Ready, Aim, Fire
Tomorrow is the big day - I’m finally going back to work. I know it’s weird to start a job on a Friday, but I picked the 1st of December without looking at a calendar, so there it is. At any rate, it gives me a chance to meet everyone and get an idea of where I’ll be sitting so I can show up bright eyed and bushy tailed on Monday.
I’m pretty sure I won’t really be doing much other than setting up computer accounts and filling out paperwork, but somehow I feel like I’ll finally “be” a lawyer.
I’ve spent hojillions of dollars on uniform items over the past couple of weeks. And many hours obsessing about the tailoring and appearance of said items. To the point where EC can readily identify the smell of boot polish as it wafts throughout the house.
I have to admit to being a bit nervous too. This job is the whole reason I even went to law school What if they hate me??? I’m trying to prevent that by bringing cookies.
Everybody likes the girl who brings treats, right? Right???
Labels: Back in Blues
Safe Travels and Happy Turkey Eating, Y'all
Lil Q and I are about to hit the road for Fort Wayne and the Quandary-Turkey-Fest-O'Rama. Mr. Q and EC will follow later this evening.
One of my great aunts has been hosting Turkey Day for the past decade or so - we're all headed over there. The feast is all ordered from a local grocery store and supplemented with whatever people want to bring. I'm bringing the famous LQ chocolate cupcakes. So what if they're not traditional Thanksgiving fare - they're awesome.
Anyway - drive safely if you're hitting the road over the holiday.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
First Day of School! First Day of School!
Ok, not really.
But I did go into my new office a few days ago just to say hello and get an idea of some of the basics (duty hours, where to report, office phone numbers, etc.) I was a little disappointed, but not totally surprised, that they had no idea I was coming. At any rate, met some of my future co-workers and my future boss. Everyone seems nice.
I think I stumbled on an Air Force lawyer urban legend when I asked what uniform to report in. I only asked because when I first came in, the rule was to report in
service dress. For my non-military friends, this is equivalent of showing up in a suit on your first day. Anyway, I say this used to be the rule because I came in 1) as a 2nd Lieutenant and you make 2Lt's do lots of things you'd never make anyone else do, 2) during peace time. Things have changed a bit since 9/11 and the new rule is that pretty much everyone wears the camouflage Battle Dress Uniforms (BDU's) all the time unless you have a good reason to be in blues. So, when I asked whether BDU's were ok, the captain I was talking to said that was fine and added "just don't let anyone tell you to show up in Mess Dress. Ha-ha."
Right.
Mess dress, for the uninitiated, is the military equivalent of a tux.
I chuckled politely and went on my merry way. Then yesterday, a different captain called me to let me know that they now OFFICIALLY knew I was coming and that he was going to be my sponsor. We chitchatted for a while and I confirmed a couple of details - including the uniform bit. And he again said BDU's were fine, paused, and added "just don't let anyone tell you to show up in Mess Dress. Ha-ha." EXACTLY THE SAME THING the other captain had said.
Is someone out there teaching that "somewhere" in the Air Force "someone" thought it would be a great joke to tell someone to show up for work in a tux? And that "some poor schmuck" actually fell for it?
Labels: Back in Blues
Thoughts
Today would have been my dad's 64th birthday. Right about the time he got sick, my dad started asking if there was a chance we'd move to where we are now. He was talking about retiring and he planned to move to the house in Fort Wayne - only a 3 hour drive away from us. I can't help but think that if things had been different, the kids and I would have jumped in the car this morning and headed out to celebrate with him.
Those of you who've been hanging around LQ for a while know that my relationship with my dad was pretty rocky for much of my life. I ran away from home at 13. And stayed in a foster home for 3 years. My parents didn't attend my high school graduation. Or my college graduation. Or my first wedding. I didn't speak to my father for nearly 3 years. Then he advised me, after showing up unannounced on the afternoon of EC's birth, to leave Roundboy. I didn't even tell my father - a retired Air Force Major - that I was joining the Air Force. He found out from my mom. But we reconciled enough when he paid a surprise visit to me during Officer Training School that he even returned to commission me. Something I couldn't help but remember when another Air Force Major swore me
back into the Air Force last week.
