Cancelled and rescheduled flights

On my last full day in the States, I received a notification on my phone driving back to the hotel that my flight heading home the following day was cancelled. My heart sank.

I pulled over to check my inbox. I'm glad that I did. The airline managed to book me on an alternative set of flights home. It involved going into the opposite direction. I essentially flew from Minneapolis to Denver, and then to Toronto.

It was roughly an extra three hours. It made for a long day, but I was grateful to get home on the same day and wasn't left stranded somewhere.

I was originally upgraded to business class. With these two flight segments, only my second one was in business class. It was fine, as it was the longer segment.

In business class, I sat next to a nice, older man. He figured that I was heading home to Toronto, probably because I was my usual polite self. He was heading to Dubai after landing in Toronto. He had a two-hour layover.

By the way, the flight out of Denver was delayed by two hours. It isn't unusual these days with staff being sick.

When the plane touched down in Toronto, he said, "Welcome home!" He made a comment that it's always a good feeling returning home. He was right.

I have been fortunate to have struck up conversations with folks during my travels. I enjoy them. He was so nice by getting my backpack and jacket from the overhead bin.

Good people on a plane

When I flew down to Minneapolis, an older woman sat next to me. She had a tough time finding one part of her seatbelt. I managed to scoop it up between our seats. We ended up chatting here and there throughout our flight.

The sun was shining through the window directly in her face. I asked if she wanted me to draw the small blind down. She liked the sunshine and was okay.

"Do you have family in Minneapolis?" she asked me.

"I used to live in Rochester, just south of it. I'm returning after nearly two years," I replied.

"I'm seeing my son and his family," she shared.

"That's so nice. My mom used to visit me when I lived in Minnesota," I replied.

Towards the end of our flight, I wished her happy times reuniting with her son and grandchildren. It has been ages since anyone has gingerly held my arm as a token of affection. She did just that, which was sweet. She thanked me and was thrilled to finally see them.

Travel seems scary during a pandemic, but there are still stories to tell and good people out there.

Great conversation and dinner

On Friday night, I went out for dinner with a good friend. She was sweet to treat me to dinner. We are also colleagues.

I gave her Christmas gifts early. Next week, I'm travelling. I get back in early December and fly out again in less than two weeks. I didn't think that we could squeeze in another get-together.

It was great chatting with her. I don't normally talk about my ex-hubby or exes in general, but I did, as did she. It was therapeutic and I realized that I am in a good place in my life.

Later on today, I am getting together with a couple of friends that I haven't seen in over a year. I'm looking forward to it!

Getting a compliment that I'm thin

Last Wednesday, I was doing my usual grocery store run after work. There was a woman taking up the middle of an aisle while looking at something. I wanted to get past her, so I could stand behind her. We were both waiting to pay for our items at the checkout.

I was my usual self by excusing myself to get through. I indicated that I didn't want to plow through and hit her. She was nice. We struck up a conversation.

She was telling me that during this pandemic, she has consumed way too much chocolate and that she was chocolate. She wished that she was as "thin as [I was]." She was so sweet!

I am not known to be thin. However, I'm thinking that my cutting out sugar has made a dent in how I look. I know that I feel much better and I tend to sleep better these days. My pants aren't as snug when I wear them. I thanked her for making my day.

She had a lot of items in her cart. I had a handful. I passed by her on my way out the door and she waved to me. I wished her a good evening.

It's nice meeting friendly folks, especially during a pandemic!

Mother's Day and sharing multimedia with family twelve hours away

Just like that, the weekend is over.

Yesterday, I wished my mom a happy Mother's Day over the phone. I shared a photo of her from years ago on a social media account, which sparked a nice conversation with my cousin. She lives in Hong Kong. I'm in the suburbs of Toronto. She is the youngest cousin on my mom's side. I'm the oldest.

We have never met in person. Yet, our conversations over the years make us both feel like we truly know each other well.

She showed my photo to my aunt and uncle, which made them happy. Both my uncle (my mom's baby brother) and my mom have suffered strokes. They saw each other last summer when he and my aunt came to Toronto for a visit.

My cousin and I decided to try and get video and audio snippets of our parents now and again. I started off my sharing a video of some snow (yes, that's not a typo and it's the month of May) that came down on Saturday afternoon.

Technology does have its perks, especially when you are separated from family halfway across the world.

Weird text conversation

I sometimes wonder about my new love interest. He says things that kind of make me wonder why.

Here's an example in the form of texts:

"Babe, what are we going to talk about?" he texted.
"What an odd question," I texted back.
"Yeah, I think so. I'm going to bed early," he wrote.
"Okay, what time were you thinking of turning in?" I asked.
"Soon. I don't have a time yet," he wrote.

