happy 4th and shoe-pping

Not Independence day, but today marked 4 years at the firm. That's a long time.
Another gorgeous hot and sunny day. Was tempted to purchase another pair of shoes. They have massive markdowns going on - for some reason it's like they were overloaded with choices of sandals this summer and everything has been marked down, fairly early in my opinion but all the better for me! :)

time to shine

So it has been a hectic week so far. Crazy mad days of conducting training sessions in 15 minute increments for 2 hours and then having teleconference calls. Today was the boss' retirement party. Big platters of cheese and fruit were set out on the tables, along with some bottles of chardonnay and red wine. Someone asked the IT guys to do some work - i.e. open the bottles but they said they didn't know how! They probably just drink beer. So I stepped in and was so intent on opening them that someone told me, "Uh, shouldn't we wait to see if we'll be needing them all?" I had opened all 4 bottles of chardonnay - and was onto the red. I was in boat mode - my other job where I open all bottles in anticipation of heavy drinking. :p

I had spoken to HR about saying a few words about my boss. Mother had suggested that it was an unspoken rule that I would. I found it odd - normally it's the other way around - a senior speaking about a junior. So I found myself speaking to a crowd of about 50. I had written up the speech on the train ride into the office this morning, had faxed the contents to my mother for review, solicited comments from my two co-workers, and then proceeded to memorize the speech so I could say it without reading. It went well. I made the boss cry. Apparently others too. One woman later came up to me and said she didn't know who was speaking at first because she didn't recognize me - as a result of my hair!

All in all, it went quite well and there were many people who came up to me to tell me I a) had done a great job and/or b) had a great haircut :) I was on a high.

sparkle in her eye

I was unable to remove all the purple glitter from my lower eye as it had been glued on with eyelash glue and was proving to be difficult to remove. Most people didn't notice but my boss did. She asked if I did another show and I said no. I also told her I cut it on the weekend since I didn't want her to think that I took a day off to do it. Another girl asked whether I was out the night before and I laughingly brushed it off. My boss and everyone at work were quite shocked with my new hairdo but everyone seemed to rave about it, saying it was cute, it looked good, it suited my face, and on and on. So many compliments I couldn't stop thinking that I was glad I had it chopped instead of lamenting the fact that it had never been shorter in my life.

photo shoot

I caught the earlier train to work today but instead of going to work, went to the photographer's studio to do photos. There were 3 other models there already and we sat and waited our turn as we got passed around to have our hair done and then we were airbrushed. I got painted with the number 73 (all of us girls were painted with numbers that were the 'lucky' numbers of one of the stylists). It was done in purple with purple sparkles added on top.

The day was a scorcher. We went to this apartment/studio that had the studio space on the bottom and then a spiral staircase that led to the top where I suppose the photographer actually worked (there sat a desk and phone and computer). We used the space to put all our makeup on. I was there at 9 and finished by 3:30. Quite the experience I will tell you. I'm so exhausted right now from heat that I just want sleep.

I would guess the photographer took a roll and a half of film on me while I stood blinded by the bright lights and with one eye covered with my hair. Quite the sight. When I left the studio, they still weren't finished with the others. I got quite a few stares as I walked down the street though!

hot or not

My sister was telling me how it seems that when she's 'hot', she's hot...i.e. plenty of guys interested. When she's not, it's damn cold. Seems like the way things are here with this hair thing I'm trying to break into. I went in for a colour class and got my hair pretty much redone the same as it always is - a reddish base (raspberry) and then the magenta panels thrown in. I phoned up a salon that said they could possibly use me and then was asked to come in tonight! If I had only called earlier, I would have just made a stop by the salon after the class since I had already taken a half day off work and was done by quarter to 4. Now it was already past 6 and for me to make it back down to the salon would be well closer to 7:30pm. So I had to request another day instead. This was just for the guy to look at my hair before deciding so it wasn't even a guarantee. I'm now awaiting a call to see whether they will still want me to come in tomorrow instead...or not. They are planning on doing the photo shoot this weekend so it would be just awesome if I could get in. But I guess if it happens it does, if it doesn't, it just plain does not.

sex and the city

I organized a girls night out with a couple of friends from senior high. L wasn't able to make it at the last minute because of a work function that cut into our dinner and I didn't hear from J so I thought it would just be A and K, who was back for the summer but heading off to Montreal next month. K is such the jetsetter that we all envy. So J was able to make it after all and the four of us went to a spaghetti joint on Robson after work.

We all had a good chat and were planning on heading over to the Battle of the Bar Bands afterwards at the Commodore Ballroom except for J who was going to visit her parents for the weekend. It only made sense for us 3 to go though anyhow since we were the only ones in the legal field.

After dinner, we wandered down Robson St. towards Granville and did a little shopping before heading into the Commodore. Once inside, it was so strange as I ran into so many people I knew. It was odd because A and K knew people at their firm, but most had left and they didn't know where people had gone. As we entered the darkly lit room, someone shouts my name. I wasn't sure who it was but it turned out to be someone I had become acquainted with during my university days. She was now articling at a local law firm and I had hoped to catch up with her and there we were. I passed on my card so hopefully we can have a decent chat at some point. As we had arrived an hour into the battle, all the tables were pretty much taken so we wandered around to find a suitable viewing spot. There wasn't really one but we found a place upstairs.

