Last Week of Work

The last week of work has started out pretty much like any other week, except that I'm trying to get everything packed up and moved out of my office. You know how in TV and movies when someone quits, they show them leaving the office with one box with like a plant and a framed picture? That is so not possible. I'm going to have to make at least two car trips to empty my office.

My intent was to throw away most of my old files. But it's a little more difficult than I thought it would be. I have three boxes with every expense report I've ever submitted. I'm getting a little sentimental flipping though them. They bring back many good memories. For example:

• The time a group of us spent the weekend in San Francisco and were pretty sure someone got shot on the street below our hotel window.


• Finding a good karaoke bar in Independence, Missouri on a Tuesday night.


• Eating lamb fries at Cattlemen's Restaurant in Oklahoma City. If you want to find out if someone is cool, offer them lamb fries. Only cool people will try lamb fries.


• Seeing a cockfight in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico.


• Going clubbing until 4:00am in Barcelona, Spain.


• Trying to get a cab in London after midnight.
• And how could I forget a late night trip to the ER in Geneva, Switzerland and buying a beer from the hospital vending machine.

I don't want to give the impression that every business trip was crazy. There were many, many trips where nothing particularly remarkable happened. But the good ones make me realize I've been pretty foutunate to work for a good company with good people.