Okay, perhaps he's not a natural conversationalist, but it's not like we have a set agenda when we start a conversation. You take a topic and you run with it. Yesterday, I found out that it was national pizza day and I didn't know. I ended up getting a pizza before knowing about this tidbit. So, we talked about it.

The other thing is that if you typically want to go to bed early, you have some idea as to when you want to go to bed. It was weird that he finally said soon. Twenty minutes later, we said goodnight.

Weird. Maybe it'll make sense to me later. Right now, it just seems odd all around.

Dating again and observations

I'm so rusty with the dating scene. I haven't done it since 2011. I am taking it slow. It has been a learning experience.

The guy that I have been chatting with as of late takes some coaxing to open up. I realize that I am such a natural conversationalist in comparison.

So far, things are clicking. One day at a time. I remind myself and have told him that I'm not in a rush to do anything or to get to some major stage. He respects that. I'm pleased.

My car turns heads and starts conversations, even with the windows up

My car is a conversation starter. Even when I'm stopped at a traffic light, the flame blue colour turns heads.

I was driving home from work on Monday night. I was stopped at a light. A Jeep was next to me. The guy had three car lengths ahead of him.

I looked over. He was looking at my car. Our eyes met. I had my windows up, but we could clearly read each other's lips.

"Do you love my car?" I asked him.
"Yes, the colour is beautiful," he said.
"I love it, too," I said.

He had a huge smile on his face. I gave him a thumbs up. The light turned green and we drove straight ahead before he turned right at the next light.

It's interesting how humans interact. It's also fascinating how much guys admire a nice car.

Striking up a conversation over blue cars

Saturday was a great day chatting with two friends whom I haven't seen for a bit. I have known each of them since grades 8 and 9. I also enjoyed chatting with a fellow shopper.

I had parked in front of Best Buy and went in to browse. There was a grocery store across the parking lot. Instead of driving over there after I was done at Best Buy, I left my car where it was and walked over.

When I came back, both the person who had parked next to me and I were thinking of getting into our cars. We were both parked such that the driver side required one of us waiting for the other to get in. I broke the silence.

"Did you want to go in first?" I said, as I needed to put my groceries in the trunk.
"Sure. Is that your car?" he asked me.
"Yes," I replied, putting my groceries into my trunk.
"I love the colour," he said, admiring the flame blue.
"I love your car's colour, too," I said, as his was a darker blue.
"I really love the colour. It's nice," he said.
"Thanks! I love blue and it looks like you do, too," I replied, noticing his baby blue t-shirt he had on.
"It's my favourite colour, too," he said, with a huge smile on his face.

I wished him a good day. He said goodbye. It's nice that perfect strangers have something in common and great taste in car colours.

Interviewing skills and conversation

Last Thursday, my manager and I had an interview with a prospective intern. He is from my alma mater, which is a first.

He was polite and knowledgeable. My manager conducted the first half of the interview, as he had to leave to attend a meeting. I took over after that.

I like honing my interviewing skills. I don't like firing question after question, or going into a huge soliloquy. I'd rather have a conversation, which made it more comfortable for both of us.

When I asked if he had any questions towards the end of our time together, he truly opened up. I like when folks are comfortable with me, and vice-versa.

His writing and editing skills are superb. He'll do just fine.

He accepted the offer. I look forward to working with him soon.

Good girl, BAD girl

Whenever my guy and I converse, I like saying that I am his good girl. He will immediately say that I'm his bad girl.

In e-mail exchanges, it's even more amusing. I'll sign off by saying, "Your good girl."

My guy is consistent. He'll reinforce that I'm bad.

Hi there BAD girl,
Nice to hear from you. :)

I like when he emphasizes that I'm BAD.

Striped t-shirt and butt

My guy and I had the following conversation the other day at the restaurant:

"Is that a new polo shirt?" I asked him.
"I have had this one for a while," he confirmed.
"I know that you have a blue one and a yellow one. I have never seen you wear this grey and white striped shirt," I pointed out.
"It reminds me of my spanking your bare butt and the hand mark that is left behind. The fingers look like stripes," he pointed out.

Naturally, that remark made me wet and horny.

Being mushy after looking at a photo of me

The weekend is here! I am spending part of my weekend with a dear friend. We are going to the beer and food truck festival. It's always nice to catch up with her.

My guy misses me. The feeling is always mutual.

We had this conversation:

"I like your profile pic on LinkedIn," he said.
"Thanks. You should. You took it," I reminded him.
"Yes, that's true. The subject makes the photo," he said.
"You're oozing sweetness again," I commented.
"When I miss you, it comes out naturally," he admitted.
"I like when you're mushy," I noted.
"You're worth it," he said.

I like when he's in mushy mode.

Dreadful Diva is gone... yay!

Tuesday was the day. It was dreadful diva's last day with the company.

