Hi, remember me?

It’s been that kind of a week. This was the first full week with our office down two legal secretaries (one on maternity leave, one who gave notice). Thankfully, there was only *one* staff meeting which involved the entire office, and it was mercifully brief: less than an hour.

This post is going to be mostly a pastiche of excerpts from my emails to the new guy (still no moniker for him), as that is where 95% of my online energy has gone this week.

Still in work news: Thursday was golden. My attorney came by my desk and asked if I had plans for lunch. I had brought leftovers. He took me to lunch at Cindy’s, which is a home-cooking restaurant by Union Station that is a pleasant walk from the office and does not disgrace the name of home-cooking. One of the other attorneys, the one I would pick for my half-docket if I were given the choice, joined us. We are all about the same age, so it was not two attorneys and a secretary having lunch, it was three lively, smart middle-aged people eating good food and talking about life. We were celebrating my attorney’s 4 year anniversary with the company.

He also did my mid-year performance review that day, called me into his office and showed me the rough draft, we discussed it, he made a couple of minor changes and gave me a second rough to read. I found a minute error which amused both of us, he fixed that, gave me a final copy, and sent it to the office manager and managing attorney. According to him, I don’t quite walk on water as a legal secretary, but he has faith that I’ll get that small detail figured out.

I love, love, love working with people who have clearly articulated high expectations and are generous but plausible with their feedback.

In health news: I revealed to the new guy that I use a CPAP. So do his mother and brother. So the whole “Luke, I am your mother” thing didn’t totally weird him out.

You’re already aware that I fell in love with John Cougar Mellencamp’s “Authority Song” earlier this week.

I figured out how to send the visiting teaching messages via Facebook.

I had ice cream with Fourthborn and Fiancé and LittleBit on Monday night, Pho95 (Vietnamese and very clean-tasting; I ate the last of it for lunch yesterday) on Wednesday night with Firstborn, and spent an hour or two at Secondborn’s yesterday. Also had a great conversation with Middlest on Friday night. Quality time with 100% of my kids and 60% of my grandkids, which makes me one happy camper.

He grows pomegranates. Which led to a lively discussion of Greek mythology as well as Greek yogurt, and which flavors of Yoplait were in our respective fridges.

We talked about which movie stars would be good to play which of our Book of Mormon heroes. He asked if I could see John Wayne playing Nephi.

I countered with this: “I’m thinking John Wayne or Sean Connery as Teancum, who is one of my favorite people in the Book of Mormon. If the Nephi we are talking about is the first one, ‘Brother Go and Do’, I’m thinking Gary Cooper or Gregory Peck, probably the latter. There’s a lot of Atticus Finch in Nephi, and vice versa. And maybe Anthony Hopkins as Mormon. And maybe Helen Mirren as Sariah.

“If they ever make a doll sculpt with sufficiently masculine facial features to resemble my idea of Teancum, I am doomed. I’m thinking that a quarter-inch dowel would make a pretty good shaft for his javelin, but I’d have to see the size of his hands to be sure. Thankfully, 99.9% of the male dolls look like teenage girls, at least from the neck up.”

He is planning Date #3; says he: “Have a plan in the works - will take a little time to get it all together - figure to invite you to my house for dinner, also invite [son and d-i-l] and then after dinner [he] and I can be spectators while you and [she] talk ‘dolls’. That way you won't be 100% alone with a single man, and I will have at least two people in my house that are interestingly weird.”

My response? “‘Interestingly weird?’ I can live with that, she says, grinning widely, though naturally I prefer ‘charmingly quirky.’ But I laughed all the way up from my toes, and I thank you for that.”

This is my month to conduct, and I am hoping to stay awake long enough to attend the break-the-fast and potluck which our ward is hosting and at which Bishop is speaking.

I have begun to take apart the red Franklin Covey binder which has been my companion for four years. It is exceedingly well-made, which is why it has lasted so long under hard use. I am hoping to salvage enough leather for doll projects of some sort. It would be cool to figure out how to make professional-quality shoes and/or boots, and replicate some of the ones I have seen online. [Did I mention that I found real toe shoes (ballet shoes for experienced dancers, for those of you who have never worn a tutu) in every color of the rainbow, and I think sized to fit multiple dolls, for just slightly more than I paid for my own black ballet slippers. That would be a fun treat for next year, especially if I made tutus to match. Degas paintings, recreated in resin, for photoshoots.]

Time to grab some breakfast, print off my agenda for conducting RS today, and start getting ready for church.