The thing is...none of this matters now. My dad is gone and over a year later, I still really miss him. He drove me crazy and could me madder than anyone else on Earth, but I still wish that my kids could have known him better. For that matter, I wish I could have known him better.
Happy Birthday, Daddy
I love you and miss you
Just Call Me Auntie Q
It's a girl!
Congrats to G & J and welcome to the newest member of the Quandary clan, Baby M! Born the 7th of November at 11:42PM. (Yeah, so I'm slow in posting - wanna make something of it? Also, what else is new? -
Ed.)
Though technically I've been an aunt before, I divorced Roundboy before the kids were old enough to have a clue as to who I was. Their loss - I would have been a super cool aunt and corrupted them just like I have my own children.
Mr. Q is stuck with me, so I guess I can enjoy aunthood this time around. Let the corrupting begin...
To Answer Your Question
In the comments to the previous post, Butterflyfish asked "So, now that you're all done, are you going to go the way of other grads and give up the blog?"
Even though I haven't been posting much, I don't plan to give up LQ altogether. At least not right now. The lack of posting has been largely due to having my mom in town and being very busy with things that no one on Earth would really find interesting.
I've enjoyed working the gym back into my routine the last couple of months - but you all don't really care how much I'm lifting or how fast (or in my case, slow) I can run. So I don't write about it.
I've started going to a Catechism class. It meets once a week, but so far I've only made two of the meetings because of my crazy out of town schedule. I have some thoughts on the class, but again - nothing I think you all would really be interested in. Plus, I've never intended this blog to be religious. I figure that I have my faith, you have (or don't have) yours - and that's fine with me. I'm happy to discuss my faith and practices one-on-one, but for the most part I'd just as soon keep that part of my life private.
The kids have been taking swim lessons. EC is really pretty good, but didn't get picked up for swim team. I think mostly because she was out of practice for "try-outs" which consisted of a length of each stroke. So, she's working on her skills for next year - maybe. After all of this, she may not end up doing the Y swim team because it takes up 2 hours every day after school, and would mean she couldn't participate in any other activities. I think that's a valid concern and I'm glad she's mature enough to recognize that she might not want to make that kind of commitment. Lil Q has gone from not ever wanting to go into the big pool to being a little braver than I'm necessarily comfortable with. She shocked the heck out of me the other day by launching herself into the big pool, bobbing right back up and then holding onto the edge so she could show me her kicks. When she first went in I was sure I was going to have to go in after her. Shows you what I know. At any rate - swim lessons aren't terribly entertaining (for me, or presumably for you), but take up a heck of a lot of my time.
Even though my dad's estate has been closed out, there's still correspondence to deal with and the IRS to placate.
Even I don't want to hear about that.
See...I told you there was nothing really interesting going on. But...I have been thinking about several other posts - many of them family related and similar to the
Cuckoo's Nest post.
Oh...and my orders came in the mail the other day. I start work on the first of December. This means that I might have actual law-related stuff to write about soon. Until then, expect light posting.
Back
I'm now a sworn-in member of my state bar. Official order still pending.
Whirlwind trips to Seattle and Chicago within 1 week = muy tired.
Saw King Tut (still dead) and multiple dinosaurs (also still dead) at the Field Museum.
Carved 2 pumpkins, painted 3 more, and Trick-or-Treated with the kids. Very cold. Warmed up with some Mexican Hot Chocolate. Got a
Molinillo and a package of chocolate as a gift. Very cool.
Mom is safely back in Germany. We made it safely back home. Mr. Q had roses for all 3 of us - he's the coolest. He also had bars of Godiva AND tickets to a fancy schmancy wine tasting tomorrow night for me. =)
Drank 3 glasses of a very nice Pinot Noir tonight. I plan to sleep very well very soon.