I worked from home that day. I suppose that I was lucky to not be in the office. I was in a four-hour conference call that started at 07:00.

My manager had his regular one-on-one meeting with her. It was different, though. He had one human resources (HR) person with him, and another HR person on the phone.

On Thursday, I held a regular weekly meeting with my two writers. I have one writer who has been on our team for just over a month. I also have a student who has been with us for just over two months.

Although I wasn't expecting a bit of a therapy session, it happened. We are all so comfortable talking to one another that I am glad that it happened.

They expressed how uncomfortable it was to hear dreadful diva (DD) complain and vent about various aspects of her job. Although someone had reported to my manager that negative comments were directed at a number of folks, including me, the writer on our team indicated that there wasn't anything aimed directly at me -- that it was more process and more towards our manager.

My student missed a deadline by a day, which was unusual. She admitted that she was affected by the negativity coming from DD. She felt sluggish. I get it.

It was a good conversation with them, with all of us sharing our observations and concerns. It's over, thankfully.

I had a talk with my manager after we had finished conducting an interview on Thursday. He had indicated that DD was confrontation from the start when she first entered the meeting room and saw the HR person.

DD apparently cited that my manager had indicated during her interview that she would be a team lead, taking over my job. Um, I don't recall any of that. If she did, it wouldn't happen a month after starting. She could barely use our authoring tool.

She has selective hearing. In her interview, we had mentioned our new authoring tool. During her first week in training, she constantly referred to that tool. We haven't moved over to it yet!

My writer pointed out that during her interview that she did not hear our manager mention that she would be taking over a lead role. You are given such a role when you have proven that you are competent. My new writer, who is essentially my mini-me, is perfectly competent. It's the reason why she is taking over my writing duties.

DD said that she is planning on suing the company for being misled. The suing part doesn't surprise me. Before she joined the company, she had her lawyer go through the benefits package. I knew that she would be a difficult person right from the start. My manager nodded in agreement.

He also noted that she pointed out that she had quit her previous job to take this one. Well, that's life. You decide whether you want to take the plunge and try a new job. Sometimes, it works out. In this case, it didn't.

We are all relieved that she is gone. Sadly, she caused some grief after she was led out of the office and building. She had our IM app on her phone. She apparently used it to say goodbye to folks. She also asked someone to go out for lunch.

If I were in her shoes, I wouldn't have done any of that on a corporate tool that you shouldn't be using once you are terminated. Instead, I would leave, go home, think, and then write goodbye e-mails to folks instead.

My manager had IT terminate her session at a server level. It's incredible how stressful Tuesday was for our team.

I am so glad that this nightmare is over. I'm not sure how the suing-the-company saga will unfold, but she doesn't have a case when her performance was the main cause of her termination.

Ha-penis and do-penis after sex

After sex, my guy and I end up having dopey conversations. We simply do.

On Thursday evening, I had just given my guy a handjob. We had cleaned up and were cuddling.

"You bring me a lot of ha-penis," I said, smiling at him while pointing at his member.
"That's clever and funny!" my guy said, with both of us laughing a lot.

Moments later, it was my guy's turn.

"How come my head hits the roof of your car?" he asked me, looking adorably like a lost little boy.

It's funny how he just sat at the edge of the seat, with his head touching the roof. He asked me why and just kept his head there.

Ah, good do-penis times!

Concert and parking lot changes

The other night, I went to see a concert. I had a fabulous time!

I used to work downtown. I have a particular parking lot where I park and walk over to the venue. It has been roughly a couple of years since I have parked at this lot. It has changed! It no longer is dumpy. Luckily, the price is still right.

After the show, I walked back to the building in which the parking lot is located. The security guard and I had a brief conversation. He was pleasant and asked me if I was going to the parking lot. I was and even indicated the level. He was kind to point to the elevator that would take me down. I had used a different elevator that got me on the mezzanine level earlier in the evening. I thanked him and continued on my merry way.

Unfortunately, leaving the parking lot was annoying. The person in front of me could not get his payment method going at the exit area. After patiently waiting for him to get his transaction done for five minutes, I went to a different kiosk, put my ticket in, and left.

I do like the new parking lot. The parking spaces are wide, which prevents idiots from dinging my car if I am parked next to them.

Keeping his word by spanking me

On Friday night, we had this conversation over the phone while we were both driving home in our respective cars:

"Starbucks is expensive," my guy remarked, favouring Tim Hortons more.
"Starbucks is good, just like me," I said.
"You are never good! I am going to punish you tomorrow," he replied.
"No, I'm a good girl. Maybe I shouldn't come see you," I teased.
"No, you will come and I will make you cum," he insisted.
"You want to see me because you miss me," I hinted.
"I miss punishing you," he pinpointed.
"You're so mean!" I replied.

He kept his word. I am sitting here with a sore backside. All is well!

