Monday, March 24, 2008

Embedded with Major



Monday

As a teenager I remember my dad coming back from work on Monday nights, usually whistling a melody out of a tune. “Once Monday is over”, he would tell me, “the week is pretty much over.”
Since then, I’ve been trying to make mine this principle of life. And let’s face it, I’ve failed miserably. Except for one thing: I tend to find that Mondays do feel as long as entire weeks.

Tuesday

Wake up with a mild, post St Patrick hangover and with my glasses still on – I’d fallen asleep watching Hitchcock’s Topaz. Need a lot of coffees all day long to stay awake. Anyway the cafeteria is the place to be, no one works anymore. Everyone wonders where the Agency is going to send them. All we do at the moment is drink capuccino and talk shit.

Wednesday

A lot of unexpected meetings – like the people in the offices upstairs have realized that no one was focused. During these meetings I adopt one simple strategy: I remain completely silent and look mysterious.

Thursday

We learn through the grapevine that our direct boss is assigned to Shangai. Some joke that it’s a strategy to cool down the Chinese economy. And indeed the Shangai stock exchange falls by 3,6 % overnight.

Friday

Day off. I’ve got a few things to do but decide, in a moment of lucidity, to postpone them all. Except that I have to go and get my blood tested. It lasts about 2 minutes and I’m quite proud coming out of the lab as I managed not to cry at the sight of the needle.

2 comments:

nuttycow said...

"I remain completely silent and look mysterious." A super tactic. I plan to adopt this in my next meeting.

Anonymous said...

I think i might adopt your Dad's outlook on Mondays, it's great!