I don't know.... I just simply don't know. You want to know what's going on and I really don't have a straight answer for you....
It's been a while since I wrote, and that's due mostly to the lack of stability of late I think. It seems I need to be in a routine to be able to write consistently and that's just not been the case. And the way things are going, it's probably never likely to be either. So instead I have to adapt to writing whenever I "get a few minutes".
So let's start with today - being Tuesday. Started off early (5am GMT) with a lift from Gunny to the airport. And why would I be going to the airport on a work day? Well, because that's where the aeroplanes are - and specifically an aeroplane to take me to New York.
Yes, Pooh (who regular readers will know as the badman) has officially got the band back together and he and I are working on yet another deal with our colleagues from across the pond in the good old U S of A.
True to form and just like on the last one, he's managed to book his holiday perfectly coinciding with a requirement to be in the states and so it has fallen to me (in my role as right hand tigger) to roll up and tell everyone in a loud voice that "I am not pooh!" - a fact that not everyone agrees with, but those that don't, know very little about much of anything. I am actually quite good (so not pooh at all - do you see what I did there?) - especially at telling people what pooh & I think of them without them getting too irate about it.
After a rough and bumpy ride, I arrived in Newark a little after midday and made my way to the ground transportation to find a cabby who was happy to relieve me of the best part of $100 for the privilege of a lift into Manhattan. I'm no ensconced in a "business hotel" which is extremely practical, and generally warm and friendly. All the amenities seem to be up to scratch and as yet I've found nothing to grumble about.
A conversation with Pooh and a catchup of my emails left me with the feeling that I really don't have a clue what's going on and I might just end up walking into the office on Wednesday morning to a firing squad. With that in mind, I decided instead of having a look around the city, I'd show up at the office and bite the bullet ahead of schedule. In retrospect, this was a genius plan. I'm now much happier with the situation - have laid out some of our grievances and laid the groundwork for expectations for the rest of my trip. As a result, there is much to do - but possibly not as much as I'd originally feared.
It's also worth sharing a little gem that I have learned in my time - that the unseen ogre, often turns out to be a pussy cat when encountered face to face - and that has proven to be the case yet again. The team over here experience exactly the same problems that Pooh and I experience over there. We're really not that differ at all, and in many ways we're very much the same.
In short, my early trip into work was time well spent and Pooh would be proud. There IS still work to be done, but we have an understanding of sorts.
Back to the hotel by 8pm EST (meaning I've been at this for almost 20 hours straight) and I need to get something to eat with a beer chaser. However, this didn't go particularly to plan... Like a dumbstruck rabbit tourist caught in the headlights of Times Square I wound up just wandering and staring open mouthed at the bright city lights and not finding a beer at all. In the end it was a slice of takeaway pizza (nothing like an English takeaway pizza) and back to the hotel to collapse into a fitful sleep....ZZZZZzzzzzz
For those of you that were hoping for a movie review or two - never let it be said that I don't provide. Here's what I watched on the plane...
A Night To Remember - The original Titanic story based on the book by Peter Lord. Probably not the right selection to be watching whilst travelling over the Atlantic ocean, and even more so when it's so close to the 100 year anniversary of the tragedy that took place on April 14th 1912. However, in my opinion it is far superior to the James Cameron 1997 version. 9/10
Moneyball - Brad Pitt and the Oakland A's. This tells the story of baseball general manager (Bobby Beane) and his selection of the team that broke an old baseball record of a 20 streak of unbeaten games. The selection of the team was based on a mathematical formula created by an accountant and brought back to life by graduate. Some marvellous sports based drama which doesn't really require a huge amount of knowledge on the subject. Also includes some great shots of Fenway Park (Home of the Boston Redsox) which provides some sort of personal synchronicity for me having spent my lat US trip in Boston and knowing a little tiny bit about "The curse of the Bambino". Overall 8/10.
Until tomorrow....
This post originally appeared here: Posterous
Cunning use of capitals and lower case. You are indeed neither Pooh nor pooh...
ReplyDelete... However, if a tree falls in a wood do the Bear or the Pope hear it? ...
... and why is the rabbit looking for a packet wet wipes?
Because I know that you know these things you will be fine in America. It is, after all, like Tewkesbury only larger.