More lessons from pop culture

So, I've talked before about how much I love me some Criminal Minds.

Ironically, during my last visit to Amazing Therapist, I mentioned how the new boss, the Good Doctor, would be a prime "unsub" for the profilers to investigate. Complete lack of rationality, compiled with unwaivering commitment to arbitrary rules and an inherent need to prove superiority regardless of conflict or lack thereof. Hmmmm.

Tonight's episode was even more synchronistic.

On tonight's episode, Garcia tries to take on a bit too much. While that is a problem, the bigger concern is that Garcia is surpressing her personality - her je ne sais qua, her joie de vivre, her larger-than-life-amazingly-effective-extremely-competant personality.

The gist of the episode is that Garcia will do her job better - more fully - once she stops trying to be someone she's not and starts being the person she is.

The Good Doctor wants me to "be more professional." No more jokes, no more comics, no more inane, personal banter during business calls.

Unfortunately, those traits are what make me exceptionally good at my job.

I can call in favors when needed. I can ask questions or make requests that other folks can't. I get to know - and respect and like - the people that I work with so that work seems less painful and more joyful. And expressing these aspects of my personality allow me to get joy from my work. And a joyful employee is a motivated employee.

If The Good Doctor could, for just one moment, let his "unsubness" take over, he'd see that he is undermining that which could make the job, the team, the company more effective.

I loved seeing Garcia find herself again.

Know What's Sad?

There's so much going on in my life. Shitty worklife (you just can't try to understand crazy!) and that seeps over into my dream life, which affects my waking life, which affects my love life which ...

It's like that damned 80's commercial:

In some weird way, it's like, "work makes me miserable, which makes me cranky, which upsets my love life, which makes me sleep less, which makes me go into work in a bad mood..."

You get the idea.

So, to escape these stupid thoughts, I turn to silly little mind games.

To whit: I'm watching a movie with Kevin Bacon. Wondering who I can and can't connect him to. And I can't help but think that the kids who are now watching The Situation will never know the real reason the 80's really rocked...

Do the Right Thing

Here's a bit of a morality tale for ya. Of course, I'm not exactly sure what the moral is...

Sunday night, I had tickets for the Louis C.K. tour, Word. Louis is one of my all-time faves and I was very excited. That said, I really could not afford, right now at this very moment, to be spending a high-end evening in Boston.

I wound up for dinner at PF Changs because it's predictable and generally pretty quick. Unless, of course, the place is overcrowded and understaffed.

I found a seat at the bar, ordered dinner right away and then opened my book. Several minutes later, I heard my cellphone ring and I leaned over to see who was calling.

Looking down, I saw a folded pile of bills lying on the floor. I could have easily picked it up, pocketed it and made the night a profitable evening. But I just couldn't.

I picked it up and interrupted the couple next to me. "Excuse me, is this yours?" The man guessed correctly at the amount, so I assumed it had to be his. He thanked me and offered to buy me a drink. "No," I said, "There shouldn't be a reward for doing the right thing."

It felt like the right thing to do/say. Until I heard that very same couple bitching about their wait and how the restaurant should cover their theater tickets and how they would never eat at a PF Changs again and who was the manager and they would definitely be letting corporate know that this branch was disorganized and lacked in customer service and...

The ex-waitress in me really wanted to smack them upside the head. The yogini in me wished they had paid my offering forward. The human in me wanted to tell them to get over themselves and go to hell.

Who would have thunk doing the right thing could be quite so complicated?

Here's hoping karma keeps track of these little bits and bobs...

TMI

Got some feedback today that my blog was a bit TMI. Have to say, sorry, but that's the deal. I don't have many forums (my journal, my blog) to be honest, so...

So, with that in mind, I post the following.

I've been worrying a lot about whether I am so smitten w/ the new guy b/c it means I don't have to be alone or b/c I really find so much connection between us.

There are a lot of things that point me to the realization that it's the good connection. We're starting to know the characters in one another's soap operas. We know some (not all!) of the trigger issues between ourselves. I know what movies he wants to see and he knows what movies I want to see. The argument will be over which we see together. (It's called compromise!)

Still, there are a lot of things we've got a massive disconnect on. He doesn't get that the standup circuit is a close-knit (if anonymous) group of personalities and we all know one anothers' stories and issues. So when I get excited talking about these people, it's like I'm talking about my friends (RIP Bob Schimmel). Mocking them very rightly ticks me off. (He's the same way w/ his music, although he doesn't see that). We have vastly different work lives and experiences. And, we're totally Jupiter/Mars (except I seem to be from Mars whereas he's Jupiter, but that's another story for another time...)

Yet, I desperately want to transcend these issues. Because I love him. Purely and honestly. He's good and decent and honest and direct. Not to mention intellectually stimulating and not so much bad with the physical stuff.

So I hope and wish and pray that we'll overcome these other little things.

This all was massively reinforced by tonight's episode of "Louie" on FX. The replay isn't up yet, but you'll be able to find it here. It's a beautiful portrait of what it sometimes means to be single, and alone.

And the Hits Just Keep On Comin

Just when you thought it was safe to go in the water...

Got a call from CBL last week - inviting me out to lunch.

I have NO idea what to expect.

1) She found out I threw her under the bus. (Sorry, but then you shouldn't have thrown temper tantrums at work)

2) She wants to give me dirt on the new boss (who was unbelievably beligerant on her last few days)

3) She wants to ask me to go "on the record" for her lawsuit against the company. (I shouldn't know this, but she handed me the retainer letter to her Attorneys at Law w/o a cover sheet. Um, YEAH, I'm gonna read it...)

So, I am feeling just a smidge nervous and awkward about today. What does one wear if they're either gonna get soda thrown in their face or sit through a free lunch and tears...?