A student at my firm also spotted me and I left A and K to yell (as chatting was just not possible in this loud atmosphere) and we wandered back down to see if we could find others from the firm. She was surprised that there were so many people; I wasn't. It was just like the last time I came - tons of people. I suppose if you worked your way through the crowds you could possibly run into someone you knew. I then ran into a couple, who are my best friend's husband's friends and said hi. The wife seemed to blank out on me and not know who I am but instead of asking me who I was as that would be rude, asked where I worked. I told her and she nodded as if she remembered. I am willing to surmise that she probably turned to her husband and asked who I was after I left. Apparently she was playing keyboard in her band but they weren't on til nearly midnight. We didn't see anyone else but I considered that plenty and we went back upstairs, at which point K and A went down for a stroll. By the time they came back up, it was time for our band to play so I went back down to the main floor with the student and we found the other students hanging around front and centre. We listened and cheered on our band as people jumped to the beat on the springy dance floor. I also ran into E, another lawyer friend of mine from music class. Some of the students at the firm had been drinking a lot since after work - one was pretty plastered it was almost funny.

My girlfriends decided to leave since it's pretty much the same after a while and K suggested going to her friend's place where there was a little party happening. Turns out her friend manages a cigar shop where it was the monthly meeting of rich, old, fat men (or so we presumed) but it would have been interesting to see regardless so we dropped by. It was now nearly 11:30 and we were introduced to the manager and a worker who apparently remembered me from a previous gathering but I was embarrassed that I couldn't remember him! I remembered the event - a cold cold night of watching shooting stars in the middle of November in K's backyard a few years ago but not him. Ah well. He left and the manager was left to close shop but we had to wait for the men (mostly old and fat and probably rich since you'd need to be to be able to afford such a ghastly expensive habit!)

We were in for the longest closing. This one guy in his late 30s or early 40s had a bit too much to drink and wouldn't really leave. He tried to chat us up. K, A, and I had each taken up our own comfy leather couch while we waited for K's friend to close shop but this guy kept hanging around, wine in one hand, cigarette burning away in the other. His friends were all leaving and had to tell him to leave several times before he finally did, almost half an hour later, but not before trying to persuade us to go across the street to the lounge for a drink. We finally closed shop around 12:30 and headed over to a different bar/lounge/club. As K's friend knew the manager, we were able to slide through without having to have ourselves metal-detectored and we were able to get a drink for free as well although some would argue that I wasted mine on a shirley temple.

I haven't been to a club in a few years and the dj was playing house music, which isn't the best to dance to but I thought the place was pretty empty for a Friday night. But then again, who knows. I was wiped and sort of stood around a little bored but K's friend also had a couple of other friends (which was why we went here instead of across the street) and we chatted with them. A sushi chef was also with them and he introduced himself to me, telling me to stop by the restaurant he worked at in Richmond. I can attest that this restaurant, Daimaru has awesome sushi. The boys had all gone to stuff themselves like pigs earlier on that evening apparently.

Unfortunately, Mr. Drunk shows up but it's in the latter part of the evening (or is it morning really?) I heard later that he had left the lounge with his friends and they had all split to go home but he just wanted to pop in to this joint to see if we were there. Ugh. He wanted to say goodbye to us yet again when we were leaving but we snuck out. At least he wasn't harrassing me. K was pretty good at being nice about it but I think she was getting a kick out of it. I suppose it did make our evening that much less dull. Didn't get home til 2:30 and we all had to shout to each other in the car to be heard after the hours of booming music. Haven't been out for an evening like this in a long time. Will also remember it for a long time. :)

limbo

Yesterday afternoon, I saw my boss go into a partner's office, shut the door and chat for a long time. At the end of the day, she came to my desk and asked if I wanted to know what was going on. I nodded. Then she dropped the bombshell. Apparently the woman who was offered the job rejected the offer. My jaw dropped open. It was due to personal issues (family members in hospital etc.) but HR was extremely disappointed, as no doubt the partners will be too when they hear the news. Which means the door is still open for me. Or so I think. We'll see. The partners have all gone to a partners' meeting til the end of the week so I am guessing that nothing will happen until they return on Monday. In the meantime, I am left to wonder whether the reader's reading will come true. All I can say is that it is damn frustrating to wonder which way I am being pulled.

It was also "Clean Air Day" in which transit riders who were spotted wearing the "clean air day" button could randomly win prizes. I took the bus to the train station and as soon as I walked in, a transit staff member spotted me and gave me a red frisbee with a "lung association" sticker on it. Yes, the theme is clean air day. I saw a lot of people wearing the button on the train but when I left work, I entered the station and another transit worker stopped me and said, "You've been randomly selected to win a prize." So she offered me a choice of BC Lions tickets, Aquarium tickets, or Playland tickets. I hesitated for a bit before she offered to do a draw and then I said Playland. I definitely don't watch football but was trying to decide between the Aquarium and Playland. I already have a pass to the aquarium, but figured 2 more would be good for my whole family to go. But then how often do we even do trips like that? So I opted for the fun Playland passes. As I stood trying to decide, I noticed a male passenger also with a button coming by. He saw me speaking with the worker and backed away, probably hoping she would see him after I left and offer him a prize too. I don't know if he got one. I was already on my way down the escalator to the platform.

movin' up

Since my boss' retirement notice went out, I have had several people asking me yesterday and today whether I will be taking over. One specifically joked, "So when are you moving into X's office?" I replied: I'm not. So there.