Thursday, February 22, 2007

Turkey Croissant

There was continental breakfast…sort of. Pre-wrapped muffins, apples, donuts, juice and coffee. Luckily they had hot chocolate.

Last night they decided it would be fun to test the fire alarm at 2 AM. That’s the second week in a row that’s happened. What’s with that? And why is it that hotels always have paper-thin walls?

I’m currently reading “The Age of Innocence” by Edith Wharton. Here’s my favorite quote so far:

"The immense accretion of flesh which had descended on her in middle life like a flood of lava on a doomed city had changed her from a plump active little woman with a neatly-turned foot and ankle into something as vast and august as a natural phenomenon. She had accepted this submergence as philosophically as all her other trials, and now, in extreme old age, was rewarded by presenting to her mirror an almost unwrinkled expanse of firm pink and white flesh, in the centre of which the traces of a small face survived as if awaiting excavation.”
Today on our lunch break we went down to the waterfront of Miami. We passed lots of condominiums under construction, got caught in traffic, and passed through some shady neigborhoods. We had about 3 minutes to spend there, but it was still fun. We looked at the water, wished we could get in, took a couple of pictures and went back to the hotel. It was nice to be outside for a couple of minutes and experience the balmy warmth of the winter Miami sun.

I am constantly amazed at the inability of people to listen to directions. Mostly the ones to hear directions but think they're above the directions, as if the given instructions don't apply to them and they can do whatever they feel inclined to do at that moment. I really just don't get it. Here's what happened - the door to the conference room today was on the side of the room. So before letting people in I said "Hey everyone I'm gonna have you go to the far side of the room and fill up those seats first so that people who may arrive late have an easier time finding a seat." The back rows were taped off to drive traffic to the front of the room - that's what we do. So what happens? People fill up the seats on the side of the room close to the door. Then other people had the audacity to break through the mental barrier that is the tape and sit down in the taped off rows. What effrontery!!! I just don't get it.

No comments: