I'm a walking accident. Seriously...a walking accident.
I'm in the Atlanta airport, and I'm traveling between the two terminals. I have just exited the little train and I'm deciding which direction to take. I'm just standing, and I do a very slow 180 with my bag in tow.
That's when the accident happened. This woman, who must have been in a dead sprint, hits my bag and goes flying. Fall down, go boom does not do it justice. She hit the marble floor so hard, and I felt horrible.
I know that I wasn't responsible. It was an accident, but she wasn't even crying, and I felt like I should. She got up, and her elbow had a dent in it...not even kidding. It was bleeding and had a dent. I dented a woman...not a car...a woman.
Two men and an airline employee stopped to help her. I had bandaids handy so we were able to patch her up, but one was an ex-medic who thought she had a compound fracture. How the hell does this type of stuff happen to me? Yes you might think, after reading some of my other entries, that I would usually be the person on the falling end, but my new rolling briefcase, that was supposed to make my life easier while on the road, broke a woman's elbow.
Damn.
Tuesday, October 31, 2006
Monday, October 30, 2006
Washed Up Rockstars Behaving Badly
This time the location is Chicago. My co-workers and I were exhausted after working a very long information session on Saturday. We were at the end of a long week and food was calling our name (right after shopping - a girl has her priorities).
We headed to a quaint French restaurant where we were kindly greeted by the hostess. As she checking on table availability, a man walked in behind us.
Dressed in jeans, a t-shirt and a ball cap he wasn't exactly memorable. The events that however transpired were.
He started talking to us about how although his band had won a couple of Grammys in the 90's, he was still a nice guy. That often people think fame changes you, but he wasn't like that.
He then turns to the hostess and demands a table for ten and room for 3 stretchers. I'm sitting there thinking that maybe the wounded should have been best to leave behind in the hospital, but then he elaborates to let us know they are 3 white stretch limos.
After his demands were addressed, he grabs us and pulls us to the bar claiming that since we were without drinks, we were hobos.
Slamming a $100 bill on the bar, he tells the bartender to get us whatever we like, but his attention is soon distracted.
He spots the manager of the restaurant and starts ranting and raving about the manager's suit and how he was a wannabe and a bozo and that he needed to inform him of his poor fashion decision.
As he informs the manager, there is all of a sudden a huge shift and expletives start flying through the air. He starts yelling at the manager calling him ...well very not nice names. He turns to the rest of the restaurant and began yelling, "I made 7.5 million last year. I'm above all you [naughty bad word] on the food chain. Yeah the band has been out of the spot light..our choice...our choice. I don't need to tolerate this treatment."
After his outburst, he proceeded to scream naughty bad words and storm out of the restaurant.
I have no idea what band he was with...his face was no one that I recognized. So I guess fame doesn't change you, but the complete lack of fame makes for one cranky wannabe rocker.
We headed to a quaint French restaurant where we were kindly greeted by the hostess. As she checking on table availability, a man walked in behind us.
Dressed in jeans, a t-shirt and a ball cap he wasn't exactly memorable. The events that however transpired were.
He started talking to us about how although his band had won a couple of Grammys in the 90's, he was still a nice guy. That often people think fame changes you, but he wasn't like that.
He then turns to the hostess and demands a table for ten and room for 3 stretchers. I'm sitting there thinking that maybe the wounded should have been best to leave behind in the hospital, but then he elaborates to let us know they are 3 white stretch limos.
After his demands were addressed, he grabs us and pulls us to the bar claiming that since we were without drinks, we were hobos.
Slamming a $100 bill on the bar, he tells the bartender to get us whatever we like, but his attention is soon distracted.
He spots the manager of the restaurant and starts ranting and raving about the manager's suit and how he was a wannabe and a bozo and that he needed to inform him of his poor fashion decision.
As he informs the manager, there is all of a sudden a huge shift and expletives start flying through the air. He starts yelling at the manager calling him ...well very not nice names. He turns to the rest of the restaurant and began yelling, "I made 7.5 million last year. I'm above all you [naughty bad word] on the food chain. Yeah the band has been out of the spot light..our choice...our choice. I don't need to tolerate this treatment."
