. I ran in to find him on the floor with his head on the side of the tub, having a seizure. I was HORRIFIED to say the least, but tried to keep my cool. I tried to talk to him but it was no good - he just continued to seize and blankly stared off into space. I grabbed the phone to dial 911, but by the time they answered he came to and said, "NO, no ambulance!" I hung up and he was completely disoriented and didn't know what happened.

I got him to the bed and he laid down and he was extremely lethargic and still quite disoriented. He didn't know what happened, and when I told him he didn't remember anything except it getting a little fuzzy before he blacked out. I wanted him to go to the ER because this has never happened before, but he was refusing. I then told him he had a choice of either going in our car or in an ambulance, but that he WAS going. He chose the car. Wise choice. :)

We got to the hospital around 8:30PM and was there until 4am. They ran test after test, and fortunately(?) found nothing wrong. The first doctor told us that the seizure could have been caused by his head hitting the tub, but that he should see a neurologist to be sure. After the rest of the tests came back negative they still wanted him to see a neurologist to be sure, but Mr. Stubborn Pants won't go. He is going with the first doctor's analysis and said that if it happened again he'll go. My concern is that it could happen again at a most inopportune time, like when he's driving, or in the shower, or somewhere else that could be potentially dangerous. I worry about him so much - he's the love of my life, and I couldn't bear thinking that something horrible happened that could've been prevented, or at the very least, managed properly.

This month is going to be extremely hectic at work. We're bringing 1300 people to Freeport in the Bahamas at the end of March and we're in full production mode. There's tons of work to be done, so long hours will be spent making sure every detail is completed and nothing overlooked. There will be frayed nerves, many arguments among us, and maybe even a nervous breakdown or two, but this group is our bread and butter and we have to make sure it goes off without a hitch. Fortunately, we have a new person on staff who has extensive group experience, so having her here definitely helps. I'm looking forward to going to Freeport and making sure everything goes well. It's very rewarding once we're there to have so many people come up to us and thank us for a job well done. Somehow, all the drama leading up to the event seems worth it. At least the money is.... :)