Scenes from a Candy Dish: Unlocking Your Inner Five-Year-Old

It's Wednesday, and my candy dish is already empty - and it's not entirely my doing! The Starbursts are a huge hit around the office, and they give me fabulous opportunities for people watching.

When the office men (meaning everyone in the office but me) approach the dish, they try to nonchalantly pick up a fruit juicy delight as if it's ordinary and mundane. Like a paper clip. But during the 2 seconds it takes to unwrap it (which also takes place at my office because we're not great at multi-tasking here; walking while unwrapping is a bit much), the corners of the unwrapper's mouth invariably creep upward into a small smile. It's as the anticipation of a little treat brings out the inner five-year-old who cannot resist sugar. Once the candy is in the mouth the smile and the inner child disappear, and it's once again business as usual.

But those moments of child-like joy continue to amuse me. They are reason enough to keep the candy dish.

The Candy Dish

Now that I am pretty comfortable with my role here at work, I am trying some new things. These are not big "new things." In fact they are quite small ways I am trying to add fun touches to my role as queen of the office.

My most recent endeavor involves a glass bowl and some high fructose corn syrup delights. Yes, I am going to try to be one of those secretaries with a candy dish. When people walk into the office I want them to be greeted with a smiling face and a bowl of Starbursts. And when the smiling face is absent, they can still have candy.

But there is a small problem. Thus far the only person in the office that I can safely say likes candy is the person with the candy dish on her desk. So in order for my new endeavor to succeed the person with the biggest sweet tooth needs to keep her hands out of the dish. That's a tall order.

So I am going to try this for a while and see how it goes. Perhaps my dish will be a source of joy for all who pass through these doors. Perhaps my work and the fact that the dish is hidden from view by a picture frame will allow me to forget its existence.

Perhaps...

Passive Aggressive at its Best

I found this post on a website dedicated to hilarious outbursts of passive aggression. Having worked at an office in Montgomery, Alabama that had its share of passive aggressive employees, I found this not-so-subtle jab at Deborah to be both amusing and sad. Wouldn't a 10-second conversation with Deborah have been easier than all the effort that went into underlining in red?

Back into the swing of things

So this is my first week back from vacation, and in many ways it has been a typical first week back from vacation. My desk at work looked like the New York City skyline for a few days as I juggled the mound of files I needed to address. I have laundry to fold that I haven't touched and have nearly forgotten. There have been many times where I have thought, "Oh yeah, I need to do that...I'll get to it next week." Blogging has been one of those things.

So, first things first. Maine was great. We had a wonderful time with Lindon's family (sans Lonnie, Sara and Coyle; we missed them), and the scenery in Maine is breathtaking. Maine had never been on my list of top places to visit in large part because I expected it to be cold. It is cold, but it's still gorgeous, and the beauty makes it worth facing a little chill. Anytime that pines trees, hills, and ocean are together, it's great. Here are some photos:

Booth Bay Harbor

The rocks at Pemaquid Point Lighthouse

The view from atop Pemaquid Point Lighthouse (it's the lighthouse on the Maine quarter)

Lindon's favorite photo from the week (he likes me crouching in the foreground)

Lindon at The Giant Stairs

 

Now that we are all home - including Lindon, who was gone for over two weeks - we are back into the home improvement projects, namely the kitchen. Since he's been back Lindon has painted the walls, installed all the bead board, and installed a new floor. All we need to do now is paint, clean, and install the cabinets, install a counter, do some of the detail trim work, and put everything back in there. Writing it out doesn't make it sound that easy, but we do hope to have it all done in a week. I will certainly post pictures when it's finished. 

Also, this week has given me the opportunity to get my fix of newborn babies. Three times this week I got to spend time with good friends who recently added little ones to their families. It was amazing to see how God has blessed them with the strength they need to care for these little ones, and it was fun to see how they've grown into their roles as parents. And their kids are all just so cute!

This week we also said goodbye to one of the pastors at Central. BJ and his family are moving to Bozeman, Montana, where BJ will be the senior pastor of a church. It is sad to see them go, but exciting to know God is leading them and preparing them for their next adventure. 

So this was a week to reflect on vacation, celebrate new life, and rejoice in God's faithfulness. Sounds like a good week!

Home

Well, my travels in the great state of Maine have ended, and I am back in St. Louis. However, I feel like I left part of my brain on the rocky coast of New England, so adjusting back to my routine has been a little rough. I hope to soon post photos and some reflections on my time away, including my 9 hours in the Newark airport.

More to come later.