24-VII-2003.
As usual, the only downside of the elevation is that the first cigarette in the morning would kick me like a mule, so that I'd have to sit. When it happened the first time, back in march, I was lucky to have a chair nearby. After that I'd sit first and light next. Everything else that they told me would happen - that I'd be thirsty, have trouble going uphill, gasp for air at times - didn't materialize. All normal.
The four of us got in one car, the others in the other, and drove first a few blocks south of the office, which is at the south business zone of Cueblo anyway, to get a breakfast. This time why not, I never earned this much. On the parking lot, some missus had a tiny dog, lighter than a chihuahua, actually larger but weighing less. The legs and tail were more like drawn lines than leaving an impression of containing actual bones. A cartoon. But it's a live creature too.
At breakfast I see that part of the gang was already there and eating mufljuzi (v. house dictionary) with blueberries and coffee... okay, can do, but I still think I took something else. Then the whole Colorado gang came (e.g. Emily, left on the photo, and K.M.). Then off to work, everyone carrying one's own laptop (owned by Orion, of course), which we left in the cars, there being about zero chance that they'd be stolen, everything around is flat and barren, nothing grows there.
That Myers-Briggs test, which I mistakenly shoved into 13-III-2003., was probably yesterday. The end result came to everyone by email, or maybe even on paper (or for which pretty [dick] would I put it among scanned stuff for august), so I can look at it at ease. With me in the same square (meaning we lean the same way in each of four groups of questions) are the director, one of Mikes (the one from Colorado), Bill M. (a foxer or Ceer). In the near neighborhood are my roommate, my neighbor (from Road Iland :), four considerable girls from support, and some two guys from the west coast. Jake is whole two steps away. Eh, frail is the memory, weak is the knowledge.
At least the description in my square is commending, „Quick, ingenious, stimulating, alert, and outspoken. Resourceful in solving new and challenging problems. Adept at generating conceptual possibilities and then analyzing them strategically. Good at reading other people. Bored by routine, will seldom do the same thing the same way, apt to turn to one new interest after another“. Of course, this can be construed as its opposite - „rushes in, claptraps, can't finish one thing before starting another, phantasizes and drags others into it...“, just like the celebratory poems in other fifteen squares can.
Joanne held a lecture of sorts... more and more it seems to me that she's no IT person at all, rather some general practice liberal arts, psychologist, organizer or some such. This lecture was mandatory for all, about various roles we fill at work, again not that we're all jacks of all trades in any sense, it's rather that during the day we do various things, now put this hat on, now that hat. For which she actually provided... caps. Okay, in american english these are hats too, which is funny to me - in serbian, it is not a hat if it doesn't have a brim all around, period, it's a cap then. And a helmet is neither a cap nor a hat, it's a helmet. There.
The caps she provided were the birthday funny ones, sized about twice an icecream cone, with an elastic strap. I don't quite remember her talk, just that I was browsing the crowd to see if anyone was more bored than me. But they all successfully pretended attention. Or the younger ones may have listened to it for real.
It seems to me that they indulge her because she's one of the six (or four?) founders-owners, and on top of that she thinks she has to be seen doing something. Ouch.
Luckily, the lecture was a purpose unto itself, pretty much just like the times when the pedagogue in MPSŠC tried to justify his own existence and held us hostage by means of a two hours oration for the whole staff room - the next day, and any other day, it was not just not mentioned at all, but barely anyone remembered that it ever happened.
By the end of the hours she announced, in an email, that there won't be any big party for all, the CEO is busy with something (or so is his wife), so we better get organized in groups, and preferrably one of the famous dinners at the bachelors' pad is due. For the latter I suggested I could do serbian barbecue, which was accepted. One of the hardware guys took me in his contraption of a truck, and we went off to buy meat, onions, ground pepper, salt, bread.
I didn't really amaze myself as a chef, the ćevapčići didn't turn out as good as I like them. Thanks to the plastic bottles, it's now easy to make a funnel anywhere. Back in the day, you needed a... ahem, sheet metal worker to make one for you. They turned out somewhat drier, but at least the folks liked them, even their children did. Too bad I stuck to the classic, just bread and onion, more various salad would be better. At least it got them thirsty.
Much later I perfected the technique - needs stronger fire, and lid on. I think the lid wasn't there at all, or I didn't dare put it on because the light was bad, most of the time I wasn't quite sure what I was doing, which is why they turned dry. It can be done without a lid, but needs more fire, or the grid lowered closer to it.
The beer wasn't bad. I think it was something Canadian, with deer on the label.
Mentions: 13-III-2003., Cueblo, ćevapčići, Emily Hoss, house dictionary, Jake Bauer, Joanne Stunter, MPSŠC, Orionware (Orion), in serbian