Spending Time With Others

      It’s funny the way things work out sometimes. I know it’s not always easy to laugh at, but usually, in hindsight, it is funny. Last week we went to a local joint called East Bound Bar & Grill for my wife’s work gathering. It was fun. I got to meet a lot of her work friends, and I was right, there were a lot of questions. It was quite a bit different from last year. Last year her work paid for us all to go to a Padre game. It was cool, they had rented a patio, and had some food and drinks available. The part that was different for me was that last year there was almost no interaction between us and other people. My wife had said hello to a few people, but it was almost like we were strangers. Well, I was one. She was fairly new, and the company is kind of big, so now I realize that it’s not likely to know people outside your department. Plus, now that we’ve been to 2 Padre outings, and 2 Holiday parties, I also realize that people don’t generally associate with people outside their department. I imagine that the idea of having all, or most, of your employee family together under one roof, is to have them mingle. Perhaps putting a face to that name on the email list you always see, but haven’t yet met. Perhaps finally meeting that person you see in the hallway, but haven’t yet had the time, or privilege, to meet. However, in my experience, that is not usually the case. And has not been the case in my last 3 meetings with this group of people. Then again, they are, kind of, nerds. It’s an accounting firm. As far as I know, accountants aren’t really known for their outgoing personalities. So, I guess it should make sense. I’m not that outgoing either, so when a bunch of non-outgoing people get together, it’s not likely to rage.

     This event was a bit different. My wife has been there for a while now. I got to meet a lot of the people she sees, and talks to, on a regular basis. I got a chance to put a face to some of the names I have heard her talk about. There were a lot of curious people, and the was a lot more interaction than there was in any of the previous events. Strangely enough, no one from her team were there, but it didn’t seem to make any difference. We had fun. The company had rented the entire patio. I never even knew they had a patio like that. The event itself was pretty cool. They had a very nice spread, and a list of drinks that we could have for free. In my younger days, I would have tried to work the system, but since it was a work function, and I’m a much older responsible person now, I decided to be “good.” Towards the end, it had the feeling of: “about to get out of control.” Shots started being busted out, when most of the people with families had left. That’s when we decided to take our leave also, as to not get “sucked in.” They all had the next day off, and a lot of people decided not to bring their young families, perpetuating the idea that they were there to “party.” We put our emphasis on making sure we made it home safely. The Padres won! We are, so far, 2 for 2 watching the Padres this year.  Tatis Jr. didn’t do much, but we won, so that’s all that matters. It’s interesting how much more attention gets paid when the team is doing good. It’s exciting. I’m not sure how fun it would be to sit around with your friends, talking about how bad the team you like is. That doesn’t sound exciting. This is the first time in a long time that the Padres are actually doing well, so it kind of feels new to me, being around so many fans.

      We did go see All Monster Revue on Friday. They were good. I was actually surprised. We have met the singer a few times, but this was the first time we got to see her perform. She was good. I was impressed. The band was good too. Very tight. But it was a little kitschy. They all dress up in costume, and sing a lot of songs about Halloween. It seemed a bit odd for the middle of April, but it was good. I was glad we saw them. We may see them again. The show itself however, not so good. At most, there may have been 30 people there. Never at the same time. The first band was horrible. Not only do I not remember their name, but I wouldn’t put it on here, as to not defame them. If you’re interested DM me. It was awful. The next band turned out to be a band I had been wanting to see for a while. They’re called 13 Wolves. I had heard a lot about them, and was glad I was finally going to get to see them. I know the bass player, but it just never worked out that I got to see them. It was just okay. The lead singer had a good presence, and for the most part the band played well, but it wasn’t anything I’d want to see again. They all dressed up like werewolves, and the singer could not be understood, because he had to sing through the mask, which he did effortlessly, but still, I didn’t loose myself. They didn’t have much of a crowd, which confused me, because I had heard so much about them. Overall, I was glad my bandmates had not attended. I saw who I needed to see, and represented, objective met! I did not go with them Saturday night, which sounded like a benefit. They said the venue sucked, and they walked out because they could barely hear anything but the drums and guitar. They were bummed, I was not.