After his outburst, he proceeded to scream naughty bad words and storm out of the restaurant.
I have no idea what band he was with...his face was no one that I recognized. So I guess fame doesn't change you, but the complete lack of fame makes for one cranky wannabe rocker.
Wednesday, October 04, 2006
Ohi-NO!
On the border of West Virginia and Ohio lies the little sleepy town of Marietta, Ohio. I'm a fan of small towns, love the little cafes and craft shops, but this was no charming small town. The streets were bare and funeral parlors lined the roads. Was this where Ohio sent their elderly to die?
Desperate to answer all of our awaiting student emails, Jesse, a co-worker, and I searched for a coffee shop to enjoy a cup of joe and get to work in between our class visit and our scheduled fair.
Marietta is the home of Marietta College. What is one thing that you would think all college campuses would have, large or small? Ok yes drunken coeds, but more importantly you would find a coffee shop. Having gone to a small institution myself, my campus had three coffee shops and only one stop light. Surely this would be the case in a town with three stop lights and a Mexican Restaurant.
We searched in vain, and then resorted to asking the lone college students that would appear as if out of no where. Slowing down our white PT Cruiser (uh...can you say pimpin?), we approached these young academics and inquired about the whereabouts of a coffee house.
It was as if we had asked where their local rocket base was located. Like I had said, so can you point me in the direction of your local puppy killing farm. A look of bewilderment crossed their faces, a pained expression, and then only the answer, "No," came from their lips. No? Yes, no...no coffee shops.
Finally after trying several weirded out college students, we managed to find the only coffee shop. As we entered this cozy little establishment (and by cozy, I mean barely able to contain the three tables within), the man questioned, "Well where are you ladies from? I can tell you aren't from around these parts?"
"Really how come?", we asked.
"Because you have all your teeth," he retorted. A simple answer, for a simple town.
Ahhh the memories that I'm already making.
Desperate to answer all of our awaiting student emails, Jesse, a co-worker, and I searched for a coffee shop to enjoy a cup of joe and get to work in between our class visit and our scheduled fair.
Marietta is the home of Marietta College. What is one thing that you would think all college campuses would have, large or small? Ok yes drunken coeds, but more importantly you would find a coffee shop. Having gone to a small institution myself, my campus had three coffee shops and only one stop light. Surely this would be the case in a town with three stop lights and a Mexican Restaurant.
We searched in vain, and then resorted to asking the lone college students that would appear as if out of no where. Slowing down our white PT Cruiser (uh...can you say pimpin?), we approached these young academics and inquired about the whereabouts of a coffee house.
It was as if we had asked where their local rocket base was located. Like I had said, so can you point me in the direction of your local puppy killing farm. A look of bewilderment crossed their faces, a pained expression, and then only the answer, "No," came from their lips. No? Yes, no...no coffee shops.
Finally after trying several weirded out college students, we managed to find the only coffee shop. As we entered this cozy little establishment (and by cozy, I mean barely able to contain the three tables within), the man questioned, "Well where are you ladies from? I can tell you aren't from around these parts?"
"Really how come?", we asked.
"Because you have all your teeth," he retorted. A simple answer, for a simple town.
Ahhh the memories that I'm already making.
Thursday, September 14, 2006
New Job, New City
Forsyth Park
Row of historic houses
My office
My office's square
Well there ya go...an overview of what I know of Savannah so far...it is pretty and where my office is located. I'll have to update y'all with something more exciting once I get to know this place and job a little better....and oh yeah, if I ever meet any friends. :) Until then, just let the beauty of Savannah entice you to come visit me.
Monday, September 11, 2006
Up the Creek Without A...
...Paddle, Boat, Clue. What a time in Nigeria. I can't really begin to describe the time I had there. It was a good experience - no doubt - but I can't see myself rushing back to visit again. The children are amazing but the adults are not so great. Geographically it's a stunning country, but the big cities tend to spoil it with their overcrowding and pollution. It'll be interesting to see what comes of it. Hopefully the oil companies who have set themselves up in the south will begin to invest some money back into the economy. I hope these pics give you a glimpse of what my time was like there...
