The Best/Worst of Times

In case you were wondering, I'm back.

I've been working.  Up to 18 hours in one day.  Surviving on a fraction of the RDA (recommended daily allowance) of sleep.  And not a fraction like 3/4.  More like 1/8.

I've spent my days in a fancy hotel and conference center, hob-nobbing with big wigs from all over the world.  I got up every morning and dressed up.  Someone else made my bed and washed my towels.  I ate lots of fine food that I didn't prepare myself.  (Maybe even a little too much -- I've gained 5 pounds.)  Oh, it sounds glamorous.  I was livin' the dream most weary, worn-out, stay-at-home moms have every now and then.

Was it fun?  Often.

Was it H-E-double-hockey-sticks?  Occasionally.

Am I glad it's over?  Oh, yes!

Since I didn't even have my camera most of the time, and when I did have my camera I was super busy, I don't have many pics.  Just enough to remind me someday, in the distant future, "Oh, yes.  I used to be an event planner."  It will be a great story for my posterity.

These are a few of my associates.  Julie and Kellie (hi, girls -- are you checking out my blog?), Marge, and Andrea.  Marge is our financier's wife, and was frequently the source of anxiety for all of us.  She enjoyed the busy work, though, and was, in the end, helpful.  Andrea was one of our Portuguese translators.

Our snack of choice?  SmartPop white cheddar.  We would raid the snack stations and stash it away.

Taylor also worked with us as a Spanish translator, and general overall RMS presence.  Which basically means he sat at the check-in table or stood at the doors of the conference checking name badges.  He worked with Mark, another RM (not to be confused with RMS -- the consulting company I work for), with whom he formed a great friendship.  He juggled multiple jobs too (three!), which added to his stress levels, but in the end, he felt it was a beneficial experience.

Here's a useful tip:  after pricing centerpieces for one of the dinners, I discovered that Costco does floral arrangements for banquets and weddings.  Very inexpensively (in floral arrangement terms).  By divine guidance, I ran into Dola Mae while grabbing something in a mad dash through Costco.  I had stopped briefly at the floral end cap to debate if I could possibly, in a million years, make the floral centerpieces myself.  There she was, a sweet, beige-haired, elderly woman, attending to the flowers.  She handed me a business card.  The next day I placed my order, fingers crossed that they would be decent.

A week later, when I went to pick them up (the only downfall to ordering through Costco -- no delivery), I was delighted to find that the arrangements were beautiful.  I'm keeping that tidbit of info in my memory file. Oh, I don't have one.  That's why I blog.

This is our Bob's Angels pic.  Obviously I didn't get the white top/khaki bottom memo (and I look a little peeved about it, don't ya think?).

Yesterday, on the final day of our insane conference week, we went on a bus tour.  This isn't the greatest pic, but I love how Taylor and the gentleman he was sitting with (from Chihuahua, Mexico) got into the action.  Taylor gave him the first discussion in between our tour commentator's frequent commentating.

How cool is that?

So now I'm happy to be back home.  Yes, I still ran to the school to do my other job, in between the madness.  Last Friday I went straight from this

and this

to the hotel.  

It was the first time I have ever been IN the school Halloween parade.  I like watching better.  And I had to remember to remove my large ghost headband before heading to the meeting with the hotel staff.  

It's been a whirlwind.

I have laughed my guts out.

I have cried my eyes out.

I have missed my family.

I have enjoyed the solitude.

I didn't watch TV.

I didn't read or write blog posts.

My husband came to my rescue more than once (my hero).

I barely kept up on urgent / important items at home.

I missed Lexee's first not-a-school-dance date.

I forgot about Mauri's piano lesson (which means she didn't go).

I missed Halloween, and my family didn't carve pumpkins.

I didn't do laundry.

I didn't do dishes.

I didn't buy milk.

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.
I'm ready to relish the work of being home.