The Sounds of Silence
Posted by mojovator on April 16, 2008
Tick-tock, tick-tock, tick-tock goes the big clock above the sliding door. Percolator purring kitty on my lap. A motorcycle ripping down the street in the distance. A train whistle from the tracks across town. The buzz of a small aircraft flying overhead, getting louder as it closes in on the house then fades as it continues to travel east. Truck engines humming, overlapped by the train, tick-tock of the clock, percolator purring, and the slightest electrical buzzing from my laptop. A regular concerto! It’s cool to hear the sounds of silence.
I seldom have the house to myself, especially in the evening. As much as I am energized by the hustle and bustle of the day, strategizing, problem solving, thinking, analyzing… I am grateful for moments like this. It’s rejuvenating. Feels like the air getting pumped back into the deflated pool toy after it was out in the sun all day. I’m so tired I could fall asleep at my keyboard but writing is relaxing. It’s like when you tip your head sideways and thump the side of it to get the water out of your ear. That’s what it feels like when I’m writing after a day like today.
Don’t get me wrong, today wasn’t a bad day, just draining. I had to be into work by 7:!5am to prep for a presentation that included the president as a member of the audience. Outside vendor was the presenter but I’m one of the “leads” (it’s a long story, sordid and aggravating, not the vendor, the politics of the situation) on the project. First meeting was 2+ hours straight. Then 30 minute break. Then (4) 1-hour focus groups. Followed by a 30 minute break. Followed by a 75 minute meeting that included the president again, which ended triumphantly. Another 30 minute meeting. Then straight away to an appointment from 6-7pm. Home at 7:15. Now, 12 hours may not seem like a long day but at the level of sustain that was necessary to accomplish the day’s goal, it felt much longer.
A bowl of cereal and two pieces of toast smeared with some organic not-quite-peanut-butter-spread constituted dinner (it was all the energy I felt like exerting to feed myself). And now it’s almost 9pm. One more quick business call to make and the day will be officially over. BRB.
Okay, not so quick after all. But a good debriefing about the days’ work.
Tomorrow’s to-do list: On to even bigger and better things.