This is Aso Rock in Abuja. This is what the
landscape is like in Jos where Ben Onono's
family is from.
This is our driver Ado. He didn't wear deoderant and I was reminded of the fact everytime I opened the door to his minivan. Ewww!
This is Alex and I in Jos. The Onono's home town.
The name of this statue is the Statue of the Big Woman - very inventive. They're really into statues of women breastfeeding for some reason.
From Jos we made our way to a game reserve about 2 1/2 hrs. north. We arranged for a driver to take us there who were were told had a very reliable car. These are some kids we met on the side of the road selling fruit.
This is us on the side of the road after our driver with the very reliable car broke down. That's me on the right with wet naps going to do a woodsie.
So we had to hail down a bush taxi to take us to the game reserve. As it opened it's doors to us this boy's chickens flew out and he spent a few minutes rounding them up before we could continue on the journey.
In the game reserve we experienced another road trouble in that an 18 wheeler was blocking the path so the locals, instead of trying to move the 18 wheeler, just cut down the trees on one side so we could go around. There's a baboon, that we saw. It didn't wipe it's bottom and it was really gross.
This was the entrance to the warm springs.
That's me in the warm springs looking tired b/c our 2 1/2 hr journey took 4 1/2 and we only had 45 minutes there b/c we couldn't travel at night.
After Jos we flew to Lagos. Near Lagos is a town called Badagry that was a huge port for slave trade. The people of this village had to pass through something called the Point of No Return. From there they would be shipped to the US or Europe. 1 in 5 surived the journey. After hearing the horrors of this I was greeted by my favorite baby in Nigeria relaxing under a table with some puppies. How fat is that baby?!?!
These are some more kids from Badagry. They loved my digital camera.
This is a boat we rented in Lagos. We took it to Tarkwa Bay where Alex was greeted by the Equator Sun and turned a bright shade of lobster.
This is the infamous Lagos 'go slow' - their version of a traffic jam. NUTS!!! People go in between lanes and sell you all kinds of things from ironing boards to the ever important toilet seat.
That's it! What a trip! How exhausting/interesting...we'll see where's next to conquer.
Lots of love,
Court
This is Aso Rock in Abuja. This is what the
landscape is like in Jos where Ben Onono's
family is from.
This is our driver Ado. He didn't wear deoderant and I was reminded of the fact everytime I opened the door to his minivan. Ewww!
This is Alex and I in Jos. The Onono's home town.
The name of this statue is the Statue of the Big Woman - very inventive. They're really into statues of women breastfeeding for some reason.
From Jos we made our way to a game reserve about 2 1/2 hrs. north. We arranged for a driver to take us there who were were told had a very reliable car. These are some kids we met on the side of the road selling fruit.
This is us on the side of the road after our driver with the very reliable car broke down. That's me on the right with wet naps going to do a woodsie.
So we had to hail down a bush taxi to take us to the game reserve. As it opened it's doors to us this boy's chickens flew out and he spent a few minutes rounding them up before we could continue on the journey.
In the game reserve we experienced another road trouble in that an 18 wheeler was blocking the path so the locals, instead of trying to move the 18 wheeler, just cut down the trees on one side so we could go around. There's a baboon, that we saw. It didn't wipe it's bottom and it was really gross.
This was the entrance to the warm springs.
That's me in the warm springs looking tired b/c our 2 1/2 hr journey took 4 1/2 and we only had 45 minutes there b/c we couldn't travel at night.
After Jos we flew to Lagos. Near Lagos is a town called Badagry that was a huge port for slave trade. The people of this village had to pass through something called the Point of No Return. From there they would be shipped to the US or Europe. 1 in 5 surived the journey. After hearing the horrors of this I was greeted by my favorite baby in Nigeria relaxing under a table with some puppies. How fat is that baby?!?!
These are some more kids from Badagry. They loved my digital camera.
This is a boat we rented in Lagos. We took it to Tarkwa Bay where Alex was greeted by the Equator Sun and turned a bright shade of lobster.
