Dismissed

I was waiting for my friend outside the movie theater at Courthouse Plaza when a guy walked by, talking loudly on his phone. "I was so close!" he said. "I actually made it into the room."

I idly wondered what he was talking about. Was it a raise?  A promotion? A job interview? None of those scenarios really fit, but then he was out of earshot, so I stopped thinking about it. 

A minute later, he paced by in the opposite direction, obviously still on the call. "I answered all the questions," he lamented. "I know I had the right attitude."

I still couldn't imagine what he was so worked up about.

"I would have made such a great juror!" he added.

Bingo! 

Practical Application

"Ugh! Why is it raining?" one student said to another today.

"We're literally studying weather!" his friend replied. "Figure it out!"

It Wasn't Horseshoes

"Who's that on your wallpaper?" I asked a student this morning.

"It's just a K-pop singer," she shrugged.

"Is it Rosé?" I said.

"You know her?" she replied in surprise.

"Oh sure," I waved my hand. "Toxic 'til the End, APT, and she's in Blackpink with Jennie and Lisa, right?"

"And who else?" she asked suspiciously.

"Um... I don't know," I admitted. "Who?"

"Jisoo!" she sighed, then shook her head in mild disgust and went back to work.

64,000 Dollar Question

"Your teacher will be back on Thursday!" I reminded the science classes today. "I know she will be super glad to see you again."

"Are you going to be here, too?" asked a student.

"No!" I laughed. "I think your teacher can handle the job without me."

"But you'll be at the school, right?" he said.

"No," I told him. "I'm retired, remember?"

He looked stunned. "Then what are you going to do all day?"

Duh!

I was standing outside, getting eaten by bugs, and trying to think of what plant I had forgotten to buy this weekend to put on the deck and the stoop. There were marigolds, portulaca, zinnias, petunias, sweet potato vine, begonias, lavender, thyme, basil, cilantro, lemongrass, calibrachoa, lantana, and scaviola. 

I slapped a mosquito and then slapped my forehead.

Um, it was citronella.

Tall Order

I get daily email notifications from a jobs website for open positions that some bot has determined might be a good match for my listed skills, experience, and credentials. Occasionally, there are some interesting opportunities, but I'm still waiting for something to really click when I check it out. 

Today, one of the jobs was for a full-time virtual English language teacher. The pay rate was pitiful, especially compared to what I was making before I retired, but worse than that was the job description. Take a look at the top two duties:

Job Duties

• Serve all stakeholders with integrity, humility, and joy while consistently modeling the importance of both task competency and relationships.
• Participate in Company events, activities, and meetings with a smile and an infectious, great attitude.

Am I out of line for being offended on behalf of my profession? 

Chicken Dinner

From time to time, I get an invitation from our satellite radio provider to enter to win tickets to a nearby show. The odds are dependent on how many people enter, so if it's an act we like, I usually take thirty seconds to click through the submission. That's what happened Wednesday when I got an offer to enter for tickets to the I Want My 80s Tour featuring Rick Springfield, Wang Chung, Paul Young, and John Waite. 

"Heidi would love this!" I said to myself, and I chose the June 6 show in Portsmouth, VA, from the 2 available locations since her friends and their two little girls just moved to Virginia Beach in March. I figured that if I won, we could spend a weekend at the beach, see the show, and visit our friends. Then I promptly forgot all about the sweepstakes.

Imagine the charge I got this morning when I checked my phone at lunch and saw the news that I won! And Heidi was thrilled.