I spent four hours in my car today, driving to and then from a training seminar. I am nursing a broken tailbone, so the drive plus the eight hours in an anti-ergonomic chair was misery. My trainer was not aware of my busted backside, and I think was not impressed with the way I kept squirming. (Nor was she impressed when I got myself locked in the hallway during class, but I think I had already dug my grave.)
The Lobster and I were in a training class together once, based on the Who Moved My Cheese novels. Yes, I realize they aren’t novels. As part of our class, we were asked to select the character with which we identified. I hadn’t exactly read the book. I had skimmed the book. I had read a synopsis of the book. I was not familiar enough with the book to name, much less identify the characters, so I did what all goofballs do, and I just made something up when it got to me.
I said, “I identify with the cheese.” It was the only character I knew, right? “I am what everyone wants, and where everyone wants to be.” And I said something else about how if someone moves what I want, or puts it out of my reach, I just adapt and change what I want. That last bit was true.
To my credit, I said it with a straight face and great conviction.
Sadly, my comment derailed the training session. Apparently it is very difficult to convince people that you can teach them to get what they want once you introduce the idea that they might already have it. That trainer? Not impressed. I should have done my homework and read the book, but that still wouldn’t have kept me from getting in trouble for turning my sun visor project into a tiara project.
Eh, who am I kidding. I’d still have said I was the cheese.
Tonight I am exhausted. I dislike being forced to sit while people read to me. It makes me antsy, and antsy means cranky, and cranky means aggravating. I was fighting that all day, working hard to make a good impression for my office. You know, when I wasn’t rolling my chair over the belt of my raincoat and falling half out of it, or accidentally making my printer go off with nervous mouse clicking, or getting locked out of the classroom.
Hopefully tomorrow will be better. I’ll drink less caffeine.