This is the infamous Lagos 'go slow' - their version of a traffic jam. NUTS!!! People go in between lanes and sell you all kinds of things from ironing boards to the ever important toilet seat.
That's it! What a trip! How exhausting/interesting...we'll see where's next to conquer.
Lots of love,
Court
Thursday, August 17, 2006
Friday, August 11, 2006
Corporate Accounts, Brooke Speaking...Just a Moment
Sometimes I think I'm wearing a shirt that says, "All weirdos please approach and be weird!"
I was in the midst of a conversation with Brittany as I walked into the building that houses Starbucks Regional Headquarters (my temp job from the land of boredom). I noticed an older man, about 60, kind of check me out which of course made me feel weird....down there. I didn't really think much of it because who doesn't get checked out at least daily by old Greek men?
I bet you are wondering, "Hmmm...how does she know he was Greek? Was he too wearing a novelty t-shirt maybe stating his love for Feta?" I found out because as mentioned above he decided to approach and be weird.
The following is a transcript of the conversation:
Creepy Old Greek (COG): Excuse me....(in heavy Greek accent)
Brooke (BG): Britt hold on for a sec (to the phone)...yes? (to COG)
COG: I have woman upstairs interviewing for receptionist. Her name is Becky. Are you Becky?
BG: Um..no (look of confusion).
COG: I need receptionist. Answer phones. You answer phones? You a receptionist? You want job?
BG: I'm sorry (thoughts that this man might have escaped from the local mental institution/nursing home run through head). I just actually accepted a job, but thank you.
COG: Yes...I thought that was you (Exit stage Left).
BG: Right...
Brittany: "What just happened?"
BG: "I just got offered a job to be a creepy old guy's receptionist."
After I returned upstairs to tell my co-workers (the one that talks to me) about how weird that was. She looks quite a bit like me (lucky gal), and stopped me mid-sentence. She asked if he offered me a job. She then revealed that he asks her about every other day if she wants to be his receptionist.
So yes, I'm on to the COG and his ploy to recruit a plethora of blonde receptionists to be at his beck and call, and I quickly went back downstairs and gave him Carrington's number.
JK!!!!
I was in the midst of a conversation with Brittany as I walked into the building that houses Starbucks Regional Headquarters (my temp job from the land of boredom). I noticed an older man, about 60, kind of check me out which of course made me feel weird....down there. I didn't really think much of it because who doesn't get checked out at least daily by old Greek men?
I bet you are wondering, "Hmmm...how does she know he was Greek? Was he too wearing a novelty t-shirt maybe stating his love for Feta?" I found out because as mentioned above he decided to approach and be weird.
The following is a transcript of the conversation:
Creepy Old Greek (COG): Excuse me....(in heavy Greek accent)
Brooke (BG): Britt hold on for a sec (to the phone)...yes? (to COG)
COG: I have woman upstairs interviewing for receptionist. Her name is Becky. Are you Becky?
BG: Um..no (look of confusion).
COG: I need receptionist. Answer phones. You answer phones? You a receptionist? You want job?
BG: I'm sorry (thoughts that this man might have escaped from the local mental institution/nursing home run through head). I just actually accepted a job, but thank you.
COG: Yes...I thought that was you (Exit stage Left).
BG: Right...
Brittany: "What just happened?"
BG: "I just got offered a job to be a creepy old guy's receptionist."
After I returned upstairs to tell my co-workers (the one that talks to me) about how weird that was. She looks quite a bit like me (lucky gal), and stopped me mid-sentence. She asked if he offered me a job. She then revealed that he asks her about every other day if she wants to be his receptionist.
So yes, I'm on to the COG and his ploy to recruit a plethora of blonde receptionists to be at his beck and call, and I quickly went back downstairs and gave him Carrington's number.
JK!!!!
Monday, July 31, 2006
Thursday, July 27, 2006
Artsy Fartsy
Thank you to everyone who contributed their very valuable opinions to my career options. It was an overwhelming victory in favor of the Savannah College of Art and Design, and I have accepted a job with them to commence on September 5th. So yes finally I have a job!!!! Woo hoo...confetti....trumpets...applause!