Botox, spanking, and balls

Sometimes, the conversations that my guy and I have are different. It's probably due to missing each other, being in different timezones, and being horny.

My guy decided to try botox while in Istanbul. He has a couple of eleven lines between his eyebrows, which make him feel like he's always angry. Apparently, the botox injections there are of better quality than those that he got locally in the greater Toronto area.

"I can't wait to see you wrinkle-free skin," I told him over the phone.
"You won't be able to kiss me. You will be bent over that boardroom table, with your bare bottom exposed for me to spank you, remember?" he replied, referring to our conversation the day before.
"But, I want to kiss you," I insisted.
"Your butt can kiss my balls and I take you from behind," he replied.

Ah, romance at its finest! And, yes, we have a seven-hour difference.

Is it Saturday yet? He comes home in less than two days. Yay!

March question: guests for dinner and drinks

I received this wonderful question from Cat:

What four people (and their spouse/partner), living or dead, would you invite for an evening of drinks and dinner? Would your guy choose the same? If not, what are his choices (if he chooses to answer)?

Here's my answer:

• Madonna
  She can bring her latest boy toy to our soiree. I have loved her since I was twelve years old. I would ask her a ton of questions at dinner, but would ask about whether she is still interested in spankings. If so, I would ask whether I could give her one or she could put me over her knee.
  
• Pet Shop Boys
  I'd invite Neil and Chris. I don't know whether they are dating anyone these days. I have met them in person. They are wonderful together. You always get stimulating conversations when they are together.
  
• Jann Arden
  She is my favourite Canadian female singer. I have met her a number of times and love her dearly. She is so down-to-earth and has a wicked sense of humour. I think that we'd need our own talk show!
  
• My guy
  I don't think I need a reason for him to be at this dinner. Sure, he gets hungry often. However, he is a great conversationalist and is wonderful company to have. And, I don't care if I'm biased here!

I'll have to ask my guy the same question and let you know what his answer is.

If you have any questions for me to answer, please feel free to leave them in the Comments section. Thanks!

Farewell to the old laptop

Back in 2008, I was a graduate student and completed my degree through distance education. It was the first year in which our chats went from an instant-messaging, text-only discussion to an online video format. 

I had a Mac mini at the time that was one of the earlier models, which could not handle streaming video. So, I was one of the lucky ones who didn't have to turn on the video camera, but could simply participate through the voice chat.

Eventually, for one of my courses, I needed to run software that was Windows-specific. I couldn't run it on a virtual machine on my Mac mini. I caved and bought a laptop that was on sale at Staples.

Well, this laptop finally died on me last week. I ended up with a system error. I didn't even get a glorious blue screen of death. I just kept looking at my black screen of horror.

Okay, it wasn't really a horror. It was more like an inconvenience. I was at a crossroads. Should I attempt to salvage all data on my hard drive and throw out the laptop, or should I save it by getting a new hard drive and reinstalling Windows?

I opted with the former. These days, I can get a faster, more powerful laptop than spending hours trying to fix old technology.

I am not your average technical writing gal. My undergraduate degree was computer science, which was my major. I had friends during those days call me a techie because I fiddled with my computers over the years. I swapped out and upgraded hard disks. I changed sound cards and CD-ROM drives. I upgraded motherboards and added more RAM. 

To this day, I still like doing all these things, but I haven't needed to do it because I became a Mac user at home. I am lucky that I haven't had any issues with it. At work, I have a Windows-based laptop and don't have the luxury of tearing it apart, whether I want to out of frustration or not!

So, last Saturday, I went to my local computer store. I walked through the main doors and was immediately greeted by a helpful male staff member.

"Can I help find something for you?"
"Yes, I'm looking for a hard drive enclosure," I stated.
"This way," he replied, leading me over to the proper aisle. "Computer or laptop?"
"Laptop," I replied. "I need a 2.5" enclosure."

I go to this store because I am not treated like a woman who knows nothing about computers. I get that often. However, after talking to me for a bit, you can tell that I know a decent amount to get by.

He was helpful. I bought my new enclosure, went home, took my laptop apart, and seated my laptop hard drive into the enclosure. I now have a new external hard disk drive with a USB 3.0 connection. All my files are there.

So, my next debate is whether I truly need a replacement laptop. I could use my work laptop, but there is so much encryption on it that it's just sluggish to do fun stuff on it. Fortunately, I am not under any pressure.

After I was done with graduate school, I bought a new Mac mini. It is my main computer at home ever since. The majority of my blog post are written from it and I have yet to complain about its performance.

I will miss my old laptop. My guy and I have spent many fine times talking on Skype. Lately, we both noticed that when I was using Skype on this laptop now and again that the connection would drop because Skype would hang. I do have fond memories of my conversations with him using this laptop. I should stick to using Skype from my phone or my tablet.