The one good thing about this being my last week at work is that I did not have to bring lunch even once. I got barbecue (thanks, Thin Coworker), French food (thanks "Virgo" and Ellen, um, Meower) and all sorts of bad-for-me things.
The bad part about this being my last week at work is that it was my last week at work. I liked-ed that job. I am not saying that the commute didn't suck. I am not saying there weren't ridiculous deadlines and last-minute demands and drama and gnashing of teeth and wailing in the hallways.
But it suited me. The people were funny. And creative. And interesting. They loaned me their Anne of Green Gables DVDs that Marvin Gardens packed and now I have to mail back to LA when we get to NC and unpack, they wore great Halloween costumes (at Halloween, I mean. Not all the time) and they all seemed to have inexplicably large collections of Simpsons figurines.
Besides, proofreading advertising is fun. Way more interesting than, say, proofreading depositions or textbooks or indexes or any of the other boring crap I've proofed.
So, today was the end. Someone asked me, "Are you going to give up the not-spending thing since you're moving?"
I said "No. Of course we have to pay to move, but we are still trying to not spend any more than is necessary."
"Really?" they said. "I would totally have used this as an excuse to trash the whole idea."
You know it hadn't occurred to me to do that? By now this whole thing is sort of habit. I haven't been perfect at it, and lately we've been taken on so many goodbye meals it seems hard to remember we aren't going to restaurants, but we are still committed to going the year without spending. And I know this will particularly kill me when we get there and I can't buy doo-dads for the new house. Or haus, as they would say in Michigan. Because everything has to be German all the time there.
Anyway. So this afternoon, my boss got Haagen-Dazs ice cream and Ellen Meower made cookies (I am loving myself for making up the name Ellen Meower, which is only funny if you know her actual last name), and another coworker made little cupcakes that spelled out "Goodbye, June. We will miss you." without the punctuation. I took one before I noticed it spelled a message, so the rest of the party, my cupcakes said, "Goo bye, June."
My Virgo pal at work, who I will miss more than rice, wrote me a limerick about my red pens and my frizzy hair, and I hugged everyone and said so long, managing to steal a few more moving boxes as I left.
I drove my 16-mile, one-hour commute for the last time. And I cried the whole way.
10 comments:
Awwwwwwww. ((hug)) I hope you like NC.
How sick is it that, in order to make you feel better, my first thought was to tell you that the shopping in North Carolina is just as good as LA?
Because nothing makes the grieve of loss better than shopping or chocolate, right?
Sick, I tell ya.
Anyway, to give you something to look forward to, and think about while your heart is heavy...when you first get to NC the humidity may be a little crazy for you, especially given the amazing SoCal weather, BUT! in just a few months you will experience the amazing fall season. Oh June! the smells! and colors! and beauty! are just. the. best. The only thing better than the fall is the spring when all the flowers and foliage come back to life! And its all free!! From the pic of your new house it will all happen right in your own back yard.
Just a little something to look forward to while you are saying "goo by".
:-( I hope you like NC, too!
You're closer to NYC now...maybe when you're done not-spending, you can take a trip up and we can be frizzy-haired together in the rotten apple!
Thank you, Kellie. Now for some reason that made me cry too. I am a weeping machine. A waterworks.
But that does sound nice. There should be a whole blog post about my hair and the humidity. Yeesch!
Frankie, my friend Blanche lives in NY too and for years has been hounding me to visit her. I would love to visit you both! I have never been to NY. And all my favorite movies take place there! And the Rockettes are there.
As soon as I'm spending, you and I will go get deep-conditioning treatments right there in New York.
Hang in there, June. Go see The Simpsons Movie this weekend. It'll cheer you up.
Well, that would involve spending money, Hawaiian O'Brien, but thanks. Can't wait till I can see it next year!
so sweet! good luck with the move!! you'll love nc!!
Aww! I know how it is to leave a job and friends,...it is sad! I still live in the same place, but hardly ever go in to see them. As for the frizzy hair and humidity,..oh I totally feel your pain! I can tell whether it's going to rain by the width of my hair and the rate at which it grows outward! ....and I live in the southeast,..with all the humidity!
I hope you guys have a safe trip!
It's hard to say goodbye, or goobye, but I'm so glad you have had so many friends and colleagues who love you and will miss you. You are such a delight to know. It won't be long before you have made good (or goo) connections in your new home.
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