I do believe that I will have to steal Russell and Luke's line, "Now THAT is art!", for when I visit all these aspiring, beret wearing, splatter painting artists in the making. Don't worry I will not be converted into calling a pile o' poo art....unless its in a heart shape..."Now THAT is art!"
Works everytime.
I do believe that I will have to steal Russell and Luke's line, "Now THAT is art!", for when I visit all these aspiring, beret wearing, splatter painting artists in the making. Don't worry I will not be converted into calling a pile o' poo art....unless its in a heart shape..."Now THAT is art!"
Works everytime.
Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Two Roads Diverged in a Yellow Wood
Hey there avid blog readers. I need your help. I've come upon a cross road, and being a woman, I'm asking for directions. Here's the deal. I've been offered two job opportunities.
1) Savannah College of Art and Design - Student Recruitment - Savannah, Georgia
2) Balcones Resources (yes Daddy's company) - Sales and Client Relationship Management - Farmers Branch, Texas
What is a girl to do? Stay in Dallas and save money? Go to Savannah and experience its beauty and travel?
So take a vote...your gut instinct. What do you think I should do? What do you think I would be better at? I need your input and advice.
Brooke
1) Savannah College of Art and Design - Student Recruitment - Savannah, Georgia
2) Balcones Resources (yes Daddy's company) - Sales and Client Relationship Management - Farmers Branch, Texas
What is a girl to do? Stay in Dallas and save money? Go to Savannah and experience its beauty and travel?
So take a vote...your gut instinct. What do you think I should do? What do you think I would be better at? I need your input and advice.
Brooke
Friday, July 14, 2006
A Love Letter to London
Dear London,
Why did you have to ruin me the way you did? No other cities will come close to your sophistication, class and entertaining ways. I will look at all other cities with disdain because they are not my fair London.
I miss you like the sails miss the wind. Remember our song? I can't even listen to it without tearing up. I know I'm pathetic, but I just can't seem to get over you.
Isn't there someway you can take me back? Its true, I admit it, I am an Anglophile, and you are the reason London. You have broken me in so many ways, and now I will do whatever it takes for us to be reunited.
Please don't make me beg. You know how I feel. It hurts enough as it is, and I dream of the days when I'll be back on your cobblestone streets and drinking in your pubs. I am a broken woman.
Yours always and forever,
Brooke
Why did you have to ruin me the way you did? No other cities will come close to your sophistication, class and entertaining ways. I will look at all other cities with disdain because they are not my fair London.
I miss you like the sails miss the wind. Remember our song? I can't even listen to it without tearing up. I know I'm pathetic, but I just can't seem to get over you.
Isn't there someway you can take me back? Its true, I admit it, I am an Anglophile, and you are the reason London. You have broken me in so many ways, and now I will do whatever it takes for us to be reunited.
Please don't make me beg. You know how I feel. It hurts enough as it is, and I dream of the days when I'll be back on your cobblestone streets and drinking in your pubs. I am a broken woman.
Yours always and forever,
Brooke
Saturday, May 13, 2006
.... New Forest bound
Well, it's been a while since we posted on the blog so we thought we'd add some photos.
Later this afternoon we're off to Bob & Joyce's in the New Forest. (http://www.thenewforest.co.uk/) Bob has made some home brew ale and both Alex and myself are slightly concerned.
The weather over here is nice now - we actually have the doors to our apartment open most of the time. Brittany... book your flights!!! Actually, while we're on flights, we want y'all to come over this summer / sometime this year. And dad ... we don't have to stay more than a day in London - we can take you down to Devon (see photos) and stay at Pat & Pete's the rest of the time.
Later this afternoon we're off to Bob & Joyce's in the New Forest. (http://www.thenewforest.co.uk/) Bob has made some home brew ale and both Alex and myself are slightly concerned.
The weather over here is nice now - we actually have the doors to our apartment open most of the time. Brittany... book your flights!!! Actually, while we're on flights, we want y'all to come over this summer / sometime this year. And dad ... we don't have to stay more than a day in London - we can take you down to Devon (see photos) and stay at Pat & Pete's the rest of the time.
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